Pipeline Tuning for Rapid Content Surfing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current media systems experience delays when navigating through vast arrays of content, leading to frustration for users who prefer to surf channels directly rather than using media guides, as the time required to decode content or broadcast streams results in significant switching delays.
Innovation Solution
Enhanced user equipment implements a content surf sequence by storing frames of the next content selection and concurrently tuning to it, using a pipeline tuning process that allows for rapid switching between channels, optionally involving multiple tuners in a round-robin fashion and providing content suggestions and hints to improve navigation efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If traditional channel switching is used, then content navigation is possible, but significant delays occur during channel changes due to decoding time
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by storing one or more frames of the next content selection in memory before the user actually requests to switch to it. This advance preparation allows the tuner to begin tuning to the next channel immediately when a content surf request is detected, eliminating the need to wait for decoding to complete during the actual channel change.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuity of useful action through pipeline tuning, where the tuner continuously tunes to subsequent channels in sequence while the display system concurrently displays previously stored frames. This overlapping of tuning and display operations ensures that the tuner is always prepared with the next content, eliminating idle time during channel transitions.
2Reliability
If content decoding is performed in real-time, then accurate content presentation is achieved, but blank screen time increases during channel transitions
Solution Approach 1:
Frames are stored in advance in memory before the channel change is actually needed. This preliminary storage ensures that when the tuner switches channels, the decoded frame data is already available in memory, preventing blank screens during the transition while maintaining accurate content presentation.
3Speed
If multiple tuners are used for parallel channel tuning, then channel switching speed improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the tuning function across multiple independent tuners, with each tuner handling a specific channel in the surf sequence. This segmentation allows parallel operation of tuners, improving overall switching speed while keeping each individual tuner relatively simple in design.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple tuners are merged into a coordinated pipeline tuning system where they work together in sequence. The tuners are combined into a unified content surf operation, sharing common control logic and memory resources, which improves speed while managing complexity through integrated design.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for improving or suggesting alternatives to content surfing are provided. When it is detected that a user wishes to surf, a pipeline tuning sequence is implemented where by storing one or more frames of a first content selection to the user equipment and acquiring a subsequent content selection while concurrently displaying the previously stored one or more frames. Content suggestions, program listing grids, media guidance application and tuning hints, advertisements, digital audio, and live video may also be presented to user while content surfing. In some embodiments, content surf landing channels may be anticipated based on user history, user profiles, or any other suitable information. In some embodiments, thumbnails of the user's recently tuned, or paused on, content are displayed to the user while content surfing. In multiple tuner systems, more than one thumbnail may be displayed in full motion video.