Time Warner Interactive Group, Inc.

Wnm Ventures Inc.

Wea Manufacturing, Inc.

Corporate Media Partners

Banbury Technologies LLC

Corporate Media Patners

Walter R Klappert

William J Sequeira

Michael B Case

Alan J McPherson

Robert T Seidel

Michael L La Jole

Edward Harmon

Ben L Garcia

James A Bumgardner

Michael L La Joie

A system for providing an interactive look-and-feel in a digital video broadcast via an X-Y protocol is provided. At a head-end, video information is digitized and associated with private data, such as event identifications, X-Y coordinates, link event identification and synchronization data. This information is then transmitted to a receiving end and is input into a set-top box. The set-top box receives the broadcast digital signal and includes a member for receiving the broadcast digital signal and generating a playable signal including indicia of the link data. The playable signal is then played on a playing device. The user is provided with a remote control or similar input device for selecting from the indicia. Upon selection of a desired indicia, the user may exercise the predetermined link associated with the selected indicia in order to obtain the desired playable signal.

Method and system for providing interactive look-and-feel in a digital broadcast via an X-Y protocol

A method for combining CD-ROM and CD-DA audio data on a single compact disc to reduce the amount of noise which is heard when the compact disc is played back on a player which is not specially adapted to play compact discs with both CD-ROM and CD-DA audio data. Presently, there are three (3) methodologies embodying the invention. In the first, the CD-ROM, i.e., CD-ROM boot blocks are placed in Track 1, Index 1; the CD-DA audio tracks are placed in tracks (2, 3, . . . , N) and the CD-ROM data files are placed in track (N+1). In the second, the entire CD-ROM Volume is placed in Track 1, Index 0; the first CD-DA audio track is placed in Track 1, Index 1, and all other CD-DA audio tracks are placed in tracks 2, 3, . . . , N. In the third, the entire CD-ROM Volume is placed in Track 1, Index 0 as in the second. However, in the third, the boot blocks for the CD-ROM volume are repeated in Track 1, Index 1, with all CD-DA audio selections being placed in tracks 2, 3, . . . , N.

Method and apparatus for combining CD-ROM data and digital audio on a

A method and apparatus for ensuring that MIDI data stored in the subcode channel area of a compact disc is synchronized with the main channel audio of the compact disc. Synchronization problems have been created when transferring audio on a tape from an audio studio to a PCM 1630 tape which is to be used as a compact disc master resulting in a squashing or stretching of the audio data with respect to the MIDI data. One reason this can occur is because F-1 tape records and plays back at 29.97 frames per second while PCM 1630 tape records and plays back at 30 frames per second. The result is that even if the MIDI data and main channel audio data begin in sync, they lose sync during transfers and may drift apart linearly over time as well as be offset with respect to each other. The present invention corrects such synchronization problems by playback simulation, MIDI data/Main channel audio sync measurement and MIDI data adjustment.

Method and apparatus for synchronizing midi data stored in sub-channel

A system and method for use as an authoring system for the development of CD-ROM products containing interleaved digitized audio and graphic images and other information which may be read and displayed or played under control of a computer. The graphic images and other computer information are stored in a file on the CD-ROM such that when the CD-ROM is accessed by a user, the graphic images and other computer information are displayed and made available to the user synchronously with the playing of the audio information. Combinations of several streams of audio and graphic/computer information can be interleaved into the same file. The system enables an editor to combine various audio files in synchronization with multiple graphic images into a single file which can then be stored on a CD-ROM. Other computer information can also be interleaved with the graphics and audio to allow for control over the playback at runtime. The graphics and other computer information are referred to herein collectively as 'resources.' The system allows the temporal and spatial placement of the resources on a run time computer screen to be displayed at a time and position which is specified by the editor when authoring.

Method and apparatus for processing audio and graphic images to create

A method and apparatus for sending digital audio data and/or digital graphics within available bandwidth used to carry television signals into end-user homes and offices, such as, additional bandwidth which will become available as optical fiber replaces cable currently in use to carry cable television programming. The invention also makes it possible for digital audio and graphics, including computer generated data such as output from a word processing, paint or real time file builder program, to be sent over any regular television channel on any cable system. The system could even be used on a television signal broadcast at a normal broadcast frequency if the signal received in the home is of high enough quality. The system utilizes existing cable decoder boxes which have been improved by the addition of a decoder which decodes a composite or RF video signal containing digitized audio to audio, and optional additional signal processing, for playback or recording by existing consumer electronics audio equipment.

System for delivering digital sound, graphics, real time files and data

A method and apparatus for making a single CD-ROM disc useable on computers having unrelated operating systems or for multi-media platforms, specifically, wherein the two different operating systems are Hierarchical File System (HFS) used by Macintosh computers and MS-DOS which is the operating system used by IBM and compatible personal computers. The resulting compact disc is in ISO 9660 format which is a standard of the International Standards Organization which describes a logical format for organizing data on a Compact Disc Read Only Memory (CD-ROM). In this manner, it is possible to, for example, store two versions of a program on the same CD-ROM, one for execution on Macintosh computers and the other for execution on IBM PC and compatible computers. Thus, data which is to be stored on an ISO 9660 formatted disc can be sent from the producer or supplier of the data to a compact disc presser on a single magnetic medium such as a Bernoulli removable cartridge disk under a single operating system partition.

Method of creating CD-ROM image of files of different format with proper

An apparatus and method for encoding data in a text format such as ASCII or EBCDIC on a laser disc or compact disc without affecting the digitized sound by utilizing what is known as the subcode channel of the laser disc or compact disc. By storing text data in the subcode channel region as described herein, it is possible to create subtitles for movies in a number of languages such that the language in which the subtitles appear is user selectable. In this manner, it is possible to create laser discs having subtitle information in, for example, ten languages thereby avoiding the necessity of creating ten separate laser discs, each having a different language used for subtitling.

Method and apparatus for storing text data in subcode packs

Method and apparatus for enabling a user of a video laser disc to interact with the video image being displayed so as to provide capabilities which are either not available or difficult to implement using prior art techniques. An example of the use of the present invention would be to enable a user, while viewing a music video or movie, to be presented with a menu specifying choices which the user may make wherein the next program played is an item from the menu selected by the user. A branch table is encoded within what is known as a subcode channel of a laser video disc, which table is loaded into a memory and specifies information which identifies segments on the laser video disc to which the playback head of the laser video disc should go when a particular control button is pressed on a remote control.

Branching table for interactive video display

An apparatus and method for encoding graphical data on an audio compact disc or laser vision disc without affecting the digitized sound stored in the main audio channel by utilizing what is known as the subcode channel of the compact or laser disc. The subcode channel is reserved for information other than digitized compact or laser disc audio data. Multiple active areas are created on each screen or picture displayed, with each active are being synchronized with the information in the main channel by creating multiple bands in the subcode channel which can be simultaneously displayed and loading graphics and/or lyrics data which is to be displayed in the various bands.

Method and apparatus for encoding data within the subcode channel of a

The present invention is an apparatus and method for ecoding data in MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) format on an audio compact disc without affecting the digitized sound stored in the main channel by utilizing what is known as the subcode channel of the compact disc which is reserved for information other than digitized compact disc audio data. The invention is directed to a technique for converting MIDI information generated by a MIDI source (for example, a keyboard or sequencer) into subcode data which may be recorded on a transportable floppy diskettes or other transportable media for subsequent conversion to signals which are input to a compact disc encoder which places the MIDI information into the subcode channel.

Growing community of inventors

Topanga, CA, United States of America

Walter R Klappert