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Description  |
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to the field of entertainment
communication services, and particularly to those services employing
digital audio and video transmission signals.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The advent of digital signal compression and increased communication
bandwidth availability has made possible the realization of custom home
entertainment services such as, for example, video-on-demand. In the past,
the communications infrastructure provided only for broadcast
entertainment. Consequently, in order to enjoy custom entertainment, one
was required to purchase or rent entertainment storage devices such as
video tapes, audio tapes or compact discs.
It is now possible, however, for a user to establish a point-to-point
connection with an entertainment data base to retrieve a work of
entertainment, for example, a movie, to view at any time. This provides an
advantage over broadcast television of allowing a user to experience
entertainment at a user-specified time. An example of such a system, known
as a video-on-demand system, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,247,347.
According to standard video-on-demand systems, a user specifies a title of
a video work, and the video piece is provided to the user from the data
base over a virtual circuit connection in a communication network. The
term video as used herein in conjunction with the words "signal" or "work"
refers to either video alone or video with accompanying audio. In
contrast, the use of the term audio refers to solely audio.
Broadcast video, such as an ordinary television broadcast, as opposed to
video-on-demand, offers the advantage of providing ongoing, varied
entertainment. For example, a television station may offer a broadcast
schedule consisting of a mix of news programs, game shows, situation
comedies and movies over the course of an evening. Broadcast entertainment
allows users to enjoy ongoing entertainment without requiring the user to
specify each title.
As a result, the entertainment consumer may presently select to receive
either ongoing and varied entertainment through broadcast transmissions or
custom, discrete entertainment video-on-demand technology.
Similarly, the concept of an analogous audio-on-demand system is plainly
feasible. Audio-on-demand has not received much attention, however,
perhaps because of the perception that the time required to select a
particular musical work, which in current popular music typically has a
five minute or less duration, does not justify such capability. An
audio-on-demand system similar to the video-on-demand system may also have
less of a market because consumers are more likely to purchase a desired
musical piece than they would a video work. Consumers purchase musical
works with the expectation of listening to the musical piece at a far
higher repetition rate than they would a video recording. As a result, the
combination of the time and effort required for using audio-on-demand and
the popularity of purchasing musical recordings presently renders
audio-on-demand less desirable than video-on-demand.
Furthermore, as in the case of video, consumers also have the option of
listening to broadcast audio which provides varied and ongoing audio
entertainment. Broadcast audio eliminates the inconvenience of constantly
choosing new audio works. Moreover, home musical playback equipment can
also offer limited ongoing and varied audio entertainment, such as a
compact disc player with a multiple disc magazine. The drawback of such
systems is that the consumer is nevertheless limited to selections from
his or her own collection.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a user programmable entertainment method and
system that provides varied and ongoing custom entertainment services. The
method of the present invention provides an entertainment signal
comprising a sequence of discrete expressive works to an end user. The
discrete expressive works represented in the entertainment signal may be
either specifically requested by the user or selected according to
user-specified parameters.
According to the present invention, a user defines a sequence of user
preference items, each defining a block of time in an entertainment
signal, which together comprise a user preference signal. The user
preference signal is then communicated to a remotely located program
processor. The program processor selects a plurality of discrete
expressive works that conform to the user preference item definitions. An
entertainment signal comprising the selected expressive works is then
communicated over a communication link to the receiving means located in
the proximity of the user.
The entertainment signal may comprise an audio signal consisting of a
plurality of musical, news or other audibly expressive works or,
alternatively, a video signal consisting of a plurality of television or
motion picture video works. The entertainment signal may suitably comprise
a digital data signal compressed using standard data compression
techniques.
The above discussed features, as well as additional features and advantages
of the present invention, will become apparent by reference to the
following detailed description and accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary user-programmable entertainment system
operable to provide custom audio and video signals according to one aspect
of the present invention;
FIG. 2 illustrates a functional flow diagram of the operations performed by
a program processor to define the user preference signal utilized in the
exemplary system in FIG. 1; and
FIG. 3 illustrates a functional diagram of the operations performed by the
program processor to provide an entertainment signal that conforms to the
user preference signal.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows an exemplary system for providing an entertainment signal
comprising a plurality of discrete expressive works, the entertainment
signal being defined by a consumer or user. A discrete expressive work
comprises a singular piece of entertainment such as, for example, an
episode of a television program, a movie, a song or a symphony. A discrete
expressive work may ordinarily be referenced by title, although in some
circumstances more information is required, such as a featured artist or
the year of publication.
