Patents Portfolio

U.S. Patent: 7,953,818

Patent Title

Output device and system for rendering digital content

Meta Information

Issued Date: May 31, 2011
Inventor: William Ho Chang et al
External Links: UPSTO, Google Patents

Technical Fields

Smart TV, Smart Speaker / Earbuds / Headphones, Streaming Device, Projector

Abstract

An output system for rendering digital content received over a network that includes the Internet. The output system may include a television and an audio output device among others. The output system may provide security or authentication information and payment or subscription information to one or more servers over the Internet, the security or authentication information for enabling access of digital content to the output system. The output system further may provide one or more output content objects that may include a reference or a pointer to the digital content to the one or more servers over the Internet and the output system thereafter may receive the referenced digital content over the Internet. The output system may include an output controller for decoding the digital content and for applying at least a digital imaging operation on the digital content, and may include a rendering engine for rendering the processed digital content.

Sample Claim

1. A data output system for rendering digital content, the data output system including:

an information apparatus, included in the output system, with access to a network that includes the Internet,

an output device, included in the output system, for rendering the digital content, the information apparatus being physically connected directly to the output device, the direct structural connection between the information apparatus and the output device not including a network,

an output controller for decoding and processing the digital content for rendering,

a rendering engine, included in the output device, that outputs digital content in accordance with an output data acceptable to the output engine,

a memory or storage component, included in the output system, for storing at least part of the digital content, and for storing at least part of one or more output content objects as encapsulations or references to the digital content,

means for providing from the output system information related to security or authentication information to one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, the security or authentication information related to enabling access of the digital content;

means for providing from the output system one or more information related to payment or subscription information to one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet;

means for providing from the output system to the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, an output content object that includes at least part of a reference to the digital content or a pointer to the digital content, the output content object being in accordance to an object or software component model suitable for sending to the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, and the providing of the output content object from the output system to the one or more servers includes sending one or more messages that includes the output content object from the output system to the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet;

means for receiving the digital content from the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, at the output system, in response to providing from the output system the output content object to the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, and the receiving of the digital content being after the sending of the output device object that includes the security or the authentication information from the output system to the one or more servers over the network that includes the Internet, the digital content corresponding to the output content object sent from the output system over the network that includes the Internet;

means for generating, at the output system, output data for rendering, the generating of the output data includes a decoding operation and a digital imaging operation on the digital content for rendering; and

means for delivering the output data related to the digital content from the output controller to the output engine for rendering of the digital content by the output engine.