TELEVISION RECEIVER AND METHOD OF USING SAME FOR DISPLAYING INFORMATION MESSAGES

Abstract: A receiver and its method of usage is provided for controllably displaying informational messages, comprising a display device data for receiving first data corresponding to main programming content and second data corresponding to messaging information, and a controller for receiving input regarding changes in the main programming and, upon receipt of such input, coordinating a gradual or piecemeal visual transition to and from the messaging information displayed in the time interval between separate main program pictures. This invention provides smooth visual transitions between main programs and informational messages, such as commercial advertising, using zooms, wipes, dissolves or puzzle constructions/deconstructions and so forth of an introduced informational message by triggering portal applications during, for instance, channel tuning.

Description: Television receiver and method of using same for displaying information messages. The present invention relates generally to an arrangement and method for displaying information messages in a television receiver. Conventional television broadcast systems transmit advertising commercials for broadcast during breaks in the regular scheduled programming being transmitted on a given broadcast channel. The program picture previously being viewed is abruptly discontinued and replaced by the audiovisual content of the commercial images, which, in turn, are abruptly discontinued and replaced by another program picture upon completion of the commercial message(s). The automatic insertion of commercials when a viewer switches between different programming channels has also been proposed. In conventional broadcasting involving encrypted, compressed data transmissions used for digital television (DTN), channel changing does not occur instantaneously due to temporal delays associated with tuning and processing the received encrypted, compressed signals. Therefore, during channel tuning by a viewer, that is, changing from one channel to another, a visually noticeable blank screen appears on the television display for a short but conspicuous time interval after a new channel selection is selected by the user and up until the tuner acquires and completes processing the new channel selection for display. The blank screen intervals, while noticeable and disconcerting to the viewer, are typically less than about one second in duration. The prior art has proposed filling these brief blank screen interludes with commercial messages. For instance, EPO Pat. Appln. 0 712 242 has proposed inserting a commercial advertisement on the television display during the above-mentioned blank screen time interval, which is referred to therein as the "zapping time." When the cable subscriber switches to a new channel, the display of the regular cable programming on the channel is discontinued and advertisements, which are pre-stored on the receiver or fed simultaneously and continuously over the cable network, are displayed until the television tunes to and acquires the newly selected channel, whereupon the display of the advertisement is stopped and the programming associated with the new channel is displayed. Separate advertisements can be associated with separate channels, default advertisements can be displayed, or advertisements can be targeted to certain subscribers. A processor is included in the receiver and tuner which may process the messages as needed or instructed. EPO Pat. Appln. 0 712 242 thus describes an approach for filling "zapping time" with the audiovisual content of an advertisement message in which abrupt changes will occur in the pictures being viewed by the user during the transitions to and from the interposed brief advertisement. EPO Pat. Appln. 0 554 577 describes generating advertisements in television receivers by locally storing commercial advertisements in the television receiver as original or updatable content, which are displayed either in a time dependent manner or may be triggered by the operation of a control function of the television receiver such as powering on, channel change, volume change, and so forth. Processing and memory storage capabilities are provided that manage display of multiple advertisements and user- programmable information. The display of the advertisements can be full screen for a predetermined period of time or, such as during a channel change, can be displayed as a small insert, or as a banner across a portion of the screen, or as picture-in-picture (PIP), along with, if available, the on-screen channel display. As explained above, a blank screen intervals occur when channel changing during television viewing where encrypted and/or digital transmission signals are involved. Therefore, the full screen insertion or any insertion and running of a small picture or banner or PIP function for advertising during a channel change according to EPO Pat. Appln. 0 554 577 will not be perceived as involving seamless audiovisual transitions to the viewer. U.S. Pat. 5,805,974 describes a method and apparatus for synchronizing commercial advertisements across multiple communicating channels so that advertising can be presented in a "partial road block" or even a full "road block" fashion to viewers requesting channel changes. EPO Pat. Appln. 