Consider, for example, a consumer or user of video services who desires to
view, in sequence, one hour of news followed by two hours of situation
comedies from the 1950's or 1980's, followed by a motion picture. The
system in FIG. 1 allows the user to generate such a request and receive
the appropriate or conforming television shows and movies.
In the exemplary system described below, each user of the entertainment
services provided by the present invention requests and obtains
entertainment services through a user node 100. The user node 100 consists
of a decoder 110 connected to both a video display 120 and an audio
amplifier 130, and a user selection interface 150 connected to both a
transmission device 160 and the video display 120. The video display 120
comprises an ordinary television capable of receiving and displaying NTSC
television signals. It is to be noted that the video display 120 may
suitably be capable of receiving and audibly reproducing accompanying
television audio signals. The audio amplifier 130 comprises a stereo
receiver and amplifier which is further connected to a pair of
loudspeakers 140 and 145.
The decoder 110 is connected to an external communication network 170. The
decoder 110 comprises any suitable device for decompressing digital
signals encoded according to a standard format, for example, one of the
Motion Picture Expert Group (MPEG) formats. The decoder 110 further
contains digital to analog conversion means.
The transmission device 160 is also connected to the communication network
170. The transmission device 160 may suitably comprise telephone terminal
equipment or a modem. The communication network 170 may suitably be any
network operable to provide a point-to-point digital and analog signal
communications. An example of a point-to-point digital data network
capable of providing video data to individual users in a video-on-demand
system is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,247,347, which is incorporated
herein by reference.
A remotely located program processor 175 is also connected to the
communication network 170. The program processor 175 is located at a
location central to a plurality of user nodes which are similar to the
user node 100. The program processor 175 comprises a computing device that
operates to execute the functions within the flow chart discussed below in
connection with FIGS. 2 and 3. The program processor 175 includes a
program storage means for storing operating software.
The program processor 175 is operably connected to a data storage device
180, and a billing data storage device 188. A suitable configuration of a
program processor, a data storage device, a billing storage device, and a
communication network is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No.
08/056,973 entitled "Integrated Television Services System" filed May 3,
1993, which is also assigned to the assignee of the present invention and
incorporated herein by reference.
The data storage device 180 stores various expressive works, such as
television shows, movies and news programs in compressed digital data
format. Although shown as a singular device, the data storage device 180
may comprise a plurality of storage devices which are switchably connected
to the communication network 170. A suitable data storage configuration is
disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/997,985 entitled "Program
Server for Interactive Television System" filed Dec. 28, 1992, which is
assigned to the assignee of the present invention and incorporated herein
by reference.
The above described components operate in the following manner to provide
entertainment signals. The user invokes the entertainment system by
sending a start control signal to the program processor 175. To do so, the
user enters a start request into the user selection interface 150. The
user selection interface 150 provides a start signal to the transmission
device 160, which in turn provides the start signal to the program
processor 175 through the communication network 170.
The program processor 175 then solicits the user to define the user
preference signal. To this end, the program processor 175 sends prompt
signals through the communication network 170 to the user selection
interface 150 through the transmission device 160. The prompt signals,
which prompt the user to define the user preference signal, are
communicated to the user through either a display means located on the
user selection interface 150 or the video display 120.
The custom user preference signal may comprise, for example, a sequential
list of movies, television shows, or other works, that should be
transmitted in the entertainment signal. The user preference signal is
organized as a sequence of user preference items. Each user preference
item (UPI) contains information about the desired attributes for a
specific block of time in the entertainment signal. The UPI may contain
information specifying either a particular discrete expressive work (DEW),
for example, a motion picture title, or one or more attributes common to a
plurality of DEWs, such as the genre or time period of a motion picture.
