Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for providing companion services to customer premises equipment (CPE) using an IP-based service infrastructure. The infrastructure allows IP-enabled devices such as tablet PCs, smart phones, PDAs, and laptop computers to provide supplementary services to target systems and devices located at customer premises. Target systems and devices (CPE) may be TVs, PCs, set-top boxes, digital video recorders, or other electronics. An embodiment is disclosed which allows a mobile device to provide companion services to a television through a link with a set-top box in a cable TV network using the Internet.

Abstract: The present invention is an inflatable safety garment. The invention preferably defines an inflatable safety Jacket having improved deployment cushion fill rates and standup times and having a simplified mechanical activation system. The inflatable safety garment is useful in mitigating or preventing injury that may otherwise occur to the wearer of the inflatable safety garment if the wearer were to not wear the inflatable safety garment and be involved in an accident or crash.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for reducing the amount of data associated with user events. The systems and methods are particularly applicable to cable TV, satellite TV, and other networks where user event data (e.g., clickstream) must be sent from customer premises equipment (CPE) to centralized servers and the data transmission channel is narrow. In various exemplary embodiments, CPE such as television set-top boxes may reduce requirements for data storage and network bandwidth by replacing portions of channel-number/timestamp streams with abbreviated codes representing common meta-events such as “channel surfing events” and “previous channel events.” The original channel-number/timestamp streams can be reconstituted on centralized servers. Other common sequences of events, including those involving activation of other buttons on remote controls (i.e.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems and methods of building a default set of parameters into a software application by defining a widget template having associated parameter schema and then instantiating a widget by substituting a new set of application parameters for the built-in defaults such that the new parameters meet the same constraints defined for the default parameters. Aspects of the invention also include testing the original application containing the default parameters, along with the parameter substitution process itself, using a Statistical Software Testing Methodology (SSTM) to ensure the application meets a pre-determined level of quality.

Abstract: A system for and method of targeting a broadcast message to a subset of potential electronic receivers in a broadcast network is presented. The system and method may comprise collecting identifying information associated with designated electronic receivers of a targeted broadcast message, generating, using a computer processor, a data set structure using the identifying information, associating the data set structure with the targeted broadcast message, and broadcasting the targeted broadcast message and the data set structure to a plurality of electronic receivers, wherein the data set structure provides information allowing at least one of the plurality of electronic receivers to determine whether the targeted broadcast message is targeted to the at least one electronic receiver.

Abstract: A method and system for providing personalized information to applications executing on consumer devices by: building a consumer preferences profile on a consumer device using predefined associations between consumer preference attributes and application events (including user input); summarizing the consumer preferences profile into a profile summary when applications require a new personalized data resource; requesting a personalized data resource from a centralized database of data resources over the broadband network by including application context information along with the profile summary in the request; analyzing data resource groups in the centralized database to find a candidate set of data resources according to resource rules in the resource groups; selecting a personalized data resource from the candidate set of data resources that matches the profile summary and context information; and delivering the selected personalized data resource to the requesting application over the broadband network.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for supplementing content-based attributes with collaborative rating attributes for recommending or filtering items. Collaborative rating data may be consolidated into “composite critics” which serve as item quality rating attributes. These attributes may be used in conjunction with content-based attributes to generate user preference models. Composite critics may be formed using data clustering methods such that users with similar tastes may be grouped together. The user preference models may be induced using machine learning processes, such as decision trees, artificial neural networks, support vector machines, and/or statistical techniques. In some embodiments, composite critics may represent a small number of users or professional critics selected for having differing sensibilities and who rate most or all items according to those sensibilities.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are systems and methods for providing companion services to customer premises equipment (CPE) using an IP-based service infrastructure. The infrastructure allows IP-enabled devices such as tablet PCs, smart phones, PDAs, and laptop computers to provide supplementary services to target systems and devices located at customer premises. Target systems and devices (CPE) may be TVs, PCs, set-top boxes, digital video recorders, or other electronics. An embodiment is disclosed which allows a mobile device to provide companion services to a television through a link with a set-top box in a cable TV network using the Internet.

Abstract: Disclosed are systems and methods of building a default set of parameters into a software application by defining a widget template having associated parameter schema and then instantiating a widget by substituting a new set of application parameters for the built-in defaults such that the new parameters meet the same constraints defined for the default parameters. Aspects of the invention also include testing the original application containing the default parameters, along with the parameter substitution process itself, using a Statistical Software Testing Methodology (SSTM) to ensure the application meets a pre-determined level of quality.

Abstract: A system for and method of targeting a broadcast message to a subset of potential electronic receivers in a broadcast network is presented. The system and method may comprise collecting identifying information associated with designated electronic receivers of a targeted broadcast message, generating, using a computer processor, a data set structure using the identifying information, associating the data set structure with the targeted broadcast message, and broadcasting the targeted broadcast message and the data set structure to a plurality of electronic receivers, wherein the data set structure provides information allowing at least one of the plurality of electronic receivers to determine whether the targeted broadcast message is targeted to the at least one electronic receiver.

Abstract: A method and system for providing personalized information to applications executing on consumer devices by: building a consumer preferences profile on a consumer device using predefined associations between consumer preference attributes and application events (including user input); summarizing the consumer preferences profile into a profile summary when applications require a new personalized data resource; requesting a personalized data resource from a centralized database of data resources over the broadband network by including application context information along with the profile summary in the request; analyzing data resource groups in the centralized database to find a candidate set of data resources according to resource rules in the resource groups; selecting a personalized data resource from the candidate set of data resources that matches the profile summary and context information; and delivering the selected personalized data resource to the requesting application over the broadband network.

Abstract: A system and method for supporting predictive text entry in software applications by sharing a common, predictive, software text-entry widget within a consumer device across multiple software applications and input contexts. The method comprises: a software application invoking an instance of a text-entry widget in a particular input context, the application optionally providing the widget a description of allowed symbols and a dictionary of expected symbol strings associated with the current context, the widget modifying a virtual keyboard display and predictive algorithm data according to the allowed symbols and dictionary, the user entering text via the widget, the widget returning the entered text to the application, and the application optionally including information derived from entered text in the associated dictionary to enhance the predictive capability of the widget on future invocations.