MXPA98008507A - Digi video transmission system - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a method for facilitating the management and execution of a digital video transmission system (DVB). In a typical DVB system there are often a number of functions that must be coordinated and synchronized. The invention provides a monitoring point to handle the total multiplexer and control the mix of services that are transmitted. The system meets most of the software integration requirements in a transmission center. A central database is provided, preserved in the operational areas and is the point of reference referred to by other systems. A large protocol converter is provided that links the planning system to the conditional access and termination systems (C

Description

DIGITAL VIDEO TRANSMISSION SYSTEM Field of the Invention This invention relates to a System of Digital Video Transmission (DVB), in particular to a system and method for integrating and managing the components of such a system so as to improve the performance of global data and the control thereof. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In a typical system (DVB) there are frequently a number of functions that must be coordinated and synchronized. Each of these functions is generally controlled independently by a separate system that is controlled by an individual user. In this way, it is not uncommon for a given function to coordinate and control itself on two separate levels, which is obviously an unnecessary waste of resources. In addition, the individual user may establish restrictions and operating criteria that negatively affect the operation of the transmission as a whole. An additional problem that may arise is in relation to program planning and data transmission. If there are unexpected changes to planning, such as a ball game in overtime or an urgent informational message, the changes caused can influence all other events and programs. This may mean that each operator of the individual functions has to correct the inputs to the transmitting device, this is inconvenient and time-consuming. In addition, conventional systems do not centralize all the information required to provide broad technological design and monitoring facilities. The specification of WO96 / 08109 describes a system for selectively distributing commercial messages to individually referenced subscriber terminals in a network. A server located on the network selectively identifies commercial messages with routing information and the converter directs them. The messages are transmitted over the network to be received and displayed by the addressed converters. Messages are inserted into commercial breaks in the program material at times reserved within commercial breaks. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic system for managing the components of a digital video transmission system in response to the planning of one or more replanning changes to the event planning. of the transmission events, the transmission system being operative to generate a multiplexed digital output signal comprising multiple channels and having system elements comprising an event synchronizer including a data buffer, a service information controller , a multiplexer, a multiplexer controller and a conditional access controller that includes a transmission control center, the automatic file system comprising: update means for updating the data stored in the data buffer in response to the events of transmission, change or replanning changes to the p Launching of synchronization media transmission events to synchronize the updated data in real time through the different elements of the system to ensure correct referencing and; formatting means for formatting the multiplexer according to the events of transmission or to the change or changes of replanning in the planning of events of the transmission events. According to a second aspect of the invention, a method is provided for managing the components of a digital video transmission system in response to the planning of one or more replanning changes to the event planning of the transmission events, being operating the transmission system to generate a multiplexed digital output signal comprising multiple channels and having system elements comprising an event synchronizer that includes a data buffer, a service information controller, a multiplexer, a multiplexer controller and a conditional access controller that includes a transmission control center, the method comprising the steps of: updating the data stored in the data buffer in response to the events of transmission or change or changes of replanning to the planning of transmission events; synchronize the updated data in real time through the different elements of the system to ensure a correct referencing and; format the multiplexer according to the transmission events or to the change or changes in the planning. OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION The present invention has many advantages over the prior art. The present invention centralizes and facilitates the management of a digital video transmission system that combines many of the functions of the prior art and that allows changes to be made in a central place and that has the information disseminated at any other point that needs to be known. . Without the present invention, responding to unexpected changes was physically impossible, now unexpected changes are handled without problem. Multiplex management is also facilitated by allowing easy re-assignment of bitstreams through the multiplexers. The present invention also provides advantages over the prior art by reducing the number of interfaces that are required between the different systems. In a typical traffic of the prior art system, one would have to communicate directly to the automation system, to the multiplexers and to the conditional access systems. The automation system would have to communicate to multiplexers and conditional access systems. Synchronizing all these different changes is problematic. With the present invention the traffic system is communicated to the AFS, the automation system communicates to the AFS and the AFS coordinates the required changes with the downstream systems. