Recording system

• US 8,724,971 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2011
• Issued: 05/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Dish Network Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Eldon Technology Limited (Dish Network Corporation)
• Inventors: Thompson, Geoffrey, Stanford, Andrew John, Hey, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai
• Assistant Examiner(s): DUNN, MISHAWN N
• Application Number:
  US13/029,322
• Publication Number:
  US 20110206342A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,181 Days
• Field of Search: 725/34, 725/35, 725/46, 386/239, 386/241, 386/248, 386/297
• US Class Current: 386/296
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• 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 21/44224 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 21/4622 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 21/47214 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 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• 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 5/782 on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/79 Processing of colour television signals in connection with recording

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus and method for recording transmitted data items, and particularly television and radio programmes. The data items are received at one or more inputs along with ID data identifying the transmitted data items and the programme series to which the data item belongs. An input interface receives input indicating whether one or more received transmitted data items have been viewed or recorded by a user and a processor generates values for ranking the series to which each of the received data items belong based upon the received input. Subsequently received transmitted data items are stored in a storage device based on the generated values, the stored data items belonging to a series for which a value has been generated.

Claims

1. A method of recording transmitted data items comprising:

receiving, at one or more inputs, a plurality of programmes and associated identifier (ID) data identifying an associated programme and an associated series to which the associated programme belongs;

receiving, at an input interface, user input indicating that a user is viewing or recording the programmes associated with the series of programmes;

determining based on the user input whether one or more received programmes have been viewed or recorded by the user;

generating ranking values for ranking the series to which each of the received programmes belong based upon the received user input and based upon determining whether the programme has been viewed or recorded, wherein each of the ranking values correspond to a confidence value that indicates a likelihood that the user viewed the programme that has been received or recorded; and

storing subsequently received programmes in a storage device based on the generated ranking values, the stored programmes belonging to the associated series for which a ranking value has been generated,

wherein the user input is at least one of;

a channel change signal;

a volume change signal;

a mute signal;

a signal to access an information menu; and

a signal to record a particular transmitted item;

the method further comprising;

increasing the confidence value of a selected programme in response to receiving at least one of the following inputs at the input interface;

an increase in a volume signal;

a volume mute for less than a predetermined period of time; and

an access to the information menu for less than a predetermined period of time, and

the method further comprising;

decreasing the confidence value of the selected programme in response to receiving at least one of the following inputs at the input interface;

a volume mute for longer than a predetermined period of time;

an access to the information menu for longer than a predetermined period of time;

a switch off signal; and

a connected device switch off signal.

2. A method according to claim 1 further comprising the step of storing the generated ranking values in a database in a memory and associating them with the ID data.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein generating the ranking values comprises:

generating ranking values configured to rank each of the received programmes based upon the received input; and

combining the generated ranking values for each of the programmes associated with a particular series to produce a ranking value for ranking each series.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the ranking values generated by a processor to rank the transmitted programmes are confidence values indicative of how likely it is that the user viewed a particular transmitted programme, the method further comprising:

modifying the confidence values by increasing or decreasing an initial confidence value by a predetermined amount in response to further input received at the input interfaces.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the generated ranking values also depend upon the elapsed time between two events, wherein at least one of the events corresponding to at least one of receiving of input at the input interface or being triggered thereby.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the user input received at the input interface is from at least one of a remote control, a control on the recording device, and a signal from an interconnected display device.

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the programme is a television or radio programme, and wherein one of a plurality of events is a user input that is a channel change to a new programme channel, and the other event being a start time of a first programme on the new channel, the method further comprising:

comparing a time at which the channel change occurs and the time at which the first programme starts on the new programme channel; and

increasing a confidence value if the difference is within a predetermined range.

8. A method of recording transmitted data items comprising:

receiving, at one or more inputs, a plurality of programmes and associated identifier (ID) data identifying an associated programme and an associated series to which the associated programme belongs;

receiving at an input interface user input indicating that a user is viewing or recording the programmes associated with the series of programmes;

determining based on the user input whether one or more received programmes have been viewed or recorded by the user;

generating ranking values for ranking the series to which each of the received programmes belong based upon the received user input and based upon determining whether the programme has been viewed or recorded, wherein each of the ranking values correspond to a confidence value that indicates a likelihood that the user viewed the programme that has been received or recorded; and

storing subsequently received programmes in a storage device based on the generated ranking values, the stored programmes belonging to the associated series for which a ranking value has been generated,

wherein one of a plurality of events is a user input that is one of a channel change to a new channel, a set-top box switch off, or a connected device switch off, and the other event is the end time of a programme, the method further comprising;

comparing a time at which the channel change, the set-top box switch off or the connected device switch off occurs and the time at which the programme ends; and

decreasing the confidence value if the difference is within a predetermined range.

