Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput – Remote data accessing
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-27
2001-06-19
Miller, John W. (Department: 2711)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: multicomput
Remote data accessing
C709S219000, C709S231000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06249810
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of digital information communication. More specifically, the present invention relates to the field of computer implemented digital broadcast communication of information over the Internet.
2. Related Art
The Internet is a large network made up of a number of smaller networks. It is made up of more than 100,000 interconnected networks in over 100 countries, comprised of commercial, academic and government networks. It has become commercialized into a worldwide information highway and data base, containing information on virtually every subject known to humankind.
The proper and efficient use of the great amount of information available on various Internet sites has the potential of providing Internet users with a variety of information desired for businesses and individuals. In particular, those users interested in certain segments of the information available on the Internet or those users interested in certain specific Internet sites could benefit tremendously from having their specific information of interest available to them in an automated and interesting manner. Moreover, such users would benefit greatly from being constantly and automatically updated on new information as the new information becomes available on their sites of interest.
Due to the prevalence and popularity of the World Wide Web (also called the “Web”) servers around the world, a great number of Internet users are particularly interested in receiving updated information of interest to them from various World Wide Web servers on the Internet. By way of background, the World Wide Web is an Internet facility that links documents locally and remotely. The Web document is called a Web page, and links in the page let users jump from page to page (hypertext) whether the pages are stored on the same server or on servers around the world. The pages are accessed and read via a Web browser such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer.
The Web has become the center of Internet activity because, among other reasons, Web pages, containing both text, graphics and multi-media content are easily accessible via a Web browser. The Web contains the largest collection of online information in the world, and the amount of information is increasing. Current schemes for accessing a Web document require typing in the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) address of the home page in the Web browser. From there, the user starts “surfing” through the Internet via hypertext links to other documents that can be stored on the same server or on a server anywhere in the world.
The shear size of the information available on the Internet and the Web has made it a necessity for individuals and businesses to efficiently and constantly sift through the available information in order to find and organize the information that is of interest. More importantly, it is crucial for content providers to efficiently and effectively transmit their information to those desiring to receive the information. Stated differently, individuals and businesses realize that the availability of information itself does not result in a competitive edge unless the information can be efficiently sent from the content provider to the receiver and further unless the information is of interest and of value to the business or the individual.
FIG. 1
illustrates a system
70
regarding one use of the Internet. In system
70
, the Internet
40
is used to provide a communication channel between a broadcast source
60
(e.g., a Web server) and a number of receiving devices (e.g., Web browsers) or “users”
10
,
12
,
14
. A digital broadcast signal, e.g., representing some audio/video/multi-media content or program such as a radio program or television program, can be broadcast in encoded digital packets from the source server
60
to the receivers
10
,
12
,
14
. Although the digital broadcast content is the same for each receiver, a separate communication stream, comprising separate digital data packets, is required for each receiver that is coupled to the Internet. Therefore, three separate communication streams
20
,
21
and
22
are shown as being broadcast directly from server
60
onto the Internet
40
. Stream
20
is identified and communicated for receiver
10
, stream
21
is identified and communicated for receiver
12
and stream
22
is identified and communicated for receiver
14
. Further, the users
10
,
12
,
14
have to visit the Web site providing the audio/video/multi-media content in order to establish the communication streams
20
,
21
,
22
.
As a result of the above, it is clear that the number of users (receivers) that can receive broadcast information on the Internet simultaneously from one server
60
is limited mainly by the connection speed of the connection between the server
60
and the Internet
40
because each stream
20
,
21
,
22
consumes available bandwidth. For example, assuming it is desired to broadcast a radio program over the Internet to users, e.g., that visit the web site of the server
60
(FIG.
1
). Depending on the compression algorithm used, and on the number of users that want to listen to the program simultaneously, the server
60
needs to be connected to the Internet
40
with a speed of at least N×K bytes/s, where K is the bandwidth requirement for one user and N is the number of users able to listen to the program simultaneously. Assuming the server connection to the Internet
40
allows up to 1.5 Mbit/s bandwidth, the number of listeners will be limited to roughly 300 per server, assuming roughly 5 Kbits/s bandwidth requirement per user.
Although this figure appears large, in reality the bandwidth of the connection hardware between the server
60
and the Internet
40
actually imparts a substantial limitation to the number of receivers that can simultaneously receive content from the server. While more sophisticated connections with higher bandwidths can be used, this substantially increases the costs associated with providing the content from the server
60
to the receivers
10
,
12
and
14
.
Accordingly, what is needed is a cost effective method of providing content to many users pseudo-simultaneously over the Internet. What is further needed is a method and system that is able to provide broadcast communication content to many users, pseudo simultaneously, without being limited to the bandwidth constraints of the server to Internet connection. The present invention provides such a solution.
SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
A method and system are described herein as an embodiment of the present invention for implementing an Internet radio device for receiving and/or transmitting audio information over the Internet. The Internet radio device can be implemented as a stand alone electronic radio device which is coupled to the Internet or the Internet radio device can be implemented as a software package operable on a host computer system which is coupled to the Internet. In either case, the Internet radio device does not require a browser for interfacing with other Internet transmitters (“Internet radio station transmitters”). The Internet radio includes a graphical user interface (GUI) with which a user can interface in order to receive audio radio programming from an Internet radio station transmitter. The radio device receives a list of Internet radio station transmitters that are registered with a chaincast manager (CCM), also coupled to the Internet. The GUI renders this list to the user. The user can sort or select from this list based on desired language, country, or station names. To hear a radio program, a user can select a station from this list. Data received by a radio device can be retransmitted in chaincast mode from the radio device to other radio devices that want to listen to the same radio program.
Using the chaincast broadcasting architecture, described below, a primary information transmitter (PIT) within the CMM manages the flow of digitally encoded audio information from the Interne
Chaincast, Inc.
Miller John W.
Wagner , Murabito & Hao LLP
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