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the interfaces adopted in the system of Figure 1; and Figure 3 shows the software configuration for the system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODE In a DVB system there are a number of functions that must be controlled. The system of the present invention referred to as the Automatic File Server (AFS) bridges a critical space in the range of studio control systems which is required to build a Digital Video Transmission System Multiplexing (DVB). The AFS illustrated in Figure 1 provides a number of functions. It provides a monitoring and a control point to handle the transmission in total multiple and control the mix of services that are transmitted. The system meets most of the software integration requirements in a transmission center. A central database is provided, conserved in the operational areas and is the point of reference to which other systems refer. A large protocol converter (not shown) that is part of the Event Synchronizer 14 is provided which links the planning system to the conditional access (CA) and termination systems. The protocol converter is responsible for the translation of data from the internal AFS format to messages that can be understood through the Conditional Access and associated programming information (CA-PIMS) 16, the Multiple Transmission Control (MCC) 18 and the Control of Service Information (SIC) 20. This type of system will be useful when a variety of requirements are required either alone or in combination. The system is also useful when the addition or removal of services within the multiple transmission is required at any time during the operation. When using CA and replacement transmission blocking services or Near Demand on Demand (NVOD) services and associated pay-per-view events, the system of the invention provides an invaluable tool as explained below. In addition, by merging independent schedules of various services and using a central editing point for programs and tables of the communication network, the AFS provides advantages over the prior art. For example, by monitoring services through a multiplexer (mux) and by noticing an overload on the bit rate, the AFS can provide improved performance. The most important functions provided by the AFS will be described in more detail below, but generally include the following. The use of AFS as a tool for the Management of Multiple Transmission, as a cohesive system within the study complex and as a central repository of information for all the different types of activated planning systems. Referring to Figure 1, a typical AFS system 10 is illustrated. The system 10 is implemented in two parts, specifically a programming database 12 using for example a real-time buffer system and the oracle 7.0 (the Synchronizer Events 14), which improves the system's elasticity to failure and increases its data throughput. The AFS monitors the status of all services on the air, event by event and formats the digital multicast transmission to accept them. In addition, the AFS also synchronizes data across all termination systems so that they refer to each other correctly. As a result of the location of the AFS in the termination hierarchy, a number of important operational facilities are also possible which are described in more detail below. The automation system 28 is the part of the transmission system responsible for the termination of the source material according to the program provided by the traffic system 32. The source material can be provided by video or audio tapes., discs or other means. The administrator means 34 is responsible for maintaining the tracking of the source material and the location of the source - for example, if the source material is kept on tape, the source material knows that the tape contains the required material. The event synchronizer 14 controls a number of systems and provides real-time control of a number of them. This includes Conditional Access and associated programming information (CAPIMS) 16, multiple transmission control (MCC) 18 and Service Information Control (SIC) 20 and the associated supported navigation tools. The CAPIMS system includes a Transmission Control Center (BCC) 22 that produces Titration Control messages (ECMs) 24 which are transmitted via the multiplexer and the future ECMs 26 that are stored in the AFS and then transmitted via the SIC. The supported SIC Navigation tools include, for example, Mosaic services, List and Replace Events, which can make an Electronic Programming Guide (EPG). The event synchronizer receives real-time messages from an automation system 28 and passes them to all related transmission control systems including the transmission sub-system 30. In the situation where the automation system is not available, the Same messages can be simulated by the event synchronizer, using the nominal programming time of the event. The program database has two forms of communications with the event synchronizer, a traffic system 32 and a media manager 34. The programming database receives data either from the traffic system or from a file entry 36 and transmits the information to the transmission sub-system, which includes the SIC, the CAPIMS and one or more user interfaces 38 via an Open Database Connectivity (ODBC). The Programming Database 12 is the storage point for all the attributes related to a program event, for example: the nominal start time, the start of a message, CA services and transmission suppression restrictions and the number of subtitle languages. The database is used by the sub-systems of the "client" that extract the relevant data that they require. The definition of this data set effectively defines the operation of the DVB system. The structure of the database is designed around an analysis of the information required to control the downstream systems and preserve the data in an appropriate way.

