Abstract:
Home network resources and communication paths are managed using network path bandwidths, network storage capacities, and quality of service.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates generally to TV-centric home entertainments systems. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Home networks including TVs that may communicate with various devices such as disk players, digital video recorders (DVR), personal computers, and the like can be difficult for non-technical users to set up and manage. Indeed, even technical users often encounter frustration in setting up and managing home networks. 
   Among the difficulties in managing home networks is that of resource management. For example, it might happen that a movie a user wishes to view on his TV is available on both a DVD player and a DVR, but the user typically has no way of knowing which device would be optimum to use from a bandwidth standpoint. Indeed, bandwidth considerations can change over time, as playing a movie from the DVD player might at one point in time result in the most optimum network bandwidth allocation while at a later point in time the optimum bandwidth allocation might be achieved by playing the same movie from the DVR. 
   Moreover, as intimated by the discussion above, it can happen that the network contains more than one storage device, and that duplicate copies if the same piece of content might be stored on more than one device. This might be desirable in some cases and undesirable in others, but regardless, users typically have little or no tools to help them manage home entertainment network storage. With the above critical recognitions in mind, the invention herein is provided. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In a home network including at least one TV with TV processor and at least first and second sources of audio/video communicating with the TV over respective first and second paths, a method is provided that includes using bandwidth information about each path and/or using QoS information about each path, outputting an optimum one of the paths. 
   In non-limiting implementations the network may also include at least two storage sinks, and the method can include using storage capacity information about each sink to indicate an optimum one of the sinks. The TV can display a map to execute the indicating step, or the TV, in response to user input to play audio/video that is available on both sources, can automatically select the source associated with the optimum path. The user may be permitted to select a path/sink on the map. 
   In another aspect, a system has a TV displaying a network map representing a home network, and a user input device manipulable to navigate the map and to select icons on the map representing components in the system for a user-desired task. The map can change the appearance of at least one icon and/or path between icons to provide visible indication of advantageous component and/or path selection for executing the task. 
   One component can be a personal computer communicating with non-audio/video peripherals in a computer network. The TV communicates with at least one audio/video component in a TV network, and the computer network and TV network can be physically implemented using at least one common communication path. In this non-limiting embodiment, a common communication protocol can be used between the TV and PC, in which case the TV can be given arbiter rights to manage bandwidth for audio/video data transmissions in the TV network and the PC can be given arbiter rights to manage bandwidth for non-audio/video data transmissions in the computer network. 
   In yet another aspect, a TV processor associated with a TV can have code means for comparing first and second bandwidths and/or first and second quality of service (QoS) indications of respective first and second communication paths in a home network. The processor can also have code means for outputting an optimum path based on the means for comparing. 
   The details of the present invention, both as to its structure and operation, can best be understood in reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, and in which: 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a non-limiting TV-centric system in accordance with the invention; and 
       FIGS. 2-4  are screen shots showing non-limiting network maps that can be displayed on the TV. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Referring initially to  FIG. 1 , a non-limiting home entertainment system is shown, generally designated  10 , which includes a TV housing  12  holding TV components including a TV display  14 , a TV tuner  16 , and a TV processor  18 . The TV tuner  16  may receive input from a set-top box (STB)  20  that, as indicated in  FIG. 1 , can be part of the housing  12  or alternatively can be in a housing separate from the housing  12 . In any case, the STB  20  receives TV signals from one or more sources  22  such as but not limited to satellite receivers, cable system head ends, broadcast receiver antennae, etc. Depending on the nature of the signal, it may be sent directly to the display  14  from the tuner  16  or sent first through the processor  18  for subsequent display. It is to be understood that the tuner  16  may be in the STB  20  to output signals to the TV in analog format (e.g., CVBS, Y/C, or RGB) and/or digital format (e.g., DVI, HDMI, IEEE 1394 (referred to as iLink), USB, or some other appropriate format.) 
