Patexia seeks prior art for US Patents 7,143,328 (US ‘328) and 7,555,693 (US ‘693), which allegedly describe an apparatus that combines two signals, a video signal and an auxiliary signal (e.g. text, audio, still images, picture-in-picture, closed captioning, checksum, etc...), into a single composite signal in such a way that at any given time only one of the signals, video or auxiliary, is being transmitted over the composite signal.

The apparatus, which includes a transmitter and a receiver tied together by a communications link, is dealing with six signals:

1. a video data signal 115
2. a video data enable signal 117 that indicates the time period when the video data signal 115 is being transmitted over the composite signal 145
3. an auxiliary data signal 125
4. an auxiliary data enable signal 127 that indicates the time period when the auxiliary data signal 125 is being transmitted over the composite signal 145
5. a generated composite signal 145
6. and a generated control signal 147

The apparatus uses these signals by:

• having a control device generate a control signal 147 from the video and auxiliary data enable signals 117 and 127
• having a multiplexer combine the video and auxiliary data signals 115 and 125 into a composite signal 145 using the generated control signal 147
• and then having a demultiplexer separate the composite signal 145 using the control signal 147 back into the video and auxiliary data signals (originally 115 and 125, now 415 and 425 in Figure 4A)

Figure 1A. Block Diagram of the Transmitter Side

Figure 4A. Block Diagram of the Receiver Side

Questions

1. Was the reference filed or published before August 29th, 2001? (True/False)
2. Does the reference describe an apparatus that combines a video and an auxiliary data signal into a single composite data signal, and then transmits that composite signal from a transmitter to a receiver over a communication link in such a way that the two signals do not interfere with each other?
3. Does the apparatus include a control device that generates a control signal from both the video and the auxiliary data enable signals?
4. Does the apparatus include a multiplexer that combines the video and auxiliary data signals into a single composite data signal using the generated control signal in such a way that at any given time only one of the signals (video or auxiliary) is being transmitted?
5. Do both the video and the auxiliary data enable signals include the time period when their respective data is being transmitted in the composite data signal?
6. Does the receiver include a demultiplexer that uses the control signal to separate the composite signal back into the video and auxiliary data signals?