The title of this Continuation-in-Part patent appliation is Distance Learning System. The Applications are:
All the Inventors are all Citizens of the United States of America.
None.
The present invention pertains to methods and apparatus for distributing educational and other content using excess capacity in existing networks. More particularly, one preferred embodiment of the invention employs conventional radio transmitters to gradually and automatically broadcast educational content to wireless receivers. The content is accumulated and stored the receiver, and is selected, and then played or used at the students' convenience.
Millions of Americans would be grateful to have the opportunity to supplement, enhance or continue their educations, but many are at work, busy at home or otherwise unable to find a convenient time to pursue additional learning.
No current commercially-available device or system enables persons to listen to and/or view educational content which is automatically delivered to students electronically without the students' intervention, at a time chosen by the student, and which does not require a personal computer and an Internet connection. The development of such a system would constitute a major technological advance, and would satisfy long felt needs and aspirations in the fields of broadcasting, information and education.
The present invention employs networks to gradually and automatically distribute educational and other content to persons equipped with wireless terminals. In one embodiment, educational content is transmitted using subcarriers or sidebands of conventional FM broadcasts to gradually convey audio programs to receivers which automatically store the received content until the listener is ready to learn. Another embodiment of the invention includes both audio and video content.
In one embodiment of the invention, educational content is acquired from content providers such as schools, colleges, universities or private companies. This content is conveyed to a central Operations Center. The recorded content may need to be converted to a digital stream. This digital file is then dispatched to the Operations Center of a national chain of FM radio stations. The digital file may need to be compressed, and is then broadcast at relatively slow data rates to wireless receivers. In one embodiment, the small portable receiver comprises an FM antenna and receiver which is coupled to a storage device such as a flash memory. The content is played back through lightweight headphones. The educational content is gradually conveyed or “RainBarreled™” to customers via an inexpensive point-to-multi-point distribution method. When the student wishes to listen and learn, the content is ready for playback without computer downloads, streaming or Internet connections. In one embodiment of the invention, the receiver is adapted to receive and store a number of content programs, enabling the student to select from a menu of learning opportunities. The content programs may be periodically and automatically replaced with new programs.
An appreciation of the other aims and objectives of the present invention, and a more complete and comprehensive understanding of this invention, may be obtained by studying the following description of a preferred embodiment, and by referring to the accompanying drawings.
I. Overview of the Invention
The present invention comprises methods and apparatus for delivering educational content and/or other information to students using the unused, excess capacity that is inherent in virtually all communication networks using the RainBarrel™ Method. The Trade & Service Mark “RainBarrel™” is owned by the Assignee of this U.S. patent application.
In this Specification and in the Claims that follow, the terms “content” “information” “program” and “educational content” encompass any form of code, data, books, written or printed materials, audio, video, visual works, motion pictures, photographs, music, text, games, software, graphics or other manifestation of intelligence, knowledge, pattern or expression. Content may include lessons, briefings, lectures, meetings, tutorials, discussions, presentations, seminars, debates, deliberations of government or private bodies, or training sessions. In general, content is presented to a student or students in the form of a “program,” which connotes the playback, representation, audition, rendering, reproduction or other manifestation of content conveyed using the present invention.
The term “excess capacity” includes any unused or underutilized transmission capability of an electromagnetic or other emanation, including radio subcarriers and sidebands. Excess capacity includes any conveyance of any content using any network, irrespective of the portion of the network capacity which is actually consumed at any given moment or during any specific time interval. If, for example, a RainBarrel™ signal consumes 100% of the transmission capacity of an FM signal or satellite transponder for a given interval of time because the primary signal is absent, the RainBarrel™ signal is, nonetheless, a signal which utilizes excess capacity for its conveyance. The RainBarrel™ Method allows for the automatic transmission of content without user intervention, and then enables the user to select content and use or play the content at a time chosen by the user. The delivery of content to the user is generally accomplished without any user action, and is generally controlled by the transmitter. The consumption or use of the content is generally controlled, determined and selected by the user, without any action by the transmitter, with the possible exception of the verification of an account over a return channel.
In this Specification and in the Claims that follow, the term “network” connotes any group of one or more transmitters, transponders, emitters, repeaters, nodes, sources, emanations, signals, computers, servers, storage devices, archives, broadcast facilities, terminals, receivers or other hardware, software or means for conveying content.
