Kiosk set-top-box

• US 9,294,803 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2011
• Issued: 03/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Bond, Brian Edward, Baskaran, Arjun, Rajan, Padmakumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Pendleton, Brian T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Saint Cyr, Jean D
• Application Number:
  US13/208,949
• Publication Number:
  US 20130042270A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,684 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4305 Synchronising client clock from received content stream, e.g. locking decoder clock with encoder clock, extraction of the PCR packets arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter by comparing receiver clock with transmitter clock H04L7/0012; arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter wherein the receiver takes measures against momentary loss of synchronisation H04L7/0083
• 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 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72

Abstract

A device may include one or more processors. The one or more processors may be configured to receive user input via a user interface and provide an appearance of selecting a channel, via a content presentation device connected to the device, without actually selecting the channel when the user input requests a particular program channel. The one or more processors may also be configured to display interactive program guide data at the content presentation device when the user input requests an interactive program guide and when the device is disconnected from a network from which the device received the interactive program guide data.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

one or more processors configured to;

receive, via a user interface, user input requesting a television channel of a plurality of television channels;

access, responsive to the user input, a database storing media programs for presenting over the plurality of television channels, via a content presentation device that is connected to the device and is not connected to any network that provides a television content stream for the requested television channel, wherein a number of the plurality of television channels exceeds a number of the stored media programs;

determine N modulo M, wherein N is a channel number provided by the user input and M is the number of the stored media programs;

designate, from the stored media programs and based on the determination of N modulo M, a particular stored media program for presenting over the requested television channel; and

display, via the content presentation device, interactive program guide data associated with the plurality of television channels when the user input requests an interactive program guide and when the device is disconnected from a network from which the device received the interactive program guide data.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

indicate, via the content presentation device, that the device is recording content from the network, without actually recording the content, when the user input requests the device to record the content and a number of previous user input requests to record other content does not exceed a threshold number,

wherein the content is stored at the device prior to the indication.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

after indicating that the content is being recorded, flag metadata that is associated with the content to indicate that the content has been recorded.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

indicate, via the content presentation device, that the device is downloading a video-on-demand without actually downloading the video-on-demand from the network when the user input requests the video-on-demand.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein when the one or more processors indicate that the device is downloading the video-on-demand, the device plays a video-on-demand title at the content presentation device,

wherein the video-on-demand title is stored at the device.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

play a trailer for the video-on-demand when the video-on-demand title is not available.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the device includes:

a modified set-top-box;

a computer;

a laptop computer;

or

a tablet computer.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

emulate a system clock that starts counting from a particular time and loops back to the particular time when more than a specified amount of time elapses,

wherein the one or more processors determine whether to remove the interactive program guide data based on a time from the system clock.

9. The device of claim 8, wherein the system clock is configured to:

operate in accordance with a network time protocol.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

manage media stored on the device when the user input is a command to manage the media.

11. The device of claim 1, further comprising at least one of:

a unit address that is identical to a unit address of another device from which the device was cloned;

or

a program or firmware for providing parameters of the device,

wherein the parameters are identical to parameters of another device from which the device was cloned.

12. The device of claim 1, further comprising:

a domain system name (DNS) cache for forwarding messages from the device to another device connected to the device through a router.

13. A system comprising:

a device, comprising one or more processors configured to;

receive, via a user interface, user input requesting a television channel of a plurality of television channels,

access, responsive to the user input, a computer storing media content for presenting over the plurality of television channels, via a content presentation device that is connected to the device and is not connected to any network that provides a television content stream for the requested television channel, wherein a number of the plurality of television channels exceeds a number of the stored media content,

determine N modulo M, wherein N is a channel number provided by the user input and M is the number of the stored media content,

designate, from the accessed media content and based on the determination of N modulo M, a particular stored media content for presenting over the requested television channel, and display, via the content presentation device, interactive program guide data associated with the plurality of television channels when the user input requests an interactive program guide and when the device is disconnected from a network from which the device received the interactive program guide data; and

the computer, functionally coupled to the device, to send the particular stored media content to the device, wherein the computer includes a program for serving the particular stored media content to the device.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a router for relaying the particular stored media content from the computer to the device.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a storage device connected to the device, the storage device including the interactive program guide data.

16. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a router connected to the computer and the device,

wherein the device further comprises a domain system name (DNS) cache for forwarding a message to the computer via the router.

17. The system of claim 13, further comprising at least one of:

a remote control device for transmitting the user input to the device;

or

a mobile communication device for controlling the device and for sending the user input to the device.

18. A method performed by a device, comprising:

receiving, via a user interface of the device, user input requesting a television channel of a plurality of television channels;

accessing, in response to the user input, a database storing media programs for presenting over the plurality of television channels, via a content presentation device that is connected to the device and is not connected to any network that provides a television content stream for the requested television channel, wherein a number of the plurality of television channels exceeds a number of the stored media programs;

determining N modulo M, wherein N is a channel number provided by the user input and M is the number of the stored media programs;

designating, from the stored media programs and based on the determination of N modulo M, a particular stored media program for presenting over the requested television channel; and

displaying, via the content presentation device, interactive program guide data associated with the plurality of television channels when the user input requests an interactive program guide and when the device is disconnected from a network from which the device received the interactive program guide data.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the device comprises a modified set-top box.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the device comprises a computer, a laptop computer, or a tablet computer.