Event Synchronizer 14 acts as the real-time element of the Database. The synchronizer stores approximately 6 hours of programming data in memory to protect them from programming database downtime. By keeping this data in memory, the Event Synchronizer can respond very quickly to the real-time keys. In this way, the termination system is free to insert, withdraw or move the events as dictated by the program requirements, while the Event Synchronizer can prepare the systems downstream without additional overload. The automation system could do this work directly if it was designed in mind with multiplexer control. However, since there may be a video termination system, a radio automation system and a data termination system, the synchronizer provides the most open architecture while requiring little extra adaptation from the other systems. The MCC, the CA (PIMS) and the SIC do what is known as the low level control systems. The actual function of each is described in more detail below. The Multiplexer Control Computer (MCC) controls the Multiplexer with respect to the combination of all the video, audio and data components and their various characteristics. The Information within the Event Synchronizer informs the multiplexer about the bit rate that must be assigned to each service and also the list of components associated with the current events. The AFS has a valuable role in the integration of the CA system with the MCC in assigning the correct key to cryptographically encode (ECM) to each service or component. The philosophy of providing access CA balances the needs of both CA security and the ibility of the traffic system. The CA must operate in a secure environment and be responsible for the formatting of low-level instructions for the subscriber's smart card. The CA-PIMS provides a high level interface that protects this operation. The traffic system must be able to assign particular CA parameters to the events using a simple set of pre-configured instructions, but also in such a way that they can be tuned in precisely if necessary. The traffic system must also be able to derive the detail in these instructions, so that violations of censorship can be distinguished early in the planning process. The adopted access method uses a series of models that can be applied equally to a simple subscription by channel bases, but also controls pay-per-view (PPV) events of complex correlation and measurement instructions. The Service Information Controller (SIC) provides information within the transmission data stream so that the subscriber's receiver (IRD) can locate all the services that are transmitted. The information maintained in the SIC is governed by the AFS system and finally by the traffic system. This data can be viewed as a list or as groups of services and can also be supported using mosaics or composite pages of more complex video and text. If the CA system is required to suppress the transmission of a particular event, a "replacement" service may be designated within the SIC, which will be used if the subscriber is denied access to the particular service. When the transmission suppression event ends, the SIC informs the IRD subscriber to connect back to the normal service. Without the AFS there is no easy method to evaluate the mix of services that are transmitted within the digital transport stream. Whenever the bandwidth is difficult to achieve, the bit rates will need to be adjusted in order to allow ible addition and removal of services. The AFS provides a method to visualize the amplitude of the visual field of the multiplexer and consequently it can be used to reassign bit rates as the requirements in question are developed. An example of how this would work is when different services are provided during the day to those during the night. For example, it may be possible to have 7 normal channels that can be increased by 3 additional data channels at night. If the emergence of additional channels is handled by the AFS, then any unexpected events can be taken into consideration, such as a ball game running in overtime. If the game is scheduled to end at 10.00 pm but it does not and the extra channels must start at the end of the game, any change can be easily handled by the AFS, so that the transmission of the extra channels is delayed until the game really ends. The advantages of using a conditional access digital system from a planning perspective are that individual access parameters can be given to specific events. These types of events include, pay-per-view events, transmission suppression events across regional and demographic boundaries (for example, near the meeting place of a sporting event) and replacement services necessary to overcome censorship violations. As mentioned above, operational management must focus not only on an individual channel, but also on the multiplexer layer. Many automation systems can not provide a multi-channel program view that is where the AFS can provide a very useful installation and editing tools. The edit point can be used locally by the transmission controllers or remotely via the traffic system personnel. The effect of the AFS is to take the planning directly to the heart of the transmission system so that the events about to be transmitted are now accessible to the maximum planning process. In this way, if there is any change, it can only be introduced at one point and spread dynamically to any other point that needs to be known. This allows the system to have a strong control over the characteristics, such as delays, overloads and the like. The editing capabilities of the AFS are such that they allow changes from a traffic system at any time until the