Abstract:
A modular interface allows new functionalities to be added to a television receiver. A module can be added to the television receiver through the interface that will enable additional functionalities on the television. The interface allows copy protection of digital video and audio content by incorporating HDCP technology, thereby also allowing the manufacturer of the interface to control the access to the interface.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to hardware modules for adding functionalities to devices such as televisions, DVD players, and the like. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     When a TV receiver is developed and released, not all functionality that might ever be desired of the TV can be included or even foreseen. For example, an improved video compression paradigm requiring a complementary decoder to play the video might be introduced after a TV is sold, in which case the TV would not have the requisite decoding capability to play video transmitted in the newer compression paradigm. 
     While some products may possess the capability to be remotely updated via a software update, a television might not have such a capability. Furthermore, simply updating a product with software or with a new interface has shortcomings, such as not being able to accommodate industry standards for copy protection and not possessing innate mechanisms to restrict access to the interface, which is otherwise required to prevent unapproved devices from being attached to the interface. Accordingly, as recognized herein it is desirable to provide a means for a TV owner to add omitted functionality to the TV while providing the interface to do so with a mechanism for ensuring that only approved devices may be connected. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A module is disclosed for adding functionality to a component such as a TV that is to be augmented with the functionality. A module housing holds components facilitating the functionality, and a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI) connector is supported by the housing and is connectable to a cable connector for establishing a pathway for communication to the component to be augmented. Valid communication between the module and the component to be augmented is permitted only if a key selection vector (KSV) stored in one of the module or component to be augmented is on a list of KSVs stored in the other of the module or component to be augmented. The functionality may be, e.g., video decoding functionality provided by the module but not by the TV. 
     In a non-limiting embodiment the module is formed with a connector bay and at least one HDMI connector is disposed in the bay. The module is also formed with plural guide holes. The HDMI connector mates with a complementary cable connector held in a plastic structure in which opposed arms extend laterally away from the cable connector and terminate in respective guides that are configured for engaging respective guide holes in the module to facilitate engagement of the connectors. 
     In another non-limiting embodiment a dead air space for receiving a cable connecting the module to the component to be augmented is formed between the module and the component to be augmented when the module is engaged with the component to be augmented to allow for an appropriate bend radius of the cable. In specific embodiments the module may include a box-like portion holding interior components and a flat plate-like shelf extending away from the portion. The shelf is not as thick as the portion so that when the portion is flush against a receptacle of the component to be augmented the shelf extends above a floor of the receptacle with an end of the shelf abutting a raised part of the component to be augmented to establish the dead air space. 
     In yet another non-limiting embodiment the module can include a parallelepiped-shaped module body formed with an elongated groove sized and shaped receive a HDMI cable with male HDMI connector end. A female HDMI connector is disposed in the groove to mate with the male HDMI connector end of the cable. 
     In another aspect, a hardware module is disclosed that includes components for providing add-on functionality to a component to be augmented that is physically separate from the module and connectable thereto by a cord. The module communicates with the component to be augmented using an interface restriction from the group of restrictions consisting of: HDMI and/or High Definition Content Protection (HDCP), digital transmission content protection (DTCP) certificate. 
     In still another aspect, a system for adding a functionality includes a TV not having the functionality and module means connectable to the TV and having the functionality. The module means include a housing incorporating one or more of means for guiding arms of a connector structure holding a connector, dead air means for accommodating a cable connecting the module and the TV, and groove means for accommodating a cable connecting the module and the TV. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a non-limiting system in accordance with present principles; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of an example module in accordance with present principles and accompanying TV HDMI connector, with portions of the cable and module broken away for clarity; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded side view of an example module and TV chassis in which a dead space is provided to accommodate a HDMI cable; and 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an example module with a cable channel for accommodating a connector cable. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring initially to  FIG. 1 , a system is shown, generally designated  10 , which can include a TV  12  with video display  14  such as a flat panel matrix display or other TV display, a TV processor  16 , and a TV tuner  18 . The display  14  is caused by the TV processor  16  to display TV signals as selected by the TV tuner  18 . Also, the TV  12  may have a data storage  19  such as but not limited to an extended display identification data (EDID) electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM). 
     The TV  12  is also associated with one or more communication interfaces  12   a . In one non-limiting implementation the interface  12   a , which can be an Internet Protocol television (IPTV) receiver, codec, or other module, is a HDMI-based interface that may include hardware and software embodying a HDMI transmitter (for sending signals to a set-top box or disk player or other source) and HDMI receiver (for receiving signals from a source). Plural HDMI connectors may be provided. The interface  12   a  may be physically implemented within the housing of the TV  12  or it may be external thereto. The interface  12   a  may include its own storage such as an EEPROM or one-time programming (OTP) ROM. It is to be understood that while  FIG. 1  shows various storages, the information disclosed below may be stored in one common storage or in a storage associated with only the TV  12  or only with the interface  12   a . In any case, as shown the interface  12   a  is the communication interface between the TV  12  and an add-on functionality module  20 . 
     More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 1  an add-on functionality module  20  with internal components  20   a  such as circuits for facilitating the functionality can be connected to the TV  12  by a connector cable  22  such as a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) cable. Board-to-board interfaces can be used. The add-on functionality module  20  may include hardware and/or software not included in the TV  12  but desired by a user of the TV  12 . For instance, the module  20  may include a video decoder or other function that is not otherwise included in the TV  12 . The module  20  has an interface  23  that is complementary to the interface  12   a  of the TV  12 . 