0 663 769 describes smooth fading transitions when switching from one channel to another. To accomplish this, a picture image of the previous channel transmission is frozen or stored for the smooth fading transition to be done with the newly selected live transmission picture. Alternatively, two separate receivers are provided to simultaneously handle two separate live transmission feeds to conduct the picture transition. In the former case, merely displaying a frozen picture or stored still picture from the previous channel on the screen while a new live feed picture takes over the screen can leave something to be desired visually. In the latter case, the necessity of providing two separate receiver units would considerably add to the cost of the television receiver. PCT Inter. Public. No. WO 98/30025 describes a method and a system for implementing interactive broadcast programs and commercials using a receiver configured to receive a multiplexed data stream including one or more main programs and a plurality of different commercials. During commercial breaks, a choice or menu of different commercials available and from the viewer can select are displayed on the television monitor. Default commercials can be shown if the viewer does not select his or her own choice of commercial within a given period of time. None of the above-discussed references satisfactorily address the issue of visually disconcerting abrupt transitions between regular programming and commercial breaks. What is needed are high production quality, smoother, more seamless transitions between normal programming and commercial advertisements. Thus, a more aesthetically appealing, stimulating and effective introduction and departure from a commercial advertisement or other message presented during or between programming selections is desired that will create a greater and more effective visual or audiovisual impact upon the viewer. The present invention fulfills the above and other needs in the art. According to the present invention, a television receiver arrangement is provided for implementing visually-enhanced transitions to and from an information message. In one embodiment, this present invention relates to a digital television receiver that controllably displays information messages, including a display device and a message controller for managing the presentation of commercials or other information messages during breaks or interruptions in the main programming. The display device is used for displaying data corresponding to main programming content and also data corresponding to information message content. The controller is used for receiving input regarding changes in the main programming and, upon receipt of such input, it coordinates a gradual or piecemeal visual transition to and from an information message displayed in the time interval between separate main program pictures. In particular, an information message including at least one information message picture frame is inserted between separate main program pictures, where a message picture is gradually constructed in the picture screen of the display so as to replace portions of the current main program picture until the message picture is fully assembled. When the information message concludes, a message picture gradually deconstructs in the picture screen while another main program picture gradually fills in the picture screen at the locations where the message picture is disappearing until the assembly of the new main program picture is completed. In this way, the viewer does not see abrupt changes in the picture screen when information message is presented and instead provides a more visually entertaining and stimulating viewing experience. The information message that is inserted with the special visual effects by this invention includes, for example, commercial advertisements (still frame or animated), logos (e.g., a logo of a new channel selection), closed caption text, and so forth. In one advantageous implementation, the inventive digital television receiver includes a television signal demultiplexer for receiving a multiplexed data stream, where the demultiplexer operates to separate audiovisual content data corresponding to main programming from multimedia data corresponding to the information message content and presentation protocol. The informational message transitions are used in combination with triggering of portal applications. By this terminology, it is meant JAVA or JANA-like software applications invoked for presenting the information messages. These software applications are triggered upon the occurrence of certain user-controlled actions that are detected by the receiver, such as each time the user tunes to a specific or new channel, or, alternatively, when certain events occur within the same main program that are detected by the receiver, such as a commercial break or a video cut. These portal applications carry some form of information, which is mapped to the transition. The portal applications generally are transmitted as part of the continuous multiplexed data stream sent to the television receiver. For instance, the private data section of a transport stream portion of the multiplexed data stream comprising the digital signal can be used to bring the portal applications concerning the information messages to the receiver. Since digital TV permits data to be transmitted along with audio and video, the binary files of the portal application as well as the related content (e.g., graphics, sound files) can be broadcasted as data streams. During television viewing by a user, the audiovisual processor receives the audiovisual content data from the demultiplexer, decodes the audiovisual content data to produce decompressed audiovisual data, and outputs the decompressed audiovisual data to the display. An application manager receives the multimedia data corresponding to information messages from the demultiplexer, and also receives input regarding changes in the main programming. Responsive to receiving information of such a change, the application manager coordinates gradual pictorial transitions in the display first from a main program picture to an information message and then secondly back from an information message picture to another main program picture. In this manner, the construction and deconstruction content and timing of