Media streaming using a headless browser

• US 10,554,706 B1
• Filed: 08/17/2018
• Issued: 02/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wowza Media Systems LLC
• Original Assignee: Wowza Media Systems LLC
• Inventors: Good, Charles F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mirza, Adnan M
• Application Number:
  US16/104,820
• Publication Number:
  US 20200059503A1
• Time in Patent Office: 536 Days
• Field of Search: 709219
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/61 for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/765 intermediate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

A method includes receiving an input media stream at a hardware encoder. The method also includes executing, at a processor of the hardware encoder, a headless browser to retrieve an instance of a dynamic web page that includes additional content. The method also includes storing the additional content at a memory that is accessible to the processor and encoding circuitry of the hardware encoder. The method further includes retrieving, at the encoding circuitry, the additional content from the memory and encoding the input media stream to generate an output media stream. At least one frame of the output media stream includes at least a portion of the additional content in conjunction with at least a portion of a corresponding frame of the input media stream.

Claims

1. A hardware encoder comprising:

an input interface configured to receive an input media stream;

a memory;

a processor coupled to the memory, the processor configured to;

execute a headless browser to retrieve an instance of a dynamic web page that includes additional content; and

store the additional content at the memory; and

encoding circuitry coupled to the input interface and to the memory, the encoding circuitry configured to;

retrieve the additional content from the memory; and

in response to retrieving the additional content, encode the input media stream to generate an output media stream, at least one frame of the output media stream including at least a portion of the additional content retrieved from the memory in conjunction with at least a portion of a corresponding frame of the input media stream.

2. The hardware encoder of claim 1, further comprising a network interface coupled to the encoding circuitry, the network interface configured to transmit the output media stream to a publishing destination.

3. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to provide a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the dynamic web page to the headless browser to retrieve the instance of the dynamic web page.

4. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the instance of the dynamic web page comprises a transparent portion.

5. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein at least one of the instance of the dynamic web page or the frame of the input media stream comprises a green screen background.

6. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the additional content is controlled by a web application.

7. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the additional content comprises at least one of an overlay graphic, a title, or social interaction feedback.

8. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the additional content is based on content associated with the input media stream.

9. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein, when the additional content is stored at the memory, the additional content is file locked.

10. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein, when the additional content is stored at the memory, the additional content is semaphore locked.

11. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein in response to a determination that particular additional content is unavailable at the memory, the encoding circuitry is configured to continue encoding the input media stream without the particular additional content.

12. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the instance of a dynamic web page corresponds to a semitransparent image that is overlaid on top of content associated with the input media stream using alpha blending.

13. The hardware encoder of claim 1, wherein the instance of a dynamic web page corresponds to at least one image that is overlaid on top of content associated with the input media stream using an offset value.

14. A method comprising:

receiving an input media stream at a hardware encoder;

executing, at a processor of the hardware encoder, a headless browser to retrieve an instance of a dynamic web page that includes additional content;

storing the additional content at a memory that is accessible to the processor and accessible to encoding circuitry of the hardware encoder;

retrieving, at the encoding circuitry, the additional content from the memory; and

encoding, at the encoding circuitry, the input media stream to generate an output media stream in response to retrieving the additional content, at least one frame of the output media stream including at least a portion of the additional content retrieved from the memory in conjunction with at least a portion of a corresponding frame of the input media stream.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising transmitting the output media stream to a publishing destination.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising, in response to a determination that particular additional content is unavailable at the memory, continuing encoding of the input media stream without the particular additional content.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the additional content comprises at least one of an overlay graphic, a title, or social interaction feedback.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the additional content is based on content associated with the input media stream.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor within a hardware encoder, cause the processor to:

execute a headless browser to retrieve an instance of a dynamic web page that includes additional content for an input media stream; and

store the additional content at a memory that is accessible to the processor and accessible to encoding circuitry of the hardware encoder;

wherein the encoding circuitry is configured to;

retrieve the additional content from the memory; and

encode the input media stream to generate an output media stream in response to retrieving the additional content, at least one frame of the output media stream including at least a portion of the additional content retrieved from the memory in conjunction with at least a portion of a corresponding frame of the input media stream.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein, in response to a determination that particular additional content is unavailable at the memory, the encoding circuitry is configured to continue encoding of the input media stream without the particular additional content.