System and method for providing internet content using hybrid wireless and wire technologies at the end user site

• US 6,810,413 B1
• Filed: 06/30/2000
• Issued: 10/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: GC Pivotal LLC (GTT Communications, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Covad Communications Group Incorporated
• Inventors: Marquardt, Ronald R., Rajakarunanayake, Yasantha N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Barot, Bharat
• Application Number:
  US09/609,571
• Time in Patent Office: 1,579 Days
• Field of Search: 709/200-207, 709/217-219, 709/227-229, 707/9-10, 707/100, 707/104.1, 725/105-106, 725/109-110, 725/112, 725/115
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18513 Transmission in a satellite or space-based system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/63 Routing a service request depending on the request content or context
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/24 Negotiation of communication capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

Systems and methods for content delivery, such as Internet content, using hybrid wireless technology, such as satellite technology, and wire technology, such as twisted pair, cable, and fiber optic, at the end user site are disclosed. The system generally comprises a client premise equipment (CPE) at an end user subscriber site configured to send a request for content and to receive requested content signals and a wireless receiver at the end user site in communication with the CPE, the wireless receiver being configured to wirelessly receive the requested content signals. The CPE is in communication with a content request server adapted to receive the end content request via a wire connection and the CPE is configured to receive the requested content signals selectively transmitted by the content request server via one of the wire connection and wireless receiver. The wire connection may be over a twisted pair, cable, and/or fiber optic. Where the wire connection is over a twisted pair, the wire connection may use digital subscriber line (DSL) technology and optionally includes an ATM network.

Claims

1. A system for content delivery to an end user subscriber using hybrid wireless and wire technologies at an end user subscriber site, comprising:

a client premise equipment at an end user subscriber site, said client premise equipment being configured to send an end user subscriber request for content and to receive requested content signals;

a wireless receiver at the end user site in communication with said client premise equipment, said wireless receiver being configured to wirelessly receive said requested content signals;

said client premise equipment being in communication with a content request server adapted to receive said end user subscriber request for content via a wire connection;

said client premise equipment being further configured to receive said requested content signals selectively transmitted by the content request server via one of said wire connection and wireless receiver.

2. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, wherein said wire connection is selected from the group consisting of twisted pair, cable, and fiber optic.

3. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, wherein said wire connection between said client premise equipment and said content request server is over a twisted pair using digital subscriber line technology for transmission of said request for content and said requested content signals.

4. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 3, wherein said wire connection between said client premise equipment and said content request server includes an ATM network.

5. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, further comprising:

the content request server in communication with said client premise equipment, said content request server being adapted to receive said end user subscriber request for content via said wire connection; and

a transmitter in communication with said content request server and configured to transmit signals received from said content request server, said transmitter being in wireless communication with said wireless receiver at the end user site.

6. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, further comprising a second transmitter in communication with said transmitter and configured to transmit signals received from said transmitter, said second transmitter being in wireless communication with said wireless receiver at the end user site.

7. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, wherein said content request server is in communication with the Internet.

8. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, further comprising a satellite downlink in communication with said content request server, said satellite downlink being in wireless communication with a satellite adapted to transmit said requested content signals to said content request server via said satellite downlink.

9. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 1, wherein said requested content is selected from the group consisting of a webpage and streaming data.

10. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 9, wherein when the requested content is streaming data, the requested content is received by the client premise equipment via the wireless receiver.

11. The hybrid wire and wireless system for content delivery to the end user subscriber of claim 9, wherein when the requested content is a webpage, the requested content is received by the client premise equipment via the wire connection.

12. A method for requesting and receiving content at an end user subscriber site using wireless technology and wire technology, comprising:

transmitting an end user subscriber request for content via a client premise equipment at the end user subscriber site to a content request server over a wire connection to the content request server;

receiving requested content signals at the client premise equipment from the content request server via one of the wire connection to the content request server and a wireless connection to the content request server; and

selectively transmitting the requested content signals via one of said wire connection and wireless connection by the content request server.

13. The method for requesting and receiving content at the end user subscriber site of claim 12, wherein said selectively transmitting includes determining whether wireless transmission is supported at the end user subscriber client site.

14. The method for requesting and receiving content at the end user subscriber site of claim 12, wherein said transmitting the end user subscriber request for content is transmitting over one of twisted pair, cable, and fiber optic.

15. The method for requesting and receiving content at the end user subscriber site of claim 12, wherein said transmitting the end user subscriber request for content to the content request server over the wire connection is transmitting over a twisted pair using digital subscriber line technology.

16. The method for requesting and receiving content at the end user subscriber site of claim 15, wherein said transmitting the end user subscriber request for content to the content request server over the wire connection includes transmitting over an ATM network.

17. The method for requesting and receiving content at the end user subscriber site of claim 12, wherein said receiving the requested content signals at the client premise equipment from the content request server via the wireless connection is via a wireless receiver at the end user subscriber site, the wireless receiver being in wireless communication with the content request server.

18. A system for delivery of content to an end user subscriber using wireless technology and wire technology at an end user subscriber site, comprising:

a server in communication with the Internet via a wire link and in communication with a client premise equipment at the end user subscriber site via a wire connection;

a wireless transmitter in communication with the server and configured to wirelessly transmit signals received from the server to the end user subscriber site;

wherein in response to receiving a content request from the end user subscriber via the wire connection, the server selectively transmits requested content to the end user via one of the wireless transmitter and the wire connection.

19. The system for delivery of content to an end user subscriber according to claim 18, further comprising a satellite downlink in communication with the server, the satellite downlink configured to wirelessly receive content signals from a transmitting satellite.

20. The system for delivery of content to an end user subscriber according to claim 19, wherein the server transmits the requested content to the end user via the wireless transmitter when the server receives the requested content from the satellite downlink and the server transmits the requested content to the end user via wire connection when the server receives the requested content from the Internet.

21. The system for delivery of content to an end user subscriber according to claim 18, wherein the server selects transmission to the end user via one of the wireless transmitter and the wire connection based upon the content requested.

22. The system for delivery of content to an end user subscriber according to claim 18, wherein the wire connection between the client premise equipment at the end user subscriber site and the server is selected from the group consisting of twisted pair, cable, and fiber optic.