IP-Based Household Profile Content Distribution for Thin Clients

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Solution Overview

Problem

The fragmentation of content availability and quality across various platforms for network-connected devices leads to significant development challenges and limitations, as many devices lack the execution environment and rendering functionality required by traditional native applications, resulting in limited content-providing functionality.

Innovation Solution

The system provides platform-independent content distribution to 'thin' client applications through a content engine that identifies internet protocol (IP) addresses, builds household profiles based on demographic information, and assigns relevant content to non-mobile television clients, allowing for resource-intensive operations to be avoided on devices lacking necessary functionality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If traditional native applications are deployed across multiple platforms, then content availability and quality improve, but development complexity and costs increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontent availabilityVSAvoiddevelopment complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a universal content delivery system where a single content source can serve multiple device types (televisions, mobile devices, tablets, computers) through a common architecture. The system uses device-agnostic content formats and a unified delivery mechanism that automatically adapts content to different platforms without requiring separate native applications for each device type, thereby achieving multi-functionality across diverse platforms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary content delivery system that sits between the content source and various client devices. This intermediary layer handles platform-specific adaptations, rendering, and delivery logistics, allowing content creators to upload content once while the system automatically manages the complexity of distributing it across multiple platforms in appropriate formats.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If native applications are developed for devices with limited execution environments, then functionality improves, but resource requirements and device complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovefunctionalityVSAvoidresource requirements
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a self-service content delivery model where the server automatically detects device capabilities, selects appropriate content formats, and delivers optimized content without requiring the device to perform resource-intensive processing. The system self-adapts to each device's execution environment by serving content in formats the device can handle, eliminating the need for heavy native applications on resource-constrained devices.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of having devices perform complex processing and rendering through native applications, the patent inverts the approach by having the server perform all processing and rendering operations, then deliver pre-processed content to devices. This shifts the computational burden from the client device to the server, enabling functionality on devices with limited execution environments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

3Manufacturing precision

If platform-specific applications are created for each device type, then user experience quality improves, but development time and costs increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser experience qualityVSAvoiddevelopment time
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the content delivery system into independent, modular components: a universal content source, a platform-agnostic delivery mechanism, and device-specific rendering handled by the server. This segmentation allows the core content and delivery logic to be developed once, while platform-specific adaptations are automatically generated through server-side processing, dramatically reducing development time while maintaining quality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent performs preliminary processing and adaptation of content on the server side before delivery to devices. By pre-rendering content in multiple formats and preparing platform-specific variations in advance, the system eliminates the need for time-consuming on-device processing and native application development, delivering ready-to-display content that maintains high user experience quality across all platforms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS11870859B2Relevant secondary-device content generation based on associated internet protocol addressing
Publication Date: 2024.01.09 TUBI INC
  • US11870859B2 patent drawing
  • US11870859B2 patent drawing
  • US11870859B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A system for relevant secondary-device content distribution based on associated internet protocol (IP) addressing, the system including: a computer processor; and a content engine executing on said computer processor and configured to: identify at least a portion of an internet protocol (IP) address associated with a computing device; build a household profile based at least on the demographic information associated with the IP address; determine that the computing device is a non-mobile television client; assign the non-mobile television client to the household profile; receive a set of content requests from a second computing device; assign, based on a proportion of the content requests exceeding the predefined threshold, the second computing device to the household profile; and provide relevant content for the second computing device and the non-mobile television client based on the demographic information.