Method and apparatus for making a digest picture

• US 5,974,218 A
• Filed: 04/18/1996
• Issued: 10/26/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Maxell Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Amano, Yoshikazu, Hirahata, Shigeru, Miyatake, Takafumi, Nagasaka, Akio
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Huy
• Application Number:
  US08/634,354
• Time in Patent Office: 1,286 Days
• Field of Search: 386/46, 386/83, 386/121, 386/95, 386/111, 386/112, 386/125, 386/124, 386/68
• US Class Current: 386/200
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/739 in form of a video summary, e.g. the video summary being a video sequence, a composite still image or having synthesized frames
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/107 of operating tapes
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/11 by using information not detectable on the record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/28 by using information signals recorded by the same method as the main recording G11B27/22 takes precedence
• 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 21/8549 Creating video summaries, e.g. movie trailer retrieval in video databases by using presentations in form of a video summary G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape

Abstract

A method for presentation of information of a recorded television program for allowing user to seize easily and quickly content/composition thereof, and an easily manipulable interface therefor. Picture signal of a television program currently being recorded by a VTR or the like is converted into a frame-based picture signal. Frames indicating inter-shot transitions are detected and stored as shot-representative pictures for thereby generating a digest picture file composed of a set of the shot-representative pictures substantially simultaneously with recording operation of the VTR. In a digest picture display, the shot-representative pictures are displayed in a temporally sequential order in which they were generated in such a form that a predetermined number of shot-representative pictures are displayed in each of predetermined time zones in a uniform array, for facilitating comprehension of the contents of the television picture as recorded. Additionally, by selecting one of the shot-representative pictures being displayed a temporal position of the television picture from which reproduction is to be started can visually be determined.

Claims

1. A digest making apparatus connected to recording means capable of recording at least a television signal of a television program received through receiving means, for generating a digest list picture constituted by a set of inter-shot transitions in the picture of said television program concurrently with recording of said television program by said recording means, comprising:

an input/output interface for controlling input/output of picture signals supplied to and outputted from the apparatus;

converting means for converting the input picture signal into a frame-based picture signal;

detecting means for fetching said frame-based picture signal and detecting frames in correspondence to said inter-shot transitions of said television program as shot-representative pictures, respectively;

storage means for storing a digest list picture constituted by a set of said shot-representative pictures; and

display control means for displaying said digest list picture on external display means connected to said digest making apparatus such that at least one of said shot-representative pictures appears within a time zone arranged in a field indexed by a time point, said time zone beginning at said time point and having a width selected by a user;

wherein a number of shot-representative pictures which can appear within said time zone is limited to a specified maximum number of shot-representative pictures; and

wherein said display control means selects ones of said shot-representative pictures which actually appear within said time zone from ones of said shot-representative pictures which are contained in said time zone.

2. A digest making apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein information of said digest list picture includes header information for identifying discriminatively a relevant program recorded by said recording means, shot-representative picture information indicating said inter-shot transitions, and information of time points at which said shot-representative picture information is fetched.

3. A digest making apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said display control means controls display of a list of said shot-representative pictures such that at least one of said shot-representative pictures appears within a time zone in a field which is indexed by a time point, said time zone having a predetermined width beginning with said time point.

4. A digest making apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said display control means performs a control such that when a number of shot-representative pictures to be displayed within a given one of a plurality of time zones is set previously, a smaller number of shot-representative pictures than that of shots which can fall within said given one time zone are selected to be displayed.

5. A digest making apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said display control means performs a control such that the shot-representative pictures belonging to a predetermined one of a plurality of time zones are excluded from objects for display.

6. A digest making apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

selecting means for selecting a given shot-representative picture from said digest list picture being displayed on said display means; and

means for starting reproduction of a relevant television program from a position indicated by a time point at which said given shot-representative picture selected by said selecting means was fetched by said digest making apparatus.

7. A digest making apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:

means for detecting a picture position in a television program being reproduced; and

means for displaying a list of shot-representative pictures starting from said time point.

8. A digest making apparatus comprising:

interface means for fetching information of a time period and a television channel set previously for recording a given television program by reservation in advance;

arithmetic processing means for generating digest information representative of content and composition of said given television program during reception thereof;

timer means for starting and ending operation of said arithmetic processing means on the basis of said information concerning said preset time period; and

display means for displaying said digest information generated by said arithmetic processing means within a time zone arranged in a field indexed by a time point, said time zone beginning at said time point and having a width selected by a user, said time zone being included in said time period;

wherein an amount of digest information which can be displayed within said time zone is limited to a specified maximum amount of digest information; and

wherein said display means selects a portion of said digest information which is actually displayed within said time zone from a portion of said digest information which is contained in said time zone.