transmission time. User interfaces are also provided that allow last-minute changes to be made in a simple manner. Any required change only needs to be done in one place and the information is automatically distributed to all relevant systems. This is an important advantage over the prior art systems. The present invention also allows, from a central point, the monitoring of bandwidth allocation in all multiplexers as well as allowing the bandwidth allocation to be adjusted on an event-by-event basis to optimize the utilization of any current of program. Referring to Figure 2 it is shown that the AFS supports the interfaces for two categories of the system, the aforementioned low level control systems and the higher level systems discussed in more detail below. The low-level instruction circuits are used to give access to the three systems that control the compensation of the DVB's multiple transmission. The client interfaces have been developed to support a high-level study system for planning and deploying programs. The client interfaces provide interfaces between the programming database 12 and both the traffic system 32 and the file entry 36. The traffic system provides the direct filling of the AFS database, however, with the input from file 36, it is required that the parsers translate the information from the files into appropriate data to populate the AFS database tables. The present invention also provides advantages over the prior art by reducing the number of interfaces that are required between the different systems. In a typical prior art system, traffic would have to communicate directly to automation, to multiplexers and to conditional access systems, Automation would have to communicate to Multiplexers and to Conditional Access systems. Syncing all these different changes is problematic. With the present invention the Traffic is communicated to the AFS, the Automation is communicated to the AFS and the AFS coordinates the required changes with the downstream systems. The AFS database 40 is shown in Figure 2 and has instruction circuits 42 and interfaces 44 associated therewith. The instruction circuits control communications to the MCC, to the CA and to the SI modules. The interfaces provide the links to an input allocation module of the multiplexer 46, to an instruction circuit. screen display and a subtitle module 48, a real-time termination controller 50 and one or more planners 52 and 54. The first scheduler 52 is part of an alternative or planning completion system and the second 54 is part of a station amplitude automation system 56. The above-mentioned high-level study systems that are provided by the system can be categorized into a traffic system, in an automation system and in a number of user interfaces. The traffic system is really a low-labor term that describes a large number of program planning and material handling systems. The "Traffic" represents the point at which this data is merged to produce a specific program schedule in detail. The AFS supports two types of interfaces for the traffic system, either an ODBC interface that allows a copy of the database and therefore responds well to changes or a Flat File interface that supports dynamic copy of memory transfers of the program. The AFS can, therefore, support copies of the program from a number of different planning systems ranging from central computing unit machines to personal computers. The study automation system uses the AFS planning database as its source of functioning lists for one or more channels. As with the other client systems, these lists are filtered to extract only the relevant fields that are required. In the reverse direction the real-time event keys generated by the automation system are sent to the Event Synchronizer. Normally, two keys are generated - a "voltage" command which is sent approximately twenty seconds before it starts an event or a "take" command in the actual transition of the program. The automation system references the relevant events in the event synchronizer memory by event number which in turn sends a message translated to each client system. Since the two keys of the automation system are relatively simple, the AFS is not limited to working with a particular type of automation system. In order to implement the key features of the invention, a number of user interfaces are required. The interface types that must be supported in relation to multiplexer amplitude editing displays, network information table positionings (satellite polarization, frequency, etc.), amplitude component displays of the multiplexer including AC keys and speed of bit transfer, maintenance and alarm terminals and a status display that shows current events to the air and upcoming events on a basis of station amplitude. The status display may be available as a video feed that can be displayed in monitor racks. In general, the deployments are configurable in a system through the base of the system. As mentioned above, the Planning Database can be based on an Oracle database such as Oracle 7 RDBMS. The interface for the various client systems is achieved using triggers as illustrated in Figure 3. The triggers are configured to notify the subsystems of the changes to the data that affect them. The client systems then respond to the questions in the relevant tables to extract the new information. This exploits the built-in connectivity of the system. The second benefit of this type of approach to give access is that the server is not responsible for updating a client's system if the latter fails or is switched to a backup system. In these cases it is also possible for the server to know the status of the failed system.