   The non-limiting embodiment shown in  FIG. 1  illustrates that the present TV can be connected to a plurality of external systems and networks, it being understood that in some implementations not all the components shown in  FIG. 1  need be used. In essence  FIG. 1  shows a comprehensive TV-centric system for completeness. 
   In one embodiment, the TV processor  18  may communicate with a digital living network association (DLNA) system  24 . Also connected to the DLNA system  24  can be various components including but not limited to a disk player such as a DVD player  26  or Blu-Ray disk player and a digital video recorder (DVR, also known as a personal video recorder (PVR))  28 . Information including multimedia streams such as TV programs and movies can be exchanged between the TV processor  18  and the DVD player  26  and PVR  28  in accordance with DLNA principles known in the art. 
   Plural LAN interfaces may be included in the TV to provide both wired and wireless interfaces. These may take the form of an Ethernet across the various physical interfaces such as but not limited to IEEE 802.3 wired, IEEE 802.11x wireless, or virtual Ethernet across coaxial cable or across the home&#39;s AC power line connection. 
   Accordingly, a wired local area network (LAN) interface  30  may be provided in the TV housing  12  and connected to the TV processor  18 , so that the TV processor  18  can communicate with components on a wire LAN, implemented in some embodiments as an Ethernet. These components may include a personal computer  32  or other computer, and the computer  32  can communicate with computer network peripheral equipment such as but not limited to a printer  34 , a scanner  36 , and a security camera  38 . All or parts of the computer network may overlap with the various networks with which the TV processor  18  communicates as discussed more fully below. 
   In addition to Ethernet links, the LAN may include one or more wireless links  40 , so that the PC  32  (and, hence, the TV processor  18 ) may communicate with wireless components such as a vehicle-mounted global position satellite (GPS) receiver  42 . Without limitation, the wireless link  40 , like other wireless links herein, may be, e.g., an 802.11 link, a Wi-Fi link, a Bluetooth link, an IR link, an ultrasonic link, etc. 
   In some implementations, a pre-existing LAN might exist in the form of twisted pair wiring, coaxial wiring, power line, etc. in a house, and it might be desired to use the pre-existing LAN for the TV components to establish a shared network. In such a case, the physical media is shared between the PC  32  and TV processor  18  with associated components. In one embodiment, the TV components can use a first protocol such as a proprietary protocol while the PC  32  and associated peripherals can use a different, second protocol, so that communication interference is avoided. Alternatively, if a common protocol is used, undesirable devices from the TV standpoint (such as, e.g., the printer  34  and scanner  36 ) can be removed from the TV network so that, for example, they do not appear on the below-described TV network maps. 
   When the same protocol is used between the TV processor  18  and the PC  32 , the TV processor  18  can be given arbiter rights to manage bandwidth for audio/video data transmissions in the network, and the PC  32  can be given arbiter rights to manage bandwidth for non-audio/video data transmissions. Also, the TV processor  18  may “see” the PC  32  in the TV network but this does not mean that the PC  32  necessarily recognizes the TV components to be part of its network. A router hub may be used in the case of a IEEE 802.3 LAN to accommodate various network devices and enable both wired and wireless devices to communicate at a common point, i.e., a wireless access point communicates wirelessly to various devices and via 10/100BaeT bridged through the router hub to the wired devices. This hub in effect is represented inside the TV housing  12  along the bottom. 
   Apart from the wireless link  40  of the LAN with which the TV processor  18  may communicate, a wireless communication interface  44  may be in the TV housing  12  and may communicate with the TV processor  18  as shown. The wireless communication interface may wirelessly communicate with various components such as but not limited to a video game console  46 , such as a Sony Playstation®, and another TV  48  that might be located in, e.g., another room. 
   The processor  18  may also communicate with a computer modem  50  in the TV housing  12  as shown. The modem  50  may be connected to the Internet  52 , so that the TV processor  18  can communicate with a web-based system server  54  and a web-based data vault  56 . 
