Media Quality Information Signaling In Dynamic Adaptive Video Streaming Over Hypertext Transfer Protocol

• US 20140317308A1
• Filed: 04/18/2014
• Published: 10/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Futurewei Technologies Incorporated (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Zhang, Shaobo, Wang, Xin
• Granted Patent: US 10,284,612 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/61 for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/756 adapting media to device capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23439 for generating different versions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6373 for rate control , e.g. request to the server to modify its transmission rate flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/647 Control signaling between network components and server or clients; Network processes for video distribution between server and clients, e.g. controlling the quality of the video stream, by dropping packets, protecting content from unauthorised alteration within the network, monitoring of network load, bridging between two different networks, e.g. between IP and wireless real-time session protocols H04L65/1101
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments

Abstract

A media representation adaptation method comprising obtaining an media presentation description (MPD) that comprises instructions for retrieving a plurality of media segments and their quality information, sending a quality information request, receiving the quality information that comprises a plurality of quality segments, selecting a media segment based on the quality information, sending a media segment request that requests the media segment, and receiving the media segment. A computer program product that when executed by a processor causes a network device to obtain an MPD that comprises instructions for retrieving a media content stream and quality information, determine a quality level threshold, request a quality information associated with the media content stream, receive the quality information, select a media segment with a corresponding quality segment that is greater than the quality level threshold, send a media segment request that requests the media segment, and receive the media segment.

Claims

1. A media representation adaptation method, comprising:

obtaining a media description presentation (MPD) that comprises information for retrieving a plurality of media segments and their metadata information;

sending a metadata information request in accordance with the information provided in the MPD, wherein the metadata information request requests metadata information that corresponds to one or more media segments in the plurality of media segments;

receiving the metadata information that corresponds to the one or more media segments in the plurality of media segments;

selecting a media segment from the one or more media segments in the plurality of media segments based on the metadata information;

sending a media segment request that requests the media segment; and

receiving the media segment in response to the media segment request.

3. The method of claim 21, wherein the metadata segments have a one-to-one association with the media segments.

4. The method of claim 21, wherein one or more of the metadata segments are associated with one or more of the plurality of media segments.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising retrieving bitrate information associated with the plurality of the media segments.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) connection is used to send the metadata information request and to receive the metadata information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata information can be accessed independent of the media segments.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata information comprises a plurality of metadata segments.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the plurality of metadata segments are derived from a metadata representation, and wherein the metadata representation is associated with a media representation that comprises the media segments.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata information comprises one of quality information or power information.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein the information for retrieving the plurality of media segments and their metadata information comprises elements, attributes, or both.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein the metadata information comprises one or more metadata metrics of the plurality of media segments.

2. (canceled)

6. (canceled)

9. A computer program product comprising computer executable instructions stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium that when executed by a processor causes a network device to perform the following:

obtain a dynamic adaptive streaming over the hypertext transfer protocol media presentation description (MPD) that comprises information for retrieving a media content stream and quality information associated with the media content stream;

determine a quality level threshold for the media content stream;

request a quality information associated with the media content stream;

receive the quality information associated with the media content stream;

select a media segment with a corresponding quality segment that is greater than the quality level threshold;

send a media segment request that requests the media segment; and

receive the media segment.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the quality information comprises a plurality of quality segments that each corresponds with one of a plurality of media segments within the media content stream.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the quality information comprises a plurality of quality segments that corresponds with a plurality of media segments within the media content stream.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the computer executable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the network device to:

select the media segment using bitrate information associated with one or more media segments of the media content stream.

26. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the quality information comprises one or more metrics used to obtain the metadata information.

27. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the quality information is derived from a metadata representation, and wherein the metadata representation is associated with a media representation that comprises the media segments.

12. (canceled)

14-15. -15. (canceled)

16. An apparatus for media representation adaptation according to a media description presentation (MPD) that comprises information for retrieving a plurality of media segments and their metadata information, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processor cause the apparatus to perform the following;

receive a metadata information request in accordance with the MPD;

send metadata information that comprises quality information;

receive a media segment request that requests a media segment; and

send the media segment in accordance with the MPD.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the metadata information comprises a plurality of metadata segments with a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of media segments.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the metadata segment comprises a plurality of metadata segments and wherein each of the plurality of metadata segments corresponds with two or more media segments of the plurality of media segments.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the metadata information further comprises bitrate information of the plurality of media segments.

28. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the metadata information comprises one or more metadata metrics of the plurality of media segments.

17. (canceled)

29. A method for media representation adaptation, comprising:

obtaining a media description presentation (MPD) that comprises information for retrieving a plurality of timed metadata segments from one or more timed metadata representations;

sending a timed metadata segment request for one or more of the timed metadata segments in accordance with the information provided in the MPD; and

receiving the timed metadata segment,

wherein the timed metadata segments comprise metadata information associated with one or more media segments.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the metadata information associated with the one or more media segments comprises quality information, power information, or both.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the timed metadata segments can be accessed independent of the media segments

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the timed metadata segments have a one-to-one association with media segments.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein one or more of the timed metadata segments are associated with one or more of the media segments.

34. The method of claim 29, wherein the timed metadata representations are associated with a second representation.

35. The method of claim 29, wherein the second representation is a media representation.