Patent Publication Number: US-2007101185-A1

Title: Multi-room network guide with scheduling device indicators

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS  
      The present application is a continuation-in-part (CIP) of U.S. patent applications “Parental Control for a Multi-Room Networked System” and “Interactive Network Guide with Parental Monitoring” having Ser. Nos. 11/069,439 and 11/069,440, respectively, which were both filed on Mar. 1, 2005, the disclosures and teachings of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      This invention relates in general to broadband communications systems, and more particularly, to the field of network multimedia systems having a multi-room interactive network guide.  
     DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART  
      Broadband communications systems, such as satellite and cable television systems, are now capable of providing many services in addition to analog broadcast video. In implementing enhanced programming, the set-top terminal (STT), otherwise known as the set-top box, has become an important computing device for accessing various video services. In addition to supporting traditional analog broadcast video functionality, many STTs now also provide other functionality, such as, for example, an interactive program guide (IPG), picture-in-picture (PIP) viewing, video-on-demand (VOD), subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) and functionality traditionally associated with a conventional computer, such as e-mail. Recently new functionality has been added to conventional STTs—namely the ability to record an incoming video stream in digitized form onto a mass storage device, such as a hard disk drive, and play back that recorded video as desired by the user. This functionality has become known as a “digital video recorder” (DVR) or personal video recorder (PVR) and is viewed as a superior alternative to conventional video tape recorders for capture and subsequent playback of programming content.  
      A STT is typically connected to a television set and located at the home of the cable or satellite system subscriber. Since the STT is located at a subscriber&#39;s premises, it typically may be used by two or more users (e.g., household members). Also, television has become so prevalent in the United States that the typical household may have two or more television sets, each television set requiring its own STT if a subscriber wishes to have access to enhanced functionality.  
      The networked multi-room system (NMS) allows a plurality of remote devices in the premises to be locally networked (i.e., home-networked). One or more of the remote devices typically acts as a server or primary device (i.e., the primary set-top terminal) in the NMS. The primary device receives and forwards upon request broadband multimedia presentations (e.g., analog or digital television channels (i.e., audio/video signals), IP signals, video-on-demand (VOD) signals, administrative signals, etc.) throughout the local network to the plurality of remote devices (i.e., client devices, remote set-top terminals). Furthermore, the remote devices are each capable of requesting and seamlessly receiving from the primary device resident presentations, such as a stored or recorded presentation, the interactive program guide (IPG), or the network guide, for example. Additionally, the remote devices may independently receive presentations from and send upstream signals to the communications network. Accordingly, the remote devices may be simplified, less-costly versions of the primary device but are capable of utilizing, via the NMS, some or all of the advanced hardware and software features, such as memory, a mass storage device, software applications, or infrastructure for transmitting signals back to the headend, that are available in the primary device.  
      Multiple users operating discrete STTs within a networked premises have access to the programming and content received by and/or stored in other STTs. Therefore, there exists a need for the ability to control and/or monitor the STTs within the networked premises, such as a client STT, or remote device, being able to view from either the primary or any remote device the schedule of content that is being recorded, which content is scheduled to be recorded, or which content has been recorded on the primary device. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The invention can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the invention. In the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.  
       FIG. 1  is a simplified block diagram depicting a non-limiting example of a conventional broadband communications system with a networked multi-room system (NMS).  
       FIG. 2  illustrates an interactive program guide (IPG), which is suitable for use in the NMS of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 3  illustrates a non-limiting example of one embodiment of an interactive program guide (IPG), which depicts programs to be recorded.  
       FIG. 4  illustrates further functionality listings of an IPG, such as a personal video recording (PVR) recorded programs list and the network guide (NG).  
       FIG. 5  depicts a non-limiting example of a recorded programs list screen that may be presented to a remote device via the NMS of  FIG. 1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      The embodiments of the invention can be understood in the context of a broadband communications system and a local network system. Note, however, that the invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. For example, transmitted broadband signals may include at least one of video/audio, telephony, data, or Internet Protocol (IP) signals, to name but a few. Furthermore, remote devices included in the local network system receiving the transmitted broadband signals may include a set-top terminal (STT), a television, a computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), or other display device. Moreover, in accordance with the present invention, a multi-room interactive network guide can have various features, functions, and presentations when displayed. All examples given herein, therefore, are intended to be non-limiting and are provided in order to help clarify the description of the invention.  
       FIG. 1  is a simplified block diagram depicting a non-limiting example of a conventional broadband communications system  100 . In this example, the communications system  100  includes a local networked multi-room system (NMS)  110  that is coupled to a headend (HE)  120  via a communications network (CN)  130 . The CN  130  may be any network that is suitable for carrying, preferably downstream and upstream, broadband multimedia signals, such as audio/video signals, IP signals, telephony signals, or data signals. The CN  130  may be, for example, a hybrid fiber/coax (HFC) network, a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network, a satellite network, or a fixed wireless network (e.g., MMDS), among others.  
