Rendering graphics/image data using dynamically generated video streams

• US 20060037054A1
• Filed: 09/30/2004
• Published: 02/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: McDowell, Brian C., Evans, Stephen S.
• Granted Patent: US 7,694,324 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4363 Adapting the video stream to a specific local network, e.g. a Bluetooth® network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/18 Closed-circuit television [CCTV] systems, i.e. systems in which the video signal is not broadcast

Abstract

The present invention provides for rendering graphics/image data at an electronic device that typically has limited resources. A video data steam is received at an electronic device, the video data stream including either user interface information or slideshow presentation data coded in a video codec format. A video processor of the electronic device is used to decode at least a portion of the video data stream into video frame data. A portion of the user interface or slideshow presentation is then displayed as video from data on a display of the electronic device.

Claims

1. In an entertainment network comprising a host computing device and at least one electronic device that typically has limited resources, a method of rendering a user interface for an application running at the computing device on a display of the electronic device, the method comprising acts of:

receiving at an electronic device a video data stream, which includes user interface information coded in a video codec format;

using a video processor of the electronic device for decoding at least a portion of the video data stream into video frame data; and

displaying at least a portion the user interface as video frame data on a display of the electronic device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising acts of:

transmitting user input that indicates a change in one or more portions of the user interface; and

idle receiving an altered video data stream in accordance with the user input received.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the user input is transmitted through a back channel associated with a video stream channel used to transmit the video data stream.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the user input is received at the electronic device from a remote device by one or more of inferred light waves, micro waves or radio waves.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the video data stream further includes control information configured to be processed by a central processing unit in the electronic device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the control information includes object information associated with a portion of the user interface configured to be stored by the electronic device for future reference.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the object information is configured to be used in rendering portions of other user interfaces on the electronic device.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the control information includes command data, which indicates how an instance of the object is to be manipulated on the electronic device, the command data including one or more of a sizing, a location, the graphical appearance and a behavior of the instance.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the control information supersedes the video frame data such that when the control information is received after a portion of the video data steam corresponding to the video frame data as been received, but before the video frame data is fully processed, the control data is processed before the processing of the video frame data.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the video data stream includes an audio data stream portion.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the video data stream format is one of MPEG, MPEG 2, DMV or WMV.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is chosen from a set top box, DVD player, network television set, or digital media adapter.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein UPnP AV is used to detect the presence of the host computer, the electronic device, or both.

14. In an entertainment network comprising at least one computing device and at least one electronic device that typically has limited resources for rendering bitmap images, a method of rendering slideshow presentation information on a display of the electronic device, the method comprising acts of:

receiving at an electronic device a video data stream, which includes slideshow presentation data coded in a video codec format, the slideshow presentation data including image data accessible by a host computer;

using a video processor of the electronic device for decoding at least a portion of the video data stream into video frame data; and

displaying at least a portion of the slideshow presentation data as video frame data on a display of the electronic device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the slideshow presentation data further includes transitional information that indicates how the image data is to be visually represented at one or more moments in time within the slideshow presentation, the transitional information within the video data stream being processed by a central processing unit of the electronic device.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the transitional information is one or more an animate, pan, zoom, cross-fade or playing of music.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising the act of:

receiving command data that indicates how the image data is to visually represented at one or more moments in time within the slideshow presentation, the command data received by a remote device and processed by a central processing unit of the electronic device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the command data is one or more an animate, pan, zoom, cross-fade or playing music.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the image data represents a series of bitmaps, the method further comprising acts of:

receiving user input that indicates a change in the ordering or display of the series of bitmaps, the change being one of a pause, skip, stop, fast forward or reverse; and

altering the video data stream in accordance with the user input received.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the image data represents a series of bitmaps, the method further comprising acts of:

transmitting to the host computer user input that indicates a change in the ordering or display of the series of bitmaps, the change being one of a pause, skip, stop, fast forward or reverse; and

receiving, an altered video data stream in accordance with the user input transmitted.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the user input is transmitted through a back channel associated with a video stream channel used to transmit the video data stream.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the user input is received at the electronic device from a remote device by one or more of inferred light waves, micro waves or radio waves.

