Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090034432 | SYSTEM AND METHOD OF RESOURCE ALLOCATION WITHIN A COMMUNICATION SYSTEM - A system and method of resource allocation within a communication system is provided. A communication system comprises a plurality of nodes operating in a first architecture network mode, wherein at least a portion of the plurality of nodes are reconfigured to operate in a second architecture network mode in response to a change in one or more network performance requirements. When the plurality of nodes are operating in a distributed architecture network mode, at least a portion of the plurality of nodes are reconfigured to operate in a clustered architecture network mode in response to an increase in one or more network performance requirements. When the plurality of nodes are operating in a clustered architecture network mode, at least a portion of the plurality of nodes are reconfigured to operate in a distributed architecture network mode in response to a decrease in one or more network performance requirements. | 02-05-2009 |
20090059795 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRANSITIONING BETWEEN A DISTRIBUTED AD HOC NETWORK ARCHITECTURE AND A CLUSTER AD HOC NETWORK ARCHITECTURE - Techniques are provided for detecting an increase in congestion in a distributed ad hoc network architecture and transitioning from the distributed ad hoc network architecture to a cluster ad hoc network architecture when a sufficient increase in congestion is detected based on one or more congestion level indicator values (CLIVs). Other techniques are provided for detecting a decrease in congestion in cluster ad hoc network architecture and transitioning from the cluster ad hoc network architecture to a distributed ad hoc network architecture when a sufficient decrease in congestion is detected based on one or more congestion level indicator values (CLIVs). | 03-05-2009 |
20090109885 | Method and Apparatus for Reducing Energy Consumption in Nodes by Adjusting Carrier Sensing Thresholds - Energy consumption in a network is reduced by a first node transmitting a message at a first power level and determining if the message is received by a neighboring node of the network. The message is retransmitted at a higher power level if the message is not received by a neighboring node. A second node, in a neighborhood of the first node, selects one of two or more receiver sensitivity levels and senses the received signal strength of the message. The second node activates an energy-consuming functional element to decode the first message only if the received signal is above the selected receiver sensitivity level. The receiver sensitivity levels are selected in accordance with a selection process, such as a random process, that may be adapted. | 04-30-2009 |
20090109891 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DISTRIBUTED ADMISSION CONTROL IN MOBILE AD HOC NETWORKS (MANETS) - Techniques are provided for distributed admission control (AC) in a mobile ad hoc network (MANET). When the source node transmits a new communication stream (NCS) toward a destination node, other nodes allow transmission of the NCS during a temporary admission period even though the NCS has not yet been admitted. The nodes can determine whether the NCS causes degradation of any existing communication stream(s) (ECSs) supported by that node based on existing QoS requirements associated with the ECSs. In some implementations, nodes which determine that they are unable to support ECSs transmit an indicator which notifies other nodes that admission of the NCS is denied by that node. By contrast, if none of the nodes transmit an indicator during the temporary admission period, then the NCS is “admitted” to the MANET and the source node is permitted to keep transmitting the NCS, a variation thereof or another new communication stream. | 04-30-2009 |
20090116430 | SYSTEM FOR ENABLING MOBILE COVERAGE EXTENSION AND PEER-TO-PEER COMMUNICATIONS IN AN AD HOC NETWORK AND METHOD OF OPERATION THEREFOR - A method for enabling mobile coverage extension and peer-to-peer communications in an ad hoc network is provided. The method includes communicating at least one message among the plurality of nodes, wherein the at least one message comprises: an ad hoc zone, wherein the ad hoc zone comprises at least one channel selected from a group of channels comprising: at least one synchronization channel for synchronizing out of coverage nodes, at least one access channel for peer-to-peer communications, and at least one ad hoc relay data/traffic channel for exchanging data during data sessions between one or more nodes. | 05-07-2009 |
20090213821 | METHOD FOR CONTROLLING A WAKE UP RATE OF NODES OPERATING WITHIN A MULTI-HOP COMMUNICATION SYSTEM - A method is provided which enables the connection of nodes out of communication range while minimizing the energy consumption in standby nodes. Specifically, the present invention provides a method to control the wake up rate of standby nodes in a multi-hop communication system. An access point collects, processes, and refines statistical information regarding one or more system parameters; determines a wake up rate based on the statistical information and one or more historical information; and transmits the wake up rate to nodes in its coverage area. A node receives the wake up rate; and periodically changes from a sleep state to a wake up state at the wake up rate to support routing functions for providing multi-hop communication to the one or more access points. | 08-27-2009 |
20120030723 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR STREAMING VIDEO - A method and apparatus for transmitting video is provided herein. A video representation is segmented into video chunks, with each chunk spanning a different time interval. Each chunk may be divided into two or more sub-chunks. During operation, the client requests a sub-chunk of a particular video chunk and then possibly requests an additional sub-chunk of the video chunk. The client then combines and decodes the sub-chunks to provide a reconstructed video chunk for playback on a device. In an embodiment, I-frames of a video chunk are made available in a separate sub-chunk file than P-frames (or B-frames). | 02-02-2012 |
