Buffering Media Content

• US 20130166772A1
• Filed: 06/07/2010
• Published: 06/27/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: Tapio Kekki, Samuli
• Granted Patent: US 8,904,033 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/234
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/00 Editing; Indexing; Addressing; Timing or synchronising; Monitoring; Measuring tape travel
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42661 for reading from or writing on a magnetic storage medium, e.g. hard disk drive
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• 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

Abstract

Media content is downloaded on a media device. Portions of the media content are buffered successively during the download in a buffer on the device. During the buffering, the buffered portions are read for playback. In the buffer, a non-write buffer region trails behind a current playback read position. Upon the buffering reaching an end of the buffer, the buffering of media content is continued between a buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for buffering media content, the method comprising:

initiating download of media content to a device;

buffering portions of the media content successively during the download in a buffer on the device;

while buffering, reading the buffered portions and playing the media content, wherein a non-write buffer region trails behind a current playback read position by a first amount that is increasable up to a second predetermined amount, the non-write buffer region comprising a seekback buffer that includes portions of the media content available for replay; and

upon the buffering reaching an end of the buffer, continuing the buffering between a buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

incrementally allocating a size of the buffer for the media content during the buffering, such that the size is zero when the buffering begins and the size is incrementally allocated to a largest buffer size during the buffering.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

dynamically changing a size of the buffer for the media content during the playback.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the size of the buffer is dynamically changed without affecting a size of the non-write buffer region.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the seekback buffer is defined relative to a playhead pointer that moves through the buffer during playback.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

setting a size of the seekback buffer based on the media content.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, while continuing the buffering, that no buffer space is available between the buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region; and

in response to the determination, causing the download to pause while continuing the playback.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the playback begins simultaneously with the buffering.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

freeing up, during the playback, at least some buffer space between the buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

freeing up the non-write buffer region during the playback, such that only non-played portions of the media content are buffered.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the device is a media playing device configured to play multiple media content types;

the download is initiated upon a user requesting the media content using the device;

the download is a non-streaming download performed using hypertext-transfer protocol (HTTP);

the non-write buffer region comprises a seekback buffer;

the buffering progresses according to a writehead pointer moving in the buffer;

the current playback read position is defined by the playhead pointer moving in the buffer;

the seekback buffer is defined by a seekback pointer separated from the playhead pointer by a predefined amount;

the buffering is continued upon the writehead pointer reaching the end of the buffer; and

at least upon continuing the buffering, buffer address locations are selected while ensuring that the buffer address locations are not between the seekback pointer and the playhead pointer.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving an input from the user during the playback requesting replay of at least part of the media content; and

in response to the input, repositioning the playback pointer at an earlier location in the buffer and continuing the playback from the earlier location.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the input requests the replay to begin further back in the media content than the seekback buffer, and wherein the playback pointer is repositioned to a beginning of the seekback buffer in response to the input.

18. The device of claim 1, wherein:

the device is a media playing device configured to play multiple media content types;

the download is initiated upon a user requesting the media content using the device;

the download is a non-streaming download performed using hypertext-transfer protocol (HTTP);

the non-write buffer region comprises a seekback buffer;

the buffering progresses according to a writehead pointer moving in the buffer;

the current playback read position is defined by the playhead pointer moving in the buffer;

the seekback buffer is defined by a seekback pointer separated from the playhead pointer by a predefined amount;

the buffering is continued upon the writehead pointer reaching the end of the buffer; and

at least upon continuing the buffering, buffer address locations are selected while ensuring that the buffer address locations are not between the seekback pointer and the playhead pointer.

14. A computer program product embodied in a non-transitory program carrier and comprising instructions that when executed by a processor perform a method comprising:

initiating download of media content to a device;

buffering portions of the media content successively during the download in a buffer on the device;

while buffering, reading the buffered portions and playing the media content, wherein a non-write buffer region trails behind a current playback read position by a first amount that is increasable up to a second predetermined amount, the non-write buffer region comprising a seekback buffer that includes portions of the media content available for replay; and

upon the buffering reaching an end of the buffer, continuing the buffering between a buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

19. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the instructions that perform the method further comprise:

freeing up, during the playback, at least some buffer space between the buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, wherein the instructions that perform the method further comprise:

freeing up the non-write buffer region during the playback, such that only non-played portions of the media content are buffered.

15. A device comprising:

a communication component configured to download media content to the device;

a buffer in which portions of the media content are successively buffered during the download and during playback of the media content, wherein a non-write buffer region trails behind a current playback read position by a first amount that is increasable up to a second predetermined amount, the non-write buffer region comprising a seekback buffer that includes portions of the media content available for replay; and

an output device performing playback of the media content, wherein upon an end of the buffer being reached, buffering continues between a buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the seekback buffer is defined relative to a playhead pointer that moves through the buffer during playback.

17. The device of claim 15, wherein:

the download is a non-streaming download initiated upon a user requesting the media content using the device, the non-streaming download performed using hypertext-transfer protocol (HTTP); and

upon determining that no buffer space is available between the buffer beginning and the non-write buffer region, the device causes the non-streaming download to pause while continuing the playback.