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US 6,675,385 B1Granted
HTML electronic program guide for an MPEG digital TV system
AssigneeLiberate Technologies
InventorJeffrey Yutong Wang
Life of this patent
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AssigneeLiberate Technologies
InventorJeffrey Yutong Wang
Estimating the term…
An MPEG-2 digital TV headend and settop box includes a method and apparatus for enabling the presentation of electronic program guide (EPG) information. Television program guide information is downloaded from a source of television programming data to the headend of the TV broadcast system. The downloaded EPG data is translated into a plurality of HTML Web pages, which are continuously transmitted as a rotating data carousel in an MPEG-2 data stream. The digital TV settop box further includes a general-purpose web browser responsive to viewer commands to select and display a selected web page from the rotating carousel of HTML web pages. The digital TV settop further includes a data cache for downloading and storing partial HTML web page EPG information in advance, which reduces the necessary bandwidth allocated for the EPG information, and allows the settop box to quickly display the basic information for a channel related program guide.
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said method comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said method comprising:
In a system for transmitting an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a transmitter method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said transmitter method comprising:
In a system for transmitting an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a transmitter method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said transmitter method comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said method comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a method for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said method comprising:
In a system receiver for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, said EPG manager retrieving said basic EPG data from said EPG database at said broadcasting station and composing a plurality of EPG Web pages including a first channel guide EPG Web page and a second channel guide EPG Web page in HTML format from said basic EPG data, wherein said first channel guide EPG Web page is a broadcast channel guide EPG Web page relating to a predetermined channel of said plurality of multiplexed digital television channels, and said second channel guide EPG Web page is a simulcast channel guide EPG Web page relating to said predetermined channel of said plurality of multiplexed digital television channels, said broadcasting station storing said plurality of EPG Web pages in HTML format to form a plurality of stored HTML EPG Web pages, formatting said plurality of stored HTML EPG Web pages into said plurality of MPEG data packets while retaining said HTML format, and transmitting said plurality of MPEG data packets in said multiple channel digital television signal over said broadcast communications network, including transmitting said first channel guide EPG web page on each channel of said multiple channel digital television signal and said second channel guide EPG Web page on only said predetermined channel of said multiple channel digital television signal containing said predetermined channel;
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, an apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said apparatus comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, an apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said apparatus comprising:
In a system for transmitting an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a transmitter apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said transmitter apparatus comprising:
In a system for transmitting an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels being formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, a transmitter apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said transmitter apparatus comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, an apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said apparatus comprising:
In a system for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, an apparatus for providing said EPG over said broadcast communications network, said apparatus comprising:
In a system receiver for providing an electronic program guide (EPG) to a viewer over a broadcast communications network, said broadcast communications network including a broadcasting station for transmitting on a broadcast medium, and a settop decoder at said viewer's location coupled to said broadcast medium, said broadcasting station including an EPG manager coupled to an EPG database containing basic EPG data, said broadcast communications network further including a multiple channel digital television signal, each of said multiple channels comprising a plurality of multiplexed digital television channels formatted into a plurality of MPEG data packets, said EPG manager retrieving said basic EPG data from said EPG database at said broadcasting station and composing a plurality of EPG Web pages including a first channel guide EPG Web page and a second channel guide EPG Web page in HTML format from said basic EPG data, wherein said first channel guide EPG Web page is a broadcast channel guide EPG Web page relating to a predetermined channel of said plurality of multiplexed digital television channels, and said second channel guide EPG Web page is a simulcast channel guide EPG Web page relating to said predetermined channel of said plurality of multiplexed digital television channels, said broadcasting station storing said plurality of EPG Web pages in HTML format to form a plurality of stored HTML EPG Web pages, formatting said plurality of stored HTML EPG Web pages into said plurality of MPEG data packets while retaining said HTML format, and transmitting said plurality of MPEG data packets in said multiple channel digital television signal over said broadcast communications network, including transmitting said first channel guide EPG web page on each channel of said multiple channel digital television signal and said second channel guide EPG Web page on only said predetermined channel of said multiple channel digital television signal containing said predetermined channel;
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.