23. The method of claim 14, wherein the video data stream format is one of MPEG, MPEG 2, DMV or WMV.

24. The method of claim 14, wherein the electronic device is chosen from a set top box, DVD player, network television set, or digital media adapter.

25. The method of claim 14, wherein UPnP AV is used to detect the presence of the host computer, the electronic device, or both.

26. In an entertainment network comprising a host computing device and at least one electronic device that typically has limited resources, a computer program product for implementing a method of rendering a user interface for an application running at the computing device on a display of the electronic device, the computer program product comprising one or more computer readable media having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

receive at an electronic device a video data stream, which includes user interface information coded in a video codec format;

use a video processor of the electronic device for decoding at least a portion of the video data stream into video frame data; and

display at least a portion the user interface as video frame data on a display of the electronic device.

27. The computer program product of claim 26, further comprising computer executable instructions that can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

transmit user input that indicates a change in one or more portions of the user interface; and

receive an altered video data stream in accordance with the user input received.

28. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein the user input is transmitted through a back channel associated with a video stream channel used to transmit the video data stream.

29. The computer program product of claim 26, wherein the video data stream further includes control information configured to be processed by a central processing unit in the electronic device.

30. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein the control information includes object information associated with a portion of the user interface configured to be stored by the electronic device for future reference.

31. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein the object information is configured to be used in rendering portions of other user interfaces on the electronic device.

32. The computer program product of claim 30, wherein the control information includes command data, which indicates how an instance of the object is to be manipulated on the electronic device, the command data including one or more of a sizing, a location, the graphical appearance and a behavior of the instance.

33. The computer program product of claim 29, wherein the control information supersedes the video frame data such that when the control information is received after a portion of the video data steam corresponding to the video frame data as been received, but before the video frame data is fully processed, the control data is processed before the processing of the video frame data.

34. In an entertainment network comprising at least one computing device and at least one electronic device that typically has limited resources for rendering bitmap images, a computer program product for implementing a method of rendering slideshow presentation information on a display of the electronic device, the computer program product comprising one or more computer readable media having stored thereon computer executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

receive at an electronic device a video data stream, which includes slideshow presentation data coded in a video codec format, the slideshow presentation data including image data accessible by a host computer;

use a video processor of the electronic device for decoding at least a portion of the video data stream into video frame data; and

display at least a portion of the slideshow presentation data as video frame data on a display of the electronic device.

35. The computer program product of claim 34, wherein the slideshow presentation data further includes transitional information that indicates how the image data is to be visually represented at one or more moments in time within the slideshow presentation, the transitional information within the video data stream being processed by a central processing unit of the electronic device.

36. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein the transitional information is one or more an animate, pan, zoom, cross-fade or playing of music.

37. The computer program product of claim 34, further comprising computer executable instructions that can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

receive command data that indicates how the image data is to visually represented at one or more moments in time within the slideshow presentation, the command data received by a remote device and processed by a central processing unit of the electronic device.

38. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the command data is one or more an animate, pan, zoom, cross-fade or playing music.

39. The computer program product of claim 34, wherein the image data represents a series of bitmaps, further comprising computer executable instructions that can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

receive user input that indicates a change in the ordering or display of the series of bitmaps, the change being one of a pause, skip, stop, fast forward or reverse; and

alter the video data stream in accordance with the user input received.

40. The computer program product of claim 34, wherein the image data represents a series of bitmaps, further comprising computer executable instructions that can cause the distributed computing system to perform the following:

transmit to the host computer user input that indicates a change in the ordering or display of the series of bitmaps, the change being one of a pause, skip, stop, fast forward or reverse; and

receive an altered video data stream in accordance with the user input transmitted.