Cryptography – Video cryptography – Video electric signal modification
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-26
2001-12-11
Gregory, Bernarr E. (Department: 2161)
Cryptography
Video cryptography
Video electric signal modification
C380S241000, C380S269000, C380S270000, C380S281000, C455S045000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06330334
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
This invention relates to a radio or television broadcasting system for transmission of audio information to a specially adapted receiver which converts the selected transmitted audio information to a form usable by the user.
Numerous systems transmit information on FM radio subcarriers. See for instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,011 issued to Schwob, Sep. 29, 1992. Also known is a single sideband communication system with FM data capability for transmission of analog voice signals. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,086 issued to Eastmond et al., Jul. 20, 1989.
Also known is FM radio sideband broadcasting to specially adapted computers for transmission for instance of news and financial information. Commercially available products available from Mainstream, Telemet, and DeskTop Data broadcast data over FM radio sidebands for receipt by personal computers equipped with special FM radio receivers and software. Typically information is transmitted in digital form, received, and stored in the computer memory for access by the computer user using menu driven software. The data is displayed on the computer screen in conventional alphanumeric form. One product in this category is News Edge, a news service available from DeskTop Data, Inc. of Waltham, Massachusetts which delivers a number of news and financial information services to a user via FM radio sideband. Software provided with the product scans incoming information and when the incoming information meets parameters set by the user, the information is saved to disk and/or displayed on the computer screen.
These systems have the disadvantage of requiring a personal computer as a platform, and providing information only on a computer screen. The usual computer skills are needed in order to operate such systems, which tend to be quite expensive.
Data can also be transmitted in the Vertical Blanking Interval of a TV transmission. The Federal Communications Commission has set aside several lines of the Vertical Blanking Interval for point to multipoint data transmission which may be sold to interested users.
An additional channel of communication for data or audio transmission is the Separate Audio Program channel available in television broadcasting.
All of these systems have disadvantage that the listener or user of the data must be tied down to a specific place or time to hear the information. The portable radio, be it hand held or in an automobile also limits the user to getting only the information that is presently being transmitted.
SUMMARY
The system and method described below permits the user to listen to the specific content of information when and where he or she wants to. The present invention is directed to a method and system for information dissemination using various modes of transmission that satisfy the needs of such a user. The invention includes a system for receiving information via a tuner that extracts digitized alphanumeric data or compressed audio data from the Vertical Blanking Interval of a television station's video signal, the Separate Audio Program (SAP) signal from a television station's audio signal or a system for receiving the digitized alphanumeric data or compressed audio information via radio sidebands (subcarriers) which includes an FM subcarrier of an FM broadcast signal. In addition,a suitable dedicated transmission facility could be used. Conditional access circuitry decrypts the previously encrypted digitized alphanumeric data or compressed audio data which is then stored in a random access memory. A user interface (either a simple manual or voice control) driving a hierarchy of menus allows a user to access the information by indicating his selections from the menus. The system then extracts the information from the database in decrypted form. A speech producing device including a decompression system and a digital to analog converter (D/A) or other speech producing device converts the encrypted digitized audio information to an audio signal for provision to the user via a loud speaker or earphones.
This system may be stand alone or be a part of an existing radio receiver, sharing components of the radio receiver. One embodiment of the user control is a four way switch the positions corresponding for instance to the cursor control keys on a computer) for selection from and scanning through menus listing various categories of information. Typically the system includes either volatile RAM memory or a non-volatile storage medium such as a digital audio tape, a magneto-optical mini-disk, a magnetic disk or optical disk, sufficient to store information for 10 or more hours of audio. The information is for example news, sports, weather, cultural information, advertisements, or commercial listings. The information is transmitted in encrypted digital form using data compression techniques which is readily stored. The use of encryption techniques controls access to the information data base as a whole or to selected parts that the user has contracted for.
