Telecommunications – Interference signal transmission
Reexamination Certificate
1994-11-08
2001-02-27
Eisenzopf, Reinhard J. (Department: 2745)
Telecommunications
Interference signal transmission
C455S001000, C455S566000, C348S086000, C348S086000, C348S014160
Reexamination Certificate
active
06195530
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates generally to two-way interactive cable television systems in which entertainment services, information and data signals are provided over cable facilities from a system manager location to a user location, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for controlling the storage of data in local storage at the user location.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Two-way interactive cable television systems are known for transmitting entertainment, information and data signals over a cable facility toward a plurality of users. Data may be transmitted and addressed to a particular subscriber over a separate data channel or over a so-called “in-band” data channel. In a downstream direction, addressed control data may represent services authorized to a particular terminal or control commands to that terminal. In an upstream direction from a terminal to the service provider or system manager location, control data may represent selections made by a user in response to a polling request or at the time of user selection.
In a hotel environment, the system manager delivers video signals, e.g., television programming, to user terminals located, for example, in various hotel rooms over cable lines, and the system manager also transmits digital messages to receivers at each room location. Similarly, information and data generated at each room are transmitted upstream to the system manager via the cable.
It is known in the prior art to provide an interactive terminal at a user location including a local processor for controlling access to a host computer located at the system manager location and a local data store connected to the local processor. Such terminals also normally consist of a display for displaying messages to the user or details of the transaction being conducted, and a keyboard or remote key pad comprising a number of keys by which the user can enter data and initiate functions.
Typically, a central data storage is provided at the system manager location for storing a complete data base, and a smaller subset of that data base is maintained in the local store at the user terminal. Because faster response times can be achieved if a requested transaction can be completed without the need for repeatedly accessing the central data base, configuration of the local store becomes an important design consideration. Prior methods of local storage management have been based upon last use or recency of use, and systems are also known in which those items in the data base most frequently requested by the user terminals are retained in the local store. These methods have not, however, been entirely satisfactory, and have not uniformly achieved the desired reduction in response time. Accordingly, there is a need for a more efficient technique for choosing data items to be stored in a local storage of an interactive terminal system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of local storage management for an interactive terminal which ensures faster response times and which reduces the need for repeatedly accessing the central data base.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of local storage management for an interactive terminal which updates the local store in accordance with the relative priority of data entries.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a method of local storage management which updates the local store in accordance with the system service requested by the user.
An interactive terminal, according to the present invention, comprises a processor, a local data store connected to the processor, a character generator responsive to processor control for generating a television signal output to an associated television receiver, a key pad or remote control for inputting information to the processor, and a power supply input.
In a hotel environment, the interactive terminals are located in individual hotel rooms and are coupled, via 2-way RF communications, to a central hotel location, designated as the system manager, where the terminals are accessed by polling for monitoring and servicing the guests' requests. The local storage capacity of the interactive terminal is provided for storing data and a number of character screen commands, accessed from a central data base at the system manager, for use in generating prompting screens displayed on the television receiver. Thus, in use, a hotel guest may call for a variety of services, e.g., pay TV programs, room service and the like, by operating the input keys of the key pad to cause a prompting screen to be displayed on the television receiver.
According to the invention, character screen commands are stored at the terminal according to an assigned priority. The stored screen commands also include pointers which are used by the terminal processor to prefetch other screens which follow the current screen in a decision tree structure manner. These screens are downloaded from the system manager for storage at the terminal so that they are available for display if and when called for. In operation, if a particular branch of a decision tree is not selected by the user, screens associated with that branch are deleted from terminal memory as needed to make room for new screens. The terminal memory is also controlled so that character screen commands are swapped in and out of memory based on their relative priority.
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Johnson Lee R.
Myers Howard L.
Smith Elizabeth A.
Barnhardt III Hubert J.
Eisenzopf Reinhard J.
Kincaid Lester G.
Massaroni Kenneth M.
Scientific-Atlanta, Inc.
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