MOBILE MEDIA, DEVICES, AND SIGNALING

• US 20100226526A1
• Filed: 12/30/2009
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Sharma, Ravi K., Modro, Sierra K., MacIntosh, Brian T.
• Application Number:
  US12/650,306
• Publication Number:
  US 20100226526A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0021 Image watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/80 Recognising image objects characterised by unique random patterns
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32309 in colour image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/3232 Robust embedding or watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0089 Image display device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/278 Subtitling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/7904 using intermediate digital signal processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/87 Regeneration of colour television signals H04N9/80 takes precedence

Abstract

Consumer uses of mobile devices and electronic media are changing. Mobile devices include increased computational capabilities, mobile broadband access, better integrated sensors, and higher resolution screens. These enhanced features are driving increased consumption of media such as images, maps, e-books, audio, video, and games. As users become more accustomed to using mobile devices for media, opportunities arise for new digital watermarking usage models. For example, transient media, like images being displayed on screens, can be watermarked to provide a link between mobile devices, extending the reach of digital watermarking. Digital fingerprinting can also be employed. Applications based on these emerging usage models can provide richer user experiences and drive increased media consumption. A great variety of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

Claims

1. A portable device comprising a processor, a memory, an input sensor for capturing data, and an output device, the memory including instructions by which the processor can decode digital watermarks in the captured data according to plural different steganographic decoding schemes, the input sensor being selected from the group consisting of a microphone and an image sensor, the device further including a location sensor portion, wherein an output from the location sensor portion is coupled to the processor and is used in deciding which of the plural different steganographic decoding schemes to apply to the captured data.

2. A portable device comprising a processor, a memory, an input sensor for capturing data, and an output device, the memory including instructions by which the processor can process the captured data to derive plural-bit data therefrom according to plural different digital watermarking and/or content fingerprinting schemes, the input sensor being selected from the group consisting of a microphone and an image sensor, the memory further including instructions causing the processor to analyze captured data for clues, and based on such clues determine which of said plural different schemes to apply to the captured data.

3. A method practiced in a movie auditorium, comprising the acts:

capturing audio or image data from a movie presentation, using a portable device;

by reference to the captured data, identifying a particular temporal location within a movie;

accessing information in a subtitle repository from the portable device, said accessing making reference to the identified temporal location; and

presenting subtitle information on a display screen of said portable device, in synchrony with the movie presentation.

4. The method 3 that further includes, by reference to the captured data, identifying the movie.

5. The method 4 that includes using a processor in the portable device to decode plural-bit data steganographically encoded in the captured data, and identifying the movie by reference to this decoded data.

6. The method 3 that includes identifying the particular temporal location by reference to audio or visual landmarks within the movie.

7. A method comprising the acts:

using an image sensor in a portable device, capturing image data from a picture presented by an electronic picture display;

processing the captured image data to identify the picture;

linking the portable device to an online photo sharing service associated with the identified picture; and

downloading to the portable device, from the photo sharing service, a higher resolution of the picture than originally captured.

8. A computer storage medium on which is stored application software, the application software causing a user interface to be presented on a display screen of a first device when the software is executed by a processor of the first device, the user interface including a digitally watermarked graphic, wherein data conveyed by the digitally watermarked graphic causes a second device to link to an online store from which another copy of that application software can be downloaded to that second device, when the second device captures an image of the user interface presented on the display screen of the first device.

9. A method comprising the acts:

using an image sensor in a first device to capture image data corresponding to a user interface screen presented by an application programming running on a second device;

processing the captured image data to derive an identifier;

by reference to the derived identifier, identifying an online store from which the application program running on the second device can be obtained; and

linking from the first device to said online store, and installing the application program on the first device.

10. The method 9 wherein the processing comprises processing the captured image data to derive fingerprint information therefrom.

11. The method 9 wherein the processing comprises processing the captured image data to decode steganographically encoded digital watermark data therefrom.

12. A method comprising the acts:

sending video data for display from a remote source to a display device, the sent video data being encoded with a first type of watermark;

decoding the first type of watermark from the sent video data to extract plural bits of payload data therefrom;

encoding the video data with a second type of watermark, the second type of watermark conveying plural of the bits of payload data extracted from the first type of watermark; and

presenting the video data with the encoded second type of watermark on the display device;

wherein the second type of watermark is more robust to digital-to-analog-to-digital conversion than the first type of watermark.

13. The method 12 wherein the decoding of the first type of watermark and the encoding of the second type of watermark is performed at the display device.