Abstract:
The present invention allows for a content provider to interact with a user on a Digital Media Frame (DMF) in real time is disclosed. 
     From a DMF coupled with a network, content is displayed. The user inputs data on DMF with regard to the displayed content. A content provider hosting receives the user&#39;s input with the identification information of the DMF. From the content provider&#39;s network server, in response to receiving the input data, actions are performed. The content provider hosting sends new content to the DMF. 
     Features of the present invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the detailed description which follows.

Description:
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]    The present invention allows for a content provider to interact with a user on a Digital Media Frame (DMF) in real time is disclosed. 
         [0002]    From a DMF coupled with a network, content is displayed. The user inputs data on DMF with regard to the displayed content. A content provider hosting receives the user&#39;s input with the identification information of the DMF. From the content provider&#39;s network server, in response to receiving the input data, actions are performed. The content provider hosting sends new content to the DMF. 
         [0003]    Features of the present invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the detailed description which follows. 
       DEFINITIONS, TERMS, ELEMENTS  
       [0004]    Internet is used interchangeably with the term Web. Both of these terms are defined as the worldwide network of PCs, servers, and other devices. 
         [0005]    Content means information displayed in the forms of digital files or streams. For instance, content may be photo images, news text, video clips, or audio files in MP3 format. 
         [0006]    Data means information such as requests or responses from devices sent back and forth among systems. “Data” and “Content” are used interchangeably. 
         [0007]    HTTP is Hyper-text transfer protocol, the protocol used by Web browsers and Web servers to transfer files, such as text and graphic files. 
         [0008]    DMF is Digital Media Frame, the digital displaying device which displays digital images, playbacks digital video files and audio files. 
         [0009]    Network Content Provider is an entity who provides digital contents over a network, which includes digital information, digital images, digital videos and audio files. The digital information includes news, weather, traffic reports, audio files, and video files. 
         [0010]    Network Content Provider Hosting is the networked server of the Content Provider that hosts the content. The hosting supports the network protocols and can be accessed by the content consumers to retrieve the content data. “Hosting” and “Host” are used interchangeably. 
         [0011]    Network is a group of connected computers or electronic devices. Internet, WAN, and LAN are three forms of networks. 
       PATENT BACKGROUND  
       [0012]    With the growth of the popularity of the digital photography, Digital Media Frame (DMF) has evolved rapidly into a viable consumer electronics business by providing direct and convenient image displaying in digital data format. 
         [0013]    Most of conventional DMFs accept the commonly employed digital media storage devices including USB memory stick, Secure Digital (SD) card, and Compact Flash (CF) card, by providing build-in adaptor slots. Such DMFs start displaying digital images after a digital media device containing image files is inserted. 
         [0014]    Another newly employed approach is to equip the DMF with a network connection, which connects the frame to Internet. Different DMF products adopt different approaches to download digital images or other media files like audio or video files from Internet content hosts onto. DMFs. Popular internet content hosts include Flickr, Picasa and Photo Bucket. 
         [0015]    One networking approach is to connect the DMF to a networked PC via either a USB connection or a network connection. PC downloads the media files first and then transfers them to the DMF. This approach requires either PC application software or its operating system equipped with built-in capability of sharing media file. 
         [0016]    Other DMFs adopt a more advanced networking approach by downloading digital media files from a designated web host directly. The web host can be a proxy host with a user interface that aggregates multiple content feeds, mostly in form of RSS feed, from multiple other content hosting servers. The web host can also be the content provider hosting server itself. 
         [0017]    All above media loading approaches are unidirectional. Users of the DMFs are the passive recipients of the media files displayed on the DMF. Users can configure the content sources via different kinds of configuration interfaces; however, they won&#39;t be able to interact with the displayed content in real time. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0018]    The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the accompanying figures. 
           [0019]      FIG. 1  illustrates a connection schema between DMF and content provider hosting. 
           [0020]      FIG. 2  illustrates a block diagram of multiple DMFs interact with a single content provider. 
           [0021]      FIG. 3  illustrates a block diagram of a DMF in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0022]    The present invention allows for content provider to interact with at least one user on a Digital Media Frame (DMF) in real time is disclosed. 
