Electronic Program Guide Generator for Viewing Habit Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional electronic program guides (EPGs) often limit the display of available programming due to screen size constraints, typically showing only a few programs and time periods, failing to provide a comprehensive view of related content based on user viewing habits.
Innovation Solution
An electronic program guide generator (EPGG) that tracks user viewing habits and attributes of viewed programs, allowing for the selection and presentation of future programs with matching attributes, such as genres, actors, or themes, across a broader range of channels and time periods, enhancing the display of related programming.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If traditional EPGs display only a few programs due to screen size constraints, then the device complexity is reduced and ease of operation is maintained, but the quantity of information presented is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional screen display to a three-dimensional virtual environment where programs are represented as objects in space. This allows users to navigate through multiple programs simultaneously using depth perception and spatial arrangement, effectively increasing the information capacity beyond screen size limitations.
Solution Approach 2:
The EPG information is segmented into multiple virtual program objects that can be independently positioned and navigated in three-dimensional space. Each program becomes a separate interactive element that users can select, view, and manipulate individually within the virtual environment, allowing comprehensive presentation of multiple programs without overwhelming the display.
2Adaptability or versatility
If traditional EPGs show limited programs, then the device complexity is simplified, but the adaptability to user viewing habits is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms by tracking user viewing habits and automatically adjusting the virtual environment to prioritize and position programs that match user preferences. The EPG learns from user interactions and dynamically reconfigures the program presentation, creating an adaptive experience that evolves with user behavior patterns.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual environment is designed to be dynamic rather than static, allowing program positions, sizes, and visibility to change based on user interactions and viewing habits. The system continuously adapts the presentation layout and program selection criteria, transforming a fixed EPG into a flexible, user-responsive interface.
3Productivity
If traditional EPGs present only current time period programs, then the loss of time is minimized for data processing, but the productivity of information delivery is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-processing and organizing program data for multiple time periods in advance. Virtual program objects for future time periods are created and positioned beforehand, allowing users to navigate and plan viewing across multiple time periods without real-time processing delays, thus improving information delivery productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
Various embodiments present information about programs of interest. Some embodiments provide electronic program guides based on previously viewed programs. In some cases, an electronic program guide generator (“EPGG”) generates an electronic program guide for a designated time period, the electronic program guide including information about one or more scheduled programs, based on the one or more scheduled programs each having at least one attribute that matches an attribute of a program that was previously viewed at a time of day corresponding to the designated time period. The generated electronic program guide may then be presented on a presentation device. Another embodiment provides information about one or more programs that are related to a designated program of interest.