9. An apparatus for recording transmitted programmes comprising:

one or more inputs for receiving programmes and associated identifier (ID) data identifying the programme and a series of programmes to which each programme

a storage device for storing the received programmes and the associated ID of the programmes associated with the series of programmes;

one or more input interfaces for receiving input from a user to view or store the received programmes associated with the series;

a processor configured to;

determine whether the one or more received programmes have been viewed or recorded by the user; and

generate ranking values for ranking each series of received programmes based upon the input received at the input interfaces and based upon whether the programme has been viewed or recorded, wherein each of the ranking values correspond to a confidence value that indicates a likelihood that the user viewed the programme that has been received or recorded; and

a memory having a database arranged to store the generated ranking values and to associate the ranking values with the ID data;

wherein the processor is configured to;

store programmes belonging to ranked series in the storage device based on the stored ranking values,

wherein the input interfaces are one or more of a remote control receiver, a control on the apparatus, or a receiving circuit for receiving a signal from an interconnected display device, and wherein the user input is one or more of;

a channel change signal;

a volume change signal;

a mute signal;

a signal to access an information menu;

a signal to record a particular transmitted data item, and

wherein the processor is further configured to;

increase the confidence value of a selected programme in response to receiving one or more of the following user inputs at the input interfaces;

an increase in volume signal;

a volume mute for less than a predetermined period of time; and

an access to the information menu for less than a predetermined period of time;

decrease the confidence value of the selected programme in response to receiving one or more of the following inputs at the input interfaces;

a volume mute for longer than a predetermined period of time;

an access to the information menu for longer than a predetermined period of time;

a switch off signal; and

a connected device switch off signal.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the processor is configured to:

generate the ranking values for ranking each received programme based upon the user input received at the input interfaces; and

generate values for ranking each series by combining the ranking values for each of the received programmes in a particular series.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10 wherein the ranking values generated by the processor to rank the programmes are confidence values indicative of how likely it is that the user viewed a particular programme, the processor being configured to modify the confidence values by increasing or decreasing an initial value by a predetermined amount in response to further user input received at the input interfaces.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11 further comprising an input for a clock signal, wherein the processor is configured to calculate an elapsed time between two events using the clock signal, one of the events being the receiving of the user input at the input interface or being triggered thereby, the generated values also depending upon the elapsed time.

13. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein one of the events is a channel change to a new channel, and the other event is a start time of a first programme on the new channel, the processor being configured to compare the time at which the channel change occurs and the start time at which the first programme starts on the new channel, and wherein the processor is configured to increase the confidence value if the difference is within a predetermined range.

14. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein one of the events is one of a channel change to a new channel, a set-top box switch off or a connected device switch off, and the other event is the end time of a programme, the processor being configured to compare a time at which the channel change, set-top box switch off or connected device switch off occurs and a time at which the programme ends, and wherein the processor is configured to decrease the confidence value if the difference is within a predetermined range.

15. An apparatus for recording transmitted programmes comprising:

one or more inputs for receiving programmes and associated identifier (ID) data identifying the programme and a series of programmes to which each programme belongs;

a storage device for storing the received programmes and the associated ID of the programmes associated with the series of programmes;

one or more input interfaces for receiving input from a user to view or store the received programmes associated with the series;

a processor configured to;

determine whether the one or more received programmes have been viewed or recorded by the user; and

generate ranking values for ranking each series of received programmes based upon the input received at the input interfaces and based upon whether the programme has been viewed or recorded, wherein each of the ranking values correspond to a confidence value that indicates a likelihood that the user viewed the programme that has been received or recorded; and

a memory having a database arranged to store the generated ranking values and to associate the ranking values with the ID data;

the processor being configured to store programmes belonging to ranked series in the storage device based on the stored ranking values; and

an input and output for sending and receiving signals to/from a user'"'"'s calendar, the processor being further configured to generate the ranking values and store the received programmes for periods of time for which the calendar contains a predetermined entry.