INFORMATION DISTRIBUTION & DISPLAY SYSTEM
This invention relates to an information distribution and display system
and to a method of distributing and displaying information.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an information
distribution and display system which includes:
a central processing arrangement having a microprocessor and data input
means;
at least one remote display arrangement having information presentation
means, a microprocessor and data input means; and
communication means for transmitting data between the central processing
arrangement and the remote display arrangement:
characterised therein that the data input means of the remote display arrangement
is activatable through a transparent medium.
The system may include a plurality of remote display arrangements.
The information presentation means may include at least one of a video
monitor and a loudspeaker. The data input means may include at least one of a
keypad and a microphone.
In a preferred form of the invention, the transparent medium is glass or a
plastics material.
The system may include software for converting input data into digital code.
Preferably, the or each remote display arrangement includes software for
converting digital data into recognisable human speech sounds.
The communication means may be in the form of a modem. The information
may be in the form of any one or more of video clips, audio clips and still visual
representations.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method
of distributing and displaying information which includes the steps of:
providing an information distribution and display system as described above;
entering information at the central processing arrangement via its data input
means and converting the information into digital code;
distributing the code to one or more remote display arrangements selectable
from the central processing arrangement;
converting the code at the or each remote display arrangement into visible and/or audible information;
entering information at the or each remote display arrangement via its data
input means and converting the information into digital code; and
transmitting the code to the central processing arrangement.
The method may employ an hierarchical distribution pattern of the code to
one or more remote display arrangements, whereby the code is transmitted from
the central processing arrangement to one or more remote display arrangements
of a first order and transmission of the code to a remote display arrangement of a
subsequent order is transmitted from a remote display arrangement of an order
preceding the subsequent order, in use.
One embodiment of this invention will now be described in more detail
with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a schematic representation of an information distribution
and display system according to the invention; and
Figure 2 is a schematic representation of a remote display
arrangement of the system of Figure 1 .
In Figure 1 , an information distribution and display system 1 0
according to the invention is shown to include a central processing arrangement
1 2 which includes a data input device (not shown) , a microprocessor with
software for converting input data into digital code (not shown), and a
communication device in the form of a modem 1 4. The central processing
arrangement 1 2 is in communication with a plurality of remote display
arrangements of the first order 8 and 9 respectively, via the modem 1 4 and ISDN
data communication lines 1 8. Remote display arrangements of a second order 81
and 82; and 91 and 92 are in communication with the first order remote display
arrangement 8 and 9 respectively via modems 1 4 and ISDN data communication
lines 1 8. Likewise, remote display arrangements of a third order 81 1 and 81 2; 821
and 822; 91 1 and 91 2; and 921 and 922 are in communication with second order
remote display arrangements 81 , 82, 91 and 92 respectively via modems 1 4 and
ISDN data communication lines 1 8.
In Figure 2, a remote display arrangement 8 is shown to include a
console 1 7, a video display monitor 20 for displaying information in the form of
video clips and still visual representations, data input devices in the form of a
keypad 22 and a microphone 24 and a loudspeaker 26 for playing audio clips. The
console 1 7 houses a microprocessor (not shown) with software (not shown) for
converting input data into digital code. A communication device is provided in the
form of a modem 14 for transmitting code to the central processing arrangement
1 2 (see Figure 1 ) via an ISDN data communication line 1 8. The arrangement 8 is
mounted on a stand 27.
The keypad 22 is of a type which is activatable through a transparent
medium, a pane of glass 30 in this embodiment, and is mounted to the glass 30
as shown with a suitable adhesive (not shown) . The arrangement 8 is located
inside, for example, a shop or office, and is operable from outside the shop or
office through the glass window pane 30.
The arrangement 8 furthermore includes speech recognition software
and speech synthesising software (not shown) which allows a user to give voice
commands to the arrangement 8 via the microphone 24 and which allows the
arrangement 8 to respond, via the loudspeaker 26 in synthesised human speech
sounds. Both the microphone 24 and loudspeaker 26 are mounted to the glass
window pane 30 as shown with a suitable adhesive (not shown) and are suitably
sensitive to receive and transmit, respectively, sound through the glass pane 30.
