Method and system for enhancing the quality of video prompts in an interactive media response system

• US 20060282783A1
• Filed: 06/10/2005
• Published: 12/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Roy, Sumit, Covell, Michele, Ankcorn, John
• Granted Patent: US 8,687,016 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/744
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/203 Drawing of straight lines or curves
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/40 Filling a planar surface by adding surface attributes, e.g. colour or texture
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/30 Clipping
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/24 Generation of individual character patterns
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/115 Selection of the code volume for a coding unit prior to coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/136 Incoming video signal characteristics or properties
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/17 the unit being an image region, e.g. an object
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/176 the region being a block, e.g. a macroblock
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/40 using video transcoding, i.e. partial or full decoding of a coded input stream followed by re-encoding of the decoded output stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/61 in combination with predictive coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/86 involving reduction of coding artifacts, e.g. of blockiness

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention recite a method for enhancing the quality of visual prompts in and interactive media response system. In one embodiment, a video coder/decoder (codec) used by a thin device is determined. A visual prompt to be displayed on the thin device is accessed and the display parameters of the visual prompt are modified such that at least one character of the visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by the video codec.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing the quality of visual prompts in an interactive media response system, said method comprising:

determining a video coder/decoder (codec) used by a thin device;

accessing a visual prompt to be displayed on said thin device; and

modifying the display parameters of said visual prompt such that at least one character of said visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by said video codec.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said visual prompt comprises at least one text character.

3. The method as recited in claim 2 wherein a vertical edge of said at least one text character is aligned with a vertical boundary between two pixel blocks.

4. The method as recited in claim 2 wherein a horizontal edge of said at least one text character is aligned with a horizontal boundary between two pixel blocks.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising measuring the video quality of said visual prompt in response to said modifying.

6. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

pre-computing coefficients for rendering said at least one character.

7. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a pixel block displaying an image.

8. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

determining that the display of said at least one character is to be emphasized relative to the display of a second character; and

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a second pixel block displaying said second character.

9. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

determining the amount of data bits to be allocated to a general video intra-coded frame (I frame) relative to either of a general video bi-directional predictive frame (B frame) and a general video predictive frame (P frame); and

allocating a greater amount of data bits to an intra-coded frame (I frame) describing said at least one character relative to either of a bi-directional predictive frame (B frame) and a predictive frame (P frame) describing said at least one character.

27. The system of claim 1 wherein said modifier determines the amount of data bits to be allocated to a general video intra-coded frame (I frame) relative to either of a general video bidirectional predictive frame (B frame) and a general video predictive frame (P frame) and allocates a greater amount of data bits to an intra-coded frame (I frame) describing said at least one character relative to either of a bi-directional predictive frame (B frame) and a predictive frame (P frame) describing said at least one character.

10. An interactive media response system comprising:

a thin device; and

a computer system communicatively coupled with said thin device for modifying a visual prompt to be displayed on said thin device based upon a video coder/decoder (codec) such that at least one character of said visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by said video codec.

11. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said at least one character comprises at least one text character.

12. The interactive media response system of claim 11 wherein said computer system causes a vertical edge of said at least one text character to be aligned with a vertical edge between two pixel blocks when displayed on said thin device.

13. The interactive media response system of claim 11 wherein said computer system causes a horizontal edge of said at least one text character to be aligned with a horizontal edge between two pixel blocks when displayed on said thin device.

14. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said computer system is further for measuring the video quality of said visual prompt in response to said modifying.

15. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said computer system is further for pre-computing coefficients or rendering said at least on character.

16. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said computer system allocates a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than it allocates to a pixel block displaying an image.

17. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said computer system determines that said at least one character is to be emphasized relative to the display of a second character to be displayed on said thin device and allocates a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a second pixel block displaying said second character.

18. The interactive media response system of claim 10 wherein said computer system determines the amount of data bits to be allocated to a general video intra-coded frame (I frame) relative to either of a general video bi-directional predictive frame (B frame) and a general video predictive frame (P frame) and allocates a greater amount of data bits to an intra-coded frame (I frame) describing said at least one character relative to either of a bi-directional predictive frame (B frame) and a predictive frame (P frame) describing said at least one character.

19. A system for enhancing the quality of visual prompts in and interactive media response system, said method comprising:

a determiner for determining a video coder/decoder (codec) used by a thin device; and

a modifier for modifying the display parameters of a visual prompt to be displayed on said thin device such that at least one character of said visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by said video codec.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein said visual prompt comprises at least one text character.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein said modifier causes a vertical edge of said at least one text character to be aligned with a vertical edge between two pixel blocks when displayed on said thin device.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein said modifier causes a horizontal edge of said at least one text character to be aligned with a horizontal edge between two pixel blocks when displayed on said thin device.

23. The system of claim 19 wherein said modifier further measures the video quality of said visual prompt in response to said modifying.

24. The system of claim 19 wherein said modifier pre-computes coefficients for rendering said at least one character.

25. The system of claim 19 wherein said modifier allocates a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than it allocates to a pixel block displaying an image.

26. The system of claim 19 wherein said modifier determines that the display of said at least one character is to be emphasized relative to the display of a second character and allocates a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than it allocates to a second pixel block displaying said second character.

28. A computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for causing a computer system to perform a method for enhancing the quality of visual prompts in an interactive media response system, said method comprising:

determining a video coder/decoder (codec) used by a thin device;

accessing a visual prompt to be displayed on said thin device; and

modifying the display parameters of said visual prompt such that at least one character of said visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by said video codec.

29. The computer usable medium of claim 28 wherein said visual prompt comprises at least one text character and wherein said blocking artifact is selected from the group consisting essentially of:

a vertical boundary between two pixel blocks; and

a horizontal boundary between two pixel blocks.

30. The computer usable medium of claim 28 wherein said method further comprises:

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a pixel block displaying an image.

31. The computer usable medium of claim 28 wherein said method further comprises:

determining that the display of said at least one character is to be emphasized relative to the display of a second character; and

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a second pixel block displaying said second character.

32. A computer system comprising:

a bus;

a memory unit coupled to said bus; and

a processor coupled to said bus, said processor for executing a method for enhancing the quality of visual prompts in an interactive media response system, said method comprising;

determining a video coder/decoder (codec) used by a thin device;

accessing a visual prompt to be displayed on said thin device; and

modifying the display parameters of said visual prompt such that at least one character of said visual prompt is aligned with a blocking artifact generated by said video codec.

33. The computer system of claim 32 wherein said visual prompt comprises at least one text character and wherein said blocking artifact is selected from the group consisting essentially of:

a vertical boundary between two pixel blocks; and

a horizontal boundary between two pixel blocks.

34. The computer system of claim 32 wherein said method further comprises:

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a pixel block displaying an image.

35. The computer system of claim 32 wherein said method further comprises:

determining that the display of said at least one character is to be emphasized relative to the display of a second character; and

allocating a greater amount of data bits to a pixel block displaying said at least one character than is allocated to a second pixel block displaying said second character.