Associated image retrieving apparatus and method

• US 6,195,497 B1
• Filed: 10/24/1994
• Issued: 02/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Miyatake, Takafumi, Nagasaka, Akio, Ueda, Hirotada, Tanaka, Kazuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Boccio, Vincent F.
• Application Number:
  US08/327,869
• Time in Patent Office: 2,318 Days
• Field of Search: 358/335, 358/311, 358/341, 358/342, 358/343, 360/13, 360/14.1, 360/14.2, 360/14.3, 360/33.1, 360/69, 395/614-615, 395/683, 395/806-807, 395/173, 395/949, 395/174, 345/122, 345/327, 345/335, 345/418, 386/52, 386/53, 386/55, 386/1, 386/46, 386/69
• US Class Current: 386/200
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/743 a collection of video files or sequences
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/7837 using objects detected or recognised in the video content
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 15/023 remotely controlled
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 19/022 Control panels
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/20 Disc-shaped record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2587 Laser Discs; Optical disc using analog recording
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/41 Flat as opposed to hierarchical combination, e.g. library of tapes or discs, CD changer, or groups of record carriers that together store one title
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/102 Programmed access in sequence to addressed parts of tracks of operating record carriers access by moving the head G11B3/08, G11B5/54, G11B7/085, G11B21/022; by moving the record carrier G11B15/005, G11B17/005, by driving of both record carrier and head G11B15/1816
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/107 of operating tapes
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/327 Table of contents
• 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: G11B 31/006 with video camera or receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/926 : by pulse code modulation H04N5/919 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9267 : using time division multiplex of the PCM audio and PCM video signals

Abstract

This invention relates to an associated video retrieving method and a method therefor which enable a user to freely and easily make associated video retrieval. Video display apparatus having a video display region for visualizing video, an index display region for displaying index information of the videos, point detection unit for detecting a point position for these display regions, object management unit for registering in advance matters or sound in an animation appearing in the video, and control unit for determining a condition of the video to be next playbacked from point information obtained by the point detection unit and from logical structure description of the video separately built up, are provided. Even when a desired scene cannot be specified from the index information, a scene in which any hints relating to the desired scene is found out and associated video retrieval is effected on the basis of such a scene so as to finally obtain the desired scene. Versatile video retrieval can be made by unitedly using each display.

Claims

1. A video retrieving apparatus, comprising:

video display means for displaying a video having a plurality of shots, each shot having frames continuing sequentially, in which one or more object pictures are shown;

a memory for storing object information which includes characterizing information describing characterizing features of respective object pictures contained in said frames of each shot and link information describing a position of a next shot in which a same object picture appears;

pointing means for pointing to an object picture within a frame of a video displayed on said video display means;

point detection means for detecting which object picture on the video displayed on said video display means is pointed to by a user using said pointing means; and

object control means for determining at least one frame of a next shot including said object picture pointed to by said pointing means by using said characterizing information and said link information and playing said at least one frame included in said next shot on said video display means.

2. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising attribute information superposition means, and wherein at least a part of information selected from attribute information of an object appearing in the next shot is displayed in superposition at the position of said object picture in the next shot being shown or is displayed in a form such that a correspondence relationship between said object picture and said attribute information thereof is clearly represented.

3. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising attribute information changing means, and wherein at least a part of information of attribute information of an object picture appearing in the next shot being shown is immediately changed the instant that said object picture appears.

4. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an operation window having a region for displaying a video, a region for displaying a playback position of the video, a region for displaying buttons for controlling a display state of the video and a region for displaying buttons for representing the existence/absence of attribute information and for determining the kind of display information, as a partial region of a display screen in said video display means.

5. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when a shot changes as an object picture is pointed to, the shot change is effected by adding a specific video effect so that the shot change can be distinguished from a change of ordinary shots.

6. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when attribute information of an object picture is displayed, an object picture is determined as being pointed to when a display region of the attribute information of said object picture is pointed to, also.

7. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 6, wherein which kind of attribute information should be displayed is designated by collectively displaying the kind of attribute information in a video as the object picture of associated video retrieval.

8. An associated video retrieving apparatus according to claim 6, wherein a display position of attribute information of an object picture is fixed, and correspondence with a matter is clearly represented by display of a line segment constantly changing so as to connect the position of said matter to the display position of said attribute information.

9. A video retrieving apparatus, comprising:

video display means having a video display region for displaying a video having a plurality of frames;

a memory for storing space information concerning space in each of said frames including at least one of a plurality of video objects, and link information which links said video objects to each other based on a logical structure;

point detection means for detecting which of said video objects within a displayed frame of said video is pointed to in accordance with pointing to said video display region by a user; and

object control means for determining a frame having another video object linked to a video object being pointed to by said user according to said point detection means by using said space information and said link information, and playing a video having frames succeeding said frame which includes said another video object said video display region.

10. A video retrieving apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said memory stores information concerning time in which each of said video objects exists in said plurality of frames.

11. A video retrieving apparatus, comprising:

video display means having a video display region for displaying a video having a plurality of frames;

object searching means for searching for a space on each of said frames to locate a frame having a visual feature common with a video object being searched;

a memory for storing space information concerning space in each of said frames which includes at least one of a plurality of video objects, and said link information which links video objects to each other based on common visual features;

point detection means for detecting which of said video objects within a displayed frame of said video is pointed to in accordance with pointing to said video display region by a user; and

object control means for determining a frame having another video object linked to a video object being pointed to according to said point detection means by using space information and said link information, and playing a video having frames succeeding said frame having said another video object on said video display region.

12. A video retrieving apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said memory stores information concerning time in which each of said video objects exists in said plurality of frames.