Interactive video distribution systems – Operator interface – To facilitate tuning or selection of video signal
Reexamination Certificate
1996-07-25
2001-04-10
Black, Thomas G. (Department: 2171)
Interactive video distribution systems
Operator interface
To facilitate tuning or selection of video signal
C725S052000, C345S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06216264
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The subject invention concerns apparatus for scheduling the selection of a television program for watching or recording at some future date.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The programming of modern television systems, such as TV schedulers, VCRs, and Satellite Receivers has become more complicated in that the number of available channels has increased dramatically of late. For example RCA® DSS® direct broadcast satellite receivers provide as many as 150 channels to choose from. Heretofore, a user who wanted to record a specific non-regularly scheduled television program such as the airing of a particular movie, would regularly consult a television schedule printed in his local newspaper in the hope that he would eventually find that movie listed.
Such a practice may work well when there are only a few television channel schedules to examine, however, it is unlikely that a viewer would be able to examine the complete schedules for 150 television channels each week. Such a task would be daunting even if all of the movies were to be listed separately, as some television program listings do. Consequently, it is felt that as the number of channels increases, the chances of successfully locating a single occurrence of a program (like a needle in a haystack) becomes more and more unlikely.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
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 the listing for specific user-entered information, and upon successful conclusion to the search, the apparatus schedules the tuning of the desired program, or in the alternative, notifies the viewer of the availability of the program. In those instances where descriptive text accompanies the program listing, apparatus of the invention performs a search of the text for a particular text string which may relate to the title, the star, the director, or the context of the program, among other search criteria.
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Brown Megan Louise
Crosby Sheila Renee
Maze Kenneth Wayne
Miller Robert Howard
Morrison Hugh Boyd
Black Thomas G.
Le Uyen
Liao Frank Y.
Thomson Licensing S.A.
Tripoli Joseph S.
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