System for electronically controllably viewing on a television updateable television programming information

• US 4,751,578 A
• Filed: 05/28/1985
• Issued: 06/14/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/1985
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: David P. Gordon, Superguide Corporation
• Original Assignee: David P. Gordon
• Inventors: Shannon, Frank, Reiter, Eli, Zemering, Michael H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Tommy P.
• Application Number:
  US06/738,283
• Time in Patent Office: 1,113 Days
• Field of Search: 358/188, 358/194.1, 358/189, 358/190, 358/85, 358/191.1, 358/183, 358/903, 358/141, 358/142, 358/146, 358/147, 358/22, 455/151, 455/131, 455/603
• US Class Current: 348/564
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/08 Systems for the simultaneous or sequential transmission of more than one television signal, e.g. additional information signals, the signals occupying wholly or partially the same frequency band , e.g. by time division H04N7/007 takes precedence

Abstract

The electronically controllable system of the invention for viewing on a television, updateable television programming information comprises a microcontroller which is partially controllable by remote control system and is updateable via telephone link, magnetic cards or floppy disks, or television or radio subcarrier, the microcontroller including input/output interfaces, a microprocessor and a RAM; a mixer for mixing a regularly received television signal with the signal generated by the microcontroller; an RF converter for receiving the radio frequency information from the mixer, microcontroller, and television antennae and properly converting the information into information which may be sent to the television; and a remote control system for permitting the viewer to direct the microcontroller to perform searches on information contained in the RAM so as to provide on the television screen in a chosen format, subsets of information desired by the viewer. The system preferably also includes a ROM for directing the microcontroller to access the information link should the RAM lose information due to power failure.

Claims

1. A system for electronically controllably viewing updateable information on a television having a screen comprising:

(a) a microcontroller including input/output interfaces, a microprocessor, and an updateable memory comprising at least a RAM, said RAM of said microcontroller being updateable via an electronic medium and storing updated information including at least television programming information;

(b) a mixer for mixing a regularly received television signal with the signal generated by the microcontroller in accord with instructions of said microcontroller;

(c) an RF section for receiving instructions from said microcontroller and for receiving radio frequency information from the mixer and a television station and properly converting the information into video signals which may be sent to said television for viewing; and

(d) a remote control system, said microcontroller being controllable by said remote control system, for permitting a viewer of said television to direct said microcontroller to perform a search on at least said updated television programming information contained in said RAM of said microcontroller, a subset of at least said updated television programming information being output to said mixer so as to provide on the television screen television programming information desired by the viewer in a desired format.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said electronic medium for updating said RAM comprises telecommunications means including a central station computer and a modem.

3. A system according to claim 2, further comprising:

(e) a ROM for communicating with said central station computer after a power outage to said system for electronically controllably viewing updateable information.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said electronic medium for updating said RAM comprises an electromagnetic record.

5. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said electronic medium for updating said RAM comprises a radio frequency subcarrier.

6. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said information contained in said updateable memory includes further advertising information.

7. A system according to claim 6, further comprising:

(e) sound converting means, wherein said updateable memory stores digital sound information.

8. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said desired format of said information desired by said viewer is as a window in the picture resulting from said regularly received television signal.

9. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said desired format of said information desired by said viewer is as an overlay on the picture resulting from said regularly received television signal.

10. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said desired format of said information desired by said viewer is a full screen display.

11. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said television programming information provided to said screen includes at least the time, channel and program name of at least one scheduled televised program.

12. A system according to claim 1, wherein:

said information provided to said screen includes information regarding at least two scheduled television programs.

13. A system for electronically controllably viewing updateable information on a television having a screen, comprising:

(a) a microcontroller including input/output interfaces, a microprocessor, and an updateable memory for maintaining a data base of information, said updateable memory of said microcontroller being updateable via an electronic medium;

(b) a mixer for mixing a regularly received television signal with the signal generated by the microcontroller in accord with instructions of said microcontroller;

(c) an RF section for receiving instructions from said microcontroller and for receiving radio frequency information from the mixer and a television station and properly converting the information into video signals which may be sent to said television screen for viewing; and

(d) a remote control system which can control said microcontroller, for permitting a viewer of said television to direct said microcontroller to perform a search on said data base information contained in said updateable memory of said microcontroller, wherein

said data base information comprises at least television scheduling information having code indicative of at least scheduled airing date and time of day, such that said microcontroller, upon direction from a viewer via said remote control system, may search said data base for the television scheduling information for a predetermined interval of days and time of day which is the intersection of the subset of said information having code indicative of said predetermined date interval and said subset of said information having code indicative of said predetermined time interval, and

as a result of said search, said intersection of subsets of said information data base is output to said mixer so as to provide on the television screen the information desired to be viewed by the viewer in a desired format.

14. A system according to claim 13, wherein:

said television scheduling information of said data base includes code indicative of subject matter, such that said search on said data base is by at least date, time of day, and subject matter, and such that said subset of information output to said mixer is at least the group of television programs of at least a predetermined subject matter scheduled to be aired during a given date interval and time of day interval, which is the intersection of the subset of said data base information including code indicative of said predetermined subject matter with the subset of data base information including code indicative of said date interval with the subset of data base information including code indicative of said time interval.

15. A system according to claim 14, wherein:

said updateable memory comprises a RAM, and said electronic medium for updating said RAM is selected from a group consisting of an electromagnetic record, a radio frequency subcarrier, and a central station computer with a telephonic link and a modem.

16. A system according to claim 15, wherein said electronic medium consists of a central station computer with a telephonic link and a modem, further comprising:

(e) a ROM for communicating with said central station computer after a power outage to said system for electronically controllably viewing updateable information.

17. A system according to claim 15, wherein:

said desired format of said information desired by said viewer is selected from a group consisting of, a full screen display, an overlay on the picture resulting from said regularly received television signal, and a window in the picture resulting from said regularly received television signal.

18. A system according to claim 14, wherein:

said data base of information contained in said updateable memory includes advertising information.

19. A system according to claim 18, further comprising:

(e) sound converting means, wherein said updateable memory stores digital sound information in said data base.