In this Specification and in the Claims that follow, the term “Operations Center” encompasses any hardware, software, facility or switching, routing or transmitting node which may be used to implement the Invention. In one embodiment of the invention, content is provided by educational organizations, such as schools, adult education centers, language labs, colleges, universities, government agencies, military entities, training centers, private companies, churches or religious groups, individuals, or other groups which produce other educational or other content.
The Operations Center is connected by wired, wireless or other communications links to one or more FM radio transmitters. While the preferred embodiment utilizes a network of FM broadcasters, alternative embodiments of the invention may utilize many different telecommunications links and nodes, including, but not limited to, satellites, television, cellular telephone, land lines, computer networks including the Internet, and radio systems operating in frequencies other than the FM band. While conventional radio stations may offer service areas or “footprints” covering large geographic regions, a single satellite may provide distance learning to an entire continent.
The content is conveyed from the Operations Center to the conventional transmitters. The content is gradually conveyed by these transmitters to mobile or fixed receivers at the students' and/or customers' premises, as shown in
After transmission, the content is automatically stored in the receivers, enabling the student to listen to the audio content at a time chosen by him or her. Unlike conventional broadcasts, the recipient of the content enjoys the freedom to listen to the content he or she selects for “on-demand” reproduction at the time of his or her choosing. The receiver may be programmed to automatically overwrite stored programs with new programs in a given period, or may be programmed to save particular programs without refreshing the memory with new content.
The audio receiver may adapted to receive both conventional radio broadcasts, and the additional educational content. In one embodiment of the invention, the receiver includes a second FM receiver chip for the additional program, or includes a single customized chip that is able to demodulate both the conventional signal and the additional program, and convert both signals to audible sound. One embodiment of the receiver includes software and/or hardware that enables the receiver to detect which stations broadcasting in the customers' area is providing the additional audio program, and then automatically tunes to that station or stations to receive the program from the Content Provider. Unlike a conventional radio, which is only able to receive and play conventional broadcasts, the receiver used to implement the present invention is able to receive both conventional broadcasts and the additional program.
In an alternative embodiments of the invention, the receiver may be incorporated into or adapted to work in a motor vehicle, a cell phone, a computer or any appliance, apparatus or electronic device.
In one embodiment of the invention, the content delivered to the consumers' receivers is educational content which is delivered free of charge to students. In another embodiment, users may be charged for programs supplied by the invention. Revenue may be generated by either charging customers a subscription for providing content, or by providing free content combined with charges to advertisers for commercial messages included in the programs.
II. The UltraSecure™ Digital Rights Management & Key Protection System
In one embodiment of the invention, the receiver may include a security chip which may be used to regulate the use of content and/or to thwart unauthorized copying or playing of content. The reader is invited to refer to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/887,570, filed on 22 Jun. 2001; and to PCT International patent application No. PCT/US01/14828 filed on 23 May 2001, both entitled Method for Secure Delivery of Digital Content. These commonly-owned and commonly-assigned patent applications describe the UltraSecure™ Digital Rights Management & Key Protection System, and the contents of these two applications are hereby incorporated by reference into this application. The Trade & Service Mark “UltraSecure™” is owned by the Assignee of this U.S. patent application.
III. The RainBarrel™ Method
Preferred & Alternative Implementations of the Invention
In one embodiment of the invention, the digital files containing educational or other content are conveyed over wired or wireless connections from the Operations Center to the network headquarters of an FM radio network. The native or compressed digital files are added, combined or otherwise commingled with the conventional broadcast signal, and are gradually transmitted to receivers. In one embodiment of the invention, an FM subcarrier is leased from a national network of radio stations. A server is installed at the headquarters of the national network, and content is conveyed from Content Providers and/or an Operations Center. In one embodiment the headquarters of the national network may serve as the Operations Center. The server is configured to inject, combine or otherwise add the audio program from the Content Providers with the conventional FM signal using a subcarrier or sideband. The addition of the educational content from the Content Providers to the conventional radio broadcast does not affect the reception of the conventional program by listeners with conventional radios, since the conventional radios are not configured to receive the additional audio program. Only customers with specially adapted receivers are able to receive the educational content from the Content Providers. The specially adapted receivers may also be used to simply monitor conventional broadcasts.
