RECORDER AND METHOD FOR RETROSPECTIVE CAPTURE

• US 20150139605A1
• Filed: 12/05/2014
• Published: 05/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Knapp Investment Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Christopher A. Wiklof
• Inventors: WIKLOF, CHRISTOPHER A.
• Granted Patent: US 10,748,575 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/229
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/10527 Audio or video recording; Data buffering arrangements G11B20/12 - G11B20/18 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10537 Audio or video recording
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10638 First-in-first-out memories [FIFO] buffers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10712 buffer capacity, e.g. when the buffer capacity is exhausted, buffered data are overwritten with more recent data, accepting that the old data are lost
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10759 content data
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/005 Reproducing at a different information rate from the information rate of recording for television signals H04N5/783
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00933 Timing control or synchronising H04N1/00928, H04N1/00931, H04N1/00954 and H04N1/0096 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2141 in a multi-frame buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/215 Recording a sequence of still pictures, e.g. burst mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure

Abstract

A system and method allows a user to enter a command capture audio, video, and/or still pictures that commence at a moment in time earlier than entering the command.

Claims

1-22. -22. (canceled)

23. A recording method, comprising:

continuously capturing a stream of images using a capture element of a portable video recorder;

simultaneously presenting the stream of images to a user and transmitting the captured stream of images to a provisional memory of the portable video recorder;

holding frames comprising the images of the stream of images only for a period of time as provisional data in the provisional memory included in the portable video recorder;

receiving a user-initiated trigger signal from a user interface included in the portable video recorder; and

, upon receiving the trigger signal,

transferring, into a permanent memory, the content of the provisional memory starting from a time T0 and extending forward in time continuously to a later time, an interval of continuous permanently-recorded time being defined between T0 and the later time;

wherein T0 is a time of recording of an earliest non-discarded frame stored in the provisional memory at a time T1;

T1 is a time of a first user-initiated trigger signal; and

T2 is a time of a second user-initiated trigger signal; and

wherein the interval of continuous permanently-recorded time is set as a predetermined function that includes the time T0.

24. The method of claim 23,

wherein the interval is set equal to T2-T1.

25. The method of claim 23,

wherein the interval is set equal to T1-T0.

26. The method of claim 23,

wherein the interval is set equal to a predetermined time Tp, where Tp≧

T1-T0.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the predetermined time is user-selectable.

28. The method of claim 23, wherein the period of time, over which each image of the stream of images is only held, equals T1-T0, and further comprising a step of discarding an image held in the provisional memory after that image has resided in the provisional memory for the period of time.

29. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of transferring into a permanent memory the content of the provisional memory includes transferring the provisional data from a first memory circuit to a second memory circuit or storage apparatus.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the second memory circuit or storage apparatus is separate from the portable video recorder.

31. The method of claim 24, wherein the step of holding each image of the stream of images as provisional data includes at least one selected from the group consisting of

writing the provisional data to a FIFO memory configured to overflow the oldest provisional data as new provisional data is added, and

writing the provisional data to a circular buffer wherein the oldest provisional data is overwritten by the newest provisional data.

32. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of transferring into a permanent memory the content of the provisional memory includes saving the provisional data in the same order as received.

33. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of transferring begins at time T1.

34. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of transferring includes marking the provisional data as saved data in a same storage apparatus.

35. A portable video recorder for retrospectively recording, comprising:

a capture element configured to produce a continuous stream of images;

a provisional memory configured to receive frames comprising the images of the stream of images as provisional data from the capture element and hold the provisional data for only a period of time after the receipt of the provisional data;

a user-command device; and

a controller operatively coupled to the user-command device, the provisional memory, and the capture element, the controller being configured to

receive at least one command from the user-command device, and then to

transfer into a permanent memory the content of the provisional memory starting from a time T0 and extending forward in time continuously to a later time, an interval of continuous permanently-recorded time being defined between TO and the later time;

wherein T0 is a time of recording of an earliest non-discarded frame stored in the provisional memory at a time T1;

T1 is a time of a first user-initiated trigger signal; and

T2 is a time of a second user-initiated trigger signal; and

wherein the interval is set as a predetermined function that includes the time T0.

36. The portable video recorder of claim 35,

wherein the interval is set equal to T2-T1.

37. The portable video recorder of claim 35,

wherein the interval is set equal to T1-T0.

38. The portable video recorder of claim 35,

wherein the interval is set equal to a predetermined time Tp, where Tp≧

T1-T0.

39. The portable video recorder of claim 35, wherein the period of time, over which each image of the continuous stream of images is only held, equals T1-T0, and further comprising a step of discarding an image held in the provisional memory after that image has resided in the provisional memory for the period of time.

40. The video recorder of claim 35, wherein the permanent memory is included within the video recorder.

41. The video recorder of claim 40, wherein the permanent memory is removable from the video recorder.

42. The portable video recorder of claim 35, wherein the capture element further comprises a head-mounted camera.

43. The portable video recorder of claim 35, wherein the provisional memory includes at least one selected from the group consisting of

a FIFO memory configured to overflow the oldest provisional data as new provisional data is added, and

a circular buffer configured to overwrite the oldest provisional data with the newest provisional data.

44. The portable video recorder of claim 35,

wherein the capture element includes an image sensor array, and

wherein the image sensor array and the provisional memory are disposed on a single semiconductor die.

45. The portable video recorder of claim 44:

wherein the semiconductor die further includes image compression hardware disposed thereon and configured to compress the continuous stream of images from the image sensor array to produce the provisional data; and

wherein the semiconductor die further includes control logic configured to control the operation of the image sensor array, the image compression hardware, and the provisional memory.

46. The portable video recorder of claim 35, further comprising

control hardware configured to selectively couple an output from the provisional memory to an output node responsive to receiving a signal from the controller.

47. The portable video recorder of claim 46, further comprising

at least one data receiving module coupled to the output node, wherein the data receiving module is selected from the group consisting of a storage memory, a flash memory, NVRAM, static RAM, a solid state disk drive, a rotating disk drive, a data interface, a radio transceiver, a radio transmitter, and an infrared interface.

48. The portable video recorder of claim 354, wherein the controller is electronically configured to keep the provisional data in memory when a command is received by the controller to store the provisional data as permanent data.