Method and apparatus to control a multipath adaptive streaming session

• US 9,641,579 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2012
• Issued: 05/02/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Madison Patent Holdings (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing Dtv
• Inventors: Gouache, Stephane, Burklin, Helmut, Straub, Gilles
• Primary Examiner(s): SHINGLES, KRISTIE D
• Application Number:
  US13/714,347
• Publication Number:
  US 20130151673A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,601 Days
• Field of Search: 709219, 709217
• CPC Class Codes: C07D 305/14 condensed with carbocyclic rings or ring systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS

Abstract

The present invention concerns a method to control the transmission and transmission data rate between at least two servers and a receiver. The servers being adapted to transmit data representative of an audiovisual content. The audiovisual content being available from each of said at least two servers in at least two versions. The versions corresponding respectively to different transmission bit-rates. The servers being adapted to transmit audiovisual contents in successive parts, each of said successive parts being chosen as one of at least two versions in response to transmission requests sent by the receivers, said transmission requests comprising a transmission parameter.

Claims

1. A method, to be performed in a controller, to control a transmission in successive parts of audiovisual content to a receiver, said audiovisual content being available in at least two versions from at least one server, said server and said receiver being remote from said controller, said versions corresponding respectively to different transmission bit-rates, each of said successive parts being chosen as a part of one of said two versions in response to transmission requests sent by said receiver, said method comprising:

receiving, by the controller, information representative of a previous delivery to said receiver of at least one first part of said successive parts of audiovisual content; and

transmitting, by the controller, a control parameter to said receiver, said control parameter being computed based at least partially on said received information and adapted to be used by said receiver in order to compute at least one transmission parameter to be comprised in a transmission request relating to at least one second part of said successive parts of audiovisual content.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said information comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a receiver identifier,

an identifier of a group of receivers which comprises said receiver,

a positioning information of said receiver,

a data transmission bit-rate between a server and said receiver,

a size of a data reception buffer of said receiver,

a quality indicator of a delivery of said audiovisual content to said receiver,

a number of times said receiver switches from one of said versions to another one of said versions during a given time interval while receiving said audiovisual content,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time interval,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time range for each of said at least two versions of said audiovisual content.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said control parameter comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a maximum value of bit-rate to be requested,

a list of allowed versions of said versions to be requested,

a maximum size of reception buffer,

a maximum speed factor to be indicated within said request,

a parameter of an adaptive streaming algorithm of said receiver.

4. A receiver apparatus for receiving audiovisual content in successive parts, said audiovisual content being available from at least one server in at least two versions corresponding respectively to different transmission bit-rates, each of said successive parts being chosen as a part of one of said at least two versions in response to transmission requests sent by said receiver apparatus, said transmission requests comprising a transmission parameter, said receiver apparatus further comprising:

a communication interface;

at least one processor configured to;

send to a remote controller apparatus information representative of a delivery, to said receiver apparatus, of at least a first part of said successive parts of audiovisual content that has been previously received by said receiver apparatus;

receive a control parameter, said control parameter being defined from said information representative of the delivery of said first part; and

compute said transmission parameter of said transmission request from at least said control parameter; and

transmit a transmission request relating to at least one second part of said successive parts of audiovisual content and comprising said transmission parameter computed from at least said control parameter.

5. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, comprising a memory for storage of said control parameter and said information representative of the delivery of said first part of said audiovisual content from a server.

6. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, wherein it is a laptop equipment.

7. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, wherein it is a set-top box.

8. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, wherein it is a mobile terminal.

9. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said information comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a receiver identifier,

an identifier of a group of receivers which comprises said receiver,

positioning information of said receiver,

a data transmission bit-rate between a server and said receiver,

a size of a data reception buffer of said receiver,

a quality indicator of a delivery of said audiovisual content to said receiver,

a number of times said receiver switches from one of said versions to another one of said versions during a given time interval while receiving said audiovisual content,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time interval,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time range for each of said at least two versions of said audiovisual content.

10. The receiver apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said control parameter comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a maximum value of bit-rate to be requested,

a list of allowed versions of said versions to be requested,

a maximum size of reception buffer,

a maximum speed factor to be indicated within said request,

a parameter of an adaptive streaming algorithm of said receiver.

11. A controller apparatus to control a transmission in successive parts of audiovisual content to a receiver said audiovisual content being available in at least two versions from at least one server, said server and said receiver being remote from said controller, said versions corresponding respectively to different transmission bit-rates, each of said successive parts being chosen as a part of one of said at least two versions in response to transmission requests sent by said receiver, said controller apparatus comprising:

a communication interface;

at least one processor configured to;

receive, via the communication interface, an information representative of a previous delivery to said receiver, of at least a first part of said successive parts of audiovisual content;

compute a control parameter based at least partially on said received information and adapted to be used by said receiver in order to define at least one transmission parameter to be comprised in a transmission request relating to at least one second part of said successive parts of audiovisual content; and

transmit said control parameter to said receiver.

12. The controller apparatus according to claim 11, wherein it is located in a residential gateway equipment.

13. The controller apparatus according to claim 11, wherein it is located in a Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer equipment.

14. The controller apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said information comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a receiver identifier,

an identifier of a group of receivers which comprises said receiver,

positioning information of said receiver,

a data transmission bit-rate between a server and said receiver,

a size of a data reception buffer of said receiver,

a quality indicator of a delivery of said audiovisual content to said receiver,

a number of times said receiver switches from one of said versions to another one of said versions during a given time interval while receiving said audiovisual content,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time interval,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time range for each of said at least two versions of said audiovisual content.

15. The controller apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said control parameter comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a maximum value of bit-rate to be requested,

a list of allowed versions of said versions to be requested,

a maximum size of reception buffer,

a maximum speed factor to be indicated within said request,

a parameter of an adaptive streaming algorithm of said receiver.

16. A method to be performed in a receiver, for receiving audiovisual content in successive parts, said audiovisual content being available in at least two versions from at least one server, said versions corresponding respectively to different transmission bit-rates, each of said successive parts being chosen as a part of one of said at least two versions in response to transmission requests sent by said receiver, said transmission requests comprising a transmission parameter, said method comprising:

transmitting, by the receiver, to a remote controller apparatus information representative of a previous delivery to said receiver of at least a first part of said successive parts of audiovisual content;

receiving, by the receiver, a control parameter, said control parameter being defined from said information representative of the previous delivery of the at least first part of said audiovisual content;

computing, by the receiver, said transmission parameter of said transmission request from at least said control parameter; and

transmitting, by the receiver, a transmission request relating to at least one second part of said successive parts of audiovisual content and comprising said transmission parameter computed from at least said control parameter.

17. The method according to claim 16 wherein receiving a control parameter comprises updating, by the receiver, at least one reception parameter of said receiver.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein said information comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a receiver identifier,

an identifier of a group of receivers which comprises said receiver,

positioning information of said receiver,

a data transmission bit-rate between a server and said receiver,

a size of a data reception buffer of said receiver,

a quality indicator of a delivery of said audiovisual content to said receiver,

a number of times said receiver switches from one of said versions to another one of said versions during a given time interval while receiving said audiovisual content,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time interval,

a number of bytes received by said receiver during a predefined time range for each of said at least two versions of said audiovisual content.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein said control parameter comprises at least one of the following parameters:

a server identifier,

a maximum value of bit-rate to be requested,

a list of allowed versions of said versions to be requested,

a maximum size of reception buffer,

a maximum speed factor to be indicated within said request,

a parameter of an adaptive streaming algorithm of said receiver.