Patent ID: 8135773
Filing Date: 2012-03-13
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A vehicle information system suitable for installation aboard a passenger vehicle, comprising: a local content source for providing a first content library associated with a first passenger seat group within the passenger vehicle; a headend system for communicating with a remote content source including a second content library associated with a second passenger seat group within the passenger vehicle and for providing a first content catalog of first entertainment files available from the first content library and a second content catalog of second entertainment files available from the second content library, the second content catalog having file information, including a title, a content description, and a content rating, for each of the second entertainment files; a first portable media device associated with the first passenger seat group for automatically initializing wireless communications with said headend system and providing a first operational status of said first portable media device upon boarding the passenger vehicle, said first portable media device for presenting the first content catalog, for enabling selection of a selected first entertainment file via the first content catalog, and for receiving the entire selected first entertainment file from the first content library via said headend system; and a second portable media device associated with the second passenger seat group for automatically initializing wireless communications with said headend system and providing a second operational status of said second portable media device upon boarding the passenger vehicle, said second portable media device for presenting the second content catalog having the file information and for enabling selection of a second entertainment file via the second content catalog, said headend system verifying the content rating of the selected second entertainment file satisfies a predetermined content standard, and enabling said second portable media device to receive the entire verified second entertainment file from the second content library and said local content source storing an archival copy of the verified second entertainment file in an appropriate file library based upon the file information, wherein the second content library is different from the first content library and is not available to said first portable media device, wherein said first and second portable media devices can respectively present the selected first and second entertainment files regardless of whether said first and second portable media devices are in communication with said headend system, and wherein said second portable media device is configured to upload a passenger entertainment file associated with passenger file information, including a title, a content description, and a content rating, to said local content source for subsequent download by another portable media device, and wherein said headend system verifies the content rating of the passenger entertainment file satisfies the predetermined content standard and enables said local content source to receive and store the verified passenger entertainment file in an appropriate file library based upon the passenger file information.