In use, a person or company (the customer) who wishes to place
information, for example an advertisement in video form, on one or more of the
display arrangements, arranges to enter the information at the central processing
arrangement 1 2 where it is converted into digital code. The customer may wish to
place his advertisement on two display arrangements for a pre-determined period
of time, for example thirty days. An operator at the central processing arrangement
1 2 transmits the advertisement in digital code form, via the communication lines
1 8 to the selected remote display arrangements.
The customer may, for example, wish to display his advertisement on
display arrangements 8 and 92 (see Figure 1 ) , which may be located in different
cities. In accordance with an hierarchical distribution pattern, the coded information
is sequentially transmitted from the central processing arrangement 1 2 to display
arrangements of a first order, 8 and 9; then from the first order display
arrangements 8 and/or 9 to display arrangements of a second order 81 , 82 and/or
91 , 92 respectively. Further distribution of code to subsequent orders of display
arrangements, e.g . 81 1 , 81 2, 821 , 822 etc is effected via a display arrangement
of an order directly preceding the selected display arrangement. Thus, the code is
transmitted directly to display arrangement 8 from the central processing
arrangement 1 2. The code is also transmitted to display arrangement 9 from where
it is transmitted to display arrangement 92. Thus, code is not transmitted directly
to a remote display arrangement beyond one order of separation .
Code which reaches a remote display arrangement is verified and the
last display arrangement reached in a particular distribution schedule confirms
receipt to the central processing arrangement. Any error in transmission is reported
to the central processing arrangement 1 2 and corrective measures may then be
taken
A person (the user) who sees an advertisement on a selected display
arrangement, e.g . arrangement 8, may interact with the arrangement 8 via the
keypad 22 and/or the microphone 24, for example by entering his or her name and
contact details. The information is converted into digital code and transmitted back
to the central processing arrangement 1 2 where it is passed on to the customer to
follow up. The code may be transmitted immediately or alternatively, batches of
code may be transmitted at predetermined times.
The microprocessors of the central processing arrangement 1 2 and the
remote display arrangements are of the type used in personal computers, (pc's)
e.g . microprocessors produced under the trade name Intel Pentium. This type of
microprocessor is significantly less costly than high performance dedicated
microprocessors but adequate for this type of task. By using high quality
commercial peripherals, such as graphic accelerators, acceptable performance
results are obtained. Video code is stored and transmitted in MPEG file format.
By placing the remote display arrangements behind glass 30, for
example inside a shop, vandalism and wear due to exposure to the elements is
significantly reduced .
The software used in the system 1 0 runs on a commercial base
operating system, such as Windows 98 or Windows 2000 and includes algorithms
for periodically rebooting the software. This type of operating system includes
remote access system (RAS) software features which are used in the code
communication processes of the system 1 0. The operating system is installed in
its most compact form to avoid any unwanted applications running in the
background. The playing of videos is also monitored and the software is rebooted
if a video is not played timeously.
The microprocessors used have a processing speed of 450 Mhz or
higher. To facilitate smooth running, full screen video presentation in 800 x 600
pixel mode, an ultra wide SCSII disk drive, providing data throughput of at least
40Mbit per second and a capacity of at least 1 8Gb is required . 32 bit Sound
peripherals are used to reproduce acceptable quality sound .
A low powered power supply (not shown) is used to reduce heat
generation. The system further includes an emergency power supply (not shown)
for supplying enough power during a power failure for the microprocessors to
effect a proper shutdown.
The communication network of the system 1 0 is an ISDN point to
point network using peer to peer topology. Network addressing of the Internet
Protocol (IP) type is used in the system 1 0 and TCP/IP network protocol is used to
minimise transmission overheads. Either internal ISDN modems or external modems
1 4 can be used with the system 1 0.
The microprocessors are all matched for easy maintenance. An
inventory of all information on the System 1 0 is kept at the central processing
arrangement 1 2 to enable maintenance personnel to preload information onto a
replacement arrangement before replacement. This reduces transmission costs.
Any update software is transmitted via the modems 1 4 and data communication
lines 1 8 to the remote display arrangements where it is installed automatically.