EP0774866A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
A scheduler apparatus for use in a television receiver
Assignee: Technicolor USA Inc
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Filing: 1996-11-12
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2016-11-12
Abstract
Abstract In a television system in which at least program title information for programs which are to be transmitted in the future is transmitted in advance to form a channel guide listing, apparatus is provided for searching for specific television programs which satisfy certain criteria concerning a user's viewing preferences, and upon successful conclusion to the search, the apparatus generates a list of such television programs in order to predict for the viewer certain programs which may be of interest. In a first embodiment of the invention the apparatus stores information about the particular television shows which the user watches, as search criteria. In a second embodiment of the invention the search criteria is editable by the viewer to further refine the searches.
Inventors
- 👤 Keith Thomson Multimedia Reynolds
- 👤 Jeffrey Philip Thomson Multimedia Reavis
- 👤 Robert Howard Thomson Multimedia Miller
- 👤 Sheila Renee Thomson Multimedia Crosby
- 👤 Hugh Boyd Thomson Multimedia Morrison
- 👤 Megan Louise Thomson Multimedia Brown
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 00:24
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04N; H04N21/00; H04N21/40; H04N21/43; H04N21/442; H04N21/44213; H04N21/44222; H04N21/45; H04N21/4508; H04N21/4532; H04N21/47; H04N21/472; H04N21/47214
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 10
Claim 1
Independent Claim
155 words
In a television system in which at least program title information for programs which are to be transmitted in the future is transmitted in advance to form a channel guide list, apparatus comprising: memory means for storing data representing said channel guide list and for storing data representing a list of characteristics of television programs previously watched by a user; data entry means for entering user-entered data; control means for performing a search of said channel guide listing for a match to said data representing said characteristics of television programs previously watched by said user; and on-screen display means for displaying text or graphics under control of said control means; upon successful conclusion of said search, said control means controls said on-screen display means to notify said user of an availability of a television program selected for sharing similar characteristics with entries of said list of characteristics of television programs previously watched by said user.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
28 words
The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said characteristics of said list of characteristics of television programs previously watched by a user includes topic, title, date, or theme information.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
53 words
The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said control means times a period beginning immediately after a user selects a television program, and if said period exceeds a predetermined amount of time, said control means modifies said list of characteristics of television programs previously watched by a user to reflect said television program selection.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
46 words
The apparatus of claim 2 wherein, when television program-descriptive text accompanies said channel guide list, said control means performs a search of said television program-descriptive text for a particular text string relating to title, star, director, theme, content advisory information, or content of said television program.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
39 words
The apparatus of claim 4 wherein, in response to user-entered data said control means controls said on-screen display means to display said list of characteristics, and said control means modifying said list of characteristics in response to user-entered data.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
43 words
The apparatus of claim 1 wherein, said control means notifies said user of said availability of said television program by producing a display of television programs comprising a list of television programs having similar characteristics to characteristics of a previously watched television program.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
45 words
The apparatus of claim 5 wherein, said on-screen display produced after successful completion of a search includes instructions to record said television program and instructions to notify the user of an availability of said television program, said instructions being selectable for execution by a user.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
42 words
The apparatus of claim 2 wherein, in response to user-entered data said control means controls said on-screen display means to display said list of characteristics, said list of characteristics including an indication of the number of times each program type was viewed.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
117 words
A television program searching method in a television system in which at least program title information for programs which are to be transmitted in the future is transmitted in advance to form a channel guide list, comprising the steps of: storing in a memory means data representing said channel guide list and storing data representing characteristics of television programs previously watched by said user; performing a search of said channel guide listing for a match to specific data representing said characteristics of television programs previously watched by said user; and upon successful conclusion of said search, notifying said user of an availability of said television program having similar characteristics to characteristics of a previously watched television program.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
46 words
The method of claim 8 wherein, when television program-descriptive text accompanies said channel guide list, includes the further step of: performing a search of said television program-descriptive text for a particular text string which may relate to title, star, director, or context of said television program.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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