Method of compressing a plurality of video images for efficiently storing, displaying and searching the plurality of video images

• US 6,259,817 B1
• Filed: 03/26/1999
• Issued: 07/10/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Vulcan Patents LLC
• Original Assignee: Interval Research Corporation
• Inventors: Ahmad, Subutai
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns, Andrew W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Azarian, Seyed H.
• Application Number:
  US09/276,867
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• Field of Search: 382/232, 382/233, 382/234, 382/236, 382/239, 382/240, 382/242, 382/243, 382/244, 382/245, 382/246, 382/247, 382/248, 382/104, 348/399.1, 348/410.1, 348/415.1, 348/417.1, 348/418.1, 709/202
• US Class Current: 382/236
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/7328 Query by example, e.g. a complete video frame or video sequence graphical querying G06F16/7335
• 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: G06F 16/7847 using low-level visual features of the video content
• 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: H04N 19/107 between spatial and temporal predictive coding, e.g. picture refresh
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/132 Sampling, masking or truncation of coding units, e.g. adaptive resampling, frame skipping, frame interpolation or high-frequency transform coefficient masking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/142 Detection of scene cut or scene change
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/146 Data rate or code amount at the encoder output
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/149 by estimating the code amount by means of a model, e.g. mathematical model or statistical model
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/15 by monitoring actual compressed data size at the memory before deciding storage at the transmission buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/162 User input
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/179 the unit being a scene or a shot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/503 involving temporal prediction adaptive coding with adaptive selection between spatial and temporal predictive coding H04N19/107; adaptive coding with adaptive selection among a plurality of temporal predictive coding modes H04N19/109
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/587 involving temporal sub-sampling or interpolation, e.g. decimation or subsequent interpolation of pictures in a video sequence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/60 using transform coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/61 in combination with predictive coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/87 involving scene cut or scene change detection in combination with video compression

Abstract

A video image, characterized by a plurality of pixels, is compressed by deriving at least one parameter based upon principal component analysis. An image value for each video image is then determined for the one parameter. The image value associated with each video image is compared to an image value associated with another video image to determine a difference. Any one of the image values of each video image and another video image is discarded in the event the difference is below a threshold. The remaining video images are then stored. Using this method of compression, it becomes possible to search a video database to find a match between an inquiring video scene with a video database comprising a plurality of video scenes with each video scene having a plurality of video images.

Claims