Patent Application
20080109861
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a digital broadcasting system, and in particular, to a method and apparatus for indicating broadcasting service variations in a Convergence of Broadcasting and Mobile Service (CBMS) system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, due to the development of communication and broadcasting technology, broadcasting systems or mobile communication systems provide mobile broadcast. In particular, mobile broadcast capable of transmitting packet data as well as a typical broadcasting service limited to audio and video data over a broadcast channel is under consideration. Mobile broadcast may include discovering a service by a mobile terminal capable of receiving a mobile broadcasting service, such as a cellular phone, a notebook, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), or the like, subscribing to the service by the mobile terminal, providing various control information for receiving the service, transmitting the service, and receiving the service by the mobile terminal.
The Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), which is one organization that studies standards for the interworking between separate mobile solutions, mainly establishes various application standards for mobile communication games, Internet services, and the like. Among working groups of the OMA, a sub working group of OMA Browser and Content (BAC) Mobile Broadcast (BCAST) is engaged in active research to integrate a broadcasting service and a mobile communication service using a mobile terminal capable of communicating with an interactive network. The Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB)-Convergence of Broadcasting and Mobile Service (CBMS), which is one of mobile broadcast terminal standard organizations, has also made an effort to define a system structure and an interface for integrating a broadcasting service and a mobile communication service.
In a digital broadcasting system like a CBMS system, service continuity has to be guaranteed when an Internet Protocol (IP) platform, a service provider, a network, or a frequency for a terminal that is receiving a service is changed. When compared with the service that the terminal is currently receiving, a service from another IP platform, provider, and/or network may not be totally the same, but may have some variations. Thus, there emerges a need for a technique that helps the terminal to determine whether to receive a service provided through another IP platform, service provider, network, frequency continuously from the current service.
An aspect of the present invention is to address at least the above problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for determining service continuity in terminal's handover or roaming.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for indicating variation in a service that a terminal is receiving to the terminal in order to determine service continuity for the terminal.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for transmitting service variation information in a digital broadcasting system. The method includes aggregating information about a first service that can be provided by a first network and information about a second service in a second network related to the first service, generating service variation information indicating variations between the second service and the first service, and transmitting the service variation information to a terminal in the first network through a predetermined transmission bearer.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for receiving service variation information in a digital broadcasting system. The method includes receiving service variation information indicating variations between a second service in a second network and a first service that can be provided by a first network from the current network through a predetermined transmission bearer, the second service relating the first service, determining whether to receive the second service from the second network continuously from the first service using the received service variation information, and receiving the second service continuously from the first service when moving to the second network if determining to receive the second service.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a digital broadcasting system which transmits service variation information. The digital broadcasting system includes a network entity for aggregating information about a first service that can be provided by a first network and information about a second service in a second network related to the first service, generating service variation information indicating variations between the second service and the first service, and transmitting the service variation information through a predetermined transmission bearer, and a terminal for receiving the service variation information through the transmission bearer, determining whether to receive the second service from the second network continuously from the first service using the received service variation information, and receiving the second service continuously from the first service when moving to the second network if determining to receive the second service.
The above and other features and advantages of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Throughout the drawings, the same drawing reference numerals will be understood to refer to the same elements, features and structures.
The matters defined in the description such as a detailed construction and elements are provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of an exemplary embodiment of the invention. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiment described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Also, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness. Terminologies used below are defined considering functions in the present invention, and the terminologies can be changed according to a user, an operator's intention, or custom. Therefore, the definition must be drawn on the basis of contents over this application.
A main concept of the present invention to be described below is to indicate broadcasting service variations in a Convergence of Broadcasting and Mobile Service (CBMS) system. A broadcasting service variation may mean, for example, a variation in a broadcasting service for a new network when compared to a home network during handover or roaming. Herein, the broadcasting service may include both broadcasting content and other information corresponding to a single service or only the broadcasting content. A broadcasting service variation may also mean a variation in the broadcasting service for another Internet Protocol (IP) platform, another service provider, another network, another frequency, and the like.
