Patent EP0477786A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0477786A2
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EP
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Interactive home information system
Assignee: ICTV Inc
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Filing: 1991-09-20
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2011-09-20
Abstract
Abstract An interactive videotex system with distributed processing and storage of video picture information in nodes (12) disposed throughout a cable television distribution system. The nodes (12) are coupled to the feeder cable (30) of the cable distribution system. Each node (12) in the system receives a substantially identical copy of the interactive video picture information and related data from a regional processing center (4). The users at home televisions (38) associated with a particular node (12) interact directly with the video picture information in that node (12), rather than with the information stored in the regional processing center (4) or some other remote location, which enables the system to quickly display photographic quality images and complex graphics, as well as sound, at the users' televisions (38) in response to commands received by the users. The nodes (12) can also be used for decompressing compressed television programming and distributing the decompressed programming to home televisions (38) connected to the system.
Inventors
- 👤 William Leo Hoarty
- 👤 Gary M. Lauder
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 19:56
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F3/00; G06F3/01; G06F3/048; G06F3/0481; G06F3/04815; H; H04; H04N; H04N7/00; H04N7/10; H04N19/00; H04N19/48; H04N19/60; H04N19/61; H04N19/90; H04N21/00; H04N21/20; H04N21/21; H04N21/222; H04N21/2221; H04N21/25; H04N21/258; H04N21/25866; H04N21/25891; H04N21/40; H04N21/41; H04N21/4104; H04N21/4117; H04N21/4131; H04N21/426; H04N21/43; H04N21/433; H04N21/4332; H04N21/47; H04N21/472; H04N21/4722; H04N21/60; H04N21/61; H04N21/6106; H04N21/6118; H04N21/6156; H04N21/6187; H04N21/65; H04N21/654; H04N21/658; H04N21/80; H04N21/81; H04N21/812; H04N7/16; H04N7/173; H04N7/17345; G06F2203/00; G06F2203/048; G06F2203/04802; H04N2007/17372; H04N2007/1739; H04N5/00; H04N5/44; H04N5/445; H04N5/45
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 9
Claim 1
Independent Claim
166 words
An interactive television information system for transmitting video picture information to home televisions coupled to a cable television distribution system, comprising: a regional processing center for assembling and processing said video picture information to be transmitted over said cable distribution system; and at least one node coupled to said cable television distribution system for capturing and storing said processed and assembled video picture information, said node being associated with at least one of said home televisions; wherein a cable television subscriber viewing one of said home televisions can display and interact with said video picture information stored in said associated node by communicating commands to said node, each of said nodes in said cable television distribution system containing a substantially identical copy of said video picture information transmitted over said cable distribution system by said regional processing center, such that said subscriber interacts directly with said video picture information stored in said node, and not with said video picture information stored in said regional processing center.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
40 words
An interactive television information system as recited in claim 1, wherein said nodes include means for transmitting said video picture information to said home televisions at video frequencies unused by the cable distribution system for transmitting ordinary cable television programming.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
86 words
An interactive television information system as recited in claim 2, wherein each of said home televisions includes an associated home interface controller with means for receiving one of a plurality of channels transmitted by said node on a contention basis, said home interface controller, upon activation, being assigned a channel from said node which is not in use by any other home interface controller associated with said node, said video picture information being transmitted from said node to said home interface controller over said assigned channel.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
27 words
An interactive television information system as recited in claim 3, further comprising means associated with said home interface controllers for printing information received from said associated node.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
90 words
An interactive television information system as recited in claim 1, further comprising: a headend for distributing cable television programming to subscribers of said cable distribution system and for compressing selected television channels; and at least one node coupled to said cable television distribution system and associated with a portion of said home televisions coupled to said cable television system for decompressing selected television channels which have been compressed at said headend, said decompressed television channels being distributed, upon demand, to cable television subscribers viewing home televisions associated with said node.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
78 words
An interactive television information system as recited in claim 3, wherein said home interface controller includes frame grabber circuitry for storing frames of video picture information from said node, such that said channel from said node is assigned to said home interface controller only when video picture information is being transmitted from said node to said home interface controller, said channel being released for transmission of video picture information to other home interface controllers at all other times.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
87 words
An interactive television information system for transmitting video picture information to home televisions over a fiber optic telephone system, comprising: a regional processing center for assembling and processing said video picture information to be transmitted over said fiber optic telephone system; and at least one node disposed in a remote terminal of said fiber optic telephone system for capturing and storing said processed and assembled video picture information, said video picture information being distributed, upon demand, from said node to with said subscribers viewing said home televisions.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
149 words
A method for transmitting interactive video picture information to home televisions coupled to a cable distribution system, said method comprising the steps of: a) processing and assembling information in a regional processing center; b) transmitting said processed and assembled information from said regional processing center to a plurality of nodes in said cable television distribution system, each of said nodes being associated with at least one of said home televisions, each of said nodes receiving and storing a substantially identical copy of said processed and assembled information; and 3) transmitting said video picture information stored in a node to a home television associated with said node in response to commands received from a subscriber of said cable television distribution system, such that said subscriber interacts directly with said video picture information stored in said associated node, and not with said video picture information stored in said regional processing center.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
34 words
A method for transmitting interactive video picture information as recited in claim 8, further comprising the step of using information stored in said node to control a device in the home of said subscriber.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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