Method and apparatus for recording and reproducing electronic watermark information, and recording medium

• US 6,690,813 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2002
• Issued: 02/10/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Consumer Electronics Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Yoshiura, Hiroshi, Takeuchi, Toshifumi, Arai, Takao, Kimura, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jayanti K.
• Application Number:
  US10/150,939
• Publication Number:
  US 20020136431A1
• Time in Patent Office: 630 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/181, 382/232-236, 382/164, 382/162, 382/166, 380/51, 380/54, 358/1.1, 358/403, 348/460, 375/130, 375/240, 375/242, 707/104.1, 713/179
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0085 Time domain based watermarking, e.g. watermarks spread over several images
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23892 involving embedding information at multiplex stream level, e.g. embedding a watermark at packet level
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection

Abstract

When a video signal having electronic watermark information embedded therein is recorded on a recording medium, a reference signal is inserted in the video signal at a position different from a position of embedment of the electronic watermark information. The electronic watermark information is embedded in the video signal by alteration of a luminous value of a luminance signal included in the video signal. When the video signal is reproduced from the recording medium, a luminous value of the electronic watermark information is modified based on the reference signal.

Claims

1. A method of recording electronic watermark information comprising the steps of:

embedding electronic watermark information in a video signal at a minimal disturbance against said video signal; and

recording a reference signal which is inserted at a position different from the position of said electronic watermark information,

wherein said reference signal is used to set a detection level used by a detector to detect said watermark information which has been embedded in said video signal.

2. An electronic watermark information recording method according to claim 1, wherein the insertion position of said reference signal is in the over-scan area of said video signal.

3. An electronic watermark information recording method according to claim 1, wherein the insertion position of said reference signal is in the blanking period of a sync signal.

4. An electronic watermark information recording method according to claim 1, wherein said reference signal has an amplitude equal to the peak white level.

5. A method of recording and reproducing electronic watermark information comprising the steps of:

embedding electronic watermark information in a video signal at a minimal disturbance against said video signal;

recording a reference signal which is inserted at a position different from the position of said electronic watermark information; and

reproducing said reference signal and modifying said electronic watermark information by using said reference signal,

wherein said reference signal is used to set a detection level used by a detector to detect said watermark information which has been embedded in said video signal.

6. An electronic watermark information recording and reproduction method according to claim 5, wherein said electronic watermark information is derived from the luminance signal, with the luminous value thereof being altered, at a predetermined position of said video signal.

7. An electronic watermark information recording and reproduction method according to claim 5, wherein said modification step modifies the luminous value of said electronic watermark information based on the luminous value of said reference signal.

8. A method of reproducing electronic watermark information comprising the steps of:

detecting a reference signal for detecting electronic watermark information from a recording medium on which a video signal, said electronic watermark information which is embedded in said video signal by the alteration of the luminous value of the luminance signal included in said video signal and said reference signal which is inserted at a position different from the position of embedment of said electronic watermark information are recorded,

wherein said reference signal is used to set a detection level used during said detecting step to detect said watermark information which has been embedded in said video signal; and

modifying the luminous value of said electronic watermark information based on said reference signal.

9. An apparatus for reproducing electronic watermark information comprising:

an electronic watermark information detecting circuit which detects electronic watermark information from a video signal;

a reference signal detecting circuit which detects a reference signal; and

a modification circuit which modifies the amplitude of said electronic watermark information based on the amplitude of said reference signal,

wherein said reference signal is used to set a detection level used by said electronic watermark information detecting circuit to detect said watermark information which has been embedded in said video signal.

10. An electronic watermark information reproduction apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said modification circuit includes a gain drift calculating circuit which calculates the drop of gain of said reference signal.

11. An electronic watermark information reproduction apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said electronic watermark information detecting circuit includes an electronic watermark position generating circuit which generates an electronic watermark information position detection signal based on a sync signal.

12. An electronic watermark information reproduction apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said reference signal detecting circuit includes a reference signal position generating circuit which generates a reference signal position detection signal based on a sync signal.

13. An electronic watermark information reproduction apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said reference signal detecting circuit includes a timing signal detecting circuit which detects a timing signal included in said video signal.