EP0680216A2
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EP
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Apparatus and method for formulating an interactive signal
Assignee: OpenTV Inc
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Filing: 1995-04-19
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2015-04-19
Abstract
Abstract Apparatus and a method for formatting executable codes and data, defining interactive applications, with video and audio program material, for reliable and convenient access includes compressing (18, 21) audio and video programs according to a protocol such as MPEG. The compressed audio and video (A/V) programs are segmented (19, 22) into transport packets and identified by first and second service identifiers SCID Ai and SCID Vi . Interactive application programs associated with A/V programs are compiled (10) into functional modules and condensed. Further modules designated "Signal modules", are generated to condition respective receivers to suspend or resume execution of an interactive application. Signal modules are multiplexed in the packet stream to appropriately reprogram respective receivers on the occurrence of such changes in received signal components. A module may be executable software or data. A module includes code/data and a header. The code/data portion of each module has cyclic redundancy coding (CRC) check bits appended to the module. Respective modules are segmented (14) into transport packets. The transport packets are formed into transmission units comprising an integer number of code/data transport packets and a header transport packet. Video packets, audio packets and module packets are subsequently time division multiplexed (16) for transmission.
Inventors
- 👤 Jean-Rene Menand
- 👤 Ansley Wayne Jessup, Jr.
- 👤 Kuriacose Joseph
- 👤 Alain Michel Delpuch
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 20:58
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04N; H04N21/00; H04N21/80; H04N21/81; H04N21/8166; H04N7/00; H04N7/14; H04N21/20; H04N21/23; H04N21/235; H04N21/236; H04N21/23614; H04N21/23617; H04N21/2368; H04N21/238; H04N21/2383; H04N21/40; H04N21/43; H04N21/434; H04N21/4341; H04N21/4348; H04N21/435; H04N21/4351; H04N7/24; H04N7/52
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim
180 words
Apparatus for generating an interactive audio/visual program characterized by: a source (18) of transport packets of compressed video signal; a source (21) of transport packets of compressed audio signal; a computer (10) for generating an interactive program associated with said compressed audio and video signals, said interactive program being formed of different modules, respective said modules including executable codes or data, and including a directory module linking application modules; transport processor apparatus (14) for packeting said modules into transport packets and grouping transport packets from respective modules into transmission units, and forming auxiliary transport packets including header information for respective transmission units; means (5) for assigning first identifier codes SCID v , to respective video transport packets, second different identifier codes SCID a , to respective audio transport packets, and third different identifier codes SCID D , to respective interactive program transport packets; a multiplexer (16) for time division multiplexing said interactive program transport packets with said audio, and video transport packets in such fashion that said interactive program is repeatedly included with said compressed audio and compressed video signals.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
29 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1 further characterized by error coding apparatus for independently error coding said header information for respective transmission units in said auxiliary transport packets.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
45 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 2 characterized in that transmission units of more than one module may be concurrently available, and said transport processor is conditioned to interleave complete transmission units from different modules, but inhibited from interleaving transport packets from different transmission units.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
38 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1 characterized in that said transport processor is conditioned to provide said directory module, transmission units of modules of executable codes, and transmission units of modules of data in the order recited.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
41 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1 characterized in that said transport processor forms transmission units from integer numbers of transport packets, and transport packets of a transmission unit for which there is insufficient module data, are filled with null words.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
57 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1 further characterized by a continuity counter for counting modulo N, (a positive integer), successive transport packets containing application module data except said auxiliary transport packets, and said transport processor including associated said successive count values in said transport packets, and including a predetermined count value in all auxiliary transport packets.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
31 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1 further characterized by, error coding means (79) for generating error check bits over respective said modules and concatenating error check bits to corresponding modules.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
101 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 1, further characterized by; a source of signal modules for conditioning receiver apparatus to suspend or renew processing of interactive programs; wherein said transport processor apparatus (14) packets said modules; and said multiplexer (16) time division multiplexes said interactive program transport packets with associated packets of compressed audio signal and corresponding segments of said compressed video signals, and including packets of said signal modules correlated with changes of segments of said compressed video signals and programmed to affect the execution of an interactive program associated with a segment occurring prior to a respective segment change.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