      The HE  120  may include one or more server devices for providing broadband signals, such as video, audio, and/or data signals, to a primary device  140  via the CN  130 . The HE  120  and the primary device  140  cooperate to provide a user with a variety of services. The services may include, for example, analog or digital broadcast television services and channels, video-on-demand (VOD) services, and/or pay-per-view (PPV) services, among others. Each broadcast television channel typically provides a sequence of television presentations corresponding to a television station (e.g., ABC, NBC, CBS, or FNN) and is typically identified by a channel number (e.g., channel 2, channel 3, channel 4) that is available to a user at all times. Additionally, PPV services are typically transmitted to the primary device  140  at all times, but can only be viewed on the primary device  140  as provisioned. On the other hand, the primary device  140  typically requests a VOD service and, subsequently, the HE  120  transmits the presentation downstream to the primary device  140 .  
      The NMS can include a router, but as shown in  FIG. 1 , the NMS  110  includes a splitter/isolator module (SIM)  160  that receives downstream broadband signals from the HE  120  and subsequently provides the downstream signals to the primary device  140  or to both the primary device  140  and any one or all of the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  depending on the implementation. Upon command from at least one of the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n , the primary device  140  may also forward selected real-time downstream signals and/or stored content signals to the requesting remote device  150 - 1 , for example, via the SIM  160 . The remote device  150 - 1  communicates with the primary device  140  by sending reverse control/command signals via coaxial cable requesting stored presentations, real-time signals, or the network guide. Other wired mediums, such as telephone lines or data cables, may be used so long as the transport format accommodates the desired transmission medium. The remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  have access to all of the primary device  140 &#39;s hardware and software functionality, along with receiving downstream signals directly from the headend via the SIM  160 . Therefore, the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  may have limited resources, such as not including a storage device in order to record and store a presentation, thereby decreasing the overall costs to the service provider and the subscriber while offering advanced services to all of the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  that are networked to the primary device  140 .  
      Furthermore, the primary device  140  may also directly provide signals, such as analog and digital channels, stored presentations, or the network guide, to a coupled display device  180 , which may be, for example, a television, computer, or PDA (personal digital assistant), among others. The primary device  140  may transmit signals to and receive control signals from the display device  180  via wireless devices (e.g., RF or IR devices) or a wired medium (e.g., coaxial cable, power lines, or telephone lines). The primary device  140  may be incorporated in the display device  180 .  
      The primary device  140 , in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, includes a processor, a tuner system, a storage device, a modulator, and a remote device communications receiver. Each of the remote devices, such as the remote device  150 - 1 , may be identical to the primary device  140  and just share the storage device contents of the primary device  140 . Alternatively, the remote device  150 - 1  may be a simplified or conventional version of the primary device  140 . A processor and a tuner system, which may be a simplified processor and only one tuner, may be included to extract channels from the received downstream broadband signals. Additionally, decryptors and decoders may be included to decode encoded signals for proper processing and display. Preferably, the remote device  150 - 1  includes a user input receiver, such as an IR receiver or an RF receiver, that receives signals from a remote control, such as an IR remote control or an RF remote control. The remote control is not required and any user input device could be incorporated in the remote device  150 - 1 .  
      In the event that the remote device  150 - 1 , upon user input, requests a presentation, a reverse command signal is transmitted from the remote device  150 - 1  to the primary device  140  via the SIM  160 . The remote device command receiver receives and demodulates the command signal according to its transmission method, such as frequency-shift keying (FSK) or on-off keying (OOK) transmission. The processor subsequently receives the demodulated command signals indicative of the requested action (e.g., requesting a presentation) and in accordance therewith instructs the tuner to tune to, for example, a channel carrying a real-time downstream signal, or the processor may retrieve a stored presentation from the storage device. The presentation&#39;s content signals are then provided to the modulator, which modulates the selected presentation prior to forwarding to the SIM  160 . A preferred embodiment of the present invention uses a quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) modulator, which may be used for effectively transmitting signals over coaxial cable in a cable television environment.  
      The presentations stored in the storage device of the primary device  140  include program identifiers (PIDs), which may be indexed and stored as a table in the primary device&#39;s memory. The remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  may watch a single stored presentation by remapping the PID value of the stored program to a different PID value prior to modulation. In this manner, the single stored program basically remains in the storage device, while the transmitted presentation is a copy of the stored presentation having a remapped PID value.  
       FIG. 2  illustrates a non-limiting example of an interactive program guide (IPG) screen  200  that is suitable for use in the NMS  110  of  FIG. 1 . The IPG screen  200  may be presented in response to user input that may be provided via the activation of a guide key on the remote control. When a remote device  150 - 1 , for example, requests the network guide, the processor accesses the network guide  200 , which is stored in memory of the primary device  140 , and subsequently forwards the content signals indicative of the network guide  200  to the modulator for modulation and transmission to the requesting remote device  150 - 1 .  
      In the top right of the IPG screen  200 , video corresponding to the channel to which the primary device  140  is currently tuned may be displayed in the video area  210 . Immediately below the video area  210  is an information banner  220  for displaying the channel number corresponding to the channel to which the primary device  140  is currently tuned, the current day and date, and the current time.  