20120079000 | SELECTIVELY RECEIVING MEDIA CONTENT - Disclosed are methods for associating size information with each chunk of a media presentation. This size information is sent to an end-user device. There are many ways to characterize the size of a chunk beyond simply giving the number of bytes in the chunk. Some embodiments send an approximation of the size or a relative size. In some embodiments, a server publishes a “reference” value for a media presentation and then, for each chunk, gives the size relative to that reference value. The device decides whether or not to download the chunk. The device might decide that it is unlikely that the next chunk can be downloaded in time. Then, to avoid the possibility of a video freeze, the device could request the next chunk at a lower resolution. In some situations, the device decides to request a completely different chunk or to not request any chunk at all. | 03-29-2012 |
20120079059 | SELECTIVELY RECEIVING MEDIA CONTENT - Disclosed are methods that associate “importance” information with chunks of a media presentation. An end-user device or server uses this information to intelligently manage resources when downloading or rendering the media presentation. Many different types of importance information are used. An editor can tag a chunk as important based on the content of the chunk or may give the chunk a rating, or importance can be inferred from download statistics. In some embodiments, the end-user device determines the importance of a chunk based on observations of the behavior of the device's user. The end-user device can send its locally gathered behavioral observations to a server to enhance that server's demographic information. The server can observe its own download behavior to infer importance. The end-user device may choose to either not download, or to download at a low resolution, those chunks deemed to be unimportant, thus saving bandwidth and battery power. | 03-29-2012 |
20120079062 | SELECTIVELY RECEIVING MEDIA CONTENT - Disclosed are methods that associate “importance” information with chunks of a media presentation. An end-user device or server uses this information to intelligently manage resources when downloading or rendering the media presentation. Many different types of importance information are used. An editor can tag a chunk as important based on the content of the chunk or may give the chunk a rating, or importance can be inferred from download statistics. In some embodiments, the end-user device determines the importance of a chunk based on observations of the behavior of the device's user. The end-user device can send its locally gathered behavioral observations to a server to enhance that server's demographic information. The server can observe its own download behavior to infer importance. The end-user device may choose to either not download, or to download at a low resolution, those chunks deemed to be unimportant, thus saving bandwidth and battery power. | 03-29-2012 |
20120140645 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING VIDEO - A method and apparatus for distributing live video to multiple client devices is provided herein. In particular, a router is provided that acts on behalf of all client devices in its network. The router serves multiple groups of client devices with each group being formed by client devices having similar bandwidth requirements. The router then requests and receives video chunks from a network. The router then redistributes the video chunks to the multiple client devices using a multicast transmission. In particular, to minimize the demands on the core network, the router sets up a separate multicast to each group. Live video, of the appropriate quality is then multicast to each group. | 06-07-2012 |
20120143994 | SELECTIVELY RECEIVING MEDIA CONTENT - Disclosed are methods that associate “importance” information with chunks of a media presentation. An end-user device uses this information to intelligently manage resources when downloading or rendering the media presentation. An editor tags a chunk as important based on the contents of the chunk. The importance information includes a recommendation that this chunk be rendered at a higher-than-usual resolution and that the end-user device start downloading this chunk out of order. An advertiser recommends that an advertisement be rendered at a resolution high enough for the end user to view it appropriately. The importance information can include a recommended point at which to display the advertisement (e.g., between scenes in the media presentation). The end-user device can download advertisements before they are needed. Later, when the user requests a media presentation, an already downloaded advertisement is rendered while the initial chunks of the media presentation are downloaded. | 06-07-2012 |
20120144445 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING VIDEO - A method and apparatus for distributing live video to multiple client devices is provided herein. In particular, a router is provided that acts on behalf of all client devices in its network. The router serves multiple groups of client devices with each group being formed by client devices having similar bandwidth requirements. The router then requests and receives video chunks from a network. The router then redistributes the video chunks to the multiple client devices using a multicast transmission. In particular, to minimize the demands on the core network, the router sets up a separate multicast to each group. Live video, of the appropriate quality is then multicast to each group. | 06-07-2012 |