the advertisement or other information message with regular programming can thereby be controlled by the broadcaster via instructions that are included in the broadcasted data stream. These instructions can be extracted from the data stream in real time by the receiver in the case of message insertions made during the same program, or departure messages related to the current programming during channel tuning. Alternatively, to avoid any possible delays in the cases where message insertions have content related to a new channel selection during channel tuning, instructions are downloaded in advance and stored in memory on the receiver that can be readily accessed by the application manager when needed. For such channel tuning applications where it is desired to relate the information message to the new channel selection, the portal applications and instructions can be downloaded periodically (e.g., every night) into the receiver for implementation later (e.g., the next day) when certain channels are tuned to by a viewer. Also, the receivers of this invention also can be provided with the capability to permit the user some degree of control and manipulation of the information message settings such that the user can adjust and preset certain message presentation settings, such as concerning the visual effects of the message transitions, which are then stored on the receiver and applied henceforth as user preferences. This invention represents a significant advance over the conventional state of television experience. The present invention advantageously makes use of the digital TV technology framework in order to enhance the experience of channel tuning. As can be appreciated, this invention creates an advanced and sophisticated new technique for marketing products and providing informational messages during television broadcasting. The foregoing and other objects, aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description with reference to the illustrative drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a generalized block diagram that illustrates the principal components of the digital receiver according to this invention having the capability of launching and displaying portal applications imparting special visual transition effects to and from informational messages in a timely and synchronized manner. Figs. 2 A through 2J schematically depict a sequence of picture screens showing a gradual transition from a main program picture to a commercial advertisement and back to a different main program picture according to an embodiment of this invention. Within the Figs. 2A - 2J, the cross-hatched areas represent main program pictures and the dark areas represent commercial pictures. Referring to Fig. 1 , a transport stream TS is received by a receiver 100 from a transmitter source 19 (e.g., cable TV broadcast station, DBS satellite, multimedia server, or other source of multimedia program material). The transmitter 19 broadcasts a data stream 10, e.g., a multiplexed MPEG-encoded multimedia data stream, over a designated broadcast channel via any suitable transmission medium (e.g., air, co-axial cable, or fiber optic cable). The digital television receiver 100 is programmed to implement the method of the present invention as described herein. The digital video receiver generally can be an ATV or HDTV receiver, which includes, among other things described herein, an MPEG or ATSC decoding capability for decoding a broadcast digital video stream, e.g., an MPEG-2 or ATSC digital video data stream. In any event, the transport stream 10 is received as input to the demultiplexer 15, which in turn separates the audiovisual data content 11 of the stream from the information message data 12. The audiovisual content 11 is handled by the audiovisual processor 16 and the visual content 13 is displayed on the monitor 24 (e.g., a TV monitor or other suitable display device). The information message data 12 is comprised of the related images (raw data) and the transition application (e.g., JAVA byte codes), as well as administrative information about the portal application (e.g., temporal information about the launch time of the application). That is, as digital TV permits for data to be transmitted along with audio and video data, the binary files of the portal application as well as the related content (e.g., _ graphics, sound files, and so forth), can be broadcasted as data streams captured and implemented by the receiver 100. The information message data can have a content related to one or more commercial advertisements, a logo identifying a channel selection (current or new selection), or other information to conveyed to the viewer other than the regular programming. To facilitate greater ease of description of the present invention, the term "main program" is used herein to refer to the primary program of interest to the viewer, i.e., the regular programming. In this connection, in a typical television program, the television show or movie will be the main program, with commercials being broadcast during interruptions or commercial breaks in the main program. Hereinafter, the illustrated embodiment will often characterize the content of the data 12 as a commercial advertisement, but it will be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. The commercial advertisement data 12 is handled by the application manager 18, which triggers the portal application upon detecting a triggering event and displays the transition to a commercial from a main program picture as an overlay 14 on the monitor 24. Based on the size and scheduling of the portal application, the application manager 18 optionally can use a memory unit 17 for temporarily storing and retrieving the commercial advertisement or other information message data related to the application components. In the case of portal applications