Telecommunications – Transmitter and receiver at separate stations – Having diverse art device
Reissue Patent
1997-04-18
2001-04-10
Eisenzopf, Reinhard J. (Department: 2745)
Telecommunications
Transmitter and receiver at separate stations
Having diverse art device
C455S045000, C455S566000, C455S001000, C386S349000, C386S349000, C369S047360, C370S528000, C381S002000
Reissue Patent
active
RE037131
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to radio broadcast systems and, more particularly, to apparatus and methods for identifying broadcast audio program selections in FM stereo radio broadcast systems and displaying lyrics of the audio program selections.
While FM broadcast station program materials generally consist of a combination of music, news, advertising, and information programs, the interest of a large segment of the listening audience is directed to the music portion of the broadcasts. In fact, the music industry cooperates with the radio stations and encourages the broadcast of the latest album releases on the basis that most album sales are the result of audience reaction to broadcast musical selections.
One of the more frustrating aspects confronting the listener concerns deciphering the lyrics of music selections received on the radio. Often the lyrics of vocal music, from modern popular music to classical music, are difficult to understand, even after the selection is heard many times. It is sometimes possible for a listener to obtain lyrics by buying the compact disc (CD) on which the selection is included. However, many compact discs do not include printed lyrics and the listener has no way to know before buying the CD whether lyrics are included. Further, the listener must buy the whole CD on which the selection is included just to get the lyrics of the one desired selection.
Even if printed lyrics are obtained by the listener, the printed lyrics do not indicate when the individual words are sung in relation to the music contained on the CD. One way of solving this problem are video sing-along systems such as “karaoke” systems. These self-contained systems reproduce musical selections, often with the lead vocal omitted and display lyrics on video screens. These systems involve expensive equipment and require the additional purchase of special recordings of musical selection that often can be only used with the sing-along systems.
Another source of frustration is the identification of the broadcast musical selections, particularly since the stations do not employ a uniform method of identification. Some stations announce the titles of a group of selections prior to their broadcast, others announce the titles after the broadcast of such a group, while still others provide such announcements on a random basis. Rarely do the stations announce the title, artist and album information for each selection. The result is that the listener is generally unable to rapidly identify and remember a particular musical selection with sufficient accuracy to enable the subsequent purchase of the album containing that selection.
The present invention provides an apparatus and methods for storing, broadcasting, receiving and displaying lyrics of music being simultaneously broadcast, including a real time indication of when each word or phrase of the lyrics is being sung in the accompanying musical broadcast.
The present invention also provides apparatus and methods for enabling a listener to rapidly and accurately identify broadcast musical selections.
The invention also provides apparatus and methods of storing selected musical selection identification information, and for recalling such information at a later time, to facilitate the purchase of the album containing that selection.
In order to make the broadcast of the lyric and identification material commercially feasible, the invention provides apparatus and methods for receiving and storing supplemental commercial text data substantially concurrently with the reception of audio commercial messages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A broadcast system is provided which is compatible with conventional FM stereo receivers and which includes transmitter apparatus for transmitting audio musical selections and auxiliary data in the form of a digital message signal representing a text message which includes the name of the musical selection, name of the artist performing the selection, the name of the album on which the selection is located, the lyrics of the musical selection and timing data for synchronizing the lyrics with the music. The text message is transmitted either during, immediately prior to or immediately after the transmission of the musical selection.
Receiver apparatus receives the musical selection and the digital message signal. The musical selection is reproduced using loudspeakers and the like, and the message signal is decoded into the text messages which are displayed on a display substantially concurrent with the reproduction of the musical selection.
A user operated storage feature is provided for storing the displayed text message, and for recalling it for display at a later time. In another embodiment, the storage feature also stores a portion of the musical selection along with the text message identifying that selection. Upon recall, the stored musical selection is reproduced while the stored message is displayed. Multiple text messages and corresponding musical selections may be stored and recalled by user operation of multiple control switches, which may be the same control switches used in a conventional digitally tuned receiver for storing and recalling broadcast station frequencies.
A system for transmitting the auxiliary data is also disclosed where the musical selections and auxiliary data are transmitted as part of an FM stereophonic broadcast system in which a main carrier is transmitted at an assigned broadcast station frequency. An audio sum signal is provided representing the sum of the left and right channels of the stereophonic audio programs, and a double sideband suppressed carrier (DSBSC) signal is provided where the suppressed carrier is amplitude modulated by an audio difference signal representing the difference between the left and right channels of the stereophonic audio programs, the frequency of the suppressed carrier being such that the frequency spectra of the DSBSC signal is spaced apart from and is above the frequency spectra of the audio sum signal.
A stereo pilot subcarrier is provided to demodulate the DSBSC signal in receiver apparatus, where the frequency of the pilot subcarrier is a subharmonic of the DSBSC signal and is located between the frequency spectra of the audio sum signal and the DSBSC signal. Circuits are provided for amplitude modulating the stereo pilot subcarrier with the auxiliary data, and a modulator is used for frequency modulating the main carrier with the audio sum signal, the modulated stereo pilot subcarrier, and the DSBSC signal.
In one version of the above system, the auxiliary data is transmitted during the transmission of the stereo musical selections, and the stereo pilot subcarrier is amplitude modulated in a manner such that the frequency spectra of the modulated pilot does not overlap the frequency spectra of the audio sum signal or the frequency spectra of the DSBSC signal. When amplitude modulated with the auxiliary data, the stereo pilot subcarrier frequency modulates that main carrier from a minimum of 8% to a maximum of 10% of a predetermined maximum frequency modulation of the main carrier.
In another embodiment of the invention, the auxiliary data is transmitted during at least one time interval either before or after the transmission of the stereo musical selections. During that interval, which may be an interval of silence or in which audio announcements are transmitted, the left and right channels of the audio material being broadcast are set substantially equal to each other, forming a monophonic signal whereby the DSBSC signal is substantially unmodulated. The auxiliary data is transmitted during that interval by amplitude modulating the pilot subcarrier up to 100% with the auxiliary data, and the modulated subcarrier in turn frequency modulates that main carrier up to 30% of a predetermined maximum frequency modulation of the main carrier.
In another version of the above embodiment the auxiliary data is again transmitted during at least one monophonic time interval either before or after the transmission of the stereo musical selections, when the DSBS
Christie Parker & Hale LLP
Eisenzopf Reinhard J.
Kincaid Lester G.
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