Interesting Patents | Tuesday, June 7, 2022

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) grants hundreds of new patents every week, showcasing the most exciting developments in technology and innovation.

In this article, we highlight several interesting US patents recently issued by the USPTO.

Looking for more information on patents? Visit our Patents Page here. We also recommend that you check out our Intellectual Property Resources page for guides, videos, and insight on patents and inventorship. We also provide Tips on Choosing a Patent Lawyer.

INVENTION OVERVIEW:

This week, Disney has been granted a patent to combat offensive content being broadcast through closed captioning information. Disney processes closed captioning information and runs the extracted data through buffers to remove any potentially objectionable content. One unique aspect of the disclosure is that Disney can utilize partial words detected in the buffer further to investigate a specific portion of the closed captioning data. The process determines if any closed caption content is on a blacklist and subsequently removes the closed captioning data from the broadcast stream before transmission to the user.

While we may not think of Disney needing to worry about offensive content in their self-produced content. Disney’s subsidiaries like Fox Entertainment Group, ESPN, and ABC deal extensively with broadcasts that could include broadcasting offensive content. Therefore, the patented system might play a critical part in Disney’s moderation system to ensure Disney does not violate any broadcasting regulations and ensures their viewers receive only appropriate content.

PATENT ABSTRACT:

“Content is automatically removed from closed-caption data embedded in a video signal. A closed-caption compliance system decodes a first portion of a first video frame that includes a closed-caption data packet. The system extracts a first character string that includes at least a portion of the closed-caption data packet. The system determines whether the first character string is suitable for distribution to viewers. If the first character string is suitable for distribution to viewers, then the system encodes at least a first portion of the first character string as a second closed-caption data packet to include in a second video frame. Otherwise, the system modifies the first character string to generate a second character string that is suitable for distribution to viewers; and encodes at least a first portion of the second character string as a third closed-caption data packet to include in the second video frame.”