Other features are user control over the speed at which the speech is output, and a channel skipping tuner for finding the particular FM radio station subcarrier, TV station vertical interval or TV station SAP channel on which the service is provided. The speech producing device may be under either automatic or user control to produce different speeds of the voices. This control of the speed of the voice could be one that changes the pitch or be one that changes the spacing between words. Also, the user has the opportunity to preselect database items, thereby to construct a personal profile so as to extract particular information without having to scan through all the menus.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3718767 (1973-02-01), Ellis
patent: 4052719 (1977-10-01), Hutt et al.
patent: 4247908 (1981-01-01), Lockhart et al.
patent: 4266243 (1981-05-01), Shutterly
patent: 4308558 (1981-12-01), Hernandez et al.
patent: 4323921 (1982-04-01), Guillou
patent: 4331837 (1982-05-01), Soumagne
patent: 4377822 (1983-03-01), Noirel et al.
patent: 4393277 (1983-07-01), Besen et al.
patent: 4430525 (1984-02-01), Franz et al.
patent: 4450477 (1984-05-01), Lovett
patent: 4473824 (1984-09-01), Claytor
patent: 4476559 (1984-10-01), Brolin et al.
patent: 4608456 (1986-08-01), Paik et al.
patent: 4677552 (1987-06-01), Sibley, Jr.
patent: 4680629 (1987-07-01), Fukushima et al.
patent: 4682368 (1987-07-01), Takahashi
patent: 4683586 (1987-07-01), Sakamoto et al.
patent: 4752953 (1988-06-01), Paik et al.
patent: 4788543 (1988-11-01), Rubin
patent: 4807276 (1989-02-01), Okabe
patent: 4809271 (1989-02-01), Kondo et al.
patent: 4852086 (1989-07-01), Eastmond et al.
patent: 4868866 (1989-09-01), Williams, Jr.
patent: 4907159 (1990-03-01), Mauge et al.
patent: 4916742 (1990-04-01), Kolesnikov et al.
patent: 4942616 (1990-07-01), Linstroth et al.
patent: 5010499 (1991-04-01), Yee
patent: 5023905 (1991-06-01), Wells et al.
patent: 5027400 (1991-06-01), Baji et al.
patent: 5036394 (1991-07-01), Morii et al.
patent: 5042070 (1991-08-01), Linna et al.
patent: 5086510 (1992-02-01), Guenther et al.
patent: 5121391 (1992-06-01), Paneth et al.
patent: 5121476 (1992-06-01), Yee
patent: 5131020 (1992-07-01), Liebeany et al.
patent: 5133010 (1992-07-01), Borth et al.
patent: 5146473 (1992-09-01), Critchlow et al.
patent: 5146612 (1992-09-01), Grosjean et al.
patent: 5152011 (1992-09-01), Schwob
patent: 5177685 (1993-01-01), Davis et al.
patent: 5182555 (1993-01-01), Sumner
patent: 5206641 (1993-04-01), Grant et al.
patent: 5210611 (1993-05-01), Yee et al.
patent: 5233423 (1993-08-01), Jernigan et al.
patent: 5239700 (1993-08-01), Guenther et al.
patent: 5295154 (1994-03-01), Meier et al.
patent: 5406626 (1995-04-01), Ryan
patent: 5444312 (1995-08-01), Noblett et al.
patent: 5452289 (1995-09-01), Sharma et al.
patent: 5467087 (1995-11-01), Chu
patent: 5524051 (1996-06-01), Ryan
patent: 5590195 (1996-12-01), Ryan
patent: 5600573 (1997-02-01), Hendricks et al.
patent: 5659877 (1997-08-01), Enomoto et al.
patent: 5751806 (1998-05-01), Ryan
patent: 39 38 457 A1 (1989-11-01), None
patent: 4024132 (
Allenby Christopher B.
Command Audio Corporation
Gregory Bernarr E.
Klivans Norman R.
Skjerven Morrill & MacPherson LLP
LandOfFree
Method and system for information dissemination using... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method and system for information dissemination using..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method and system for information dissemination using... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2559020