Invented by Amir Ansari, George A. Cowgill, Leon E. Nicholls, Atousa Raissyan, Jude P. Ramayya, Ramprakash Masina, Alvin R. McQuarters, KIP Prod P1 LP

The market for display inserts and overlays for multimedia systems is rapidly growing as more and more people are turning to these systems for entertainment and information. Display inserts and overlays are used to enhance the user experience by providing additional information, graphics, and other visual aids. Multimedia systems are becoming increasingly popular in homes, offices, and public spaces. These systems are used for a variety of purposes, including entertainment, education, and communication. Display inserts and overlays are an important component of these systems, as they provide users with additional information and enhance the overall experience. The market for display inserts and overlays is driven by several factors. One of the main drivers is the increasing demand for multimedia systems. As more people adopt these systems, the demand for display inserts and overlays is expected to grow. Another factor driving the market is the increasing use of digital signage in public spaces. Display inserts and overlays are used to provide information and advertising in these spaces, and the demand for these products is expected to continue to grow. There are several types of display inserts and overlays available in the market. These include touchscreens, LCD displays, LED displays, and projection displays. Each type of display has its own advantages and disadvantages, and the choice of display depends on the specific application. The market for display inserts and overlays is highly competitive, with several companies offering a wide range of products. Some of the leading companies in the market include 3M, LG Display, Samsung Display, and Sharp. These companies are constantly innovating and developing new products to meet the changing needs of the market. In conclusion, the market for display inserts and overlays for multimedia systems is growing rapidly, driven by the increasing demand for multimedia systems and digital signage. There are several types of display inserts and overlays available in the market, and the choice of display depends on the specific application. The market is highly competitive, with several leading companies offering a wide range of products. As the market continues to grow, we can expect to see continued innovation and development in this field.

The KIP Prod P1 LP invention works as follows

A disclosed digital device that receives media signals from a source to be presented via an endpoint device such as a television, at the user’s premises. A digital media device may include digital media management functionality as well as gateway capabilities. It can also be called a gateway or digital media device. The device provides application services over both a large area network and the user’s premises network. A composite signal may be formed by the digital media device from the media signal, application information, and the presentation type. A selection signal may be received by the digital media device based on the presentation for transmission to either the application service provider or the media source. A GUI is also available on the media device that allows selective access to application services through a moving arrangement of icons.

Background for Display inserts and overlays for multimedia systems.

The digital home is becoming more complicated due to the multitude of digital devices and services that are available. These new and evolving digital devices can be used to meet many consumer and user needs, such as privacy, security, communication, and entertainment. Users who are not technologically proficient may find it daunting to integrate new devices into their digital home network. Users may also find it difficult to connect new services with existing services like in-home media sources, broadcast services, Internet services from an Internet Services Provider, cable TV services, and so on. User interfaces are often included with new devices and/or service. These interfaces allow users to control functionality and deliver applications and services. These interfaces are often different in appearance and feel. This adds to the difficulty of using new services and devices.

New paradigms are also emerging that allow media content to be delivered to the home and accessed at the house. Many of these paradigms rely upon communication of application-specific data to and/or via the Internet. This is in contrast to broadcast video types applications or conventional telephones. The majority of content delivery solutions for Internet-based data are made available to digital home networks via the availability of the “two-foot?”. Interface (i.e. the PC). It can be quite cumbersome to transfer this Internet-based data content to the?ten foot? interface (e.g. the television).

There is an increasing need for a user home or digital environment that can interconnect and simplify the management of app-specific data devices. This includes media content from on-premises media sources and broadcast media sources. It also allows for the presentation of a common dynamic Graphical User Interface (GUI), on a TV or other audio-video system display. Another requirement is for such a GUI to be able dynamically to add features and functionality to devices as they are added or removed from their home network. These devices or techniques should make it easier to maintain, upgrade, and operate even the most basic digital endpoint devices. The current approaches to home-based appliances that offer greater functionality fail to address the problem of managing and provisioning them. This is especially true when there is a common GUI over the ten foot. Interface, which can dynamically change as new functionality and devices are added or deleted.

An additional unmet need is the ability to present multiple content sources from media and/or applications simultaneously to a user through a?ten foot? interface. interface. A digital media device is required to be installed in the user’s premises. It can combine signals from different media or application sources and present the result to a television screen or an audio-video system.