FM Broadcast Station Channels
The frequency modulation (FM) broadcast band in the US ranges from 88 to 108 MHz. The band is divided into 100 channels of 200 kHz bandwidth each. The channel center frequencies are given by:
f0=88.1+n×0.2 MHz where n=0 to 99 Equation (1)
In the U.S., 47 CFR 73.293 authorizes FM broadcast stations to “transmit subcarrier communications services.” One implementation of data delivery using FM radio broadcasting stations is a subcarrier at the channel center frequency modulated by a shaped-offset, Quadraphase Shift Keying (QPSK) waveform, with shape factor of 1.25, at 80 kbps. This provides a 160 kbps transmission rate of raw data. The delivered data is partitioned into 512 byte (4,096 bit) packets. The first twelve bytes of each packet are used for synchronization, address and flag fields. The remaining 500 bytes contain payload data with rate ⅘ turbo code, FEC. The resulting data transmission rate is 125 kbps, or 1.36 gigabytes (GBytes) per day for one FM broadcasting station.
AM Broadcasting Station Channels
The amplitude modulation (AM) radio broadcast band in the US ranges from 535 to 1705 kHz. It is divided into 117 channels of 10 kHz bandwidth each. Center frequencies in kHz are given by:
f0=540+n×10 kHz for n=0 to 116 Equation (2)
AM broadcasting stations transmit at 50 kilowatts. In the US, 47 CFR 73.127 authorizes AM broadcast stations “to transmit signals not audible on ordinary consumer receivers, for both broadcast and non-broadcast purposes.”
One implementation of data delivery using AM broadcasting stations is a subcarrier at the channel center frequency modulated by a 256-Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) waveform, with shape factor 1.25, at 8 kilobits per second (kbps). This provides a 64 kbps transmission rate of raw data. The symbols are trellis-coded at rate ⅞ to provide FEC, resulting in a data rate of 56 kbps. The data is partitioned into 512 byte (4,096 bit) packets. The first 16 bytes of each packet are used for synchronization, address and flag fields. The remaining 496 bytes contain data. The resulting data transmission rate is 64.25 kbps, or 585.9 MBytes per day for each AM radio station.
Cellular CDPD
The Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) network provides digital data over existing North American cellular networks by taking advantage of the idle time on analog AMPS channels to transmit packet data at 19.2 kbps. There are 666 AMPS channels between 870 and 890 MHz in the forward direction, and between 825 and 345 MHz in the reverse direction. The channels have 30 kHz bandwidths. There are 42 radio frequency (RF) control channels which cannot be used for CDPD. The data is Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying (GMSK) modulated with a bandwidth time product (BT) of 0.5. CDPD supports two-way communication, so only minimal FEC is required. Allowing 1.2 kbps for packet overhead and FEC, there remains eighteen kbps for data transmission, or 194 MBytes of data per day, per cellular channel used.
Local, Non-Standard Data Delivery Methods
FM Subcarriers
47 CFR 73.293 authorizes FM broadcast stations to “transmit subcarrier communications services in the United States.” Broadcast FM stations have been using subcarriers since the 1950's for things like Muzak music delivered to individual and company subscribers. Data broadcasting is more recent, but already in use for things like differential Global Positioning System (GPS) corrections, traffic data, stock quotes, etc.
One implementation of data delivery by FM subcarrier is the Radio Broadcast Data System (RBDS). A 57 kHz subcarrier is used, which is amplitude modulated by shaped biphase, differentially-coded, encoded digital data at 1.1875 kbps. The baseband data is packetized into groups of 104 bits. Each group is divided into 4 blocks of 26 bits each, and each block is further divided into 18 data bits and 10 check bits. This results in a 0.615 code rate, and a 730.8 bps information rate. Data transmission of this type is 7.9 MBytes per day.
Another implementation is Data Radio Channel (DARC). A 76 kHz Level Minimum Shift Keying (LMSK) subcarrier, modulated at 16 kbps raw bit rate, is injected into the composite FM signal at 10% modulation (−20 dB). The 16 kbps raw bit rate is equivalent to 173 MBytes per day. Adding frame and address overhead at 20%, and rate_forward error correction, a data rate of 10 kbps, or 108 MBytes per day can be achieved. A more efficient modulation scheme can provide a 56 kbps raw bit rate, equivalent to a 35 kbps data transmission rate, or 378 MBytes of data delivery per day per FM station.