However, the Event Synchronizer runs the client software to provide real-time messages to the client's systems. In this case, the activating method is too difficult to work to translate the keys of the automation system and the event synchronizer generates its own real-time messages from the client. This is shown in Figure 1. The client software in the Event Synchronizer 14 receives the real-time keys of the automation system 28 which identify the start of the program events. This key information is distributed by the event synchronizer 14 to the relevant downstream systems that act on this "start of event" information by performing appropriate reconfigurations of the system. In a preferred embodiment, the hardware configuration uses redundant separate server pairs, both for the synchronizer and for the database. Database servers are designed with data integrity as their most critical design feature. Downtime in the database is masked by the synchronizer configuration used by the over-switching software to ensure extremely fast use of the backup system. Each of the subsystems can independently maintain its own local data backup that offers protection against network failure. Hardware reliability is provided by a number of features that occur in the event of a failure. The discs are protected against failure by using a mirror disc system. The failure of the power supply is provided by the use of automatic switching to another system. An automatic fault recovery software provides the event of a processor or memory failure. In case of a complete bus failure, the software package is automatically switched to the secondary server. The system is based on a redundant network architecture. In case of a customer failure the operator can move to a backup machine and continue to operate. The main feature of the AFS tool has been detailed above, however it will be evident "that a number of system variations are possible, which will be evident to the person skilled in the art.

Claims (14)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as novelty and therefore what is described in the following claims is claimed as property. 1. An automatic system for managing the components of a digital video transmission system in response to the planning of one or more replanning changes to the event planning of transmission events, the transmission system being operative to generate a signal of multiplexed digital output comprising a plurality of channels and having system elements comprising an event synchronizer including a data buffer, a service information controller, a multiplexer, a multiplexer controller and a conditional access controller that includes a transmission control center, the automatic file system comprises: update means to update the data stored in the data buffer in response to transmission events, change or replanning changes to transmission event planning; synchronization means to synchronize the updated data in real time through different elements of the system to ensure correct referencing; and formatting means for formatting the multiplexer according to transmission or change events or replanning changes in the event planning of transmission events. The system according to claim 1, characterized in that the event synchronizer comprises a real-time data buffer. The system according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that it also includes a programming database containing all the information related to an event including the nominal start time, the conditional access services, the suppression restrictions of the transmission and a number of subtitle languages. 4. The system according to claims 1, 2 or 3 characterized in that the event synchronizer receives real-time keys identifying the start of the program events. The system according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it also includes an automation system responsible for the PLAYOUT termination of the source material according to the programming. 6. The system according to claim 5, characterized in that it also includes a media manager for the sub-handling of the source material. The system according to any of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the multiplexer controller controls and formats the transmission in multiple according to the required data, audio and video components. The system according to any of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the changes to the event schedule are disseminated to the event synchronizer, the data buffer, the service information controller, the multiplexer controller and the controller conditional access as required. The system according to any of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the data buffer maintains a 6 hour window of the event data. 10. A method for handling the components of a digital video transmission system in response to the planning of one or more replanning changes to the event planning of the transmission events, the transmission system being operative to generate a signal of multiplexed digital output comprising plural channels and having elements of the system comprising an event synchronizer including a data buffer, a service information controller, a multiplexer, a multiplexer controller and a conditional access controller, including a transmission control center, the method comprises the steps of: updating the data stored in the data buffer in response to transmission or change events or replanning changes to transmission event planning; synchronize updated data in real time through the different elements of the system to ensure correct referencing; and format the multiplexer according to the events of transmission or change or changes in planning. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that it also includes the storage of all the information related to an event including the nominal start time, the conditional access services, the transmission suppression restrictions and a number of subtitle languages in a programming database. The method according to claims 10 or 11, characterized in that it also includes the reception of real-time keys to identify the start of the events of the program in the event synchronizer. The method according to any of claims 10, 11 or 12 characterized in that they further comprise controlling and formatting the multiplexer in accordance with the required video, audio and data components. 14. The method according to any of claims 10 to 13 characterized in that it further comprises the dissemination of changes to the event program, the event synchronizer, the data buffer, the information service controller, the multiplexer controller and the access controller conditional as required.