In addition to selecting attributes or a title for each UPI, the user also
defines the duration of each UPI, and may also select a particular
starting time. A menu-driven program executed by the program processor 175
to achieve the foregoing is described below in connection with FIG. 2.
An exemplary user preference signal is shown in Table 1.
TABLE 1
______________________________________
UPI 1 genre: news (national)
duration: 1 hour
starting time:
7:00 p.m.
UPI 2 genre: situation comedy
time period: 1950's or 1980's
duration: until 10:00 p.m.
UPI 3 genre: series ("Twin Peaks")
duration: 1 episode
______________________________________
Details regarding the generation of such a user preference signal are
discussed below in connection with FIG. 2.
The user selections defining the user preference signal are entered in the
user selection interface 150. The user selection interface 150 thereafter
provides the user preference signal either as a batch, or
contemporaneously as it is being defined, to the transmission device 160.
The transmission device 160 transmits the user preference signal to the
program processor 175 over the communication network 170.
To accomplish the above-described tasks, the user selection interface 150
and transmission device 160 may comprise any suitable means that allow the
user to make selections and transmit the result. For example, a telephone
terminal device may serve as the user selection interface 150 and
transmission device 160. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,247,347 for an
example of a video-on-demand system that receives user requests over a
telephone network. Alternatively, interactive television means may be
used, and an infrared remote control may comprise the user selection
interface 150. In such a case, the interactive television transmission
signal may comprise the user preference signal.
After the user preference signal is defined, the program processor 175
facilitates transmission of the entertainment signal as described below.
For each UPI in the user preference signal, the program processor first
selects one or more appropriate DEWs meeting the UPI-defined requirements.
Before the entertainment signal can be transmitted, however, the program
processor 175 provides a control signal to the data storage device 180 to
establish a point-to-point connection, also called a virtual circuit, with
the user node 100.
The program processor 175 then locates the storage address of video or
audio data for the first selected discrete expressive work within the data
storage device 180. The program processor 175 then sends a control signal
commanding the data storage device 180 to begin transmitting the data at
the located storage address to the user station 100 over the communication
network 170. After the data for the first DEW has been transmitted, the
program processor 175 repeats the above operations for each DEW until the
entire entertainment signal corresponding to the user preference signal
has been transmitted. A more detailed explanation of the above described
functions is given below in connection with FIG. 3.
The operation of the program processor 175 may be demonstrated by reference
to an example. To this end, consider, for example, the user preference
signal defined in Table 1 above. At 7:00 p.m., the program processor 175
locates the storage address of a national news program in a program
storage device 180. The digital video data is then transmitted to the user
located at the node 100. Before the news program is over, the program
processor 175 then locates the data for the first randomly selected
situation comedy from the 1950's or 1980's. Then, at the completion of the
news program, the program processor 175 commands the data storage device
180 to begin transmitting data for the situation comedy.
Returning to the general operation of the system, the data storage device
180 provides the entertainment signal, which is in the form of a
compressed video and/or audio digital signal, to the decoder 110 through
the communication network 170. The decoder 110 decompresses the
entertainment program signal and converts the signal to the appropriate
analog signal format, discussed further below. The decoder then provides
the converted entertainment signal to a device that renders the signal
perceptible to humans, such as for example, the video display 120 and/or
the amplifier 130 and speakers 140, 145.
The conversion of the decompressed digital signal to the appropriate analog
signal compatible with current audio and video components is well known.
In the case of video entertainment, the decoder 110 further converts the
decompressed digital television signal to an analog NTSC video signal in
order to be compatible with a standard television. Such conversion would
be known to those of ordinary skill in the art. In the case of purely
audio entertainment, the decompressed digital audio signal should be
converted to an analog audio signal. Furthermore, the user may desire that
the video display 120 and audio amplifier 130 both include switching
devices that allow the user to switch between receiving broadcast signals
on an antenna or cable connection and compressed digital signals from the
decoder 110. Suitable switching devices are well known.