     The signals to be displayed on the TV  12  can come from a multimedia source  24  such as a set-top box, a cable head end, a satellite source, a disk player, an Internet site, etc. The multimedia source  24  may be connected to the TV  12  directly and/or to the TV  12  via the module  20  as shown. 
     Accordingly, it may now be appreciated that the module  20  can piggyback on an existing interface restriction, such as the restrictions imposed by High Definition Content Protection (HDCP) (i.e., that only modules  20  with licensed HDCP key selection vectors (KSVs) can communicate with TVs  12  that also must have licensed KSVs.) The present invention does this by restricting access to a TV  12  that might incorporate HDMI/HDCP to only those modules  20  that possess KSVs that have been placed on a list approved by, e.g., the vendor of the TV  12 , with the list being stored in, e.g., the storage  19  of the TV  12  and/or downloaded from a server such as an Internet server to the module or TV. 
     Present principles apply not only to the HDMI/HDCP interface but can also be used with other interfaces. For example, the invention can be used with a vendor module incorporating a IEEE-1394 interface, in which case the encryption information can include a digital transmission content protection (DTCP) certificate. Moreover, the inverse of the above restriction can also be true, i.e., a vendor of a monitor  20  can use present principles to restrict access to a module  20  to only TVs from approved manufacturers. Other interfaces additionally or alternatively may be used, e.g., universal serial bus (USB) to provide a copy protectable video path, bi-directional control signal path, power and controllable access. 
     While the above disclosure focuses on an example implementation in which the module  20  is used to augment the functionality of a TV  12 , it is to be understood that the module  20  may also be used to augment the functionality of other components, e.g., set top boxes, DVD players, personal computers, etc. For example, as has been postulated in the case of a TV, a DVD player and/or a PC may not have the capability to support some new and future video and/or audio compression system. The module  20  can thus be connected to a PC or DVD to facilitate the support of a future compression algorithm. 
     In any case, to provide an illustration of the purpose of the module  20 , if the source  24  is connected to the module  20  to deliver video that is transmitted using a compression algorithm requiring a decoder not possessed by the TV  12  to play the video, the module  20  can be provided with the decoder, decode the video, and then send the decoded video to the TV  12  for playing the video. 
     Turning to  FIG. 2 , an example module  100  is illustrated of the module  20  shown in  FIG. 1 . The module  100  can be formed with a connector bay  102  that can be a parallelepiped-shaped cavity in the housing of the module  100  as shown. One or more electrical connectors  104  such as a type A, B, or C HDMI female connector may be disposed in the bay  102  on, e.g., an interior wall thereof as shown. Also, in the example shown in  FIG. 2  the bay  102  and in particular the interior wall thereof can be formed with two guide holes  106  that straddle the connector  104  for purposes to be shortly disclosed. 
     The module  100  may be electrically connected to the TV  12  shown in  FIG. 1  by means of a cord  108 , one end of which (not shown) is connected to the TV  12  and the other end of which may terminate in a connector  110 , such as a male HDMI connector, that is configured for mating with the connector  104  of the module  100 . The male connector  110  may be held in a plastic overmold structure  110   a , and in the example shown in  FIG. 2  opposed arms  112  that can be integral to the overmold structure  110   a  extend laterally away from the connector  110 . Each arm  112  terminates in a respective guide  114  that is oriented perpendicularly to the arm  112  and that is configured for engaging a respective guide hole  106  in the module  100  to facilitate engagement of the connectors  104 ,  110  by “feel”. Thus, the blind alignment of the module&#39;s connector  104  to the cable assembly connector  110  is facilitated. The guide structure described above facilitates the use of standard HDMI connectors, which may carry not only HDMI-HDCP but also in some implementations USB and/or Ethernet plus power. 
       FIG. 3  shows an implementation  200  of the module  20  shown in  FIG. 1  in which a HDMI connector is used without any brackets, to facilitate the use of off-the-shelf components and cables. This is supported by including a dead air space  202  in the mechanical arrangement between the module  200  and the TV  12  chassis. This dead space  202  allows for an appropriate bend radius of the HDMI, USB and power cables, collectively labeled  204  in  FIG. 3 . Depending upon the application, the power carried within the USB cable may be sufficient. 
     With more specificity, the module  200  may include a box-like portion  206  that holds the interior components of the module  200  and a flat plate-like shelf  208  extending away from the portion  206 . The shelf  208  is not as thick as the portion  206  as shown in side view, so that when the portion  206  is flush against a receptacle  210  of the TV chassis, the shelf  208  extends above the floor  212  of the receptacle  210 , with the end of the shelf  208  abutting a raised part  214  of the TV chassis as shown to establish a substantially enclosed dead air space  202  in which the cable(s)  204  are disposed. The top surfaces of the shelf  208 , box-like portion  206 , and raised part  214  can be flush with each other as shown. 
       FIG. 4  shows another example  300  of the module  20  shown in  FIG. 1  that is configured to facilitate use of off-the-shelf HDMI cabling and connectors. As shown, a parallelepiped-shaped module body  302  is formed with an elongated groove  304  on the side of the module  300  that is intended to face the TV chassis as indicated by the arrow  306 . The groove  304  is sized and shaped receive a HDMI cable  308  with male HDMI connector end  310 . A female HDMI connector  312  is disposed preferably at one end  314  of the groove  304  to mate with the male HDMI connector end  310  of the cable  308 , the opposite end of which is attached to the TV. The groove  304  and recessed female connector  312  allow for a convenient and space-saving lead dressing for the interconnecting HDMI cable  308 . 
     While the particular HARDWARE MODULE FOR ADDING FUNCTIONALITY TO TELEVISION 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. For instance, a module of the invention may comprise one, two, or all of the features shown in the figures.