Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H20/00—Arrangements for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast
  • H04H20/20—Arrangements for broadcast or distribution of identical information via plural systems
  • H04H20/22—Arrangements for broadcast of identical information via plural broadcast systems
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H20/00—Arrangements for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast
  • H04H20/53—Arrangements specially adapted for specific applications, e.g. for traffic information or for mobile receivers
  • H04H20/57—Arrangements specially adapted for specific applications, e.g. for traffic information or for mobile receivers for mobile receivers
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H20/00—Arrangements for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast
  • H04H20/86—Arrangements characterised by the broadcast information itself
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H60/00—Arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linking to broadcast information or broadcast space-time; Broadcast-related systems
  • H04H60/02—Arrangements for generating broadcast information; Arrangements for generating broadcast-related information with a direct linking to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time; Arrangements for simultaneous generation of broadcast information and broadcast-related information
  • H04H60/07—Arrangements for generating broadcast information; Arrangements for generating broadcast-related information with a direct linking to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time; Arrangements for simultaneous generation of broadcast information and broadcast-related information characterised by processes or methods for the generation
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04H—BROADCAST COMMUNICATION
  • H04H2201/00—Aspects of broadcast communication
  • H04H2201/60—Aspects of broadcast communication characterised in that the receiver comprises more than one tuner