Additionally, the program processor 175 from time to time provides billing
information to the billing data storage device 188. The exact method of
billing is a business decision, but may include charging the user for each
DEW included within the entertainment signal. For example, the user may be
billed $1.00 for an episode of "I Love Lucy" while being billed $6.00 for
a first run motion picture. In such a case, the data within the data
storage device 180 for each DEW preferably includes its price data. The
program processor 175 may suitably retrieve the price data from the data
storage device 180 at the beginning of the transmission of each DEW and
then transmit it to the billing storage device 188 at the conclusion of
the entire entertainment signal.
FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate a functional flow diagram of the operations of the
program processor 175 from FIG. 1. Those of ordinary skill in the art
could readily program the program processor in a manner suitable to
perform the functions illustrated in flow diagram 200 in FIG. 2. The
processor executing the steps in the flow diagram 200 enables the user to
define a user preference signal comprising a sequence of user preference
items. It should be noted that the functions of FIG. 2 operate in
conjunction with a system wherein the user preference signal is generated
from a menu-driven interactive system. Modifications, such as the
modification of the flow diagram 200 to accommodate, for example, a
natural language processor user interface would be known to one skilled in
the art.
In step 210, the program starts upon detection of a start signal from the
transmission device 160 from FIG. 1 indicating the presence of a user
request to define a user preference signal. In step 215, the user defines
one of the UPI's of the user preference signal, which contains information
describing a discrete expressive work (DEW) or block of DEWs to be
included in the entertainment signal. The UPI definition in step 215 is
preferably menu driven and allows the user to select either attributes
describing one or more DEWs or a specific DEW.
A sample menu for a purely audio program might allow the user to define: 1)
a time period; 2) a genre; 3) an artist; or 4) a specific title. Upon
selection of any particular menu item, the user may be prompted to enter a
name or title, or further menus may appear. For example, if the user
selects 2) genre, a second menu might appear, such as: 1) classical; 2)
jazz; 3) pop; or 4) dance. The extent to which the user may define a
combination of such attributes will vary extensively from system to
system.
A menu further prompts the user to define the duration of the UPI as well.
The duration of a UPI may be defined by a time limit, a specific number of
DEWs, or an ending time. An exemplary UPI may consist of: Genre=Jazz; Time
Period=1952-1956 and Duration=40 minutes.
In addition, the user may also be prompted to enter other information such
as a specified start time for UPI. Finally, the user is also prompted to
select alternatively a particular DEW by title, such as the motion picture
"Casablanca". UPIs comprising particularly described DEWs such as
"Casablanca" are referred to herein as specific DEWs. UPIs comprising
attribute information are referred to herein as non-specific DEWs.
The processor allows the user to choose selections from the menu driven
prompts in step 215 until the processor receives a command indicating the
UPI definition is complete. The processor then executes step 225.
In step 225, the processor determines whether the defined UPI contains
information specifying a particular DEW, or in other words, comprises a
specific UPI. If so, then the processor executes step 230. If not,
however, and the UPI contains attribute information, then the processor
executes step 235. In step 235, the processor queries the user whether the
user would like to select a particular DEW from a list of several DEWs
that conform to the UPI attribute specifications. If the answer in step
235 is yes, then the processor executes step 240. If, however, the answer
in step 235 is no, then the processor returns to step 230.
In step 240, the processor creates a selection list of the available DEWs
meeting the UPI attribute specifications. The processor may create the
list by accessing a database containing DEW titles indexed by attributes.
In the exemplary system in FIG. 1, the data storage device 180 may contain
such a database. For example, for UPI 2 of the user preference signal in
Table 1 above, the selection list comprises a list of situation comedies
from the 1950's or 1980's. For a long list, perusal of the selection list
may be menu driven as well. After creation of the selection list, the
processor executes step 245. In step 245, the processor receives a user
selection of one or more DEWs from the list, thereby converting the UPI to
a specific UPI. The processor then executes step 230.
The execution of step 230 signifies that the current UPI has been defined,
comprising either a specific UPI or a non-specific UPI. In step 230, the
processor queries the user whether to display the user preference signal
(UPS), or, in other words, list of UPIs, in its current state. If not, the
processor executes step 250. If so, the processor provides the list of
UPIs for display in step 255 and then executes step 250.
