Abstract:
A television set, digital video recorder, or the like having a user-operable jump-to-start-and-pause function. When activated, such as via a remote control unit button or an on-screen menu item, the jump-to-start-and-pause function jumps or rewinds the currently playing video program to its beginning and pauses until the user e.g. selects a play function.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Technical Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     This invention relates generally to digital video recorders (DVRs), and more specifically to fast-forward and rewind functionality of DVRs.  
         [0003]     2. Background Art  
         [0004]      FIG. 1  illustrates a conventional television set. The television set includes a display panel, illustrated as displaying a scene from a water ski program called “The Brad Show”. The television set includes panel driver electronics which provide a video output signal to the display panel. A tuner is coupled to receive a video input signal from at least one input connector which is connected to e.g. a cable television system, a satellite television receiver, a terrestrial broadcast reception antenna, or what have you. Logic such as a programmable microprocessor or digital signal processor, or hard-wired logic such as an ASIC, provides control logic functionality of the television set, and is coupled to a memory which holds data and instructions. The television set typically includes user operable buttons such as a power button, volume up and down buttons, channel up and down buttons, and the like. The television set typically also includes a wireless receiver for receiving signals from a remote control unit.  
         [0005]     The remote control unit includes a wireless transmitter for sending the signals to the television set. Logic, whether programmable or hard-wired, provides functionality of the remote control, typically as defined by data and instructions stored in a memory. A battery provides electric power for the remote control unit.  
         [0006]     The remote control unit includes a plurality of user operable buttons which control various aspects of the television set&#39;s operation. For example, the remote control unit may include a power button for turning the television set on and off, volume up and down, channel up and down, channel number digit buttons, and so forth.  
         [0007]     In the case of a television set which includes a video recording mechanism (whether built into the television set itself, as shown, or built as a separate component coupled to the television set), the remote control unit will also include a plurality of buttons for controlling playback and recording of programs. Standard buttons and their corresponding functionality, which are generally present in nearly all such remote control units, include:  
                                                       play =                         stop =   ▪           fast-forward =                         rewind =                         record =   ●           pause =                         jump-to-start =                         jump-to-end =                                    
 
         [0008]     These buttons can be used to control playback of video from a variety of local sources, including e.g. a built-in DVR, a stand-alone DVR, a video cassette recorder (VCR), or from a remote source such as a video-on-demand system located at the cable head end. These will generically be referred to as “recorded video sources”.  
         [0009]     When the user presses the jump-to-start button, the recorded video source jumps (or rewinds, in the case of a VCR) to the beginning of the program and immediately re-starts playback of the program.  
         [0010]     However, the user may often want to jump to the start of the program and not begin playback. For example, if he turns on the television half-way through an in-progress recording which he wants to watch in its entirety, he may want to jump back to the start and then wait, while he procures a sandwich and a cold lemonade, before settling down to watch the program.  
         [0011]     With present systems, this requires the user to press the           jump-to-start button, wait for the program to actually jump to the beginning of the program, then press the           pause button. This may be inconvenient for the user, especially but not only in the case of a VCR or other non-randomly-accessed video source which takes a significant amount of time to rewind or the like.  
         [0012]     What is desirable, then, is an improved ability to control a recorded video source, enabling jump-to-start and pause functionality with a minimum of user effort.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]      FIG. 1  shows a conventional television set and a remote control unit for controlling its operation.  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  shows the television set part-way through playback of a program.  
         [0015]      FIG. 3  shows the television set after actuation of the jump-to-start-and-pause functionality of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     The invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description given below and from the accompanying drawings of embodiments of the invention which, however, should not be taken to limit the invention to the specific embodiments described, but are for explanation and understanding only.  
         [0017]      FIG. 1  illustrates the television set as displaying the opening scene of a water skiing program. The title “The Brad Show” is shown for purposes of suggesting that the program is at its beginning, when titles are commonly displayed.  
         [0018]     The           play button on the remote control unit is highlighted, suggesting that the user has pressed that button to begin playback of the program from its recorded video source.  
         [0019]      FIG. 2  illustrates the television set as displaying a later scene in the water skiing program.  
         [0020]     According to one embodiment of this invention, the remote control unit is enhanced with an additional jump-to-start-and-pause button, highlighted in black to suggest that the user has just activated that button. In one such embodiment, the button is formed as the conventional pause symbol           juxtaposed with a single left arrow          . In another embodiment, it is formed as the conventional pause symbol           juxtaposed with a double left arrow          .  
         [0021]      FIG. 3  illustrates the television set as displaying a still frame from the opening scene, with the video playback paused. In one embodiment, a visual cue such as the word “pause” is overlayed on the display, to remind the user why the video is not playing in motion.  
         [0022]     When the user then presses the           play button, the video program will begin playing and the visual “pause” cue will be removed from the display.  
         [0023]     In one embodiment, the visual cue is added as an overlay by the television set&#39;s menuing system. In another embodiment, the visual cue is added by the television set&#39;s on-screen programming guide system (not shown).  
         [0024]      FIG. 4  illustrates one method of operation of the television set, remote control unit, and/or recorded video source according to this invention. The method may begin when the user presses ( 10 ) the play button, or when a prior program ends and a new program begins. Then, the recorded video source begins ( 12 ) playback of the current video program. If ( 14 ) the user presses the pause button, the recorded video source pauses ( 16 ) playback of the current program. If ( 18 ) the user presses the stop button, the recorded video source ends ( 20 ) playback of the current program. If ( 22 ) the user presses the fast-forward (ffwd) button, the recorded video source fast-forwards ( 24 ) playback of the current program. If ( 26 ) the user presses the rewind button, the recorded video source rewinds ( 28 ) playback of the current program. If ( 30 ) the user presses the jump-to-start (JTS) button, the recorded video source jumps ( 32 ) playback to the beginning of the current program. If ( 34 ) the user presses the jump-to-start-and-pause (JTSP) button, the recorded video source jumps ( 36 ) playback to the start of the current program and more or less immediately pauses playback. If the user does not press a button, playback simply continues.  
         [0025]     The flowchart should not be interpreted as a robust, complete state diagram, as it is not intended to be such.  
       CONCLUSION  
       [0026]     When one component is said to be adjacent to or coupled to another component, it should not be interpreted to mean that there is absolutely nothing between the two components, only that they are in the order indicated and that they are somehow connected.  
         [0027]     The various features illustrated in the figures may be combined in many ways, and should not be interpreted as though limited to the specific embodiments in which they were explained and shown.  
         [0028]     Although the invention has, for convenience, been illustrated in the drawings as embodied in a television set having a built-in PVR functionality, the reader should appreciate that it may just as readily be practiced in a stand-alone PVR, or in a video-on-demand playback system, or in a VCR, and so forth.  
         [0029]     The jump-back-and-pause feature may be activated via a dedicated button on the television set, PVR, remote control unit, or the like. Or, it may be activated via an on-screen menu.  
         [0030]     Those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure will appreciate that many other variations from the foregoing description and drawings may be made within the scope of the present invention. Indeed, the invention is not limited to the details described above. Rather, it is the following claims including any amendments thereto that define the scope of the invention.