EXTRACTING GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION FROM TV SIGNAL TO SUPERIMPOSE MAP ON IMAGE

• US 20110001878A1
• Filed: 07/02/2009
• Published: 01/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yu, Yang, Jiang, Libiao
• Application Number:
  US12/497,139
• Publication Number:
  US 20110001878A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/565
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/46 Extracting features or characteristics from the video content, e.g. video fingerprints, representative shots or key frames
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/635 Overlay text, e.g. embedded captions in a TV program
• 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 21/4394 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 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4858 for modifying screen layout parameters, e.g. fonts, size of the windows
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4886 for displaying a ticker, e.g. scrolling banner for news, stock exchange, weather data
• 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 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence

Abstract

A TV uses optical character recognition (OCR) to extract text from a TV image and/or voice recognition to extract text from the TV audio and if a geographic place name is recognized, displays a relevant map in a picture-in-picture window on the TV. The user may be given the option of turning the map feature on and off, defining how long the map is displayed, and defining the scale of the map to be displayed.

Claims

1. A TV system comprising:

at least one TV display;

at least one processor controlling the TV display to present TV images;

at least one audio speaker, the processor causing the speaker to present audio associated with the TV images;

at least one computer-readable medium accessible to the processor and bearing instructions to cause the processor to;

extract text information from the audio and/or images;

determine whether the text information represents a geographic place name;

if the text information represents a geographic place name, present a map of a geographic place corresponding to the geographic place name in a picture-in-picture window on the TV display.

2. The TV system of claim 1, wherein the processor receives user input indicating whether maps should be presented during operation.

3. The TV system of claim 2, wherein if the user input indicates maps are to be presented the processor prompts the user to enter a desired time period defining how long a map is presented on the TV display.

4. The TV system of claim 3, wherein the processor presents maps on the TV display for time periods conforming to a user-entered desired time period.

5. The TV system of claim 2, wherein if the user input indicates maps are to be presented the processor prompts the user to enter a desired map scale.

6. The TV system of claim 5, wherein the processor presents maps on the TV display conforming to the desired map scale.

7. The TV system of claim 1, wherein the processor extracts text information from both the audio and images and only if text from the audio representing a geographic place name matches text in the video, presents a corresponding map.

8. TV, system comprising:

at least one TV display;

at least one processor controlling the TV display to present TV images;

at least one audio speaker, the processor causing the speaker to present audio associated with the TV images;

at least one computer-readable medium accessible to the processor and bearing instructions to cause the processor to;

receive user input indicating whether a map feature is to be enabled;

only if the user input indicates that the map feature is to be enable, extract text information from the audio and/or images and correlate the text information to a map of a geographic place corresponding to the text information.

9. The TV system of claim 8, wherein the processor presents the map in a picture-in-picture window overlaid on a main image.

10. The TV system of claim 8, wherein if the user input indicates the map feature is to be enabled the processor prompts the user to enter a desired time period defining how long a map is presented on the TV display.

11. The TV system of claim 10, wherein the processor presents maps on the TV display for time periods conforming to a user-entered desired time period.

12. The TV system of claim 8, wherein if the user input indicates the map feature is to be enabled the processor prompts the user to enter a desired map scale.

13. The TV system of claim 12, wherein the processor presents maps on the TV display conforming to the desired map scale.

14. The TV system of claim 8, wherein the processor extracts text information from both the audio and images and only if text from the audio representing a geographic place name matches text in the video, presents a corresponding map.

15. TV processor executing a method comprising:

receiving a TV signal;

presenting the TV signal on a TV display and at least one TV speaker;

analyzing the TV signal for geographic words;

in response to detecting a geographic word, presenting on the TV display along with the TV signal and in real time without first recording the TV signal an image of a map showing the geographic location indicated by the geographic word.

16. The TV processor of claim 15, wherein video in the TV signal is analyzed for the geographic words.

17. The TV processor of claim 15, wherein audio in the TV signal is analyzed for the geographic words.

18. The TV processor of claim 15, wherein the processor executes the analyzing act only if a user input signal indicates that a map feature is to be enabled.

19. The TV processor of claim 15, wherein the processor presents the map on the TV display for a user-selected time period, and then removes the map from the display.

20. The TV processor of claim 15, wherein the processor presents the map on the TV in a user-selected scale.