that are launched on a channel change according to one embodiment of this invention, the application manager 18 will receive input from a tuner (not shown). That is, during operation of a television having a receiver according to this invention, a tuner unit of the receiver is tuned to a channel in response to a selection made by a viewer (user). The viewer may make a selection by operating a keypad mounted on the receiver or a remote control unit. Then, the event and triggering mechanisms of a DTV presentation engine, i.e., the application manager, can be used to launch the portal application in a timely and synchronized manner. Where the information message is related to the new channel selection, the multimedia data governing the portal application generally is periodically downloaded onto the receiver (e.g., every night). This downloading can be done with scanning of all the channels and downloading of the updated portal application information into the memory unit 17. The update information is transmitted from the transmitter source 19, such as cable TV broadcast station, DBS satellite, multimedia server, or other suitable source of multimedia program material. However, the present invention also is applicable to launching portal applications on information messaging during broadcasting of single main program, such as during commercial breaks or as triggered by a detectable change in the main program signal being broadcast, such as a video cut. That is, mapping applications to transitions could also be used within the same program. For instance, the above-mentioned transitions that trigger portal applications could be used to link video cuts (e.g., different scenes or camera views) or during commercial breaks of a program being viewed to create "instant ads" during the program. Another implementation of the invention is for instantly displaying and introducing the next channel by its logo in an inserted message, each time the user enters the new channel. This logo could be kept static or still image for the duration of the message, once formed, or it could have enhanced visual effects such as flashing on and off for the duration of the message. Conventional means and methods are known to those of skill in the art for implementing the detections in the receiver of such changes when they occur during the main programming, e.g., in response to information learned from a P frame. Alternatively, a URL can be embedded in the transmitted signal TS (10) which will retrieve the portal application from a server via a return channel when the user executes a command such as channel tuning. Figs 2 A through 2J schematically depict a sequence of picture screens showing a gradual transition from a first main program picture 20 to a commercial advertisement and back to a different main program picture 23 according to this invention. Fig. 2A indicates the main program picture 20 that currently is being viewed. When a channel change command is made by the viewer, for example, the application manager 18 (Fig. 1) is immediately informed of the change. Based on the data and data instructions already provided as a portal application stored in the receiver 100, the application manager 18 immediately implements the appropriate commercial by beginning to form a small region of a commercial picture 21a over main program picture 20. As can be seen in Figs 2B-2E, the superposed commercial region gradually grows through areas 21a, 21b, 21c as it constructs in a visually perceptible manner within a given amount of time after the channel change command is given (e.g., generally less than several seconds) until completed commercial picture 21d entirely or substantially fills the entire picture area available. It is not required that the complete commercial picture 21d fill the entire picture screen area of the display, although that will preferable for many cases because that permits a smoother visual transition to be achieved over to the new main program. At the end of the construction of commercial picture 2 Id, the commercial can be presented as a still frame advertisement, or as an animated video that runs for a short clip. If a still frame advertisement is used, the commercial picture 22a will be the same as picture 21d after the preselected period of commercial time has elapsed. For instance, a static (still- frame) poster-like or magazine-like advertisement or an animated description of a product can be created in a puzzle-like way, during the transition, on the screen, and thereafter the commercial advertisement image ultimately can be visually dissolved or otherwise gradually eliminated via special effects giving way to the program of the new channel to which the user has tuned. If an animated commercial is presented, then the final commercial picture 22a typically will not be the same as initial picture 2 Id. At the conclusion of the commercial in either case, picture 22a will deconstruct according to the portal application instructions such by gradually shrinking in size in a visually perceptible manner (e.g., in less than several seconds) through regions 22b, 22c and 22d shown in Figs. 2G-2I until a second main program fills the entire screen. The tuner is controlled by a microprocessor in the receiver so as to delay showing the newly selected channel until the commercial advertisement or other information message is completed, such as when the static image is fully constructed and appears for a given period of time. Then, the channel transmission path is re-opened and the commercial or other information message is deconstructed as discussed above. Advertisements and other messages can be displayed according to this invention as programmed to be associated with the new channel selection or the departing channel selection. Alternatively, a default advertisement or other message can be displayed each time