         [0023]    DMF displays digital images that include photos, graphical images, or images converted from text. The recent generation of DMFs is also capable of playback digital video and audio files. DMF receives images, audio or video files from plug-in media storage like CF or SD cards, or from internet or LAN content hosts. 
         [0024]    In the present invention, DMF is equipped with input devices. A convenient input device for users is the build-in touch screen, but it can also be any of an attached keyboard, a mouse device, build-in buttons, a USB connected PC, a motion sensor, or a remote control. Users may input data based on the current displayed content, or input a content selection. The input is sent to the content host with user&#39;s identification information or the identification information of the frame. The content provider can either perform actions based on users&#39; request, or update the displayed content on DMF accordingly. The content provider can also process the users&#39; input for multiple purposes including social networking analysis, feedback analysis, or payment information collection. 
         [0025]      FIG. 1  illustrates an embodiment of a connection between DMF  170  and content provider hosting  140 . The connection includes a DMF  170 , a Content Provider Hosting  140 , a Business Partner Hosting  150 , and multiple content feeds that include Information Feed  100 , Image Feed  110 , Video Feed  120 , and Audio Feed  130 . It will be apparent that additional equivalent content feeds can be similarly connected to the content provider hosting. User Input  180  may include different kind of users&#39; input that includes touches, button press, PC commands, and video, image, or audio data input. 
         [0026]    The DMF  170  can be any kind of Digital Media Displaying Frame that can display digital images, playback digital video and audio files. In this embodiment, it also has input devices for users to input either information regarding the content being displayed, or users&#39; preferences and content selections. The input device can be any of a touch screen, buttons, connected PCs, a connected keyboard and a mouse, a motion sensor, and a remote control. The DMF is connected to the Internet via a network connection. This network connection can be either a Wired Ethernet connection or a wireless connection including any of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or WiMax connections. The DMF is capable of sending and receiving messages under common network protocols including HTTP over TCP/IP. Via Internet, the DMF receives content data from the Content Provider Hosting  140  in form of digital files and displays them to the User. The DMF also receives user&#39;s input in real-time and sends the input data to the Content Provider Hosting. The DMF doesn&#39;t have to identify itself with the Content Provider Hosting when requesting publicly available content data. However, when it sends in user&#39;s input that is uniquely valid for the user, it can attach user&#39;s authentication data along with user&#39;s input messages. The user can input user&#39;s identification and authentication information with the input devices of the DMF. 
         [0027]    The Content Provider Hosting  140  can be any kind of web host that provides data feeds that include any of images, videos or audio files to the DMFs over a network. A common way of data delivery is in form of RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed. The content provider can be a web content provider that broadcasts contents across Internet that doesn&#39;t limit its target to DMF devices. An example of this type of service provider is Flickr.com who provides open RSS access to all public photo sets to all Flickr users. The content provider can also be a web host that targets its services to DMFs or even one brand of DMFs. In this case, most likely each DMF user needs to create a user identification to uniquely identify the DMF, so that when DMF polls the content from the Content Providing Hosting, it is polling the contents that are specifically designated for this particular DMF. The content provider can take multiple input feeds from other content-feed providers on the Internet. It will aggregate the feeds before sending it down to DMF. 
         [0028]    The Business Partner Hosting  150  can be an online service provider that has a business partnership with the Content Provider Hosting  140 . Upon receipt of users&#39;input data, the content provider can direct certain business service request to the Business Partner Hosting  140  to handle the service requests deducted from users&#39; input data. An example of this embodiment will be that after viewing a Movie Trailer on the DMF, user inputs a request to purchase a movie ticket. The content provider that feeds the DMF with the movie trailer video file receives user&#39;s request with user&#39;s payment data. It will then forward this request to a Movie Cinema service provider to purchase the movie ticket on behalf of the user. 
         [0029]    The User Input  180  can be any kind of data user input via different type of input devices including any of a touch screen, buttons, an attached PC, an attached keyboard, a mouse, a motion sensor, and remote control. User&#39;s inputs are received and stored by the DMF and then sent to the content provider via the network connection. 