77 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 8 characterized in that said compressed video signal includes first and second successive segments, said first segment is associated with an interactive program, and said second segment is not associated with an interactive program, and said multiplexer is conditioned to include a signal module containing codewords which will condition said receiver apparatus to suspend processing of said interactive program associated with said first segment on the occurrence of said second segment.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
99 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 8 characterized in that said compressed video signal includes first and second successive segments, said first segment being associated with a first interactive program, and said second segment being associated with a second interactive program, and wherein said multiplexer is conditioned to include a signal module containing codewords which will condition said receiver apparatus, on the occurrence of said second segment, to store processing status data relating to the current state of processing of said first interactive program, then to remove said first interactive program and load and execute said second interactive program.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
56 words
The apparatus set forth in claim 8 characterized in that said source of signal modules is said computer which inserts time stamps in said signal modules, which time stamps are associated with particular frames of said compressed video signal, to synchronize execution of said signal module with a change of segments of said compressed video signal.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
204 words
A method for the transmission of audio, video and interactive components of an audio-video-interactive program (hereinafter AVI) characterized by: forming transport packets of compressed audio signal with respective packets including a payload of audio signal data and an identifier SCID ai for identifying the transport packet as containing audio component data; forming transport packets of compressed video signal with respective packets including a payload of video data and an identifier SCID vi for identifying the transport packet as containing video component data; generating an interactive application associated with the audio or video components; segmenting the interactive application into modules similar to computer files, respective modules containing executable codes or application data; dividing respective modules into one or more transmission units including integer numbers of transport packets, each transport packet including an identifier SCID Di for identifying the transport packet as containing interactive component data; generating a further transport packet for respective transmission units, said further transport packet including transmission unit header information describing the information contained in the respective transmission unit; and time division multiplexing the audio, and video component packets with interactive component packets, said interactive component packets being in transmission unit sequence with respective transmission units headed by said further transport packet.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method set forth in claim 12, characterized in that said SCID Di , SCID ai , and SCID vi are different values.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
143 words
The method set forth in claim 12 characterized in that said further packet is an auxiliary transport packet and the method of generating an auxiliary transport packet includes; providing said SCID Di , a predetermined fixed continuity count value CC, and an auxiliary packet type data-word HD, and concatenating the count value CC and the auxiliary packet type data-word HD, to the identifier SCID Di ; generating an auxiliary group including an auxiliary group data field and an auxiliary group header, said auxiliary group header including a codeword AFID identifying data included in said auxiliary group data field, and a field AFS indicating the number of bytes of data in said auxiliary group data field, and concatenating the auxiliary group header to said SCID Di , CC and HD data; and including said transmission unit header information in said auxiliary group data field.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
69 words
The method set forth in claim 14 characterized in that the method of generating an auxiliary transport packet further includes; generating further auxiliary group header fields, AH, including a first field which indicates the number of transport packets in the corresponding transmission unit, and a second field indicating the continuity count value of the first transport packet of a transmission unit after the occurrence of said auxiliary transport packet.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 12 further characterized by the step of, interleaving whole transmission units of different modules exclusive of interleaving respective transport packets of different transmission units.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
57 words
The method set forth in claim 12 further characterized by; forming a directory module which includes data indicating the modules included in an application; forming the directory module into a transmission unit and transport packets; and time division multiplexing the directory module with the audio, and the video component packets before multiplexing modules of said interactive application.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method set forth in claim 17 further characterized by, repeatedly multiplexing transmission units of said directory module and said application modules, with said audio and video components, as an AVI program.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method set forth in claim 12 or 14 further characterized by, error coding each said module and concatenating error check bits to each such module.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
83 words
The method according to claim 12, characterized by generating signal modules for conditioning receiver apparatus to suspend or renew processing of said interactive program; forming transport packets of said interactive application and of said signal modules; and time division multiplexing the audio, and video component transport packets with associated interactive application transport packets, and inserting signal module transport packets correlated with changes of segments of segmented video signal to condition respective receivers to suspend or resume an interactive application at respective segment changes.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method according to claim 20, characterized by error coding said signal files and interactive program files and concatenating error check bits to corresponding error coded files.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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