the channel is changed, or some other criteria can be implemented. As can be appreciated, this invention constructs an information message image over a main program picture and, subsequently, deconstructs the information message picture at the conclusion of the message in a transitional manner. It also will be appreciated that this invention encompasses implementation of algorithms that can realize many different kinds of transitions to and from commercial advertisements and other information messages. So various visual effects, such as zooms, wipes, dissolves, puzzle-like image construction and deconstruction, and so forth, can be used in order to enhance the visual experience of the user. This construction and deconstruction of the commercial advertisements and other information messages preferably are assembled and subsequently disassembled by zooms/fading or piecemeal as geometric shapes, such as squares, triangles, circles, ellipses, and so forth. Also, the transitions going and leaving a given information message can be the same or different insofar as the visual effects. For instance, as suggested above, a "posterlike" or "magazine-like" advertisement of some product (e.g., Coca Cola®) might be created in a puzzle-like manner, during a transition, on the display screen, and then dissolve giving way to a program of the channel to which a viewer has tuned. The software (application program) for implementing the method of the present invention can suitably be transmitted in the broadcast channel, and/or it can be preset by the receiver manufacturer, and/or it can be downloaded periodically to be resident in the digital video receiver 100, depending on the implementation(s) envisaged. For instance, the construction and deconstruction content and timing of the advertisement or other information message with regular programming can be controlled by the broadcaster via instructions that are included in the broadcasted data stream. These instructions can be extracted from the data stream in real time by the receiver in the case of message insertions made during the same program, or departure messages related to the current programming during channel tuning. Alternatively, to avoid any possible delays in the cases where message insertions have content related to a new channel selection during channel tuning, instructions are downloaded in advance and stored in memory on the receiver that can be readily accessed by the application manager when needed. For such channel tuning applications where it is desired to relate the information message to the new channel selection, the portal applications and instructions can be downloaded periodically (e.g., every night) into the receiver for implementation the later (e.g., the next day) when certain channels are tuned to by a viewer. Preferably, each commercial packet of data D (12) is preferably provided with a respective Packet Identification (PID) code or other suitable identification code to enable the commercial packets corresponding to the commercial selected by the software (application program) for presentation to the viewer to be identified and separated from the stream D derived from multiplexed data stream TS, and then re-assembled and displayed as a continuous picture with the transitional special effects on the television screen or monitor. Also, the transition application itself could be resident on a user preferences module (not shown) of the receiver 100, in which case it would be controlled by the user and be applied to the downloaded raw commercial data. That is, the user can be provided with control means for controlling certain aspects of the visual effects associated with the transition according to the user's own preferences and settings. In such an embodiment, persistent storage capabilities of the receiver would be utilized. Namely, if the receiver provides local storage j j facilities (e.g., memory 17), the transition applications can be stored and resident on the receiver 100. As can be appreciated from the above descriptions, this invention provides smooth visual transitions between main programs and information messages using zooms, wipes, dissolves or puzzle constructions/deconstructions and so forth of an introduced commercial advertisement by triggering portal applications during, for instance, channel tuning. While the present invention is described herein with reference to an illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments within the scope thereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility. For instance, although the specific embodiments described above are especially suitable to a system that uses either the MPEG-2 or ATSC specification for compression-encoding of the video and associated audio data comprising the transmitted data stream, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the pertinent art that the present invention is equally applicable to systems which use any other suitable multimedia data encoding scheme. Further, although the present invention has been described as using a digital television receiver, it will be apparent that any other suitable device which has the capability of receiving, processing, and displaying encoded multimedia data could likewise be employed. For instance, a personal computer (PC) connected via modem to the service provider or broadcaster could be used. Also, a conventional NTSC (or PAL/SECAM) analog television receiver equipped with an appropriate digital set-top box could also be used in the practice of the present invention. Additionally, the operating system may or may not have a return channel available for retrieving portal applications. If the return channel is present, it can be in the form of a cable return channel (e.g., in a cable system equipped with upstream cable modems) or a modem connected via a standard telephone line or high-speed data transmission line (e.g., an ISDM or T-3 line) to a multimedia server or to the WWW. If the reverse channel is available, a browser program that is resident on the receiver or on a peripheral device connected to the receiver can be used to directly access material from the server or the WWW. 1 _ It is therefore intended by the appended claims to cover any and all such applications, modifications and embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