   In addition to the wireless communication interface  44  and the modem  50 , the TV processor  18  may communicate with a radiofrequency identifier (RFID) interface  60  in the housing  12  or attached thereto using, e.g., a uniform serial bus (USB) cable, to facilitate communication in accordance with RFID principles known in the art between the TV processor  18  and an RFID-enabled network appliance  62  having an RFID device  63  mounted on it or connected to it. Furthermore, the TV processor  18  can, through an infrared interface  64 , receive user commands from a remote control device  66  that transmits IR signals, it being understood that the remote control device  66  may alternately use RF, in which case the interface  64  would be an RF interface. 
     FIG. 1  also shows that the TV can have a data storage  69 . The storage  69  may be flash or ROM or RAM in the TV and/or it may be a removable memory device such as a Sony Memory Stick®. 
   Among the recognitions made herein, it may happen that in some implementations, the TV shown above may not have a hard disk drive (HDD) and/or the PVR  28  may not be available or the correct digital rights management information may be unavailable for recording a program to disk. Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 2  the TV processor  18  may cause to be presented on the TV display  14  a topography map, generally designated  68 , that is essentially a user interface that a user can operate on by means of the remote control device  66  to map a HDD in the PC  32  to the TV to thereby allow the user to load content received by the TV onto the PC HDD for later reliable streaming. The PC  32  may also transcode multimedia streams from a codec that might be incompatible with the TV to another, compatible codec. Note that the map  68  shown in  FIG. 2  need not show all of the components illustrated in  FIG. 1 , but can illustrate some or all of the components in the system as desired for simplification. Content stored on the HDD of the PC  32  may later be played back on the TV display  14 . Also, content from non-TV sources, e.g., from the DVD player  26 , may be sent to the PC  32  HDD for storage. 
   To operate the UI that is represented by the map  68 , a user can manipulate buttons on the remote control device  66  to navigate around the map, clicking on a component with a button designating the component as a “source” and then moving the cursor over the desired “sink” component (in the case shown, the PC) and clicking on a “sink” button to indicate that recording from the source to the sink is to be undertaken. This is but one non-limiting example of how the map  68  can be used to send content from the TV and/or DVD player  26  to the home PC  32 . 
   The map  68  can be created by the TV processor  18  automatically, upon initial connection and perhaps also on every subsequent energization, “discovering” networked devices in accordance with network discovery principles known in the art. Or, a user may be permitted to manually input data to construct the map  68  using the remote control device  66 . 
     FIG. 3  shows a screen shot that can be presented on the display  14  to provide a network map  70  that can be used as a user interface for determining an optimum path for a desired function. With more specificity, using the map  70 , a user can select a source and sink device for, e.g., playing a multimedia stream and then be presented with information pertaining to a “best” arrangement that can depend on bandwidth considerations, quality of service (QoS) considerations, and device capabilities. 
   To illustrate, assume the following hypothetical. A user can move the cursor over each icon shown in  FIG. 3  to cause a drop-down menu to appear, showing the capabilities of that device. Assume that it is the user&#39;s intentions to find and play “movie A”, and that when the cursor is over the DVD icon, the PVR icon, and the TV internet server icon, a menu appears indicating that “movie A” is stored on the associated component. When the cursor is over the display and TV icons, assume that a menu appears indicating the capabilities of the display, e.g., “HD” or “SD”. 
   Should the user input “movie A”, the display in  FIG. 4  can appear, in which, depending on determinations made by the TV processor  18 , some icons representing components that are completely unsuitable for sourcing “movie A” given its format (such as the CD icon) or playing “movie A” given its format (such as the “other TV” icon) are removed from the map  70  entirely while other icons representing components that can source or play, albeit suboptimally, “movie A” (such as the “game console” icon and “display  1 ” icon) are lowlighted. In lieu of or in addition to icon lowlighting or removal, path lines between icons can be lowlighted or removed. 
   Thus, only icons (and/or path lines) representing components that can adequately source or play the selection remain on, and a “best” path may be highlighted, e.g., all three source icons (DVD, PVR, and TV server) shown in  FIG. 4  remain on, only a single sink icon (“display  2 ”) remains on, and if bandwidth considerations or quality of service considerations or storage space considerations or other operational considerations indicate that streaming “movie A” from the DVD to the display  2  is the optimum path, that path can be highlighted. In this way, the user knows what the optimal source/sink arrangement is for the desired stream. 
