IMAGE SIGNAL GENERATING APPARATUS, IMAGE SIGNAL GENERATING METHOD, AND IMAGE SIGNAL GENERATING PROGRAM

• US 20090033795A1
• Filed: 06/10/2008
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Akiwa, Yusuke, Kondo, Tetsujiro, Tanaka, Tsuyoshi, Watanabe, Yoshinori, Ema, Takuro
• Granted Patent: US 8,339,515 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/571
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4221 Dedicated function buttons, e.g. for the control of an EPG, subtitles, aspect ratio, picture-in-picture or teletext
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• 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 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47217 for controlling playback functions for recorded or on-demand content, e.g. using progress bars, mode or play-point indicators or bookmarks specific graphical features in visual interfaces H04N21/4312
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/142 Edging; Contouring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/147 Scene change detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen

Abstract

Disclosed is an image signal generating apparatus that includes a video information obtaining unit that obtains a plurality of video information, a characteristic information obtaining unit that obtains a plurality of predetermined characteristic information from each of the plurality of video information obtained by the video information obtaining unit, and a sorting unit that changes an order of displaying the plurality of the video information based on each of the plurality of characteristic information obtained from the characteristic information obtaining unit. The image signal generating apparatus further includes a display image signal generating unit that generates a video signal to display the plurality of video information based on information obtained, as a result of changing the order of displaying the plurality of the video information, from the sorting unit.

Claims

1. An image signal generating apparatus comprising:

a video information obtaining unit that obtains a plurality of video information;

a characteristic information obtaining unit that obtains a plurality of predetermined characteristic information from each of the plurality of video information obtained by the video information obtaining unit;

a sorting unit that changes an order of displaying the plurality of the video information based on each of the plurality of characteristic information obtained from the characteristic information obtaining unit; and

a display image signal generating unit that generates a video signal to display the plurality of video information based on information obtained, as a result of changing the order of displaying the plurality of the video information, from the sorting unit.

2. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the characteristic information obtaining unit detects a change in a characteristic obtained from the video information, and

the sorting unit carries out sorting of the plurality of video information based on a frequency of changes in the characteristic detected by the characteristic information obtaining unit.

3. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the characteristic information obtaining unit detects subtitles in the video information.

4. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the characteristic information obtaining unit detects scene changes in the video information.

5. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the characteristic information obtaining unit detects similarity with one of the plurality of video information stored in advance.

6. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the characteristic information obtaining unit obtains information showing a content of the video information, and

the sorting unit that changes an order of displaying the plurality of the video information based on the information showing the content of the video information obtained from the characteristic information obtaining unit.

7. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the video signal generating unit generates a video signal to display a plurality of display regions on a single display screen.

8. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the video signal generating unit separately distributes video signals to a group of the plurality of display screens to form a multiscreen.

9. An image signal generating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a display apparatus.

10. An image signal generating method comprising the steps of:

obtaining a plurality of video information;

obtaining various characteristic information from the plurality of video information;

changing an order of displaying the plurality of the video information based on each of the plurality of characteristic information; and

generating a video signal to display the plurality of video information based on information obtained, as a result of changing the order of displaying the plurality of the video information.

11. A computer program causing a computer to perform an image signal generation processing, the processing comprising the steps of:

obtaining a plurality of video information;

obtaining various characteristic information from the plurality of video information;

changing an order of displaying the plurality of the video information based on each of the plurality of characteristic information; and

generating a video signal to display the plurality of video information based on information obtained, as a result of changing the order of displaying the plurality of the video information.