Patent Application
20050216935
This application relates to each of the following applications, each of which is commonly owned and was filed on an even date herewith and each of which is hereby incorporated by this reference:
3 DIMENSIONAL BROWSING AND SELECTION APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81231);
INTERACTIVE PROGRAM GUIDE WITH PREFERRED ITEMS LIST APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81233);
DISPLAY FILTER CRITERIA AND RESULTS DISPLAY APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81234);
AUTOMATIC CONTENT DISPLAY APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81232);
CANDIDATE DATA SELECTION AND DISPLAY APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81229);
MULTI-SOURCE PROGRAMMING GUIDE APPARATUS AND METHOD (attorney's docket number 81235).
This invention relates generally to information displays and more particularly to the use of display filters and the navigation of displayed filter results.
Information displays of various kinds are essentially ubiquitous in modem society. Many such displays serve, at least in part, to present content options to a viewer. As the number, kind, and constitution of such content options expand, a concurrent challenge arises to facilitate a way to navigate such options in a manner that is helpful and meaningful to the viewer.
Interactive programming guides are an example of such challenges. With cable, fiber, and/or satellite broadband services facilitating the delivery of an increasing number of varied programming options at any given time, it becomes more important to present a viewer with useful and helpful interface mechanisms to permit the viewer to be informed regarding available content options as the sheer magnitude of programming options renders unlikely the possibility that the viewer will be otherwise sufficiently knowledgeable in this regard.
Present suggestions regarding interactive programming guides as used with various audio/visual content services often present a number of candidate programming options on a display. In some cases this display will include a short textual description of the content of one or more of the candidate programming options or other static information (such as a rating, a brief listing of key actors, a year of publication, and the like).
Display criteria filters are sometimes used to limit in some predetermined or selectable fashion the particular candidate programming options that are displayed. For example, a viewer may be offered the option to limit the displayable pool of programming options to only those options that are presently available for viewing. While helpful in some instances to facilitate the content selection process, such an approach does not meet the needs of all viewers under all viewing circumstances. For example, filter control often requires navigation of nested setting choices (which are often presented in a series of nested menus). Navigation of such a configuration to locate a desired setting opportunity can be both cumbersome and non-intuitive. Further, the navigation process itself, coupled with the loss of present on-screen data, can permit some viewers to lose their train of thought and hence stymie rather than facilitate the subjective process of selecting viewing material of interest to the viewer.
The above needs are at least partially met through provision of the filter criteria and results display apparatus and method described in the following detailed description, particularly when studied in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and/or relative positioning of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. Also, common but well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments of the present invention. It will also be understood that the terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary meaning as is usually accorded to such terms and expressions by those skilled in the corresponding respective areas of inquiry and study except where other specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.
Generally speaking, pursuant to these various embodiments, characterizing descriptors as individually correspond to a plurality of discrete selectable items of data are provided. Two or more characterizing descriptor filters are also provided to permit and facilitate filtering of the plurality of these characterizing descriptors. One then simultaneously displays a first plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to a first characterizing descriptor filter, a second plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to a second characterizing descriptor filter, and at least a portion of the characterizing descriptors as corresponds to a present setting of the first and second plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria.
In a preferred embodiment the characterizing descriptors comprise any of a variety of descriptors as may be relevant to a variety of audio/visual programs. Also in a preferred approach the user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to the first characterizing descriptor filter are displayed in a segregated fashion with respect to the user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to the second characterizing descriptor filter as well as the displayed characterizing descriptors. Similarly, the user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria for the second filter are displayed in a segregated fashion with respect to the user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as correspond to the first characterizing descriptor filter as well as the displayed characterizing descriptors.
So configured, a viewer can readily navigate both within the available displayed (or displayable) viewing options as well as to and within the user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria for both characterizing descriptor filters. In particular, such navigation can occur with such criteria and the resultant filtered options being readily viewable on a shared display. Movement within and between such displayed results and filter criteria therefore requires only an intuitive application of the on-screen highlighting/focus/cursor controls via, for example, a remote control as versus potentially more complicated and confusing nested menu navigation control interfacing.
Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to
The control circuitry of the data processing unit 11 can be embodied in a variety of ways. For example, the data processing unit 11 can comprise a fixed-purpose dedicated platform or can comprise a partially or fully programmable platform. Such options and architectural alternatives are well understood in the art and need no further elaboration here. In some embodiments, as with a so-called cable or satellite set-top box, the data processing unit 11 can be readily realized through appropriate programming of the processor as typically accompanies such an apparatus.
The data source 12 can comprise any presently known or hereafter developed data source. In a preferred embodiment the data source 12 provides audio/visual content such as television programs and movies. The data source 12 can provide access to wireless broadcast reception services, cable or optical fiber services, and/or satellite services, to name a few (either alone or in conjunction with one another). Depending upon the needs of the application, it is also possible that the data source 12 provides access to discrete selectable items of audio/visual content as are embodied in a plurality of media. For example, the data source 12 may provide access to cable programming options, satellite programming options, and local programming options as may be available via one or more local or otherwise available media drives (such as but not limited to video tape drives or digital video disk (DVD) drives). It is also possible that the data processing unit 11 operably couples to a plurality of such data sources to permit access to corresponding programming services and viewing options.
In a preferred embodiment this apparatus 10 further comprises a content guide 15. This content guide 15 can comprise an integral part of the data processing unit 11 (as suggested by the illustration in
In a preferred embodiment the content guide 15 further comprises two or more characterizing descriptor filters. The particular filters used can be selected as appropriate to the given needs and specific requirements of a given application. Some filter examples include, but are not limited to, a genre filter (with filter criteria such as “all,” “children's programming,” “comedy,” “drama,” “documentary,” “favorites list,” “service provider's recommendations,” “audio only,” and the like), a temporal filter (with filter criteria such as “now,” “upcoming within the next hour,” “tomorrow,” “previously recorded,” and the like), or a media/source filter (with filter criteria such as “broadcast television,” “satellite service 2,” “cable service 1,” “Internet content,” “DVD bank 1,” “digital video recorder 3,” and the like). Through use of such filters, an initial pool of candidate viewing choices can be reduced on the basis of the filter selection criteria as is generally well understood in the art. For example, by selecting a filter criterion of “now” for a first filter and a filter criterion of “children's” for a second filter, only presently viewable children's programming would be made available for selection browsing and navigation.
Such content guides are generally well understood in the art. The particular configuration and/or general operation of such engines is not especially important to these embodiments. Therefore additional detailed description will not be provided here regarding content guides except where appropriate below with respect to the description of these embodiments.
It will be understood that such apparatus 10 are often at least partially responsive to an optional wireless remote control 16. The latter often use infrared technology to facilitate communications but any wireless technology as may be appropriate to the needs of a given application can be utilized. In many instances such a remote control 16 will include a user interface 17 such as, for example, a keypad. Such a keypad will provide one or more keys that, when asserted by a user, will cause transmission of a particular corresponding wireless instruction by the remote control 16. Pursuant to a preferred embodiment, the operations of the content guide 15 will be at least partially configurable and/or otherwise controllable by appropriate remote control signals. Again, such remote controls are well understood in the art and require no further elaboration here.
Referring now to
At least two user-selectable characterizing descriptor filters are then provided 22. As noted above, such filters have filter criteria that pertain to one or more of the characterizing descriptors for the selectable items of data. To illustrate, such criteria can pertain to content genre, content availability, content rating, content source, cost of content access, language, presentation duration, and the like. While it might be useful in some applications to have shared common criteria as between these two or more filters, in a preferred approach these filters will have mutually exclusive filter criteria sets. (The embodiments described below will presume for the ease of explanation and illustration that only two such user-selectable characterizing descriptor filters are so provided. It will be understood, however, that the invention is not so limited and that any number of additional filters can be added and used in a highly scalable fashion consistent with these teachings.)