         [0030]    The Content Feeds ( 100 - 130 ) can be any kind of web hosts that provides content feeds to users on the Internet. A common way of data delivery is in form of RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed. A couple of examples of this type of services are the real time stock price quote feed provided by Scottrade.com and the real-time weather feed provided by weather.com. Flickr.com can also be a content feed provider that feeds images to a Content Provider Hosting before the multiple feeds are aggregated and fed to the DMFs. 
         [0031]      FIG. 2  illustrates an embodiment of connection between multiple Content Providers  200 - 202  and multiple interactive DMFs  220 - 224  and their Users  230 - 233 . Each DMF is capable of receiving content from one or multiple Network Content Providers and sending Users&#39; input to one or multiple Content Providers, while each Content Provider feeds content to multiple DMFs and processes input from multiple Users. 
         [0032]    Each Content Providers  200 - 202  can be any kind of web host that provides data feed that includes images, videos or audio files to the DMFs  220 - 224  over Internet  210 . Like the Content Provider Hosting  140  in  FIG. 1 , the content provider can be generic content provider that broadcasts contents across Internet, or a Web host that targets its service to multiple DMFs or even one specific brand of DMFs. The content provider can take multiple input feeds from other content feed providers on the Internet and aggregate the feeds before send it down the DMFs. The Content Provider offers each content feed with unique accessible address. A common implementation is the URL address of the RSS feed. The accessible address can also be a unique name or identification number, which can be associated with an Internet Protocol address or an URL. The content defined in the feed can be updated by the Content Provider either periodically or randomly. The feed contains the duration of its content validity which triggers the DMFs to poll the feed again upon its expiration. A publicly accessible address of the content feed can be polled by multiple DMFs, which results in the same content to appear on multiple DMFs  220 - 224 . The access of the content feed can also be restricted to limited DMF(s). In this case, user authentication information or frame identification information is needed to authenticate the requester to poll the content feed. 
         [0033]    The DMFs  220 - 224  can be any kind of Digital Media Displaying Frame like the DMF  170  defined in  FIG. 1 . Each DMF  220 - 224  can display digital images, or playback digital video and audio files. In this embodiment, each DMF also has input devices for user to input data either based on the content displayed or played, or to input user&#39;s preference or content selection. DMFs  220 - 224  are connected to Internet  210  via a network connection. Each DMF  220 - 224  can connect to multiple Content Providers  200 - 202  or multiple content feeds provided by single or multiple Content Providers  200 - 202 . In one example, using the input devices of the DMF  220 , User  230  inputs the content selection which can be an accessible address like a Feed URL or the name of the content feed. The DMF  220  requests the content by polling the feed using the accessible Feed URL entered by user or the accessible URL converted from the name of the content feed. The DMF  220  can either display the content in a round robin cycle or just display certain content specified by the user input. After viewing the displayed content, Users  230  can input data that can be in form of images, video stream, audios, data selection, or text input regarding the content. The DMF  220  then forwards users input to the Content Provider  200  with the User&#39;s or DMF identification and the content identification. The Content Provider  200  can process the input data and decide if the future content feed to the DMF shall be adjusted. 
         [0034]    The Users  230 - 233  can be anyone uses or own the DMFs  220 - 224 . A user can use or own one or multiple DMFs. Users  230 - 233  input the content selection with the input devices of the DMFs  220 - 224 . Users  230 - 233  view the displayed content which can be images, text, videos, audio, or combined content. Users can set up the input selection for long term use. For example, a user can subscribe to one photo album feed to an online photo sharing site and the DMF will continue displaying the updated content of the photo feed till user decides to change it. A user can also input a real time content selection to get short term information content. For example, the user can select to receive the latest weather, stock, or traffic information update from the online information provider. The short term content is updated frequently and the DMFs  220 - 224  will display the content for short term only when the User  230 - 233  needs it. 
         [0035]      FIG. 3  illustrates an embodiment of a DMF  400  that contains Input Devices  300 - 330  and connects to Content Provider Hosting  410  via Internet  360 . User  350  uses Input Devices  300 - 340  to input content selection or feedback to the displayed content. The Input Device  300 - 330  can be either a build-in part of the DMF  400 , or a device on the attached PC  340 . 
