Interactive TV Universal Time Code Embedding
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing interactive television (ITV) systems face inefficiencies due to the need to generate and transmit multiple content streams tailored to different ITV platforms, leading to laborious processes and inefficient bandwidth use.
Innovation Solution
A system that embeds universal codes in a single ITV stream, allowing different ITV receivers to retrieve and execute platform-specific commands from their own memory, eliminating the need for multiple streams and enabling synchronization of ITV events across various platforms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple content streams are generated and transmitted for different ITV platforms, then compatibility with various receivers is improved, but bandwidth efficiency deteriorates and labor intensity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments ITV commands into platform-specific portions stored in receiver memory and a universal time code portion transmitted in the content stream. This allows the universal portion to be efficiently transmitted once while platform-specific portions are locally stored, resolving the contradiction between compatibility and bandwidth efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
Platform-specific ITV commands are pre-loaded into the receiver's memory before the content stream is received. This preliminary action eliminates the need to transmit multiple platform-specific streams, as each receiver already has its specific commands ready, thus improving bandwidth efficiency while maintaining compatibility.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple content streams are generated for different ITV platforms, then platform-specific functionality is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ITV command structure is segmented into a universal time code portion and platform-specific portions. The universal portion is transmitted once in the content stream, while platform-specific portions are stored locally in receiver memory, simplifying the transmission system while maintaining platform-specific functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The universal time code serves multiple functions: it synchronizes ITV events across all platforms and triggers platform-specific commands stored in each receiver's memory. This universal approach reduces system complexity by eliminating the need for separate transmission streams for each platform.
3Loss of energy
If universal codes are embedded in a single ITV stream, then bandwidth efficiency is improved, but the ability to handle platform-specific variations deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The command handling is segmented into universal time code extraction from the stream and platform-specific command retrieval from local memory. This segmentation allows bandwidth-efficient universal coding while maintaining platform-specific adaptability through local storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The receiver's memory acts as an intermediary, storing platform-specific commands that are triggered by universal time codes from the content stream. This intermediary mechanism resolves the contradiction by enabling platform-specific handling without requiring platform-specific transmission streams.
Data Source
AI summary
An interactive television (ITV) system transmitting ITV content created and received by different ITV platforms via a single ITV stream. The system provides universal time codes which are embedded into the ITV stream. Each time code is associated with a program identifier which uniquely identifies a particular program. An ITV receiver receives the ITV stream and compares the program identifier and time code with a program held in the receiver's memory. When a match is found, an interactive event indicated by the program is executed. The program may be loaded into the receiver's memory using a back channel.