This process 20 then provides for the simultaneous display 23 of a first plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to the first characterizing descriptor filter, a second plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria as corresponds to the second characterizing descriptor filter, and at least a portion of the characterizing descriptors as corresponds to a present setting of the first and second plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria. In a preferred embodiment, this action further comprises not displaying any of the characterizing descriptors as do not correspond to the present setting of the first and second plurality of user-selectable characterizing descriptor filter criteria.
To facilitate such steps, and referring now to
Referring now to
In the illustration of
In the alternative, a viewer can also move the area of focus to a new position (for example, by using a key that permits a scrolling action of the focus area in accord with prior art practice). For example, by causing the area of focus to move to the right, a new area of focus 42 will highlight the third characterizing descriptor(s) as is displayed in the second display area 32. Support of this functionality permits a viewer to select a given programming option according to their informed preference. In the illustrated embodiment, only three characterizing descriptor(s) are provided on the display 14. In the event that there are more than three available candidate characterizing descriptors available, additional descriptors can be accessed one-by-one by continuing to scroll the area of focus in a similar fashion to the right (or to the left to gain access to descriptors that are to the left of the first characterizing descriptor(s)). It would also be possible, in the alternative, to refresh the display and move on a page-by-page basis through the set of available characterizing descriptor(s).
(In these embodiments the area of focus is described as “moving.” In some embodiments it may in fact be desirable to provide to a viewer the image of an area of focus that moves with respect to the display to thereby coincide with different characterizing descriptors and the like. It is also possible, however, to effect relative movement as between an area of focus and such descriptors. For example, the area of focus can be maintained relatively stationary with respect to the display and the descriptors themselves are then caused to move with the respect to the area of focus to provide the desired navigation functionality. Those skilled in the art will appreciate and understand that all such navigation paradigms and approaches are compatible with and are otherwise subsumed within these teachings.)
As already noted above, these characterizing descriptors can comprise a wide variety of media type and information. In general, it is usually not practical to display all available characterizing information for each candidate programming option (if nothing else, such a display can overwhelm the viewer with a sheer bulk of unprioritized data). Instead, pursuant to a preferred approach and referring now momentarily to
So configured, each programming option will be presented in a reduced configuration that provides some limited amount of information content (such as broadcast channel and/or source call sign, program name, source or content logo, or a still graphic image that corresponds in some representative way to the programming option). Upon moving an area of focus to a given one of these programming options, however, a more complete presentation of characterizing information can be automatically provided. This presentation can include, or exclude, any of the information as is usually presented in the limited mode of presentation, but will preferably at least present information that is supplemental to such ordinarily presented information. This, in turn, permits a viewer to glean useful and helpful data to aid in developing a better informed selection of a given program option without necessarily overwhelming or stressing the cognitive processing capabilities of that viewer.
Referring again to
It is possible, of course, that additional filters may be available for use by the viewer. Depending upon the perceived needs of the application, it may be desirable to display such additional filters and their corresponding filter criteria on the display 14 by adding, for example, additional corresponding areas of display. In the alternative, or in addition to the above approach, it may also be possible to make such additional filters/criteria available by permitting the viewer to scroll off-display in the upward and/or downward direction to effect the display of such filters/criteria.
It can therefore be seen that a viewer can navigate a large number of programming options in a highly intuitive fashion (making use of only a few basic and intuitive commands). This navigation includes easy reference and access to filter criteria that in turn controls the subset of programming options that are presented for consideration and navigation. These benefits are realized without the need to access nested menus. These benefits remain essentially intact even though one scales the information set upwardly to include a relatively large body of data for any or all of the programming options and/or the filters and their filter criteria.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that a wide variety of modifications, alterations, and combinations can be made with respect to the above described embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and that such modifications, alterations, and combinations are to be viewed as being within the ambit of the inventive concept. For example, and referring now to
We claim the benefit of Provisional Patent Application No. 60/520,752, entitled “Ring Interface for TV Programming Guide” and as filed on Nov. 17, 2003.
