PLAYING DEVICE AND PLAYING METHOD

• US 20130014140A1
• Filed: 02/23/2011
• Published: 01/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beijing Lenovo Software Ltd (Lenovo Group Ltd.), Lenovo (Beijing) Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Beijing Lenovo Software Ltd (Lenovo Group Ltd.), Lenovo (Beijing) Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ye, Changchun, Wang, Xianfeng
• Granted Patent: US 9,271,037 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/9
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4542 Blocking scenes or portions of the received content, e.g. censoring scenes

Abstract

A playing device and a play method are provided. The playing device includes a playing module configured to play a first media stream currently being received; a first monitoring module configured to monitor whether the first media stream contains a content a user does not want to watch and generate a monitor result; and a first controlling module configured to control the playing module to play a second media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch, the second media stream being different from the first media stream and containing a content the user wants to watch.

Claims

1. A playing device, comprising:

a playing module configured to play a first media stream currently being received;

a first monitoring module configured to monitor whether the first media stream contains a content a user does not want to watch and to generate a monitor result;

a first controlling module configured to control the playing module to play a second media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch, the second media stream being different from the first media stream and containing a content the user wants to watch.

2. The playing device of claim 1, wherein first controlling module is configured to control the playing module to play the second media stream by:

playing the second media stream while stopping receiving the first media stream, or

playing the second media stream while continuing receiving, without playing, the first media stream;

playing the first media stream and the second media stream simultaneously in different windows on a display screen of the playing device.

3. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the second media stream comprises at least one of:

a local media stream pre-stored in the playing device;

a network media stream; and

a media stream on a preset channel.

4. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the first monitoring module comprises:

a first label detecting module configured to detect a label for media content contained in the first media stream currently being received and to generate a first detection result; and

a first determining module configured to determine that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the first detection result indicating that the label for media content contained in the first media stream is a label for the content the user does not want to watch.

5. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the first monitoring module comprises:

a first play time acquiring module configured to acquire play time for the content the user does not want to watch contained in the first media stream;

a first play time monitoring module configured to monitor whether the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has started and to generate a first time monitor result; and

a second determining module configured to determine that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the first time monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has started.

6. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the first monitoring module comprises:

a video frame acquiring module configured to acquire video frames in the first media stream currently being received;

a correlation calculating module configured to calculate a correlation between a currently acquired video frame and one or more preceding video frames; and

a third determining module configured to determine that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch when the correlation is smaller than a preset threshold.

7. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the first monitoring module comprises:

a video frame storing module configured to store in advance a first video frame for a content the user does not want to watch;

a video frame matching module configured to match a video frame in the first media stream currently being received with the first video frame and to generate a match result; and

a fourth determining module configured to determine that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the match result indicating that the video frame matches the first video frame.

8. The playing device of claim 1, wherein the first controlling module comprises:

a first prompting module configured to prompt the user as to whether to play the second media stream when the monitor result indicates that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch; and

a first executing module configured to control the playing module to play the second media stream upon receiving an instruction that the user wants to play the second media stream.

9. The playing device of claim 1, further comprising:

a second monitoring module configured to monitor whether play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended and to generate a monitor result;

a second controlling module configured to control the playing module to play the first media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended.

10. The playing device of claim 9, wherein the second monitoring module comprises:

a second label detecting module configured to detect a label for media content in the first media stream while continuing receiving the first media stream and to generate a second detection result; and

a fifth determining module configured to determine that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch contained in the first media stream has ended in response to the second detection result indicating that the label for media content contained in the first media stream is a label for the content the user wants to watch.

11. The playing device of claim 9, wherein the second monitoring module comprises:

a second play time acquiring module configured to acquire play time for the content the user does not want to watch contained in the first media stream before playing the second media stream;

a second play time monitoring module configured to monitor the play time for the content the user does not want to watch and to generate a second time monitor result; and

a sixth determining module configured to determine that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended in response to the second time monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended.

12. The playing device of claim 9, wherein the second controlling module comprises:

a second prompting module configured to prompt the user as to whether to play the first media stream when the monitor result indicates that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended; and

a second executing module configured to control the playing module to play the first media stream upon receiving an instruction that the user wants to play the first media stream.

13. The playing device of claim 1, further comprising:

a timer module configured to set a timer for the play time for the content the user does not want to watch in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch and to generate timer information; and

a third prompting module configured to prompt the timer information to the user such that the user can determine whether the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended based on the timer information.

14. A playing method, comprising:

playing a first media stream currently being received;

monitoring whether the first media stream contains a content a user does not want to watch, and generating a monitor result;

playing a second media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch, the second media stream being different from the first media stream and containing a content the user wants to watch.

15. The playing method of claim 14, wherein playing the second media stream comprises:

playing the second media stream while stopping receiving the first media stream, or

playing the second media stream while continuing receiving, without playing, the first media stream;

or

playing the first media stream and the second media stream simultaneously in different windows on a display screen of a playing device.

16. The playing method of claim 14, wherein the monitoring step comprises:

detecting a label for media content contained in the first media stream currently being received and generating a first detection result; and

determining that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the first detection result indicating that the label for media content contained in the first media stream is a label for the content the user does not want to watch.

17. The playing method of claim 14, wherein the monitoring step comprises:

acquiring play time for the content the user does not want to watch contained in the first media stream;

monitoring whether the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has started, and generating a first time monitor result; and

determining that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the first time monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has started.

18. The playing method of claim 14, wherein the monitoring step comprises:

acquiring video frames in the first media stream currently being received;

calculating a correlation between a currently acquired video frame and one or more preceding video frames; and

determining that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch when the correlation is smaller than a preset threshold.

19. The playing method of claim 14, wherein the monitoring step comprises:

matching a video frame in the first media stream currently being received with a pre-stored first video frame for a content the user does not want to watch, and generating a match result; and

determining that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch in response to the match result indicating that the video frame matches the first video frame.

20. The playing method of claim 14, wherein playing a second media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch comprises:

prompting the user as to whether to play the second media stream when the monitor result indicates that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch; and

playing the second media stream upon receiving an instruction that the user wants to play the second media stream.

21. The playing method of claim 14, further comprising, after playing the second media stream:

monitoring whether play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended, and generating a monitor result;

playing the first media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended.

22. The playing method of claim 21, wherein the step of monitoring after playing the second media stream:

detecting a label for media content in the first media stream while continuing receiving the first media stream, and generating a second detection result; and

determining that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch contained in the first media stream has ended in response to the second detection result indicating that the label for media content contained in the first media stream is a label for the content the user wants to watch.

23. The playing method of claim 21, wherein the step of monitoring after playing the second media stream:

acquiring play time for the content the user does not want to watch as contained in the first media stream before playing the second media stream;

monitoring the play time for the content the user does not want to watch, and generating a second time monitor result; and

determining that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended in response to the second time monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended.

24. The playing method of claim 21, wherein playing the first media stream in response to the monitor result indicating that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended comprises:

prompting the user as to whether to play the first media stream when the monitor result indicates that the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended; and

playing the first media stream upon receiving an instruction that the user wants to play the first media stream.

25. The playing method of claim 14, further comprising, after the monitoring step:

setting a timer for the play time for the content the user does not want to watch in response to the monitor result indicating that the first media stream contains the content the user does not want to watch and generating timer information; and

prompting the timer information to the user such that the user can determine whether the play time for the content the user does not want to watch has ended based on the timer information.