Claims: CLAIMS: 1. A receiver (100) for controllably displaying an information message (2 Id), characterized by: a display device (24) for receiving first data (11) corresponding to main programming content and second data (12) corresponding to an information message; and a controller (18) for receiving input regarding changes in the main programming and, upon receipt of such input, for coordinating a change from a first main program picture (20) to a second, different from the first, main program picture (23) in which at least one information message (2 Id) is inserted between the first and second main program pictures (20, 23), wherein gradual pictorial transitions (21a-21d, 22a-22d) are provided respectively from the first main program picture (20) to a first information message picture (21 d) and from a second information message picture (22a) to the second main program picture (23). 2. A receiver (100) according to claim 1, characterized by the change comprising switching from a first channel displaying the first main program picture (20) to a second channel displaying the second main program picture (23). 3. A receiver (100) according to claim 1, , characterized by the change comprising a transition on the same channel from a first program picture (20) showing a first camera angle of a scene to a second, different from the first, program picture (23) showing a second, different from the first, camera angle. 4. A receiver (100) according to claim 1, characterized by the information message (21 d) comprising a commercial advertisement. 5. A receiver according to claim 1, characterized by the information message (2 Id) comprising a channel logo. 6. A digital television receiver (100), characterized by: , Λ 14 a television display (24); a television signal demultiplexer (15) for receiving a multiplexed data stream (10), said demultiplexer (10) operable to separate audiovisual content data (11) corresponding to different main programs from multimedia data (12) corresponding to an information message (2 Id); an audiovisual processor (16) for receiving the audiovisual content data (11) from the demultiplexer (15), for decoding the audiovisual content data (11) to produce decompressed audiovisual data, and for outputting the decompressed audiovisual data (13) to the display (24); an application manager ( 18) for receiving the multimedia data (12) corresponding to an information message (2 Id) from the demultiplexer (15), for receiving input regarding changes in the main programming and, responsive to such a change, coordinating a change from a first channel displaying a first program picture (20) to a second channel displaying a second program picture (23) in which at least one information message including a first message picture (21 d) and a second message picture (22a) is inserted between the first and the second program pictures (20, 23) such that gradual pictorial transitions (21a-21d, 22a-22d) are provided respectively from the first program picture (20) to the first message picture (21 d) and from the second message picture (22a) to the second program picture (23). 7. A digital television receiver according to claim 6, characterized by the multimedia data (12) corresponding to the information message (2 Id) comprising a portal application triggered in response to said change. 8. A digital television receiver according to claim 6, characterized by the multimedia data (12) corresponding to the information message (2 Id) comprising a JAVA application triggered in response to said change. 9. A digital television receiver according to claim 6, further characterized by a memory (17) communicating with the application manager (18) for periodically receiving and storing updated information regarding the multimedia content (12), wherein the coordinating comprises a transition (21a-21d, 22a-22d) from a first channel displaying a first program picture (20) to a second, different from the first, channel displaying a second, different from the first, program picture (23). 10. A method of displaying an information message (21 d) during television viewing, characterized by the steps of: receiving a multiplexed data stream (10) in a television receiver (100), said data stream (10) including audiovisual data (11) corresponding to at least one main program and multimedia data (12) corresponding to at least one information message (2 Id); displaying an information message (2 Id) based on said multimedia data (12) during an interruption in said at least one main program comprising coordinating a change from a first main program picture (20) present when the interruption begins to a second main program picture (23) appearing at the conclusion of the interruption by inserting at least one information message including a first information message picture (2 Id) and a second information message picture (22a) between the first and the second main program pictures (20, 23) such that gradual pictorial transitions (21a-21d, 22a-22d) are provided respectively from the first main program picture (20) to the first information message picture (2 Id) and from the second information message picture (22a) to the second main program picture (23).

Inventors: REVELIOTIS PANAGIOTIS, REVELIOTIS, PANAGIOTIS
Applicants: KONINKL PHILIPS ELECTRONICS NV, KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.V.
Application year: 2000
Main classification: H04N5
IPC codes: H04N5