In step 250, the processor queries the user whether the UPS has been
completely defined. If so, the processor may then execute step 305 of FIG.
3. If not, however, the processor returns to step 215 in order to allow
the generation of another UPI.
FIG. 3 illustrates in flow diagram 300 the operations of the program
processor 175 that provide the entertainment signal once the UPS is
defined.
In step 305, the processor initializes contact with the data storage device
180 and instructs the data storage device 180 to establish a virtual
circuit connection over the communication network 170. In step 310, the
processor determines whether the UPS contains any more UPIs. For the first
iteration, the answer in step 310 will ordinarily be yes. If, at some
point, the answer to step 310 is no, then the processor proceeds to step
315 and stops. Otherwise, the processor executes step 320 wherein the next
UPI is retrieved for processing.
After retrieving the next UPI in step 320, the processor executes step 325.
In step 325, the DEW or DEWs comprising the UPI are identified. If the
next UPI is a specific UPI, the DEW or DEWs are already identified and the
processor proceeds to step 330. For a non-specific UPI, however, the
processor must select one or more appropriate DEWs for inclusion in the
entertainment signal. To this end, the processor generates a selection
list of DEWs that fit the attributes defined in the UPI. Once the list is
generated, the processor selects, at random, the appropriate number of
DEWs needed to comply with the UPI durational specification.
To generate the selection list, the processor accesses a database of
available DEW titles indexed by attribute as discussed above in connection
with step 240. The DEW titles in the database should also contain
durational information. Thus, for a UPI specifying a durational limit of
an unspecified number of DEWs, such as, for example, two hours of sitcoms,
the processor may select the maximum number of DEWs that will not exceed
the durational specification. The processor will not normally select a
number of DEWs that would surpass the time limit.
After selecting the one or more DEWs for the UPI, the processor executes
step 330. In step 330, the processor determines whether filler work is
required to maintain an uninterrupted entertainment signal. A filler work
is a DEW selected by the processor to fit an undefined slot of time in the
UPS. One or more filler work DEWs are required when the UPS time and
durational requirements cannot be strictly met. Consider, for example, the
definition of UPI 2 in the sample UPS of Table 1, wherein the durational
specification is "until 10:00 p.m." It is unlikely that the selected DEWs,
which in this case are 1950's or 1980's situation comedies, when
transmitted in sequence, will end precisely at 10:00 p.m. In such a
situation, filler work is required.
In step 330, therefore, the processor reviews the selected DEWs' durations
and the UPI durational specification and determines if and how much filler
work is required. The filler work should be chosen from a plurality of
DEWs stored within a storage device such as the storage device 180 from
FIG. 1. The filler work may comprise relatively short DEWs of varying
lengths. The processor may then either insert all the filler work at the
end of a particular UPI or intermix the filler work with selected DEWs
within the UPI. Other schemes may be employed where the user may in some
respects control the choice of filler work, but the resulting added
complexity in the UPS definition sequence may not be desirable. Once the
scheduling of the DEWs and filler works for the UPI is completed, the
processor executes step 335.
In step 335, the processor identifies the next DEW to be transmitted and
locates or identifies its storage address. The next DEW is determined by
the UPI schedule developed in step 330, above. Thus, the next DEW may
comprise a selected DEW or a filler work DEW. At the time the next DEW,
now the current DEW, is to be transmitted, the processor executes step
340. A DEW is to be transmitted at the time when the previous DEW is
completed, or, in the case of the first DEW of the first UPI, at an
assigned start time. In step 340, the processor sends a control signal to
the data storage device to begin transmitting the data corresponding to
the DEW to the user. While the DEW is being transmitted, the processor
proceeds to step 345.
The processor remains at step 345 until either an interrupt is received or
until the current DEW is almost over. By almost over, it is meant that the
time left in the current DEW is sufficient for the processor to execute
steps 350, 310, 320, 325 and 330 before the DEW transmission is completed.
Because these steps require a minimal amount of processing, with the
possible exception of accessing a database in steps 325 and 330, one or
two minutes prior to the end of the previous DEW should be sufficient.
When the current DEW is almost over, the processor executes step 350.
