Mutimedia and Multichannel Information System

Abstract

The invention relates to a multimedia and multichannel information system for an interactive distribution of at least one real-time video input of a live event taking place in an auditorium. The system comprises a central unit and a plurality of remote units located in the auditorium. At least one of the plurality of remote units is connected to the central unit by means of a bi-directional transmission network for interactive communications between the remote units and the central unit, the at least one remote unit is provided with at least an interface and with audio/video, data and graphic accelerators disposed on a multimedia microprocessor housed in the remote units. The at least one remote unit is equipped with a touch screen display and is configured to display the at least one real-time video input of the live event taking place in the auditorium.

The invention claimed is: 
     
         1 . Multimedia and multichannel information system for an interactive distribution of at least one real-time video input of a live event taking place in an auditorium, the system comprising:
 a central unit; and   a plurality of remote units located in the auditorium,   wherein at least one of the plurality of remote units is connected to the central unit by means of a bi-directional transmission network for interactive communications between the remote units and the central unit,   wherein the at least one remote unit is provided with at least an interface and with audio/video, data and graphics accelerators disposed on a multimedia microprocessor housed in the remote units, and   wherein the at least one remote unit is equipped with a touch screen display and is configured to display the at least one real-time video input of the live event taking place in the auditorium,   wherein each remote unit comprises a connector for an external microphone.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one remote unit is configured to customize the at least one real-time video input of the live event displayed on its touch screen display. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the system is configured to distribute the at least one real-time video input to the remote units in compressed data packages. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said bi-directional transmission network comprises a program suitable for transmitting, from the central unit to the remote units, data, audio, video and/or graphics signals related to the live event and to interactively receive from a remote unit to the central unit data and/or audio video signals. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said transmission network includes a cable interconnecting remote units of a group of remote units in a daisy chain configuration for a signal and power supply distribution among the group of remote units, and wherein a splitter unit is disposed between the central unit and the group of remote units for decoupling a signal coming from a main branch. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the central unit is configured to recognize a remote unit's user and to dynamically assign a membership of the remote unit according to at least one of the group of language, company, importance, user's area or location, user's functions. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the microprocessor housed in the at least one remote unit is provided with: a support for an operating system with dedicated application software; an interface to the remote display unit; an external system memory SRAM, ROM; an output for USB-OTG hi-speed; a dedicated input for GPS module; an input for memory stick Pro, MMC, SD-card; an input for entering data or to perform one or more choices; one or more inputs/outputs for audio codec; a input for demodulating digital video; one or more inputs for clock. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the bi-directional transmission network is configured for an information exchange among a first and a second remote unit of the plurality of remote units. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the system is configured to store the at least one remote unit's choice of channels which are being displayed or listened to and of downloaded data to allow a display of statistics. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the central unit comprises a theatre module configured to provide the at least one remote unit with a simultaneous multilingual translation of lyric operas, musical, or prose beside a live data input from the live event. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one remote unit is provided with audio connectors for headphones or speakers of different channels of the simultaneous multilingual translation. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the central unit comprises a congress module configured to provide a conference booking functionality, a vote reception functionality of a vote from the at least one remote unit's user, or a vote printing functionality. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one remote unit comprises a presence sensor for identifying the presence of a spectator associated to the remote unit. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display of the at least one remote unit is provided with an optical filter which is configured to incline an optimal display angle from an angle being perpendicular to the surface of the display. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the display of the at least one remote unit is provided with an optical filter which can restrict the view on the horizontal axis, vertical axis or both, to avoid unwanted vision of a screen to other adjacent spectators and/or to restrict the emission of glow from the backlight system of the same screen. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one remote unit is provided with a courtesy light which can be activated by a user to illuminate objects placed under the remote unit. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one remote unit comprises a DC/DC converter employing elevated frequencies in order to avoid sound emissions of the remote unit to the auditorium. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one remote unit is fixedly installed within the auditorium. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the at least one remote unit is installed on an armchair, seat writing tablet or a wall of the auditorium. 
     
     
         20 . Using the multimedia and multichannel information system of  claim 1  for interactively watching the live event in the auditorium using at least one of the plurality of remote units.