Referring to
A service configuration and resource allocation entity registers service applications that contend for the bandwidth of a broadcast bearer (one DVB-H IP platform in one DVB transport stream), assigns services to locations (broadcasting network topology) and to bandwidth and schedules services over time, and may experience broadcast bandwidth contention. A service guide provisioning application entity aggregates ESG (metadata information) pieces from SA entities and may have multiple occurrences. A security/service protection provision entity manages user access to SA entities. A location services entity provides location services to service applications in an independent fashion by interworking with an interactive network or a Global Positioning System (GPS).
A broadcasting network 140 is a network for transmitting broadcast service data and may be, for example, a DVB-H system. An interactive network 150 generally means a cellular mobile communication network such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) according to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT)-2000 according to the 3GPP2, Wireless and Broadband Internet (WiBro), or Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), or any type of mobile communication network capable of receiving information or requests transmitted from the terminal 160 and transmitting responses to the information or requests. The broadcasting network 140 and the interactive network 150 operate as transmission bearers in a CBMS system.
The terminal 160 is a user device that is a receiver capable of accessing the interactive network 150 and receiving a broadcasting service from the broadcasting network 140. In a CBMS system, the terminal 160 receives service data and signaling information from the broadcasting network 140 and interactively communicates service data and signaling information with the interactive network 150. For example, the terminal 160 may include the following sub-entities.
A DVB-H receiver is in charge of service reception or signaling over the broadcasting network 140. An interactive adapter is in charge of the service reception/transmission or the signaling over the interactive network 150. A Mobility Management (MM) block is in charge of a mobility process. A subscription management block manages rights acquisition, keeps track of rights acquired for the terminal 160, and controls a decryption process for service content. A content consumption block is in charge of service consumption.
In the following description, the interfaces between the entities including the logical entities will be described. CBMS-x and X-x are reference points between different functional entities. CBMS-x is a reference point in the scope of IPDC over DVB-H specification and X-x is a reference point out of the scope of IPDC over DVB-H specification.
A CBMS-1 interface delivers broadcasting-specific signaling, e.g., Program Specific Information and Service Information (PSI/SI) signaling, in DVB-H, from the broadcasting network 140 to the terminal 160. A CBMS-2 interface delivers contents such as audio data, video data, and file data from the SA block 120 to the terminal 160. A content flow delivered through the CBMS-2 interface includes Audio/Video (A/V) streams, auxiliary data, and files delivered by a carousel mechanism (clips, software, etc).
A CBMS-3 interface delivers ESG metadata over the broadcasting network 140 using Point-To-Multipoint (PTM) delivery from the SM block 130 to the terminal 160. A CBMS-4 interface is used for access control to service applications of the SA block 120 and Point-To-Point (PTP) delivery of ESG metadata between the SM block 130 and the terminal 160. A CBMS-5 interface is used for PTP transport services between the SA block 120 and the terminal 160, and delivers a Short Message Service (SMS), a Multimedia Message Service (MMS), and the like using PTP delivery over the interactive network 150.
A CBMS-6 interface delivers configuration parameters for DVB-H transport, such as the number of services, allocated bandwidth, and the like, between the SM block 130 and the broadcasting network 140. A CBMS-7 interface is used for service application declaration or service application description including content description and metadata between the SA block 120 and the SM block 130.
X-1, X-2, and X-3 interfaces are reference points between the broadcasting network 140 and other entities. The X-1 interface is used between the CC block 110 and the SA block 120 and delivers content essence, content description/metadata, and content control policy to the SA block 120. The X-2 interface is used to deliver interactive network-specific interactions, i.e., authentication, mobility management, specific services such as voice, and the like between the interactive network 150 and the terminal 160. The X-3 interface is used to access specific functions that are available in the interactive network 150, such as subscriber management or billing functions, between the SM block 130 and the interactive network 150.
The above description involves only representative functions of the interfaces and the functions of the interfaces are not limited to the above-described functions.
In a CBMS system, one service management instance is mapped to one IP platform. Thus, “within one platform” means “within one SM block 130”, and for example, another IP platform means another SM block, i.e., an SM block included in another network.
