Method and apparatus for cross-connection of video signals

Abstract

A switched telecommunication access system for providing video data to gateway devices. The switched telecommunication access system includes a switched multicasting station for transmitting video data in response to receiving a video data request signal; and a plurality of gateway devices coupled to the switched multicasting station, the gateway devices sending video data request signals to the switched multicasting station and receiving video data from the switched multicasting station, at least one gateway device of the plurality of gateway devices including a controller for sending a video data request signal to the switched multicasting station and for routing video data received from the switched multicasting station in response to the video data request signal; and a plurality of video decoders coupled to the controller for decoding the video data received from the switched multicasting station; where one stream of video data representing a video program on a particular channel is sent from the switched multicasting station to one gateway device of the plurality of gateway devices even when the video program on the particular channel is requested for display on more than one display device coupled to the one gateway device.

1 . A switched telecommunication access system comprising: 
 a video source;    a switched multicasting station connected to said video source; and    a plurality of display devices, connected to said switched multicasting station, for displaying video presentations selected by a user;    wherein said switched multicasting station receives only a single copy of each video presentation selected by at least one of the plurality of display devices even if more than one of the plurality of display devices selected same video presentation, said switched multicasting station transmitting appropriate video presentations to appropriate ones of said plurality of display devices including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of the plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.    
     
     
         2 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes a broadband digital terminal.  
     
     
         3 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes an optical network unit.  
     
     
         4 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes a broadband network unit.  
     
     
         5 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes a universal service access multiplexer.  
     
     
         6 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes a gateway device.  
     
     
         7 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes 
 a broadband digital terminal connected to said video source; and    a plurality of optical network units, each of said optical network units connected to said broadband digital terminal and a subset of said plurality of display devices;    wherein said broadband digital terminal receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of the video presentation to each of said optical network units that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation, each said optical network unit transmitting appropriate video presentations to appropriate ones of the plurality of display devices connected thereto including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of the plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.    
     
     
         8 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes 
 a broadband digital terminal connected to said video source; and    a plurality of gateway devices, each of said gateway devices connected to said broadband digital terminal and a subset of said plurality of display devices;    wherein said broadband digital terminal receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of each video presentation to each of said gateway devices that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation, each said gateway device transmitting appropriate video presentations to appropriate ones of said plurality of display devices connected thereto including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of said plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.    
     
     
         9 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes 
 an optical network unit connected to said video source; and    a plurality of gateway devices, each of said gateway devices connected to said broadband digital terminal and a subset of said plurality of display devices;    wherein said optical network unit receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of each video presentation to each of said gateway devices that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation, each said gateway device transmitting appropriate video presentations to appropriate ones of said plurality of display devices connected thereto including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of said plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.    
     
     
         10 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes 
 a broadband digital terminal connected to said video source;    a plurality of optical network units connected to said broadband digital terminal; and    a plurality of gateway devices, each of said gateway devices connected to one of said plurality of optical network units and a subset of said plurality of display devices;    wherein 
 said broadband digital terminal receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of each video presentation to each of said plurality of optical network units that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation,  
 each of said plurality of optical network units receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of the video presentation to each of said plurality of gateway devices connected thereto that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation; and  
 each of said plurality of gateway devices transmitting appropriate video presentation to appropriate ones of said plurality of display devices connected thereto including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of said plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.  
   
     
     
         11 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein the video presentations are transmitted in Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) cells.  
     
     
         12 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein only one Virtual Path Identifier (VPI) and one Virtual Channel Identifier (VCI) is used to identify a particular video presentation on a particular channel even when the particular video presentation on the particular channel is requested for display on more than one display device connected to said switched multicasting station.  
     
     
         13 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein the video presentations that are multicast are compressed.  
     
     
         14 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 13 , wherein the compressed video presentations are compressed utilizing Moving Pictures Experts Group (MPEG) compression standards.  
     
     
         15 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 1 , wherein said switched multicasting station includes a multicasting table that tracks each video presentation and each display device.  
     
     
         16 . A switched telecommunication access system comprising: 
 a video source;    a switched multicasting station connected to said video source;    a plurality of gateway devices, each of said gateway devices connected to said switched multicasting station; and    a plurality of display devices, each display device connected to one of said plurality of gateway device, for displaying video presentations selected by a user;    wherein said switched multicasting station receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of each video presentation to each of said gateway devices that have display devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation, each said gateway device transmitting appropriate video presentations to appropriate ones of said plurality of display devices connected thereto including multicasting the same video presentation to the more than one of said plurality of display devices that selected the same video presentation.    
     
     
         17 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 16 , wherein the video presentations transmitted from said switched multicasting station are compressed.  
     
     
         18 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 17 , wherein said plurality of gateway devices include video decoders capable of uncompressing the compressed video presentations.  
     
     
         19 . The switched telecommunication access system of  claim 16 , further comprising a plurality of secondary switched multicasting stations connected between said switched multicasting station and said plurality of gateway devices, 
 wherein said switched multicasting station receives only a single copy of each video presentation and multicasts a single copy of each video presentation to each of said plurality of secondary switched multicasting stations that have gateway devices connected thereto that have selected the video presentation.