Object-oriented multimedia [;data routing system]; presentation control system

• US 6,421,692 B1
• Filed: 11/20/1998
• Issued: 07/16/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Object Technology Licensing Corporation (Apple Inc.)
• Inventors: Tobias, John C. II, Denman, Matthew, Edelman, Bradley Alan, Tindell, James Michael, Milne, Steven H., Dilts, Michael R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Joseph H.
• Application Number:
  US09/196,861
• Time in Patent Office: 1,334 Days
• Field of Search: 707/500.1, 345/716-723, 345/727, 345/709, 345/764
• US Class Current: 715/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/24 Object-oriented
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/34 Graphical or visual programming
• 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

Abstract

A technique for providing routing of various multimedia events throughout the course of a multimedia presentation using a computer with a storage and a display. A variety of multimedia objects are defined in the storage and grouped in logical relationships to enable multimedia presentations. A display is used to create the presentations interactively by positioning objects representative of the multimedia events and joining them with geometric figures, such as line segments. Each object can then be directly manipulated via a mouse or other pointing device to position a multimedia object to a particular position, or adjust the playback rate of a multimedia object.

Claims

1. A computer-program product for enabling the presentation of multimedia data to a user in a system having a processor with an attached storage and a multimedia device for presenting the multimedia data to the user under the control of the processor, the computer-program product including a computer-useable means for storing therein computer-readable code comprising:

(a) program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object from a multimedia component player class in the storage of the processor, the multimedia component player object including at least one port for exchanging multimedia information and including first player method commands for controlling the multimedia device and second player method commands for controlling the flow of multimedia data through the at least one port;

(b) program code for selectively executing the first player method commands to control the multimedia device;

(c) program code for instantiating a multimedia device object for connection to the multimedia device;

(d) program code for connecting the at least one port of the multimedia component player object to the multimedia device object to exchange multimedia data therebetween; and

(e) program code for selectively executing the second player method commands to route selected portions of the multimedia data from the multimedia component player object port through the multimedia device object to the multimedia device.

2. The computer-program product of claim 1 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object including a play method command for playing the multimedia data out through the multimedia component player object port.

3. The computer-program product of claim 2 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object including a stop method command to stop playback resulting from the play method command.

4. The computer-program product of claim 1 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object including a record method command to record multimedia data to the storage.

5. The computer-program product of claim 4 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object including a stop method command to stop recording resulting from the record method command.

6. The computer-program product of claim 1 wherein the system comprises a plurality of multimedia devices and a multimedia device object corresponding to each of the plurality of multimedia devices, the computer program product further comprising:

program code for connecting each of the multimedia device objects to the multimedia component player object and for exchanging multimedia information therebetween.

7. The computer-program product of claim 1 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia component player object including a seek method command to seek an identified position in the flow of multimedia data.

8. The computer-program product of claim 1 wherein the multimedia data are digitized audio data, further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia player component object that is an audio player object for controlling the flow of the digitized audio data.

9. The computer-program product of claim 1 wherein the multimedia data are digitized graphic data further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia player component object that is a graphic player object for controlling the flow of the digitized graphic data.

10. The computer-program product of claim 1 wherein the multimedia data are digitized MIDI data further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia player component object that is a MIDI player object for controlling the flow of the digitized MIDI data.

11. A computer-program product for creating a multimedia application to process multimedia data in response to at least one connection request and for executing the multimedia application in response to an execution request in a system having processor with an attached storage and a multimedia presentation device for presenting the multimedia data to the user under the control of the processor, the computer-program product including a computer-useable means for storing therein computer-readable code comprising:

program code for a subclassable media component base class and means for deriving therefrom at least one media component subclass;

program code for a subclassable media sequence class and means for deriving therefrom a plurality of media subclasses each directed to a particular type of multimedia content, wherein objects instantiated from the media sequence class and from the media subclasses thereof each represent digitized multimedia data;

program code for deriving a player subclass of the media component base class;

program code for instantiating, a player object from the player subclass, wherein each such player object comprises

a data component and

a member function component for performing at least one of

a storing operation to move a media sequence object to the attached storage,

an accessing operation to retrieve a media sequence object from the attached storage, and

a presenting operation to move a media sequence object to the multimedia presentation device;

program code for connecting, responsive to a connection request, a player object into an interconnection of media component objects instantiated from at least one of the media component base class and the media component subclasses thereof; and

program code for executing responsive to the execution request the multimedia application to process multimedia data in accordance with the interconnection of media component objects.

12. The computer-program product of claim 11 wherein the multimedia component player class includes a play member function for playing a media sequence object.

13. The computer-program product of claim 12 wherein the multimedia component player class includes a stop member function to stop the playback started by the play member function.

14. The computer-program product of claim 13 wherein the multimedia component player class includes a seek member function to seek an identified position in a media sequence object.

15. The computer-program product of claim 11 wherein the multimedia component player class includes a record member function to record digitized multimedia data into a media sequence object.

16. The computer-program product of claim 15 wherein the multimedia component player class includes a stop member function to stop the recording started by the record member function.

17. The computer-program product of claim 11 further comprising:

an audio sequence subclass, derived from the media sequence class, for representing digitized audio data; and

an audio player subclass, derived from the multimedia component player class, for controlling the flow of audio sequence objects created from the audio sequence class.

18. The computer-program product of claim 11 further including

a graphic sequence subclass, derived from the media sequence class, for representing digitized graphic data in the form of a time-based sequence of graphic objects;

and

a graphic player subclass, derived from the multimedia component player class, for controlling the flow of graphic sequence objects created from the graphic sequence class.

20. A computer-program product for displaying multimedia data under the control of an application program operating in a computer system having a processor controlled by the application program, a storage and a multimedia data display device, the computer-program product including a computer-useable means for storing therein computer-readable code comprising:

program code for generating a sequence of multimedia data;

program code for storing the sequence of multimedia data in the storage;

program code for creating a multimedia component class library having a multimedia component base class and a plurality of multimedia component subclasses derived from the multimedia component base class, each of the plurality of multimedia component subclasses corresponding to a multimedia data display device;

program code for instantiating from one of the multimedia component subclasses a multimedia player component object having method commands for controlling data processing by the multimedia player component object;

program code for providing the sequence of multimedia data to the multimedia player component object; and

program code for executing, under the control of the application program, the method commands for data processing to cause the multimedia player component object to provide a sequence of multimedia data to the multimedia data display device.

19. The computer-program product of claim 21 further including

a MIDI sequence subclass, derived from the media sequence class, for representing digitized MIDI data in the form of an ordered sequence of MIDI packets; and

a MIDI player subclass, derived from the multimedia component player class, for controlling the flow of MIDI sequence objects created from the MIDI sequence class.

21. A computer-program product as recited in claim 20 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia player component object having method commands for providing a selected portion of the multimedia sequence to the multimedia data display device.

22. A computer-program product as recited in claim 20 further comprising:

program code for instantiating a multimedia player component object having method commands for controlling the multimedia data display device.