Definitions

• the invention relates to telecommunications, in particular to the uninterrupted reception of an IP transmission with a mobile terminal device.
• the invention relates to the uninterrupted reception of an IP broadcast.
• DVB Digital Video Broadcasting
• DAB Digital Audio Broadcasting
• the information is transmitted by means of symbols.
• the duration of a symbol varies from a couple of hundreds of micro seconds to a little more than one millisecond.
• one symbol may contain data from all services coming along with the same signal. In that case, stopping to receive the signal for a moment and tuning the receiver to another frequency results in an interruption in the reception. Interruptions cannot naturally be accepted.
• one symbol typically contains data from one or two services at the most. Due to this, short interruptions are possible in the DAB system. This, however, requires that the receiver can be quickly tuned to another frequency. If a transmission to be transmitted at another frequency contained different services, a change in the DAB standard would be necessary in order to be able, by means of the DAB definition, to create a system that enables one to transmit several services in such a manner that the change over to another frequency does not result in interruptions. As network techniques are combined, more and more services are transmitted on IP basis. Also image and voice can be transmitted on IP basis. Due to this, most telecommunications networks are nowadays built in such a manner that they are capable of transmitting also continuous IP telecommunication stream.
• IP encapsulation or tunnelling This is often called IP encapsulation or tunnelling.
• the in- terruptions in the IP traffic caused by the change from one frequency to another can be corrected by means of a specific error correction or buffers.
• error correction is a functional solution.
• the receiver has a return channel at its disposal, the missing or defec- tive packets can be requested once again. This takes time and consumes the limited telecommunication capacity shared with the other terminal devices. In addition, it is not possible to arrange a return channel in every terminal device.
• the objective of the invention is to eliminate the drawbacks referred to above or at least to significantly alleviate them.
• One specific objective of the invention is to disclose a new type of method and system for the uninterrupted reception of an IP based broadcast with a mobile terminal device.
• the present invention relates to the uninterrupted reception of an IP based broadcast with a mobile terminal device.
• Characteristic of the method in accordance with the invention is to give the receiver enough time to get tuned to a new frequency. Time is needed for finding out the quality of the receiver's transmission as well as for changing over to a second receiver, in case the quality of the second receiver is better than that of the first one.
• the IP packets to be sent are arranged in such a manner that they are consecutive in respect of time, and enough time is left in between them for tuning.
• the advantage of the solution of IP level as compared to prior art is in that the various existing IP services are built in such a manner that they function, although the packets would not flow evenly throughout the network. This is due to the fact that various random delays typically occur in IP networks. Due to this, the adding of delays at this layer is natural, and the functionality of the services can be ensured without complicated timing systems.
• the present invention enables one to build such a system in which it is possible to ensure the uninterrupted reception of an IP packet stream in a mobile terminal device with no return channel.
• Fur- thermore the invention enables one to perform smooth changes both from one frequency to another inside the transmission system and between two different transmission systems.
• Fig. 1 represents the placing of the data packets according to the method in accordance with the invention
• Fig. 2 represents the division of IP packets into frames according to the method in accordance with the invention
• Fig. 3 represents a transmitter in accordance with the invention
• Fig. 4 represents a receiver in accordance with the invention
• Fig. 5 represents a method of division into frames of services according to the invention
• Fig. 6 represents the optimisation method of frames according to the invention.
• Fig. 1 represents the functioning of the method in accordance with the invention.
• a system is utilised that comprises two transmitters and a receiver. There may be even several transmitters.
• the stream transmitted by the first transmitter is shown at point 10
• the stream transmitted by the second transmitter is shown at point 11.
• transmission streams 10 and 11 the desired service is transmitted.
• the re-ordinatever receives the chosen stream 12, which in the example of the figure is one or the other of the transmission streams 10 or 11.
• the signal of the second transmitter is better.
• the receiver In both cases (points 13 and 14) , the receiver is tuned to a new frequency as the pause starts, and the quality of the signal occurring at this frequency is measured. In case the original transmission is better than the new one, the procedure in accordance with point 13 is used, according to which the receiver is tuned to the original frequency after the measurement. In case the original signal is of lower quality than the measured new signal, one acts as shown at point 14. Point 14 corresponds to point 13 in every respect except for the fact that after the measurement, the receiver is no longer tuned but the tuning of the measured station is left in force.
• Fig. 2 represents making the pauses as shown in Fig. 1 in a real IP transmission.
• the services to be transmitted have been evenly divided into a data stream at step IP1.
• the packets may flow irregularly because there are different random delays in different services.
• Fig. 2 shows an application transmitting four different services, wherein the packet symbols PI, P2 , P3 and P4 correspond to the service.
• the services are divided into two different transmission frames A and B.
• the packets of services PI and P2 have been placed in frame A
• the packets of services P3 and P4 have been placed in frame B.
• There may be even more frames and services as long as the frame used by the service is not changed in the middle of the transmission. In the example two frames are used that are transmitted by turns.
• frame B functions as a pause for frame A as shown in Fig. 1 and vice versa.
• pauses have been arranged in this manner, making pauses does not lead to the decreasing of the payload to be transmitted, instead it is a question about rhythmising the transmission, in which the capacity of the transmis- sion path can be made use of all the time.
• a separate signalling packet is placed that contains information on the services to be transmitted in the frame. It also possible to place in the signalling packet information on alternative fre- quencies or transmitter parameters.
• Fig. 3 represents a transmission system according to the invention.
• the data sources 30, 31 and 32 shown in the figure are servers or other data sources.
• the content of the data sources has been ar- ranged in such a manner that services which one wishes to receive simultaneously using the same terminal device have been arranged in the same data source .
• the number of terminal devices has not been limited, instead their number can be varied when necessary.
• the system in accordance with the invention places the piece of information of each data source in a frame type of their own according to the method as shown in Fig. 2.
• the frames are arranged in the encoding unit MIPE.
• the encoding unit MIPE may add to the frames also control data or some other information to be used in the reception.
• the encoding unit directs the packets to the appropriate relay station through the information network 37.
• the information network 37 can be any telecommunications network which enables one to ensure a sufficient quality of the service. A sufficient quality of the service can be ensured typically in a network in which the data transfer delays are small or standard ones.
• the encoding unit MIPE is responsible for checking that the services to be transmitted are sent according to the limitations, and that there is e.g. no attempt to exceed the maximum transfer rate. To ensure this, the encod- ing unit MIPE must be aware of the maximum allowed rate throughout the whole transmission path.
• the transmitting stations 34, 35 and 36 are typically transmitting stations in service.
• the relay station consists of four components.
• the first part is an IP encapsulator 33 which receives IP packet traffic from the information network 37 and converts the frames into the frame form used by the transmission system.
• As a second component it is possible to use a multiplexer MUX which enables one to include in the same transmission stream services that are not transmitted on IP basis. These typically include radio and TV broadcasts.
• the multiplexer MUX is not an obligatory component.
• As a third component there is a modulator MOD which modulates the signal to be transmitted, which signal is amplified by a fourth component, which is an output stage PA. The amplified and modulated signal is transmitted to a transmission antenna (not shown) .
• Fig. 4 represents a receiver in accordance with the invention.
• the receiver includes a tuner 40, a demodulator 41, a demultiplexer 42, an IP decoder 43, as well as control units 44 and 45.
• the control units can also be combined. The use of two units enables one to add functionality to such devices that are otherwise capable of reception except for the fact that the logic required for applying the method in ac- cordance with the invention lacks. Devices of this kind include e.g. computers.
• the purpose of the control units is to arrange the tuning, measuring and re- tuning during a pause in the transmission. When the control unit detects a pause after a frame, it gives the tuning unit 40 a command to get tuned to a new frequency, whose quality is measured.
• Fig. 5 represents a sectioning algorithm to be used in the arrangement of frames as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The sectioning algorithm is performed in the encoding unit MIPE and in the transmitting data source 30, 31 or 32.
• the data source asks the encoding unit for a permission to send continuous data stream at a certain rate via certain relay stations, step 50.
• the encoding unit checks whether there is room in frame A at all the desired relay stations. If there is no room in frame A, frame B is checked next, step 51. If there are more frames, they are all gone through,' until a frame which has enough capacity has been found. If there is enough capacity for the broadcast, permission to transmit is granted, step 54. If there is no such frame, the encoding unit sends the data source a request to wait and tries to arrange a sufficient capacity by transferring previous services between the frames, step 52. After this, the adequacy of the capacity is checked, step 53. In case the arrangement has brought enough capacity, permission to transmit is granted, step 54. If the re-arrangement does not lead to any results, the encoding unit does not give the data source permission to transmit, step 55.
• Fig. 6 represents one arranging algorithm to be used in a system in accordance with the invention.
• the re-arrangement of the transmissions can be implemented e.g. by going through all the possible combinations, step 60.
• the encoding unit places the transmissions of every data source either in source A or B, and the capacity is compared to the need for capacity of the combinations, step 61.
• Such alternatives are rejected in which the capacity of some relay station, as one or the other of the groups is concerned, is exceeded, step 62. From the remaining alternatives the one is chosen in which the free capacity of frame B of all combined stations is as big as possible, step 62.
• the invention is not limited merely to the examples of its embodiments referred to above, instead various modifications are possible within the scope of the inventive idea defined by the claims.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Reduction Or Emphasis Of Bandwidth Of Signals (AREA)
• Mobile Radio Communication Systems (AREA)
• Data Exchanges In Wide-Area Networks (AREA)
• Measuring Pulse, Heart Rate, Blood Pressure Or Blood Flow (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (2)

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• 2002
  • 2002-09-16 FI FI20021657A patent/FI115099B/fi not_active IP Right Cessation
• 2003
  • 2003-09-16 DE DE60334389T patent/DE60334389D1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2003-09-16 WO PCT/FI2003/000675 patent/WO2004025906A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2003-09-16 EP EP03795039A patent/EP1540894B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2003-09-16 AU AU2003264326A patent/AU2003264326A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-09-16 AT AT03795039T patent/ATE483291T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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