In this regard, it would be desirable for a digital media device to be provided for user premises or a media distribution system that provides a combination of media and communication services, IP-based communications services, offers a central management capability for applications services, and provides dynamic GUI access to the media and other services.

The technologies described herein address some of the above needs and offer improved results than existing technologies. This technology may be embedded in a digital media device. It is typically used to deploy the device at the user’s premises and/or program devices that can function as digital media. The technology described herein can also be embedded in media and service distribution networks. Digital media devices and media distribution systems may be designed to allow users access to a wide range of media, including those from different media sources. A gateway device that can handle digital media, and/or a service management centre may manage the applications available via the user’s device. One or more endpoint devices can be digital media devices that are communicatively connected to a TV display or an audio-video system with a TV type output, as described in this article.

In one case, a digital media gadget is communicatively connected to a television display so that it can be operated at the user’s premises. A first interface can be included in a digital media device that receives a media signal from a source and presents it via the television display. An additional interface is possible that allows bi-directional communication between the digital device and an app service provider device. This is done via a data link in the user premises. The application service provider device is an independent device and is capable of providing an application service via a wide area network to the second digital media device interface via the user premises data communication network. The processor of the digital media device is coupled to the first and second interfaces. This processor can be configured to create a composite signal using the media signal and information from the provider device. The composite signal includes a composite image on a television screen. Based on the displayed image, the digital media device receives an appropriate selection signal. The selection signal is sent via the user premises network data communications network to either the application service provider device, or to the media source.

The user premises’ data communications link may be a data communications network.

The first interface of a digital media device might be set up to receive the media signals from one or more sources. This could be an analog or digital source. The media signal can also include an audio signal. Information in the application service may be provided for information about an audio signal. The media signal and application service information can be combined to form a composite signal.

The media signal from the digital media device can be used to create a primary image and the application signal of the composite signals may form a second image. Alternativly, the application signal may form the primary image, while the secondary image can be created from the media signal. The secondary image is displayed on a television screen to be inserted or overlayed onto the primary image in order to create the composite image.

The detailed description shows an example of a service and media distribution system for user premises that has a media source to supply a media signal and a data communications network. A gateway device is used to distribute media services at user premises. It can receive application services via a wide area network, and then provide and manage services to the endpoint devices that are associated with it. A digital media device can be communicatively connected to a TV display as part of the media and service distribution systems. A first interface can be included in the digital media device that receives the media signal from the source media for presentation via the television screen. The digital media devices can include a second interface that allows bi-directional communication between the device and the gateway device. This gateway device can then be configured to provide application service over the wide area network to second interface. A processor is also included in the digital media device. It is coupled to both the first and second interfaces. The processor can create a composite signal using the media signal and the application service information from gateway device. This composite signal is displayed on the TV screen as a composite image. The displayed image is used to generate a selection signal that is sent via the user premises data communication network to the gateway or to the media source. In accordance with these teachings, the digital media devices and gateway devices can operate together as one device. “A combined system would have at least one interface for supporting communications with digital media providers, endpoint devices over data network (e.g. local and large area networks)

The gateway device could be communicatively connected to a service management centre via the wide-area network. The gateway device may be set up to deliver the application service over the wide area network to the associated endpoint devices, such as the combination digital media device/TV, in response to a communication from service management center.

The gateway device’s application service information may include notifications of status relating to one or more applications managed by it. The digital media device processor may receive notifications of status from the device gateway and send a message to the device gateway using the user premises data communication network.

The gateway device could include a first interface to enable bi-directional network layer communication on the user’s end of the premises with one of the associated devices. The second interface may allow bi-directional network layer communication between the endpoint devices and the gateway device via a wide-area network. It also allows for at least some bidirectional communications with the service management center outside of the premises using the wide-area network. The interfaces may have a processor coupled to them and storage connected to it. The storage for a plurality application services may contain programming. For each service, the processor executes the programming, causing the gateway device’s functions to be provided for that service. Further logic may be included on the gateway device for logic for a plurality application services, logic to interface with the application services, logic that allows for platform management, logic for a framework for services and logic for television interfaces.

