TV Screen Text Capture

• US 20110304771A1
• Filed: 08/24/2011
• Published: 12/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Peter Rae Shintani, Robert Blanchard
• Original Assignee: Peter Rae Shintani, Robert Blanchard
• Inventors: Blanchard, Robert, Shintani, Peter Rae
• Granted Patent: US 8,102,405 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/565
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4113 PC
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4135 external recorder interface circuits between an apparatus for recording television signals and a television receiver H04N5/775
• 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 21/44008 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 21/440272 for performing aspect ratio conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4728 for selecting a Region Of Interest [ROI], e.g. for requesting a higher resolution version of a selected region
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/4448 for frame-grabbing

Abstract

A method of processing television images consistent with certain implementations involves receiving a television signal and capturing a television image; capturing and storing a frame of the television image to a frame memory device; editing the captured image to at least isolate a portion of the image; and storing the isolated portion of the image to a storage device for subsequent retrieval. This abstract is not to be considered limiting, since other embodiments may deviate from the features described in this abstract.

Claims

1. A method of processing television images, comprising:

at a television, receiving a television signal;

capturing a single frame of the television signal by extracting the frame from the received television signal;

storing the single frame of the television image to a frame memory device of the television;

editing the captured image to isolate at least a portion of the image, thereby producing an isolated portion of the image; and

storing the isolated portion of the image to a storage device for subsequent retrieval.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the storage device comprises a portion of the frame memory device.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the editing comprises at least one of rotating, cropping and scaling of the captured image.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the editing is carried out while a browser is being displayed on the screen.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the browser is displayed as an overlay in either a picture-in-picture or a split screen display.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the browser is displayed as an overlay in one of side of a split screen display that displays a full height rendition of an original image scaled to the split screen.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising OCR processing the edited and captured image to derive character data therefrom, and inserting the character data into a search engine via a browser.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the capturing is carried out in accord with commands received from a remote controller to manipulate a capture rectangle or cropping lines.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending the stored isolated portion of the image to at least one of a personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a storage device or a telephone.

10. A computer readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed on one or more programmed processors, carry out a method according to claim 1.

11. A method of processing television images, comprising:

receiving a television image;

capturing a single frame of the television signal by extracting the frame from the received television signal;

storing the single frame of the television image to a frame memory device of the television;

editing the captured image to at least isolate a portion of the image, thereby producing an isolated portion of the image;

where the editing is carried out while a browser is being displayed on the screen as an overlay; and

storing the isolated portion of the image to a portion of the frame memory device for subsequent retrieval.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the editing comprises at least one of rotating, cropping and scaling of the captured image.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the browser is displayed as an overlay in either a picture-in-picture or a split screen display.

14. The method according to claim 11, further comprising OCR processing the edited and captured image to derive character data therefrom, and inserting the character data into a search engine via a browser.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the capturing is carried out in accord with commands received from a remote controller to manipulate a capture rectangle or cropping lines.

16. The method according to claim 11, further comprising sending the stored isolated portion of the image to at least one of a personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a storage device or a telephone.

17. A method of processing television images, comprising:

at a television, receiving a television signal;

capturing a single frame of the television signal by extracting the frame from the received television signal;

storing the single frame of the television image to a frame memory device of the television;

isolating a portion of the stored frame of the television image;

editing the isolated portion of the image, where the editing is carried out while a browser is being displayed on the screen as an overlay, and where the editing includes at least one of rotating, cropping and scaling of the captured image;

where the browser is displayed as an overlay in one of side of a split screen display that displays a full height rendition of an original image scaled to the split screen, and where the original image is scaled for a 16;

9 active display area and the full height rendition is scaled to a full height image in the split screen to represent the original frozen frame;

storing the isolated portion of the image to a portion of the frame memory device for subsequent retrieval;

OCR processing the edited and captured image to derive character data therefrom, and inserting the character data into a search engine via a browser; and

sending the stored isolated portion of the image to at least one of a personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a storage device or a telephone.

18. A television apparatus, comprising:

a television receiver configured for receiving a video signal;

a frame memory device;

a programmed processor or processors coupled to the frame memory device and programmed to;

capture a single frame of the video signal by extracting the frame from the received television signal;

store the single frame of the video signal to the frame memory device of the television apparatus;

edit the captured image to isolate at least a portion of the image, thereby producing an isolated portion of the image; and

store the isolated portion of the image to a storage device for subsequent retrieval.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18, where the storage device comprises a portion of the frame memory device.

20. The apparatus according to claim 18, where the processor or processors further OCR processes the edited and captured image to derive character data therefrom, and inserts the character data into a search engine via a browser.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, where the browser is displayed as an overlay in either a picture-in-picture or a split screen display.

22. The apparatus according to claim 20, where the browser is displayed as an overlay in one of side of a split screen display that displays a full height rendition of an original image scaled to the split screen.

23. The apparatus according to claim 18, where the capturing is carried out in accord with commands received from a remote controller to manipulate a capture rectangle or cropping lines.

24. The apparatus according to claim 18, where the editing includes at least one of rotating, cropping and scaling of the captured image.

25. The apparatus according to claim 18, where the processor or processors further sends the stored isolated portion of the image to at least one of a personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a storage device or a telephone.

26. A television apparatus, comprising:

a television receiver configured for receiving a video signal;

a frame memory device;

a programmed processor or processors coupled to the frame memory device and programmed to;

capture a single frame of the video signal by extracting the frame from the received television signal;

store the single frame of the video signal to the frame memory device of the television apparatus;

edit the captured image to isolate at least a portion of the image, thereby producing an isolated portion of the image;

store the isolated portion of the image to a portion of the frame memory device for subsequent retrieval;

OCR process the edited and captured image to derive character data therefrom;

insert the character data into a search engine via a browser.

27. The apparatus according to claim 26, where the browser is displayed as an overlay in either a picture-in-picture or a split screen display.

28. The apparatus according to claim 26, where the browser is displayed as an overlay in one of side of a split screen display that displays a full height rendition of an original image scaled to the split screen.

29. The apparatus according to claim 26, where the capturing is carried out in accord with commands received from a remote controller to manipulate a capture rectangle or cropping lines.

30. The apparatus according to claim 26, where the editing includes at least one of rotating, cropping and scaling of the captured image.

31. The apparatus according to claim 26, where the processor or processors further sends the stored isolated portion of the image to at least one of a personal computer, a personal digital assistant, a storage device or a telephone.