If an interrupt is received during the execution of step 345, the processor
executes step 355. In step 355, the processor sends a control signal to
the data storage device to halt the transmission of the entertainment
signal. The processor then executes step 360. In step 360, the processor
determines whether the user is interrupting to redefine the UPS or the
user merely wants to pause the transmission. If the answer in step 360 is
yes, in other words, the user has interrupted to redefine the UPS, the
program returns to step 230 in FIG. 2. If, however, the answer in step 360
is no, then the processor executes step 365.
In step 365, the processor waits for a resume command from the user. The
entertainment signal is not transmitted during the interrupt. After
receipt of a resume command from the user, the processor executes step
370. In step 370, the processor sends a control signal to the data storage
device to resume transmission of the current DEW. Upon completion of step
370, the processor returns to step 345.
In step 350, the processor determines whether any more DEWs are scheduled
for the current UPI. If not, the program returns to step 310 to determine
if there are any more UPIs. If the answer in step 350 is yes, however, the
processor returns to step 335 to identify the next scheduled DEW in the
current UPI.
In an alternative embodiment of the above system, the definition of the
user preference signal, as discussed in connection with FIG. 2, may be
accomplished exclusively by the user selection interface 150 within the
user station 100. In this embodiment, the user selection interface 150
would include a processor that executes the functions shown in flow
diagram 200. The user would then completely define the user preference
signal prior to establishing connection with the program processor 175.
The program processor 175 would otherwise operate to perform the functions
in flow diagram 300 as discussed above.
In another embodiment of the above system, the program processor 175 and
its complete functionality may be located in the user node 100. The
program processor 175 would then communicate through the communication
link 170 to send command signals to the data storage device 180 and/or
billing device 188. A further modification would be to combine the
functionality of the user selection interface 150, the decoder 110, the
transmission device 160 and program processor 175, or any subset thereof,
into one self-contained subsystem, such as, for example, a personal
computer system. In yet another embodiment, the user selection interface
of one user may be operable to define a user preference signal for an
entertainment signal to be provided to the user node of a second user.
In another alternative embodiment, instead of executing a menu-driven
interactive program such as the one discussed in connection with FIG. 2,
the program processor 175 may suitably be programmed to allow the user to
enter natural language commands such as, for example:
From 7:00 P.M. until 11:00 P.M. I'd like first, one hour of news, mostly
national, with some international and local, followed by a mix of sitcoms
from the 50's and 80's until roughly 10:00 P.M., then an episode of "Twin
Peaks" and finishing with a short weather report.
Natural language interpreters which could be used to generate a user
preference signal from such commands are well-known in the art.
In yet another alternative embodiment of the above system, the user may be
given the option to include live media, in other words, television or
radio broadcasts, within the entertainment program signal. Thus, for
example, the user may define a user preference item as either a live
network news broadcast or a live sports program. In such a system, a
source of compressed digital live broadcast signals would be connected to
the program processor 175. For example, this source may comprise a common
television or radio signal reception device and a means to convert a
signal into compressed digital form.
To facilitate the inclusion of live media within the entertainment signal,
the program processor 175 should operate essentially as described above,
except that when the next UPI includes a live broadcast, the program
processor 175 would instruct the source of live broadcasts to provide a
data signal to the user node 100 over the communication network 170
instead of the data storage device 180. In this alternative embodiment,
the step 350 of FIG. 3 will include sending a control signal to the source
of live broadcasts to provide the live signal to the user node 100. Means
for switching between the live broadcast source and the data storage
source 180 will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.
While an exemplary embodiment of the current invention has been shown and
described, various modifications and substitutions may be made without
deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, while the
example describes the use of a standard NTSC analog television receiver,
other video display devices including a video monitor, digital television,
high definition television and the like may be used. Likewise, while the
use of compressed digital data signals are used to transmit the
entertainment signal, analog signals or uncompressed digital signals may
be used. Such signals could be transmitted directly to the display device
or audio amplifier without first entering a decoder. Although the use of
analog signals or uncompressed digital signals would eliminate the need
for a decoder 110, such signals would require more transmission bandwidth.
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