Patent ID: 7194753

Claim:
In a tuning system for tuning to channels of a plurality of different broadcast types including digital broadcasts, a method of efficiently tuning to a channel of one of the broadcast types, the method comprising the following: an act of the tuning system storing a plurality of service records in a plurality of service spaces of a memory accessible by the tuning system, wherein each service record contains tuning information including a channel identifier for tuning to a channel of one of the plurality of broadcast types; an act of extracting additional tuning information from one or more digital data streams that are broadcast to the tuning system over one or more digital channels, wherein the additional tuning information is necessary for subsequent tuning to the one or more corresponding digital channels; an act of storing the additional tuning information in one or more of the service records that correspond to one or more digital channels over which the digital data streams were broadcast; an act of the tuning system categorizing the plurality of service records into a plurality of service spaces; upon receiving a user selection of a service space, identifying a correct one of a plurality of tuners to use in tuning to one or more channels that are identified by one or more service records in the selected service space; an act of the tuning system receiving a selection from the user of a particular channel, the particular user-selected channel corresponding to a particular one of the service records in the selected service space; an act of the tuning system accessing the particular one of the service records from the memory, the particular one of the service records including the extracted additional tuning information; and when the extracted additional tuning information is correct for the user-selected channel, an act of the tuning system tuning to the user-selected channel using the tuning information and the extracted additional tuning information, which is retrieved from the one or more service records rather than being re-extracted from the one or more digital data streams, and wherein the extracted additional tuning information would otherwise be required to be re-extracted from the one or more digital data streams to tune into the selected channel; and when the extracted additional tuning information is incorrect or outdated, an act of the tuning system unsuccessfully attempting to tune to the particular channel selected by the user using the tuning information and the extracted additional tuning information, the tuning being unsuccessful due, at least in part, to the additional tuning information being incorrect or outdated, and in response to determining that the attempt to tune to the particular channel selected by the user was unsuccessful, updating the service record with updated information and thereafter using the updated information from the service record to successfully tune to the particular channel selected by the user.