Dynamic media rendering

• US 20070011196A1
• Filed: 06/30/2005
• Published: 01/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Rowe, Stephen, Ball, Steven
• Granted Patent: US 8,031,891 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/45 for identifying users
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4318 by altering the content in the rendering process, e.g. blanking, blurring or masking an image region image enhancement or restoration in general G06T5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4415 using biometric characteristics of the user, e.g. by voice recognition or fingerprint scanning cryptography using biological data H04L9/3231; authentication in networks using biometric H04L63/0861
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4852 for modifying audio parameters, e.g. switching between mono and stereo
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4854 for modifying image parameters, e.g. image brightness, contrast
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4858 for modifying screen layout parameters, e.g. fonts, size of the windows
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/74 Projection arrangements for image reproduction, e.g. using eidophor

Abstract

Media may be dynamically rendered by receiving signals from one or more types of sensors sensing in an area, and obtaining from the signals information about one or more locations of furniture, or one or more locations of persons or heads or ears thereof, or identities of one or more persons in common with other data such as time of day, season, or other external metadata. Audio and/or video data may be rendered based on the locations or identities. The identity of a person can be automatically obtained and used to automatically select a rendering profile which is then used to render digital audio and/or video media. A dynamically changing spatial location of a head and/or or ears may be automatically determined and how an audio stream is rendered may be dynamically changed based on the spatial location.

Claims

1. A method of dynamically rendering media with a device, the method comprising:

receiving or sampling signals from two one or more types of sensors sensing in an area;

processing the signals to obtain area information comprising information about one or more locations of furniture, or one or more locations of persons or heads or ears thereof, or identities of one or more persons, where the receiving or sampling and the processing are repeated thereby changing the area information to reflect location and/or identity changes in the area; and

rendering audio and/or video data based on the area information, where the rendering is repeated in accordance with the changing of the area information.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein one of the sensors comprises a microphone array, or a microphone, or an infrared sensor, or a camera, or a spectrum-based sensor.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the area information comprises information about one or more locations of furniture, and/or one or more persons, and/or one or more heads, and/or ears, and where the rendering comprises rendering the audio data such that a sweet spot thereof dynamically corresponds to the one or more locations as they change.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the area information comprises information about one or more locations of furniture, and/or one or more persons, and/or one or more heads, and/or ears, and where the rendering comprises rendering the video data including at least brightness, or contrast, or intensity, or screen size, or format to dynamically correspond to the one or more locations as they change.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein a signal from one sensor is used to refine a search of a signal from another sensor.

6. A device configured to perform a method according to claim 1.

7. A computer-readable medium storing information capable of enabling a device to perform a method according to claim 1.

8. A method of individually customizing the rendition of digital audio and/or video media, the method comprising:

analyzing signals from one or more sensors to automatically obtain the identity of a person within the purview of the one or more sensors;

automatically selecting a rendering profile that corresponds to the identity, where the rendering profile comprises a set of audio and/or video rendering parameters that control how audio and/or video media is rendered; and

rendering digital audio and/or video media based on the rendering profile.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the analyzing is repeated to detect an identity of another person and a corresponding rendering profile is selected and used for the rendering.

10. A method according to claim 8, wherein the analyzing comprises recognizing the face or voice of the person to obtain the person'"'"'s identity.

11. A method according to claim 8, wherein the one or more signals are from a camera, and/or a microphone, and/or an RFID device.

12. A method according to claim 8, wherein at least a portion of the rendering profile depends upon a time or a day/night period of day.

13. A device configured to perform a method according to claim 8.

14. A computer-readable medium storing information capable of enabling a device to perform a method according to claim 8.

15. A method of dynamically rendering an audio stream, the method comprising:

automatically determining a dynamically changing spatial location of a head and/or or ears; and

dynamically changing how the audio stream is rendered based on the spatial location.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein the audio stream is rendered so that an audio sweet spot of the audio signal dynamically changes to match the dynamically changing spatial location.

17. A method according to claim 15, wherein means for sensing provides a signal upon which the determining is based.

18. A method according to claim 15, wherein the determining is based on location information about furniture.

19. A device configured to perform a method according to claim 15.

20. A computer-readable medium storing information capable of enabling a device to perform a method according to claim 15.