AM Subcarriers
In the U.S., 47 CFR 73.127 authorizes AM broadcast stations to transmit subcarriers.
Satellite Delivery
The present invention may also be implemented using satellite signals, using any suitable frequency band. Currently available satellite services such as DirecTV™, EchoStar™, Sirius Satellite Radio™ or XM Satellite Radio™ may be utilized to convey content using the RainBarrel™Method.
IV. Compression & Data Rates
In general, current known compression methods allow digital files to be compressed so that one minute of program is reduced to a one megabyte file. To achieve higher reproduction quality, more complicated compression methods may be employed. To obtain “FM quality” sound, the invention may utilize the following compression methods, which are generally well known in the art:
If FM Quality compression is selected, then one hour of audio is 0.45 MB×60 minutes=27 MB of audio program that must be conveyed to receivers using the RainBarrel™ Method. A single subcarrier is able to convey approximately 100 MB per day, or about 4.2 MB per hour. If the Vertical Blanking Interval of a television broadcast were employed, the RainBarrel™ data rate would be 2.5 GB a day, which is over 100 MB an hour.
V. The LearningVault™ Library of Greatest Teachers™
In one embodiment of the invention, audio and video recordings of accomplished and eminent teachers are assembled into a Library of Greatest Teachers™. As shown in
In one embodiment of the invention, content is delivered to public or private schools as an educational supplement. In another embodiment of the invention, content conveyed by the invention may be utilized for adult education or home schooling.
Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to one or more preferred embodiments, persons possessing ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains will appreciate that various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the Claims that follow. The various alternatives for providing a Distance Learning System that have been disclosed above are intended to educate the reader about preferred embodiments of the invention, and are not intended to constrain the limits of the invention or the scope of Claims.
The present Patent Application is a Continuation-in-Part Application, which is related to: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/579,324, SkyVault™ Parent, filed on 25 May 2000; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/688,997, CIPA-SkyVault™, filed on 16 Oct. 2000; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/833,094, CIPB-RainBarrel™, filed on 10 Apr. 2001; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/948,021, CIPC-GameVault™, filed on 6 Sep. 2001; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/094,943, CIPE-SoftwareVault™, filed on 11 Mar. 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/112,810, CIPF-InfoVault™, filed on 1 Apr. 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/112,826, CIPG-OmniMarketing™ System, filed on 1 Apr. 2002; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/316,976, CIPJ-Wireless Automatic Content Reservoir™, filed on 11 Dec. 2002; U.S. patent application No. 10/405,888, CIPK-RadioVault™, filed on 2 Apr. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/411,880, CIPL-Wireless Content Distribution System, filed on 10 Apr. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/459,726, CIPM-CarVault™, filed on 2 Jun. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/452,770, CIPN-Wireless Automatic Data Distribution, filed on 11 Jun. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/459,727, CIPO-ConstructionVault™, filed on 11 Jun. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/638,947, CIPP-GlobalProjectVault™, filed on 11 Aug. 2003; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/887,570, UltraSecure™ Digital Rights Management & Key Protection System, filed on 22 Jun. 2001; U.S. patent application Ser. No. XX/XXX,XXX, UltraSecure™ Digital Rights Management & Key Protection System CIPA, filed on 14 Nov. 2003; U.S. Design patent application Ser. No. 29/172,410, Wireless Automatic Content Reservoir™, filed on 11 Dec. 2002; PCT International Patent Application No. PCT/US01/14828, SkyVault™, filed on 23 May 2001; PCT International patent application No. PCT/GB02/05612, UltraSecure™, filed on 11 Dec. 2002; European Patent Application No. 01939003.8-2211-SkyVault™; Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-500564-SkyVault™; and Canadian Patent Application No. 2410291-SkyVault™. The Applicants hereby claim the benefit of priority under Sections 119 & 120 of Title 35 of the United States Code of Laws for any and all subject matter shared by the present application and any of the co-pending applications listed above.