Radio receiving, recording and playback system

• US 7,058,376 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2002
• Issued: 06/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: TiVo Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Daniel M. Morton, James D. Logan
• Inventors: Morton, Daniel M., Logan, James D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Corsaro, Nick
• Application Number:
  US10/331,198
• Publication Number:
  US 20030163823A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 455 301- 306, 455/132, 455/142, 455/186.1, 455/318, 455/179.1, 455/185.1, 725/89, 725/102, 725/92
• US Class Current: 455/186.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/28 Arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/13 Arrangements for device control affected by the broadcast information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/27 Arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/74 using programme related information, e.g. title, composer or interpreter
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4335 Housekeeping operations, e.g. prioritizing content for deletion because of storage space restrictions storage management, e.g. defragmentation G06F3/0604; unloading stored programs G06F9/445; storage management in file systems G06F16/10; buffering arrangements in a network node or in an end terminal in packet networks H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/439 Processing of audio elementary streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4663 involving probabilistic networks, e.g. Bayesian networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 : for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4756 : for rating content, e.g. scoring a recommended movie
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 : Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 : communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 : End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4825 : using a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlists
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 : involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8352 : involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 : Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 : by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8547 : involving timestamps for synchronizing content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 : by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A radio receiver and storage unit which concurrently and continuously receives and records a plurality of separate, simultaneously broadcast programs, and then selectively reproduces desired programs at desired times. User interface buttons selectively perform the following five functions not available on a conventional radio: Pause: suspends the reproduction of the live or recorded programming currently being played; Save: permits the listener to save the complete content of a live program currently being reproduced; Jukebox: permits the listener can select and playback previously recorded programming; Mark: allows the user to “bookmark” a specific position on a program; and Options: permits the user to obtain information about available programming, or to perform less frequently used functions.

Claims

1. A radio reception and playback unit comprising, in combination,

a digital memory for storing broadcast program signals,

n tuners for simultaneously receiving n different broadcast program signals, where n is greater than one, each of said tuners having a digital output for continuously supplying a selected one of said broadcast program signals in digital form to said digital memory,

a playback device for reproducing a selected recorded program signal stored in said digital memory in an audible form perceptible to a listener, and

a user interface including n pushbuttons each associated with a corresponding one of said n tuners and each of which, when pressed, controls said playback device to reproduce a recorded broadcast program signal previously received by the corresponding one of said n tuners.

2. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said user interface further includes a skip control activated by said listener coupled to said playback device for reproducing content recorded at a different time from the tuner currently selected by the depressed one of the n pushbuttons.

3. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 1 further comprising means for storing bookmark data for identifying the start of different segments of said broadcast program signals recorded in said digital memory, and wherein said user interface includes a content navigation control for controlling said playback device to reproduce the segment identified by one of said bookmarks.

4. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for storing bookmark data includes means for accepting a marking signal from a listener for storing a bookmark the identifies that program segment currently being reproduced by said playback device to enable a program segment currently being reproduced to be replayed at a later time.

5. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for storing bookmark data includes signal processing means for analyzing said broadcast program signals to store bookmarks identifying locations where the content of said signals changes between music and talk.

6. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for storing bookmark data includes means for storing metadata which identifies detectable characteristics of said broadcast program signals and means for analyzing said program signals to store said bookmarks for identifying program segments containing said detectable characteristics.

7. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 6 wherein said means for storing metadata includes input means for importing said metadata from an external source.

8. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said user interface further includes a display for visually presenting information which identifies at least some of said broadcast program signals stored in said digital memory.

9. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 1 wherein said user interface includes means actuated by said listener for persistently saving that portion of the recorded broadcast program currently being reproduced by said playback unit.

10. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 8 further comprising

means for storing bookmarks for identifying the start of different segments of said broadcast program signals recorded in said digital memory, and wherein said

a user interface further includes a content navigation control for controlling said playback device to select and reproduce one of said different segments identified by one of said bookmarks.

11. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said means for storing bookmarks includes means for accepting a marking signal from said listener for storing a bookmark the identifies that program segment currently being reproduced by said playback unit to enable said program segment currently being reproduced to be replayed at a later time.

12. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said means for storing bookmarks includes signal processing means for analyzing said broadcast program signals to store bookmarks identifying locations where the content of said signals changes between music and talk.

13. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said means for storing bookmarks includes means for storing metadata which identifies detectable characteristics of said broadcast program signals and means for analyzing said program signal to store said bookmarks for identifying individual segments of said program signal containing said detectable characteristics.

14. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 13 wherein said means for storing metadata includes input means for importing said metadata from an external source.

15. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said user interface further includes a display for visually presenting information which identifies at least some of said segments of said broadcast program signals recorded in said digital memory.

16. A radio reception and playback unit as set forth in claim 10 wherein said user interface includes means actuated by said listener for persistently saving that portion of the recorded broadcast program currently being reproduced by said playback unit.