When a terminal moves to a new service coverage area included in another IP platform, service provider, network, and frequency when receiving a broadcasting service in a digital broadcasting system, the terminal needs to determine whether it can receive a service that is similar to the current broadcasting service in the new service coverage area. For example, the movement of the terminal may subject the terminal to roaming or handover. In a CBMS system, roaming and handover can be defined variously according to different rules, e.g., IP platform variation, a provider (ESG, service and/or other providers) variation, SM block variation, and network variation. In the following description, terms used herein will be defined in brief.
An IP platform is a set of IP flows managed by an organization and one IP platform can be mapped to one SM block. An ESG provider, a service provider, an interactive network, and a broadcasting network can be defined by standard rules or a system designer of a corresponding system.
An identifier (ID) for each component can be described as follows.
The IP platform is identified by an IP platform ID. Herein, the ESG provider is identified by providerURI, providerID, the pair of providerURI and providerID, or other parameters according to definition and description in a system. Herein, the service provider is identified by serviceproviderURI, serviceproviderID, the pair of serviceproviderURI and serviceproviderID, or other parameters according to definition and description in a system. The network is identified by a network ID.
The SM block is identified according to relationship with the IP platform. For example, when one SM is mapped to one IP platform, the IP platform ID may be used as an SM ID. In another case, an SM ID that can be set independently of the IP platform ID can be used. Other various schemes for identifying the SM block may also be used as follows.
1. When one service provider has its own SM block, a service provider ID is used to identify the SM block. When a service provider is unique in an IP platform, a pair of a service provider ID and an IP platform ID is used as an SM ID. When a predetermined range of a service provider ID is unique, the range of the service provider ID is used as an SM ID.
2. When each ESG provider is located in its own SM block, an ESG provider ID is used as an SM ID. When the ESG provider is unique only within an IP platform, the pair of the ESG provider ID and an IP platform ID is used as an SM ID. When the range of an ESG provider ID is unique, it is used as an SM ID.
3. When one IP platform is exactly mapped to one SM block and different SM blocks cannot share the one IP platform, an IP platform ID is used to identify the SM block.
4. Defining an SM ID for each SM block is the clearest way to identify each SM block. When an SM ID has a specific range, the pair of the SM ID and an ID for the specific range of the SM ID is used to identify the SM block.
5. An SM block may be identified according to the structure and description of a system.
The definition of handover and roaming may be based on the IP platform variation. If a terminal is within the same IP platform even after moving, this case corresponds to handover. If a terminal is in another IP platform after moving, this case corresponds to roaming. Thus, the IP platform ID is an important parameter for distinguishing handover and roaming. A rule for distinguishing handover and roaming can be expanded to an interactive network. As mentioned previously, distinguishment between handover and roaming is determined based on an IP platform, an ESG provider, a service provider, an SM block, an IPDC domain, a network, or other concepts.
Thus, herein, the definition of mobility is general rather than specific. Regardless of the structure and definition, an idea suggested in the present invention can still be used. In other words, a rule for the definition of handover and roaming can be an IP platform, an ESG provider, a service provider, an SM block, an IPDC domain, a network, or the like. Herein, when related parameters, e.g., IDs, are required, all of them are listed. Therefore, all of them or some of them may be needed or other new parameters may also be needed. These fields can be modified, added, removed, or replaced according to final definition in a CBMS system.
The structure, concept, and parameters may be changed according to final definition in a CBMS system, but an idea proposed in the present invention can still be adopted and may be with some modification based on final definition in the CBMS system.
When a service a terminal currently consumes will not be available in a new service coverage area, but the terminal desires to continue consuming the current service, the terminal changes the reception parameters to be suitable for, for example, an IP platform, a service provider, a network, a frequency, and the like corresponding to the new service coverage area. A new service received through the changed reception parameters may be the same as or slightly different from the service received in the previous service coverage area.