9. A digest making apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a time span of a predetermined length is interposed between a time point at which said arithmetic processing means is powered on and a time point at which an operation for generating said digest information is started.

10. A digest making apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a time span of a predetermined length is interposed between a time point at which said arithmetic processing means is powered off and a time point at which an operation for generating said digest information is ended.

11. A digest making apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said digest information includes information for displaying shot-representative pictures of individual scenes of said television program in the form of a list.

12. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said digest information further includes information of time points at which the shot-representative pictures are fetched, respectively, said information of said time points being recorded with correspondence established between said shot-representative pictures and said time points, respectively.

13. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said digest information further includes sound information concerning sounds received around the time points at which said shot-representative pictures are fetched, respectively, said sound information being recorded together with said digest information.

14. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising display means for displaying an array of the shot-representative pictures of scenes of said television program in a field indexed with a time point, said shot-representative pictures appearing within a time zone having a predetermined duration beginning with said time point.

15. A digest making apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said shot-representative pictures are displayed by selectively thinning out said shot-representative pictures so that a number of shot-representative pictures to be displayed within each of said time zones falls within a predetermined range of values.

16. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, wherein upon displaying of the digest information, the shot-representative pictures belonging to a predetermined temporal period of said television program are excluded from the objects for display.

17. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a printer for printing said shot-representative pictures.

18. A digest making apparatus according to claim 11, wherein when a plurality of shot-representative pictures are generated for a plurality of different television programs, respectively, sets each composed of a limited number of selected shot-representative pictures for each of said plurality of television programs are displayed in the form of a menu for thereby allowing a given one of said shot-representative pictures belonging to a given one of said sets to be selected for confirmation.

19. A digest making apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said digest information includes information concerning time points at which a television program is started and ended, respectively, and information concerning a channel through which said television program is received, both of said information being recorded together with said digest information.

20. A video recording apparatus equipped with interface means for loading time information for television program recording by reservation in advance and a tuner for receiving broadcast television programs, comprising:

interface means for setting a time period for a given television program and a channel through which said given television program is received, for thereby allowing said given television program to be recorded by reservation in advance;

digest making means for generating digest information representative of contents and composition of said given television program;

timer means for starting and ending operation of said digest making means at time points predetermined by said time period;

digest display mode changing means for changing between a plurality of digest display modes; and

display means for displaying said digest information in a form of a list including a plurality of fields indicating time zones set in accordance with a digest display mode designated by said digest display mode changing means, wherein digest information generated in a time zone is displayed in a field indexed by said time zone, said time zone having a width which depends on said digest display mode designated by said digest display mode changing means;

wherein an amount of digest information which can be displayed in said field is limited to a specified maximum amount of digest information; and

wherein said display means selects a portion of said digest information generated in said time zone which is actually displayed in said field from said digest information generated in said time zone.

21. A method of making a digest for a television program, comprising the steps of:

fetching a television program for generating a digest by activating a programmable timer;

generating a digest representative of content and composition of a given television program in conformance with a time point at which said given television program is started by means of said programmable timer;

ending the generation of said digest in conformance with a time point at which said given television program is terminated by means of said programmable timer; and

displaying the generated digest within a time zone arranged in a field indexed by a time point, said time zone beginning at said time point and having a width selected by a users;

wherein a portion of the generated digest which can be displayed within said time zone is limited to a specified maximum portion of the generated digest; and

wherein said displaying step includes the step of selecting a portion of the generated digest which is actually displayed within said time zone from a portion of the generated digest which is contained in said time zone.

22. A digest making method according to claim 21, wherein said step of generating a digest includes the steps of:

fetching a frame picture of said television program every time a synchronizing signal contained in a television signal for said television program is detected;

affixing serial numbers to said frames in a sequential order in which said frame pictures are fetched;

generating color histograms (H_n) for the frame pictures as fetched, respectively;

determining a difference (R1_n) between the color histogram (H_n) for an n-th one (f_n) of said frame pictures and the color histogram (H_n-1) for the (n-1)-th frame picture (f_n-1) preceding said n-th frame (f_n);

comparing the difference (R1_n-1) with a threshold value (th1);

deciding an inter-shot transition when said difference exceeds said threshold value; and

recording said n-th frame picture in a file as at least one part of digest information together with information of a time point at which said inter-shot transition takes place as well as information concerning correspondence between said n-th frame picture and said time point.