      Arrow buttons on the remote control can be used to scroll through a main presentation listing  230  and to highlight a desired presentation  240 , in this case entitled Rugrats. The top left portion of the network guide  200  is a detailed focus area  250  that includes detailed information for the currently highlighted presentation  240 . The detailed focus area  250  may include channel number, channel description, presentation name, duration of the presentation, and/or any other episode information or rating. As a user scrolls in time across a calendar day boundary  260 , the day and date indications displayed in various areas are updated. The bottom area  270  of the network guide  200  also indicates the current day for which presentation listing data is being displayed as well as information about the current functions of the optional “A,” “B,” and “C” keys that may be on the remote controls and are used in conjunction with the IPG.  
       FIG. 3  illustrates a network guide or IPG screen  300  showing scheduled recordings. A user of one of the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  can access the IPG screen  300  and choose a program to record. For example, through the remote control, the user highlights the presentation  240  entitled Rugrats and then may choose whether to record only this episode or all episodes, from a separate screen. The user makes their selection and the highlighted presentation is now set to record. There are numerous methods for indicating the device which the request to schedule the presentation for recording originated from. The indicators for identifying which device scheduled the recording may be, for example, color, icons, text, or any other suitable means for distinguishing a primary or remote device that is recording a presentation, scheduled a presentation for recording, or stored a presentation, from another. All scheduled presentations could each be displayed in a colored field where particular colors are associated with corresponding primary or remote devices. Alternatively, when the user highlights a field or presses a button on the remote control, text describing the device that scheduled a recording could be displayed as shown in the detailed focus area  330 . In another embodiment, an icon associated with a particular device or a text overlay could identify the requesting device and could also be displayed within the field of the presentation or only appear when a user highlights the field of the presentation. For example, the presentation  240  entitled Rugrats has a text overlay  310  stating “Family Room” and the presentation  320  entitled Gladiator has a text overlay  330  stating “Tom&#39;s Room.” 
      After scheduling a recording from either the primary device  140  or one of the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n , the updated network guide  300  is saved with the new information. For example, the remote device  150 - 1  transmits the new information via the SIM  160  to the primary device  140  in order to update the network guide  300 , which is stored in the primary device  140 . The primary device  140  then broadcasts, either upon request or in a carousel manner, the updated network guide  300  to the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n.    
       FIG. 4  illustrates the further functionality listings of an IPG screen  400 , having a personal video recording (PVR) listing  410  and a network guide listing (NG)  420 . Highlighting and selecting the PVR listing  410  accesses a recorded programs list screen  500  as shown in  FIG. 5 . Alternatively, the user can select the channel number using number keypads on the remote control to navigate to either the recorded programs list screen  500  or the network guide  420 .  
       FIG. 5  depicts a non-limiting example of the interactive recorded programs list screen  500  showing a portion of a recorded programs list  510  that may be presented to the remote devices  150 - 1  to  150 - n  via the NMS  110  of  FIG. 1 . The recorded programs list screen  500  displays one or more recorded programs  510  and, if desired, the title, the recording date and time, the device that scheduled the recording, and the length of the program. However, instead of displaying the device that scheduled the recording, one or more recorded programs  510  could be colored or have colored text which corresponds with the device that requested or scheduled the recordings. An icon could also be used in place of displaying the name of the device that requested the recording.  
      A recorded presentation in the highlighted program line  520  can typically be selected for viewing by pressing a select button or a play button on a remote control. When a remote device  150 - 1 , for example, requests a list of the recorded programs, the processor accesses the recorded programs list  510 , which is stored in memory of the primary device  140 , and subsequently forwards the content signals indicative of the recorded programs list  510  to the modulator for modulation and transmission to the requesting remote device.  
      For example, still referring to  FIG. 5 , a recorded presentation  520  entitled Rugrats was recorded on Monday, October 3 and is one hour in length. The recording was scheduled to be recorded by a user in the Family Room. After the user selects the recorded presentation  520 , the remote device  150 - 1 , for example, sends a reverse command signal that is indicative of the selected recorded presentation (i.e., Rugrats) to the remote command receiver via the SIM  160 . The processor extracts recorded presentation  520  from the storage device using an identifier as described above. The presentation  520  is subsequently modulated and transmitted to the SIM  160  for delivery to the remote device  150 - 1 . The requesting remote device  150 - 1  tunes to the modulator frequency and waits for the response (i.e., the presentation entitled Rugrats).  
      There are times when multiple devices will attempt to schedule recordings at the same time. It is possible to set up a priority scheme, where a user determines which device will always receive top priority. The user attempting to make an overlapping recording would be notified at the time of scheduling and could determine whether to proceed and interrupt the previously scheduled recording. These situations can arise regardless of the number of tuners in the primary device  140 .  
      It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of the invention are merely possible examples, among others, of the implementations, setting forth a clear understanding of the principles of the invention. Many variations and modifications may be made to the above-described embodiments of the invention without departing substantially from the principles of the invention. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of the disclosure and invention and protected by the following claims. In addition, the scope of the invention includes embodying the functionality of the embodiments of the invention in logic embodied in hardware and/or software-configured mediums.