Cable Card OOB Simulator Eliminates Tuner Hardware
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cable cards require an out-of-band (OOB) data channel for operation, which is not always available, leading to limitations in booting and data reception without an OOB tuner and demodulator.
Innovation Solution
The cable card spoofs the host device into thinking it is processing OOB data by using a broadcast receiver, processor, memory, and control program to simulate OOB data reception from in-band signals, eliminating the need for an OOB tuner and demodulator, and stores or retrieves necessary data from non-volatile memory.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cable card requires OOB data channel for operation, then reliable data reception is achieved, but device complexity and cost increase due to requiring OOB tuner and demodulator
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the OOB data reception function from the cable card by using the in-band receiver to capture OOB data embedded within the video signal, eliminating the need for separate OOB tuner and demodulator hardware
Solution Approach 2:
The in-band receiver is made multi-functional by enabling it to receive both regular video data and OOB data from the same in-band signal, allowing one receiver to perform multiple functions and eliminating the need for dedicated OOB reception hardware
2Device complexity
If cable card uses in-band signal to carry OOB data, then OOB receiver is eliminated, but data separation and processing becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary process where the in-band signal carries OOB data in a standardized format that can be extracted and separated by the cable card processor, which then routes the extracted OOB data to the appropriate processing functions
Solution Approach 2:
The OOB data is copied into the in-band signal stream in a standardized format, allowing the cable card to extract and process a copy of the OOB data without requiring separate OOB reception hardware, thus simplifying the overall receiver architecture
3Device complexity
If OOB data is embedded in in-band signal, then single receiver suffices, but signal interference and data integrity become concerns
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the in-band signal into distinct data streams, separating video data from OOB data through standardized formatting and delimiters, allowing the cable card to extract and process each type of data independently while maintaining data integrity
Data Source
AI summary
An enhanced cable card device is described that operates in host devices without requiring an out-of-band data channel. One embodiment includes a broadcast receiver for receiving a broadcast signal, a processor for coordinating processing in the cable card, a memory for storing data normally received by the cable card over an out-of-band signal, an in band data receiver for receiving an in band data signal, and a control program running on the processor to signal reception of an out-of-band signal to a host device electrically connected to the cable card. In addition, the control program processes data from the memory and provides processed output data to the host device simulating data normally received over an out-of-band data channel, and the cable card allows the host device to operate normally without an out-of-band receiver.