Granted Patent B2

US 12,200,302 · App. 18/137,475 · Granted Jan 14, 2025

Inventors: David Mendenhall (Los Gatos, CA); David Sharp (San Jose, CA); Mark Ely (Knowles, CA); Jim Funk (Los Altos, CA); Charles Smith (Andover, MA); Andrew Schultz (Los Gatos, MA); Anthony Wood (Palo Alto, CA)

Assignee: Roku, Inc.

H04N21/4586H04N21/43635H04N21/443

Abstract

Claims (43)

1. A method, comprising:

determining, by an upgrader device, that the upgrader device is connected to an input port of a media device, wherein the media device is configured to operate in a normal mode without the upgrader device connected, and in an upgrader mode with the upgrader device connected;

receiving, at the upgrader device, a command to access content via the media device;

automatically importing, by the upgrader device and from the media device, Wi-Fi credentials for accessing a network to which the media device is connected;

updating networking capabilities of the upgrader device based on the Wi-Fi credentials;

determining, by the upgrader device, that the upgrader device is connected to the network through the networking capabilities of the upgrader device, wherein the networking capabilities of the upgrader device are independent from the media device;

downloading, by the upgrader device, the content, over the network, using the networking capabilities of the upgrader device;

processing the downloaded content by the upgrader device; and

providing, by the upgrader device, the downloaded content for display through the media device after the processing.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upgrader device receives power from the media device through the input port of the media device.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the media device comprises a television with its own networking capabilities independent from the networking capabilities of the upgrader device.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the networking capabilities of the upgrader device improve a speed of downloading the content relative to networking capabilities of the media device.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the content comprises a new app.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the new app is downloaded to both the media device and the upgrader device.

7. A system comprising at least one processor, the at least one processor configured to perform operations comprising:

determining that an upgrader device is connected to an input port of a media device, wherein the media device is configured to operate in a normal mode without the upgrader device connected, and in an upgrader mode with the upgrader device connected;

receiving at the upgrader device, a command to access content via the media device;

automatically importing, by the upgrader device and from the media device, Wi-Fi credentials for accessing a network to which the media device is connected;

updating networking capabilities of the upgrader device based on the Wi-Fi credentials;

downloading, by the upgrader device, the content, over the network, using the networking capabilities of the upgrader device;

downloading, by the upgrader device, the content, over a network connection, using the networking capabilities of the upgrader device;

processing the downloaded content by the upgrader device; and

providing the downloaded content for display through the media device after the processing.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the upgrader device receives power from the media device through the input port of the media device.

9. The system of claim 7 , wherein the media device comprises a television with its own networking capabilities independent from the networking capabilities of the upgrader device.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the networking capabilities of the upgrader device improve a speed of downloading the content relative to networking capabilities of the media device.

11. The system of claim 7 , wherein the content comprises a new app.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the new app is downloaded to both the media device and the upgrader device.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by at least one computing device, cause the at least one computing device to perform operations comprising:

determining that an upgrader device is connected to an input port of a media device, wherein the media device is configured to operate in a normal mode without the upgrader device connected, and in an upgrader mode with the upgrader device connected;

receiving, at the upgrader device, a command to access content via the media device;

determining that the upgrader device is connected to a network through its own networking capabilities of the upgrader device, wherein the networking capabilities of the upgrader device are independent from the media device;

automatically importing, by the upgrader device and from the media device, Wi-Fi credentials for accessing a network to which the media device is connected;

updating the network capabilities of the upgrader device based on the Wi-Fi credentials;

downloading, by the upgrader device, the content, over the network, using the networking capabilities of the upgrader device;

processing the downloaded content by the upgrader device; and

providing the downloaded content for display through the media device after the processing.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the upgrader device receives power from the media device through the input port of the media device.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the media device comprises a television with its own networking capabilities independent from the networking capabilities of the upgrader device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the networking capabilities of the upgrader device improve a speed of downloading the content relative to networking capabilities of the media device.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the content comprises a new app that is downloaded to both the media device and the upgrader device.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upgrader device includes an upgrader user interface which is used in lieu of a device user interface when the upgrader device is connected and the upgrader mode of the media device is activated.

19. The method of claim 6 , wherein the new app is downloaded to the media device using networking capabilities of the media device, and wherein the new app is downloaded to the upgrader device using the networking capabilities of the upgrader device.

Assignments (2)

Continuity (4)

References Cited (39)