If the service the terminal receives has some variation, it will be beneficial to the terminal and a user to indicate what those variations are. Thus, when the service the terminal currently receives changes in the new service coverage area, the current network transmits service variation information indicating what variation there is in a service provided in neighboring another service coverage area when compared to the current service of the current network to the terminal in order to guarantee service continuity during the movement of the terminal. The another service coverage area is a service coverage area that is included in an IP platform, a service provider, or a network that is different from with the current service coverage area in which the terminal is currently located or a service coverage area that uses a frequency that is different from with the current service coverage area. In a CBMS system, there are two kinds of transmission bearers, i.e., a broadcasting network and an interactive network. Therefore, the service variation information can be transmitted over the interactive network and/or the broadcasting network.
The terminal determines whether the changed service that can be received continuously from the current service exists within the another service coverage area by referring to the service variation information when moving to the other service coverage area. If so, the terminal receives the changed service continuously from the current service. More specifically, the terminal recognizes what type of service variation there is in the service and whether the service variation is acceptable based on the service variation information. By doing so, the terminal or the user can determine whether to receive the changed service. As such, the terminal acquires the service variation information before starting reception of the changed service.
Referring to
An example of a changed service provided in the IP platform B 204 is illustrated in
Referring to
Representative examples of the original content 216 may include world wide news, live sport broadcasts, and the like. The live sport broadcasts usually have the same video content 210, but their audio content is country specific. In other words, for the same video stream 210 of the live sport broadcasts, a plurality of different audio streams 212, 214, e.g., commentaries broadcasted in different languages or commentaries made by different commentators even in the same languages, may exist. For example, the IP platform A 202 provides channels for Pay-TV and the IP platform B 204 provides channels for national TV channel.
The service variation information provided in the IP platform A 202 indicates how the service B 200 is changed from the service A 206. Details of the service variation information can be defined by a service provider or a provider of the service variation information. For example, the service variation information may indicate service variation such as a different language, a different subtitle, a different camera angle, and the like.
Examples of three types of service variation will now be described. However, details of the service variation information according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention are not limited to these three types of service variation and other types of service variation desired by a provider may also be added to those three types.
1) A service with a different language means the same service expressed in a different language.
2) A service with a different subtitle means the same service having a different subtitle.
3) A service with a different camera angle means the same service having video acquired from a different camera angle.
The following Table 1 is a summary of the service variations.
Thus, service variation information between services can be provided as in the following Table 2. In Table 2, information related to a service ID and a location can be changed according to the definition of handover and roaming. Although possible related parameters are provided herein, they may be removed, added, or modified according to CBMS final definition and requirements. While there are various syntaxes for service variation, a main idea is as shown in Table 2.
The service variation information for indicating details of service variation to a terminal is delivered over a broadcasting network or an interactive network. For example, the service variation information is included in an ESG a notification message, PSI/SI, or other signaling. When carried in the ESG, the service variation information may be added to a service type Information Element (IE) or a service mapping IE of a service fragment that includes the overall description of each service that can be provided, may be added to a new IE of the service fragment, or may be included in a content fragment, an acquisition fragment, or other fragments. When delivered over the interactive network, the service variation information may be included in a response message to a terminal's request message.
The following tables show examples of a service variation type IE included in the service variation information. In addition to the service variation types shown in Tables 3A and 3B, other service variation types may also be defined by a provider.
Two services may have the same language, different subtitles, and different camera angles. In this case, Table 3B can be modified to Table 3C.
Tables 4A and 4B show details of the service variation information indicating languages/subtitles/camera angles available for different services.
For services with different languages, subtitles, and/or camera angles, available languages, subtitles, and/or camera angles may be indicated. Details regarding a service ID and a location can also be indicated as in Table 4A or Table 4B. For example, for the definition of an ESG provider ID and a service provider ID, other parameters, e.g., a positive integer, instead of a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) type, may be used.
A changed service of the current service provided in the current network is identified by at least one of another service ID (service_id_other), another IP address (IP_address_other), another provider ID (provider_id_other), another IP platform ID (IP platform_id_other), and another network ID (network_id_other). IEs for a service variation type, a language, a subtitle, and/or a camera angle of the changed service are also included in the service variation information.
