Method to remotely provide television broadcast recording services to broadcast television service subscribers
View Patent ↗A system and method for remotely recording television programs using a remote redundant recording system in case of local DVR system failure. The system and method enables a subscriber station to transmit a plurality of recorded timers to a television provider's head end where the timers are associated with television programs the subscriber desires to have remotely recording in case of a local DVR failure. This system and method also enables the data processor at the television provider's head end to monitor the digital recording device while the programs selected are being broadcast, and in the event of a power outage, record the program selected on the data storage space.
1. A method for providing redundancy in a video recording system comprising:
receiving at a television provider's head end, a plurality of user recording timers transmitted from a user's subscriber station, wherein the recording timers are set by the user and identify the start time, recording length and channel information for a television program to be recorded, and wherein the number of recording timers is restricted to a predetermined limit based on storage constraints at the provider's head end;
setting at the head end a plurality of provider recording timers based on the plurality of user recording timers;
sending a first ping from the head end to the subscriber station at a predetermined amount of time before the start time of a television program associated with a provider recording timer;
determining the state of the subscriber station from the head end by monitoring the subscriber station for a response to the ping;
where the head end does not receive a response from the subscriber station, the television program associated with the recording timer is recorded at the head end;
where the head end does receive a response from the subscriber station to the first ping, sending repeated pings from the head end to the subscriber station at predetermined intervals for the duration of the recording length of the television program associated with the recording timer, monitoring the subscriber station for a response to the repeated pings and where the head end does not receive a response from the subscriber station, recording at the head end the television program associated with the recording timer, wherein the recording begins from a point in time at which the subscriber station stopped responding to the repeated pings; and
transmitting the recorded television program from the provider's head end to the subscriber station.