Methods for outlining and filling regions in multi-dimensional arrays

• US 6,816,628 B1
• Filed: 10/26/2000
• Issued: 11/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: MK Systems USA Inc.
• Original Assignee: GoldPocket Interactive, Inc. (Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)
• Inventors: Dakss, Jon, Sarachik, Karen, Bove, V. Michael Jr., Wachman, Josh
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, Timothy M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHAWAN, SHEELA C
• Application Number:
  US09/697,774
• Time in Patent Office: 1,475 Days
• Field of Search: 382/285, 382/173, 382/203, 382/266, 382/190, 345/419, 345/424, 345/653, 345/654, 345/678, 345/679, 345/836, 345/680, 225/32, 225/34, 225/60, 225/105, 225/109, 225/110, 225/112, 225/113, 225/135
• US Class Current: 382/285
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/748 Hypervideo linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object in the context of video distribution systems H04N21/858
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9558 Details of hyperlinks; Management of linked annotations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/64 Systems for the transmission or the storage of the colour picture signal; Details therefor, e.g. coding or decoding means therefor H04N19/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/93 Run-length coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234318 by decomposing into objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4725 using interactive regions of the image, e.g. hot spots details of information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4728 for selecting a Region Of Interest [ROI], e.g. for requesting a higher resolution version of a selected region
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/854 Content authoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8583 by creating hot-spots
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

A system and method of adding hyperlinked information to a television broadcast. The broadcast material is analyzed and one or more regions within a frame are identified. Additional information can be associated with a region, and can be transmitted in encoded form, using timing information to identify the frame with which the information is associated. The system comprising a video source and an encoder that produces a transport stream in communication with the video source, an annotation source, a data packet stream generator that produces encoded annotation data packets in communication with the annotation source and the encoder, and a multiplexer system in communication with the encoder and the data packet stream generator. The encoder provides timestamp information to the data packet stream generator and the data packet stream generator synchronizes annotation data from the annotation source with a video signal from the video source in response to the timestamp information. The multiplexer generates a digital broadcast signal that includes an augmented transport stream from the transport stream and the encoded data packets. A receiver displays the annotation information associated with the video signal in response to a viewer request on a frame by frame basis. A viewer can respond interactively to the material, including performing commercial transactions, by using a backchannel that is provided for interactive communication.

Claims

1. A method for filling a connected three-dimensional digital volume, the method comprising:

(a) selecting a plurality of sequential two-dimensional sections that contain the volume, said two dimensional sections disposed orthogonally to a third dimension, each two-dimensional section containing locations identified by a first coordinate and a second coordinate;

(b) defining a plurality of regions in at least one of said two-dimensional sections, each region comprising at least one location;

(c) selecting a first region in one of said at least one of said two-dimensional sections, said region included within said volume to be filled with a selected symbol;

(d) filling said selected first region with said selected symbol;

(e) moving in a first direction along said third dimension to the successive two-dimensional section;

(f) determining whether a location in the successive two-dimensional section corresponding to a filled location in said one of said at least one of said two-dimensional sections belongs to said volume;

(1) if there is a positive outcome of said determination step;

(i) filling a region that includes said location in said successive two-dimensional section with said selected symbol; and

(ii) beginning with said newly-filled region in said successive two-dimensional section, repeating said moving, determining and filling steps recited immediately heretofore until said determining step results in a negative outcome; and

(g) upon a negative outcome of any determining step heretofore, returning to said first region, and, moving along said third dimension in a direction opposite to said first direction, repeating the steps of moving, determining and filling as stated above until a negative outcome results for a determining step.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the two-dimensional sections comprise images.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first coordinate and the second coordinate define the location of a pixel.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first coordinate and the second coordinate define rows and columns of an image.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the third dimension comprises time.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the symbol represents a visual effect when rendered on a display.