DVR Storage Management with Remote Caching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Customers using digital video recorders (DVRs) face storage space limitations, leading to frequent deletion of old programs to make room for new recordings, often resulting in frustration due to forgotten or accidental deletion of unwatched content.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a storage management system that actively moves programming between a primary cache at the customer's home and a secondary cache externally, ranking recorded programs based on viewing likelihood and shifting lower-ranked content to free up space during peak times, minimizing network traffic.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If customers record a significant amount of programming on DVR, then the storage capacity is utilized effectively, but the storage space becomes full requiring frequent deletion of old programs
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically manages storage space by monitoring DVR storage capacity and autonomously deleting old programs when space is full, eliminating the need for customers to manually delete programs. The system serves itself by detecting storage conditions and executing deletion operations without user intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors storage capacity status and uses this feedback to trigger automatic deletion operations. When the DVR storage becomes full, the system receives feedback about the storage status and automatically responds by deleting appropriate programs to free up space.
2Productivity
If customers manually delete old programs to free up storage space, then new programming can be recorded, but unwatched or important programs may be accidentally deleted
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically determines which programs to delete based on storage needs, eliminating human error in program selection. The automated system objectively evaluates programs and deletes only those that are safe to remove, preventing accidental deletion of unwatched or important content.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical process of customer intervention (selecting and deleting programs) is replaced with an automated electronic system that monitors storage and executes deletion operations. This substitution eliminates human error and provides more reliable program selection.
3Speed
If network traffic is high during peak times, then video content can be transferred quickly, but moving programs to external storage consumes valuable network bandwidth
Solution Approach 1:
The system schedules video content transfers to occur during off-peak network hours when bandwidth is more available. Instead of transferring continuously or during peak times, the system uses periodic transfer operations at strategically chosen times to balance transfer speed and network resource consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The system proactively monitors storage capacity and schedules transfers in advance during off-peak periods before storage becomes full. By taking preliminary action during low-traffic periods, the system avoids the need for urgent transfers during peak times when network bandwidth is constrained.
Data Source
AI summary
A method may include storing a number of programs on a digital video recorder (DVR) and assigning a score or ranking to each of the programs. The method may also include receiving a request to store another program on the DVR and determining whether the DVR has adequate storage space for the other program. The method may further include forwarding, when the DVR does not have adequate storage space for the other program, one of the programs having a lowest score or ranking to a secondary storage located remotely from the DVR.