System for the management of multiple time-critical data streams

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A multimedia storage and presentation system for storing video clips, each clip comprising a plurality of segments, and for displaying said video clips in response to requests by viewers, said system comprising:

a computer network;

a plurality of computers connected to said computer network, each computer having attached thereto at least one storage device, at least one viewing station, input means for allowing said viewers to request display of a specific video clip on said at least one viewing station and buffer means for temporarily storing segments of said specific video clip prior to display;

client means in each of the plurality of computers for retrieving one of the video clips from the local storage device coupled thereto and for sending a request for one of said video clips over the computer network to other of said plurality of computers;

server means in each of said plurality of computers responsive to said request for retrieving said video clip from a selected storage device coupled to said computer said server means having a predetermined maximum retrieval capacity;

means cooperating with said server means in one of said plurality of computers for monitoring said buffer means in said one of said plurality of computers coupled to said network to determine a number of video clip segments retrieved from said selected storage device; and stored in said buffer means; and

means responsive to said number of video clip segments stored in said buffer means and to said maximum retrieval capacity for controlling said client means and said server means to refuse said viewer request to display said specific video clip when said maximum retrieval capacity would be exceeded or said number of said video clip segments stored in said buffer means exceeds a predetermined threshold, the controlling means comprising a configuration table for each of said plurality of computers coupled to said computer network, said configuration containing at least one entry comprising said predetermined maximum retrieval capacity.

2. A multimedia storage and presentation system according to claim 1 wherein each of said plurality of computers coupled to said computer network further includes a cache memory and means for configuring said cache memory to operate as a look-ahead buffer.

3. In a multimedia storage and presentation system for storing video clips, each video clip comprising a plurality of segments, and for displaying said video clips in response to a request by viewers interacting with a computer system, the computer system including a network, a plurality of computers connected to said network, each computer having attached thereto at least one local storage device for storing some of said video clips for distribution thereto and to other of the computers connected to said network, at least one viewing station,