         [0036]    The Content Provider Hosting  410  is as defined as the Content Provider Hosting  140  in  FIG. 1 . It receives User&#39;s content selection and feedback input from the DMF  400  via internet. It sends the content to DMF  400  via Internet. 
         [0037]    The Network Router  370  can be any of network access points where a network device can be connected to Internet  360 . This network router can be either an Ethernet router or a wireless router that is based on Wi-Fi or other wireless technologies. Many network routers assign Local Area Network (LAN) Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to connected devices. 
         [0038]    The DMF  400  can be any kind of Digital Media Displaying Frame like the DMF  170  defined in  FIG. 1 . The DMF  400  contains a network adaptor that connects to the Network Router  370 . The network adaptor of the DMF can be either an Ethernet network adapter that connects to Ethernet network connection or a Wireless network adaptor that connects to a wireless network router. 
         [0039]    The Display  380  can be any kind of display devices utilizing the different kinds of displaying technologies like the LCD and OLED flat panel displays. The Display device  380  receives displaying signals from the DMF System Board  390 . User  350  views the images, video or information displayed on the Display  380 . 
         [0040]    The DMF System Board  390  is the system control part of the DMF  400 . It hosts the network adaptor, Central Processing Unit, Internal Memory, Display adaptor and other system components that construct of the main system implementation of DMF  400 . The components of the DMF System Board  390  can reside on separated physical boards but are connected by circuit buses or wires. 
         [0041]    Keyboard &amp; Mouse  300 , Touch Panel  3   10 , DMF Control Buttons &amp; Touch Points  320 , DMF Remote Control  330  are all possible input devices for User  350  to input data to the DMF  400 . Keyboard and Mouse  300  can be connected to the DMF System Board  390  with either wired or wireless connection. The touch panel is often laid on top of the Display  380  to allow the User  350  to directly interact with displayed images, displayed buttons or icons, and other touchable image items displayed on Display  380 . Control Buttons  320  are often built on the back or side of DMF  400 , providing simple input commands such as “menu”, “up”, “down”, “select”, etc. Different frames may have different button designs. Touch Points  320  are touch sensors built on the surface of the frame, often on the side of the Display  380 . Display  380  displays descriptive text of commands next to the touch points. Touch Points  320  input the command corresponding to the instruction displayed when the touch point next to it is touched. DMF Remote Control  330  is a device for User  350  to input commands remotely by pressing the predefined key on the control. The DMF System Board  390  receives the command via its remote control receiving sensor. All the input devices serve the purpose to allow the User  350  to input either data of content selection or feedback to the displayed content. 
         [0042]    The PC  340  is connected to the DMF  400  via either wired or wireless connection. The connection can be a Wi-Fi ad-hoc connection or a direct USB connection. PC Application  420  runs on PC  340 . From the PC Application  420 , User  350  can input the content selection, DMF configuration or feedback to the displayed content. 
         [0043]    User  350  can be anyone uses or owns the DMF  400 . User  350  inputs the content selection with the input devices  300  -  340  of the DMF  400 . User  350  views the displayed content which can be any of images, text, videos, audio, or combined on the Display  380 . 
       ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION COMPARED TO PRIOR ART  
       [0044]    One advantage of the present invention provides the real time input and feedback from the user to the network content provider. This feedback converts the one-way communication of the passive content reception of the DMF users to a two-way real time communication. Content provider can now present content that better targets users&#39; need in real time. It is also possible to form a social network of the users based on the real time feedback and input to the displayed content. 
         [0045]    This invention also greatly increases the ease of the use of DMF to its users. With the conventional DMF approach, users need to access the content management website to manage the content fed to the frame. Most of the conventional DMFs present all content in a round-robin fashion and user will have to wait for the next cycle to view any specific content. With the new invention, users can manage and select the content at any time. 
         [0046]    This invention saves the network resource of both DMF and the content provider hosting, since for real time information content including news, weather, traffic conditions, etc., conventional DMFs need to periodically fetch all content to the frame even though the user may only be interested in a very few portion of the content. With the new approach, user can select the interested content and the content provider will deliver that piece of content to the DMF in real time.