The detailed description shows an example of a digital device that uses a particular programming architecture. A digital media device allows for graphical interaction via a television screen with a service and media distribution system. The television display allows for graphical interaction. This includes the arrangement of a first set graphical icons within a pattern. Each pattern has a first and second end. You can arrange the graphical icons in either a substantially circular or linear arrangement. Each graphical icon in the first set represents either a media application, a service application or a media and service app. The display edges of the television screen define the boundaries of the two ends. A graphical interaction includes the highlight of one of the graphical icons from the first set. It is located in the middle of the pattern. This allows for the selection of one graphical icon. The digital media device is given the option to either move the arrangement icons in a first or second direction. This allows the device to display a second set graphical icons on the television. The second set of graphical icons may have one or more graphical icons that are different than the first set. Rotating the first set’s icons to the second set allows at least one of the graphical icons from the first set to be rotated beyond its display edge so that it is not visible on the TV display. To facilitate selection, the graphical interaction includes the highlight of one of the second sets of graphical icons that are located in the middle of the pattern. A selection of the highlighted icons for at least one service or media application is displayed to the digital media device. The graphical interaction includes the display of the selected media app, service application or media and/or service application on the television screen.

During the graphic interaction, the digital device may be given a selection of the highlighted icons that allows the execution of the program embodied on it to provide the selected service app from a gateway device via the digital device via a user premises information communications network. A selection of the highlighted icon could also enable execution of programming on the device to provide selected media applications from a source to the device.

The digital media device’s programming architecture may dynamically add or remove one or more icons from either the first plurality or second plurality. Subscriptions to media applications, media and service apps, or media and services applications may determine the dynamic addition or removal of one or more icons.

The disclosure also includes program products that can be used to implement digital media devices such as the ones outlined above. The programming is carried in or embedded in a machine-readable medium in such a product.

The detailed description includes an example of a digital device that is communicatively coupled with an audio-video system to provide a television output to a user at their premises. A first interface is used to receive audio and video information from a media source. This media signal can then be transmitted via the digital media device for television-type presentation. The second interface allows bi-directional communication between the digital media device (and an application provider device) via a user premises communications network. This is where the service provider device is not dependent from the media source. The second interface can also be used to receive information about an application service that is offered over a wide area network, from the service provider device using the user premises data communication network. The second interface can also be used to transmit messages to the application provider device via the user premises network data communications network. A third interface is included in the digital media device that provides at most output to the audio/video system. A processor is also included in the digital media device. It can be coupled to any of the interfaces. In response to the media signal, the processor can create a composite signal that contains audio and video information. The processor outputs the composite signal via the third interface to an audio-video system for television. The processor can also respond to a user choice signal, which is based on the composite signal’s television type presentation, and cause the second interface, through the user premises data communication network, to send a message to the device that relates to a selection for an application service.

The detailed description includes an example of a service and media distribution system for user premises that has a media source to supply the media signal and a data communications network. A gateway device is used to distribute media services at user premises. It can receive application services via a wide area network, and then provide and manage services to the endpoint devices that are associated with it. A digital media device is also part of the media and service distribution system. It can be connected to an audio-video system to provide a television output to a viewer located at a user premises. A first interface is used to receive audio and video information from a media source. This media signal can then be transmitted to the digital media device for presentation on television. The second interface allows bi-directional communication between the digital media device (and an application service provider device) via a user premises network data communications network. The media source is not affected by the application service provider device. The second interface can also be configured to receive information about an application service that is offered over a wide area network. This information can be received via the user premises network data communications network. The second interface can also be used to transmit messages to the application provider device via the user premises network data communications network. A third interface is included in the digital media device that provides at most output to the audio/video system. A processor is also included in the digital media device. It can be coupled to any of the interfaces. In response to the media signal, the processor can create a composite signal that contains audio and video information. The processor outputs the composite signal via the third interface to an audio-video system for television. The processor can also respond to a user choice signal, which is based on the television-type presentation of the composite signal. This causes the second interface to transmit a message to the device that relates to a selection for an application service via the second interface, the user premises data communication network, and the second interface.

Additional benefits and novel features will also be described in part in this description. These will become apparent to skilled art-workers upon inspection of the following and the accompanying drawings. Or, they may be learned through the production and operation of the examples. You can realize the benefits of the present teachings by practicing or using the various methodologies, instruments and combinations discussed in the following examples.

Click here to view the patent on Google Patents.