Emergency alert data delivery apparatus and methods

• US 8,026,806 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2009
• Issued: 09/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Inc. (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Gould, Kenneth, Hasek, Charles
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Phung
• Application Number:
  US12/563,874
• Publication Number:
  US 20100088718A1
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 340/539.16, 340/531, 340/517, 340/601, 340/691.1, 340/691.6, 370/466
• US Class Current: 340/539.16
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/085 using central distribution transmission lines
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/814 comprising emergency warnings arrangements specially adapted for emergency or urgency in broadcast systems H04H20/59; arrangements for providing alarms, notifications, alerts to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895

Abstract

Apparatus and methods for efficiently and flexibly providing emergency alert data (e.g., EAS messages) to subscribers of a content-based network, such as for example Internet protocol television (IPTV) subscribers. In one exemplary embodiment, the apparatus includes a server performing real-time receipt and encapsulation of the EAS data (which may comprise audio, video, and/or text), transport of the EAS data to client devices over the network, and use of one or more applications running on the client devices to decode and display/present the EAS data in a manner which effectively guarantees that it will be perceived by the viewer. In one variant, instant messaging (IM) infrastructure is used to authenticate clients and receive and display at least portion of the EAS data via a separate transport process. Server and client-side apparatus adapted for EAS data receipt, decoding and display are also disclosed.

Claims

1. In an Internet Protocol (IP) television network comprising at least one server and a plurality of client devices in direct or indirect communication with said server, a method of providing said alert data to one or more of said client devices, said method comprising:

receiving alert data from one or more alert sources, said alert data being specific to a geographic region;

formatting said alert data in a format suitable for transport over said network;

determining, based at least in part on a unique identification associated with each of said plurality of client devices, a subset of said plurality of client devices associated with said geographic region;

providing said alert data to said subset of client devices over said network; and

causing said subset of client devices to display at least a first portion of said alert data on a display device associated therewith by causing said display device to open a new window for display thereof.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said subset of client devices comprises a subset of client devices physically located within said geographic region.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein unique device identification of each of said plurality of client devices are maintained at a database in communication with said server, and correlated to a geographic region.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said unique device identification comprises at least one of a MAC address or an IP address.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said act of determining further comprises parsing said subset of client devices into two or more categories, each of said categories being associated with a sub-region of said geographic region, said devices of said two or more categories receiving two or more different priority levels of said alert data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said act of determining is further based on a ranging function, whereby expected signal propagation delays are utilized to determine location of a particular one of said client devices.

7. A network server apparatus for selectively providing emergency alert data to a plurality of client devices over a packet-switched network, said apparatus comprising:

a receiver configured to receive said emergency alert data transmitted over said network, said emergency alert data comprising at least a video portion and at least one of an audio or text portion; and

a processor adapted to run at least one computer program thereon, said computer program configured to;

format said alert data in a format suitable for transport over said network;

transmit said alert data to individual ones of said plurality of client devices; and

cause display of at least a portion of said alert data on display devices associated with respective ones of said client devices;

wherein said display devices are configured to receive and display multimedia streams from at least one multimedia server; and

wherein said display of said alert data comprises causing said display devices to display said video portion of said emergency alert data as an overlay of a current one of said multimedia streams being displayed thereon and causing said audio portion to be presented in place of the audio of at least one of said multimedia streams.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said network comprises an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) network.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said individual ones of said plurality of client devices are selected based at least in part on their geographic location.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said computer program is further configured to selectively transmit video alert data to subscribers of said network via a packet stream different than a packet stream carrying said audio and/or text alert data.

11. A method of providing alert data to one or more of a plurality of client devices in an Internet Protocol (IP) television network comprising at least one server in communication with said plurality of client devices, said method comprising:

receiving alert data specific to a geographic region from one or more alert sources;

formatting said alert data in a format suitable for transport over said network;

using at least a unique identification associated with each of said plurality of client devices to determine a subset of said plurality of client devices associated with said geographic region;

providing said alert data to said subset of client devices over said network; and

causing at least a first portion of said alert data to be overlaid on a current video stream being displayed on display devices associated respective ones of said subset of client devices.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said at least one server comprises a multimedia server configured to send multimedia programs, and said network further comprises at least one data server different from said multimedia server and configured to send said alert data.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said act of formatting comprises creating multiple packet formats for the same data, said packet formats being selected to be consistent with one or more requirements or capabilities of said plurality of client devices.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein said alert data comprises emergency alert system (EAS) data and said act of providing said EAS data comprises multicast or broadcast delivery to a plurality of non-EAS enabled devices in said IP network.

15. A method of distributing both media content and emergency alert information over a packet-switched network, said method comprising:

receiving emergency alert information, said alert information comprising at least video portion;

generating alert data relating to said alert information, said alert data comprising at least one alert video stream;

transmitting said alert data to said one or more client devices over said network; and

directing said one or more client devices open a new window for display of at least a first portion of said alert data on display devices associated therewith.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising formatting said alert data, said formatting comprising creating multiple packet formats for the same data, said packet formats being selected to be compatible with the capabilities of various different ones of said one or more client devices.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein said alert information further comprises an audio portion.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein:

said packet-switched network comprises at least one multimedia server configured to send multimedia programs; and

said act of directing further comprises directing said one or more client devices to present said audio portion of said alert data in place of said audio of at least one of said multimedia programs.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein said alert information is received via an over-the-air (OTA) broadcast.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein said packet-switched network comprises at least one multimedia server configured to send multimedia programs, and wherein said method further comprises:

delivering said one or more multimedia programs to said one or more client devices over a first transport stream associated with a first process running on said one or more client devices; and

delivering said alert data to said one or more client devices over a second transport stream different from said first and associated with a second process running on the same ones of said one or more client devices on which said first process is running.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein said act of directing further comprises causing said client devices to access one or more selected program streams carrying video signals relating to said alert data.

22. The method of claim 15, further comprising authenticating at least one of said client devices prior to said transmitting said alert data thereto.

23. A method of providing emergency alert system (EAS) services to a non-EAS enabled device in an Internet Protocol (IP) content delivery network via at least one multimedia server, said non-EAS enabled device configured to receive and display multimedia streams from said at least one multimedia server, said method comprising:

receiving from one or more alert sources EAS data in a first format, said EAS data comprising at least a video portion and at least one of an audio or text portion;

converting said EAS data from said first format to a second format, said second format being suitable for transport over said network;

providing said EAS data to said non-EAS enabled device, said non-EAS enabled device comprising at least an IP video decoder; and

causing said IP video decoder of said non-EAS enabled device to decode and display at least a first portion of said EAS data;

wherein said display of said EAS data comprises causing said display device to display said video portion of said EAS data as an overlay of a current one of said multimedia streams being displayed thereon and causing said audio portion to be presented in place of the audio of at least one of said multimedia streams.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said act of providing said EAS data comprises unicast delivery to said non-EAS enabled device.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein said act of providing said EAS data comprises multicast or broadcast delivery to a plurality of non-EAS enabled devices in said IP network.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein said EAS data is provided to said non-EAS enabled device based at least in part on a geographic location of said device, said geographic location being determined at least in part by a MAC address or LP address of said device.

27. The method of claim 23, wherein said method further comprises authenticating said non-EAS enabled device and said server entity.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein said act of authenticating comprises sending and receiving a series of messages between said non-EAS enabled device and said server entity.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein said act of authenticating further comprises sending and receiving messages to and from a digital certificate authority (CA) server.