Automated online broadcasting system and method using an omni-directional camera system for viewing meetings over a computer network

• US 20020191071A1
• Filed: 06/14/2001
• Published: 12/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Cutler, Ross Garrett, Rui, Yong, Gupta, Anoop, Cadiz, Johnathan J.
• Granted Patent: US 6,937,266 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/14.03
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

An automated system and method for broadcasting meetings over a computer network. The meeting is filmed using an omni-directional camera system and capable of being presented to a viewer both live and on-demand. The system of the present invention includes an automated camera management system for controlling the camera system and an analysis module determining the location of meeting participants in the meeting environments. The method of the present invention includes using the system of the present invention to broadcast an event to a viewer over a computer network. In particular, the method includes filming the event using an omni-directional camera system. Next, the method determines the location of each event participant in the event environment. Finally, a viewer is provided with a user interface for viewing the broadcast event. This user interface allows a viewer to choose which event participant that the viewer would like to view.

Claims

1. An automated event presentation system for capturing and viewing an event having event participants, comprising:

an omni-directional camera system that provides an omni-directional image of the event and that simultaneously monitors the event participants and films the event;

an automated online broadcasting system that controls the omni-directional camera system and broadcasts the event; and

a viewer platform in communication with the automated online broadcasting system that allows a viewer to view the broadcasted event.

2. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the omni-directional camera system includes a camera having a wide-angle view of approximately 360 degrees.

3. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the omni-directional camera system includes a plurality of cameras that combined provide an approximately 360-degree field-of-view.

4. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 2, wherein the camera includes a wide-angle imaging device.

5. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the automated online broadcasting system further comprises a switching module that allows switching between of the omni-directional image of the event.

6. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the omni-direction camera system has a resolution of approximately 1000 by 1000 pixels.

7. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 1, wherein the automated online broadcasting system further comprises an analysis module for finding and indexing the event participants.

8. A method for filming an event having event participants and presenting the filmed event to a viewer, comprising:

filming the event using an omni-directional camera system to provide an omni-directional image that contains each of the event participants;

determining a location of the event participants in the omni-directional image; and

providing a user interface to allow the viewer to choose which of the event participants in the omni-directional image to view.

9. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing the method recited in claim 8.

10. The method as set forth in claim 9, further comprising storing annotations associated with the event and synchronizing these annotations with the event.

11. The method as set forth in claim 10, further comprising allowing the viewer to select which of the annotations to store.

12. The method as set forth in claim 10, wherein which annotations to store may be selected:

(a) while the event is occurring;

(b) after the event has occurred.

13. The method as set forth in claim 10, wherein the annotations include at least one of:

(a) a whiteboard;

(b) a digital chat regarding the event;

(c) a digital question and answer session over a computer network.

14. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein the location of the event participants in the omni-directional image is determined by using a speaker detection technique to determine which of the event participants is speaking.

15. The method as set forth in claim 14, wherein a multiple camera views may be obtained from the omni-directional image and further comprising using the speaker detection technique to follow event participants that are speaking by switching from one camera view to another camera view.

16. The method as set forth in claim 14, wherein the speaker detection technique is a microphone-array sound source localization technique that uses a microphone array and sound source localization algorithms.

17. The method as set forth in claim 8, wherein the omni-directional camera system is one of:

(a) a single panoramic camera;

(b) an array cameras having an approximately 360-degree field-of-view.

19. The method as set forth in claim 18, wherein the viewer may select to view multiple portion of the omni-directional image.

20. The method as set forth in claim 18, wherein the omni-directional image contains all event participants within the event environment.

18. A method for displaying at least a portion of an omni-directional image capturing an event occurring within an event environment, comprising:

filming the event using an omni-directional camera system having a single camera to produce the omni-directional image;

transmitting the omni-directional image from a broadcasting platform to a viewer platform using a computer network; and

using the viewer platform to allow a viewer to select which portion of the omni-directional image the viewer would like to view.

21. An automated event presentation system for capturing an event, comprising:

a high-resolution omni-directional camera system that provides an omni-directional image of the event, the omni-directional image containing multiple camera views;

an automated online broadcasting system capable of broadcasting the omni-directional image over a computer network;

a viewer platform in communication with computer network that receives the omni-directional image; and

a virtual director module within the automated online broadcasting system that determines which of the multiple camera views within the omni-directional image to display on the viewer platform by applying a set of expert production rules.

22. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 21, wherein the virtual director module further comprises a switching module that provides switching between the multiple camera views of the event.

23. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 22, wherein the switching module provides instantaneous switching between the multiple camera views.

24. The automated event presentation system as set forth in claim 22, wherein the switching module is capable of providing negative switching that allows switching to a camera view of a person speaking before the person begins to speak.