   In determining a best path based on bandwidth considerations, the following non-limiting heuristics can be used. The bandwidth required for streaming a movie in the format selected (e.g., HD) is compared to the measured or estimated bandwidths that are available between the TV and each potential source as measured or estimated during initial power-on or periodically by the TV and/or source. Sources communicating with the TV over paths with insufficient bandwidth are eliminated. If two or more sources communicate with the TV over paths that have sufficient bandwidth, the “best” source can be determined to be the one that can source the movie with the least impact on the remainder of the network. For example, if a DVD player shares part of the same physical network as a PC and the PC is turned on, indicating that streaming from the DVD player could reduce PC network bandwidth, then an alternate source such as the PVR (assuming it has sufficient bandwidth) may be selected. All of these determinations may be made by, e.g., the TV processor transparently to the user. 
   Likewise, QoS can be used to determine the best path. If the difference in QoS between two paths exceeds a threshold, for instance, the path having the best QoS can be selected; otherwise (i.e., if QoS is about equal), the path with the greatest bandwidth is indicated as being optimal. Or, QoS may be a subsidiary consideration to use, if, for example, bandwidth is primary and two paths are found to have approximately equal bandwidths. In this case, the path having the best QoS can be indicated as being “best”. Some combination of bandwidth and QoS might always be used by weighting both bandwidth and QoS from each available path and combining them, and then indicating as the optimal path the one with the “best” combination. 
   Similar heuristics can be applied in reverse, i.e., for storing content in the network, by determining remaining storage capacity in the various storage devices, whether a particular device stores data from more than one source or is dedicated to a single source, etc. As an example, if a TV show is to be recorded and both the HDD of the PC and the PVR are available, if both devices have approximately the same remaining capacity as reported to, e.g., the TV, storage on the PVR might be indicated as being optimal in that the PVR usually is dedicated to the TV while the PC HDD must also store data from the PC and other components. On the other hand, if the PVR is almost full and the PC HDD almost entirely free, storage on the PC HDD might be indicated as being optimal. This is but one non-limiting example of how a network processor such as a TV processor might use storage capacity information pulled from or pushed by network devices to indicate optimum storage sinks and thus aid the user in network management. 
   Thus, the TV processor  18 , in conjunction with the above-described network maps, allows users to select optimum sources and sinks in the system  10  to display particular multimedia streams, and to prioritize and schedule more than one event. For instance, a user can undertake the above-described hypothetical selection of “movie A”, store it to memory in the TV for playback at a scheduled future time, and then schedule another event (e.g., record “TV program B”) for an overlapping period. The TV processor  18  in such as case could, in some implementations, recalculate the “movie A” arrangement in light of the desire to record “TV program B” to ensure that bandwidth, storage space, QoS, etc. remain optimized. 
   In undertaking the above, the TV processor  18  can discover the other components shown in  FIG. 1  to generate one or more of the non-limiting network maps described above. The TV may “pull” storage capacity and bandwidth information from each component, or the components might automatically and periodically “push” this information to the TV. 
   In any case, when the TV is first taken out of the box by the user and turned on, the TV processor  18  can in some implementations automatically search for networks and other connections, e.g., Ethernets, DLNA networks, etc., obtain bandwidth/storage capacity/QoS/other network management information, and then inform the user as to what capabilities exist, showing, if desired, the map on the display  14 . Appropriate configuration of the TV and network is then automatically executed, relieving the user of the sometimes confusing chore of “setting up” the home network. 
   Instead of indicating to the user the “best” path it is to be understood that the TV processor  18  may simply automatically select a source of audio/video having the optimal bandwidth/QoS and/or select the best storage sink having the optimal storage capacity. 
   While the particular TV-CENTRIC SYSTEM is herein shown and described in detail, it is to be understood that the subject matter which is encompassed by the present invention is limited only by the claims.