20130124664 | COORDINATING MEDIA PRESENTATIONS AMONG PEER DEVICES - A group of “servant” devices each downloads a media presentation and renders the presentation to a local user. However, a “master” device directs the servants as to which chunks to download and when to render the presentation. In this way, the master keeps the presentations on the separate servants in synchrony. The master uses status information from the servants to coordinate the downloads. If, for example, one servant is having a difficult time keeping up with the presentation, then the master may choose to direct that servant to download a reduced-resolution version of the presentation (which requires less bandwidth to download). If the user of one of the servant devices enters a playback command, then that command is not executed locally but is instead sent to the master device which in turn sends the command to all of the servants so that they may execute the playback command in synchrony. | 05-16-2013 |
20130132521 | PRESENTING ALTERNATIVE MEDIA CONTENT BASED ON ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS - The environment surrounding an end-user device is analyzed. When a user of the device requests a download of a media presentation, the device uses the results of the environmental analysis to automatically request an alternative audio or video track for the media presentation. By choosing a better alternative before the download even begins, the device avoids user frustration and conserves resources. For example, a user requests a music video to be played on his mobile phone. By using its microphone, the phone analyzes its current audio environment and concludes that there is considerable background noise. Then when requesting a download of the music video, the phone requests an “enhanced-clarity” soundtrack to increase the odds that its user will be able to hear the music over the background noise. In some situations, the alternative track is rendered in addition to, rather than instead of, the default tracks of the media presentation. | 05-23-2013 |
20130148589 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR RESOURCE NEGOTIATION IN A DIRECT COMMUNICATION LINK NETWORK - Some embodiments are directed to a method and apparatus for performing resource negotiation in a station implementing a direct communication link with at least one other station on an Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) data channel. The station scans sub-channels on the data channel for base headers included in predefined position in transmissions sent on the sub-channel. The station then decodes a base header in at least one selected sub-channel to obtain parameters of a channel reservation. The obtained parameters are stored in a channel utilization table. The station selects a resource on the data channel in at least one of time or frequency that the station has observed to be free using information from the channel utilization table. The station then begins a resource negotiation process about the selected resource. | 06-13-2013 |
20130346631 | TIME-SYNCHRONIZING A PARALLEL FEED OF SECONDARY CONTENT WITH PRIMARY MEDIA CONTENT - Disclosed is a method of operating a secondary device in a manner associated with operation of a primary device including obtaining first information corresponding to a media asset being output by the primary device, processing the first information to determine local media-signature information, transmitting the first information for receipt by a server, receiving secondary information from the server, wherein the secondary information includes a plurality of asset-media signatures that respectively correspond to respective portions of the media asset, attempting to determine a time-based correlation between at least one portion of the local media-signature information and at least one of the asset-media signatures, and outputting one or more portions of time-relevant asset streams from the secondary device, the one or more portions being determined at least indirectly based upon the correlation. | 12-26-2013 |
20140254806 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR INTERACTIVE BROADCAST CONTENT - Devices and methods for scoring viewer's interactions with content broadcast on a presentation device by processing at least one audio signal received by a microphone proximate the viewer and the presentation device, to generate at least one audio signature, which is compared to at least two different reference audio signatures. | 09-11-2014 |
20140254807 | SIGNATURE MATCHING OF CORRUPTED AUDIO SIGNAL - Devices and methods that match audio signatures to programming content stored in a remote database. | 09-11-2014 |
20150073921 | CREATING DERIVATIVE ADVERTISEMENTS - A method for creating derivative advertisements is provided. The method includes identifying a visual element based on an analysis of a primary advertisement asset such that the visual element is representative of a branding message provided within the primary advertisement. The method also includes identifying a call-to-action (CTA) data element based on the analysis and creating a derivative advertisement asset having the visual element and CTA data element. A system and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium containing software for executing the method are also provided. | 03-12-2015 |
20150082349 | Content Based Video Content Segmentation - A method receives video content and metadata associated with video content. The method then extracts features of the video content based on the metadata. Portions of the visual, audio, and textual features are fused into composite features that include multiple features from the visual, audio, and textual features. A set of video segments of the video content is identified based on the composite features of the video content. Also, the segments may be identified based on a user query. | 03-19-2015 |