Using features extracted from an audio and/or video work to obtain information about the work

• US 20070041667A1
• Filed: 06/02/2006
• Published: 02/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Network-1 Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dr. Ingemar J Cox
• Inventors: Cox, Ingemar
• Granted Patent: US 8,010,988 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/305
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/433 using audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/434 using image data, e.g. images, photos, pictures taken by a user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 2201/90 characterised by the use of signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/58 of audio determination or detection of speech characteristics in general G10L25/00; speech recognition in general G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2407 Monitoring of transmitted content, e.g. distribution time, number of downloads arrangements for monitoring programmes for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02

Abstract

Information about an audio or video file played on a device is provided by (a) extracting features from the audio or video file, (b) communicating the features to a database, and (c) receiving the information about the audio or video file from the database. The information might include a song title, an album title, and/or a performer name. The information might include a title of a video work, a director of the video work, and/or names of performers in the video work. The information might be rendered on an output of the device. The information might be stored (e.g., persistently) locally on the device.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for associating extra work information with an identification of a work, the method comprising:

a) accepting a work and extra-work information associated with the work;

b) identifying the work as one of a predetermined number of known works, each of the predetermined number of known works having an identifier; and

c) associating the identifier of the one of the predetermined number of known works with the extra-work information.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein the extra-work information includes at least one of (A) a channel over which the work is or was broadcast, (B) a station which broadcast the work, (C) a time that the work broadcast is or was received, (D) a time that the work is or was broadcast, and (E) a geographic region in which the work is or was broadcast.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 wherein the act of associating the identifier of the one of the predetermined number of known works with the extra-work information uses a monitoring of the works and uses a comparison technique selected from a group consisting of (A) linear correlation, (B) statistical correlation, (C) mutual information, (D) Euclidean distance, (E) Lp-norms, (F) clustering, (G) kd-trees, (H) vantage point trees, and (I) excluded middle vantage point forest.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

d) storing the associated the identifier of the one of the predetermined number of known works and the extra-work information in a database.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4 further comprising:

e) accepting a client query including extra-work information; and

f) using the accepted extra-work information to lookup an identifier in the database.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5 further comprising:

g) using an identifier found in the database to lookup a work-related action.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6 wherein the work-related action is transiting the client sourcing the client query to an Internet web site.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein if the work is not identified as one of a predetermined number of known works, then d) assigning a new work identifier to the work;

and e) storing the identifier and work as a known work.

9. One or more machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon:

a) a first plurality of records, each of said first plurality of records including;

i) a first field for storing features of a first work;

ii) a second field for storing an identifier of the first work; and

b) a second plurality of records, each of said second plurality of recording including;

i) a first field for storing extra-work information associated with the first work; and

ii) a second field for storing an identifier of the first work.

10. The one or more machine readable medium of claim 9 wherein the extra-work information includes at least one of (A) a channel over which the work is or was broadcast, (B) a station which broadcast the work, (C) a time that the work broadcast is or was received, (D) a time that the work is or was broadcast, and (E) a geographic region in which the work is or was broadcast.

11. A monitoring apparatus, the monitoring apparatus comprising:

a) in input for accepting a work and extra-work information associated with the work;

b) means for identifying the work as one of a predetermined number of known works, each of the predetermined number of known works having an identifier; and

c) means for associating the identifier of the one of the predetermined number of known works with the extra-work information.

12. The monitoring apparatus of claim 11 wherein the extra-work information includes at least one of (A) a channel over which the work is or was broadcast, (B) a station which broadcast the work, (C) a time that the work broadcast is or was received, (D) a time that the work is or was broadcast, and (E) a geographic region in which the work is or was broadcast.

13. The monitoring apparatus of claim 11 further comprising:

d) a database for storing records, one of the records including the associated the identifier of the one of the predetermined number of known works and the extra-work information.

14. The monitoring apparatus of claim 11 further comprising means for assigning an identifier to a previously unknown work, wherein if the means for identifying does not identify the work as one of a predetermined number of known works, then providing the work to the means for assigning.

15. A computer-implemented method for linking a media work to an action, the method comprising:

a) extracting features from the media work;

b) determining an identification of the media work based on the features extracted; and

c) determining an action based on the identification of the media work determined.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15 wherein the media work is an audio signal

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16 wherein the audio signal is obtained from at least one of (A) a broadcast and (B) an audio file format.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 15 wherein the media work is a video signal.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 18 wherein the video signal is obtained from at least one of (A) a broadcast and (B) a video file format.

20. A computer-implemented method of providing information about an audio or video file played on a device, the computer-implemented method comprising:

a) extracting features from the audio or video file;

b) communicating the features to a database; and

c) receiving the information about the audio or video file from the database.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 20 wherein the file is an audio file, and wherein the audio file is one of (A) an mp3 file, and (B) a digital representation of an audio signal.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 21 wherein the information includes a song title, an album title, and a performer name.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 20 wherein the act of extracting the features is performed by at least one of (A) a microprocessor of the device, and (B) a digital signal processor of the device.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 20 wherein the file is a video file, and wherein the video file is one of (A) an MPEG file, and (B) a digital representation of a video signal.

25. The computer-implemented method of claim 24 the video file is a video work, and

wherein the information includes a title of the video work, a director of the video work, and names of performers in the video work.

26. The computer-implemented method of claim 20 further comprising:

d) rendering the information on an output of the device.

27. The computer-implemented method of claim 20 further comprising:

d) storing the information locally on the device.