The service variation information may be included in service mapping information indicating mapping of a neighboring network to a service of the current network as in Table 5A.
The service variation type may be used in the service mapping information as in Table 5B.
Table 5C is another example of the service mapping information.
When the service variation information is carried in a PSI/SI that has already included information for each service, i.e., an IP address, a transport stream ID, a network ID, and the like, the information can be added to the PSI/SI such that other IEs of the service variation information do not overlap with original IEs included in the PSI/SI.
Referring to
The service variation information is transmitted to a terminal in at least one of steps 310 through 316 according to standard rules or system designers' intentions. More specifically, in step 310, the service variation information is transmitted to the terminal through an ESG. In step 312, the service variation information is transmitted to the terminal through a notification message. In step 314, the service variation information is transmitted to the terminal through a predetermined signaling message. In step 316, the service variation information is transmitted to the terminal through a response message that is transmitted by the network entity over an interactive network in response to a request message transmitted by the terminal over the interactive network.
In handover or roaming, if the home network provides service variation information, the terminal can select reception parameters based on the service variation information before turning to new reception parameters. If other networks provide the service variation information, the terminal can determine service variations based on the service variation information and thus does not need to analyze the service variation. Therefore, it is very useful for each network to provide the service variation information.
Referring to
Referring to
If a changed service of the current service is found, in step 430 the terminal parses service variation information included in the service mapping information in order to check a service variation type of the changed service. For the service variation type “different language”, in step 432 the terminal determines if the language of the changed service is effective to a user. For the service variation type “different subtitle”, in step 436 the terminal determines if the subtitle of the changed service is effective to the user. For the service variation type “different camera angle”, in step 434 the terminal determines if the camera angle of the changed service is effective to the user. For the determinations in steps 432 through 436, the terminal notifies the user of the different language/subtitle/camera angle in order to inquire of the user about whether to receive the changed service with the different language/subtitle/camera angle.
In step 438 the terminal determines if the user accepts the changed service with the different language/subtitle/camera angle. If so, in step 442 the terminal moves to the other service coverage area and then receives the changed service according to reception parameters of the other service coverage area. If the user does not desire to use the changed service, the terminal performs other procedures in step 440. In another case, the terminal may automatically select whether to receive the changed service without user's intervention according to a predetermined operation mode in step 438.
Referring to
An ESG entity 506 in an SM block 504 generates an ESG using the metadata provided by the SA block 502 and transmits the generated ESG. When the ESG is used to transmit service variation information, the ESG entity 506 inserts the service variation information into the ESG, and the ESG is delivered from an MM block 512 to a terminal 520 over a broadcasting network and/or an interactive network.
A service configuration & resource allocation entity 508 is in charge of service configuration and network resource allocation, contends for the bandwidth of a broadcast bearer by communicating with the SA block 502, assigns services in locations on a broadcast network topology or determines service bandwidth, and schedules services over time. A security/service protection provision entity 510 is in charge of security and authentication, service protection, and service provisioning. The entities 506 through 510 perform functions necessary to perform handover and roaming by being connected with the MM block 512. The MM block 512 performs operations associated with the mobility of the terminal, especially, operations associated with handover and roaming.
Referring to
The received service variation information is used for the control block 608 to determine the possibility of service continuity. Under the control of the control block 608, a content consumption block 612 provides audio and video of a broadcasting service to the user or stores them in order to provide the stored audio and video to the user later.
As is apparent from the foregoing description, before moving to a new service coverage area, a terminal can be provided with service variation information indicating what change is to be made to a service in the new service coverage area, thereby determining service continuity for the terminal.
While the invention has been shown and described with reference to an exemplary embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60811-2007 | Jun 2007 | KR | national |
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) to a U.S. Provisional Patent Application filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Nov. 7, 2006 and assigned Ser. No. 60/857,116, and a Korean Patent Application filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Jun. 20, 2007 and assigned Serial No. 2007-60811, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60857116 | Nov 2006 | US |
