Image exchange with image annotation

• US 7,068,309 B2
• Filed: 10/09/2001
• Issued: 06/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Toyama, Kentaro, Vronay, David, Anandan, Padmanabhan
• Primary Examiner(s): Ometz, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Villecco, John M.
• Application Number:
  US09/682,755
• Publication Number:
  US 20040070678A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,722 Days
• Field of Search: 348/207.1, 348/211.3, 348/231.2, 348/231.3, 348/231.6, 348/552, 707/3, 707/6, 709/212, 709/213, 709/216, 709/217, 709/219, 709/231, 709/238, 709/239
• US Class Current: 348/231.5
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00137 Transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00148 Storage information retrieval G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00172 directly from a still digital camera or from a storage medium mounted in a still digital camera H04N1/0018 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/77 between a recording apparatus and a television camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/907 using static stores, e.g. storage tubes or semiconductor memories H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9201 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the video signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A system and method for providing a peer-to-peer photo-sharing environment. The system includes: manual and automatic photo annotation at the client; periodic client-server synchronization; an index of client photos on a central server or a photo database that is resident on the central server, which is updated by the client-server synchronization function; end-user search functionality to search the centralized index or photo database; and transmission of the relevant photos to the client via an on-line image cache. In one embodiment, one client'"'"'s new photos are automatically displayed on another client'"'"'s computer (e.g., via screen saver or another mechanism).

Claims

1. A computer-implemented process for sharing images comprising the process actions of:

inputting images at a hosting client;

annotating said images with metadata associated with the same image located in a different location at said hosting client, comprising

locating the same image as said image in other locations;

extracting all annotation data from said same image in said other location;

annotating said image with said annotation data extracted from said image in said other location;

creating a local index of said images and local database of said images at said hosting client;

synchronizing said hosting client'"'"'s local index with a master index of a central server, said master index comprising all images available for sharing; and

providing images from said hosting client.

2. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 wherein the annotating process action further comprises a process action of manually annotating at least one of said input images.

3. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 wherein the annotating process action further comprises a process action of automatically annotating at least one of said input images.

4. The computer-implemented process of claim 3 wherein the process action of automatically annotating an image further comprises at least one:

using face recognition techniques to identify a specific person in the image and annotating the image with an identifier for the person;

using automated vision techniques to determine whether the image depicts a natural or man-made object and annotating the image as either natural or man-made;

using pixel comparison techniques with images of known content and comparing the image to determine its content and annotating said image as to what it is; and

extracting available parameters associated with the input image and annotating the image with the available parameters.

5. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 wherein said process action of annotating at least one of said input images further comprises, at least one of:

annotating said image with the time it was created;

annotating said image with the location that it depicts;

annotating said image with a camera orientation when said image was captured;

annotating said image with the level of privacy associated with the image;

annotating said image with the author of the image;

annotating said image with its modification history;

annotating said image with its user rating;

annotating said image with an imputed location based on the time and location said image was created;

annotating said image with usage statistics;

annotating said image with any and all user annotations;

annotating said image with the owner of the metadata;

annotating said image with a server-provided user rating; and

annotating said image with metadata associated with the same image located in a different location.

6. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein said process action of annotating said image with the time it was created comprises at least one of:

annotating said image with a time by using a date stamp provided by a camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a time by using a time stamp provided by a Global Positioning System integrated with the camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a time that was manually input by a user.

7. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein said process action of annotating said image with the location which it depicts comprises at least one of:

annotating said image with a location by using a location stamp provided by a Global Positioning System integrated with the camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a location by using a location stamp provided deriving a location from cell site location provided by a camera integrated with the camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a location by using a name-to-geolocation translation application that provides the location said image was captured;

annotating said image with a location derived from a map indicating where said image was taking; and

annotating said image with a location that was manually input by a user.

8. The computer-implemented process of claim 7 wherein location is provided in the format of latitude and longitude.

9. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the camera orientation is provided in the format of yaw, pitch and roll.

10. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the process action of annotating the privacy level of the image comprises the process action of annotating said image with a privacy level that is manually input by the user.

11. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the privacy level that is manually input by a user further comprises the process action of selecting from a default setting of having the image accessible to only the user.

12. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the privacy level that is manually input by a user further comprises the process action of selecting from a default setting of having the image accessible to all users.

13. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the process action of annotating the image with an image modification history comprises at least one of:

annotating said image with annotation data as to how it was modified;

annotating said image with annotation data as to when it was modified;

annotating said image with annotation data as to by whom it was modified; and

annotating said image with any other modifications made to annotation data made at the time of modification.

14. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the process action of annotating the image with a server-provided user rating comprises the process action of annotating said image with an indication as to how closely said image matched a search criteria.

15. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the process action of annotating said image with usage statistics further comprises at least one of:

annotating the image with how often the image was posted to a website;

annotating the image with the times the image was posted to a website;

annotating the image with the number of times the image was emailed;

annotating the image with how relevant the image was found to be in a search; and

annotating the image as to how many times it was requested.

16. The computer-implemented process of claim 5 wherein the process action of annotating the image with an imputed location further comprises the process actions of:

identifying the time and location said image was created;

identifying other images taken close to the same time and with the same camera when said image was created;

imputing to said image the location of said other images taken at close to the same time; and

annotating said image with said imputed location.

17. The computer-implemented process of claim 1 wherein the process action of synchronizing further comprises the process actions of:

storing changes to local index and local database of said images at said hosting client in a modification log;

periodically connecting said hosting client to said central server; and

synchronizing said local index and said local database of said hosting client with said master index of said central server using said modification log.

18. A computer-implemented process for sharing images comprising the process actions of:

inputting images at a hosting client;

annotating said images with metadata associated with the same image located in a different location at said hosting client, wherein the process action of annotating said image with metadata associated with the same image located in a different location further comprises the process actions of;

locating the same image as said image in other locations;

extracting all annotation data from said same image in said other location;

annotating said image with said annotation data extracted from said image in said other location; and

creating a local index of said images and local database of said images at said hosting client;

providing images from said hosting client.

19. The computer-implemented process of claim 18 wherein said process action of annotating said input image further comprises, at least one of:

annotating said image with the time it was created;

annotating said image with the location that it depicts;

annotating said image with the level of privacy associated with the image;

annotating said image with the author of the image;

annotating said image with its modification history;

annotating said image with its user rating;

annotating said image with an imputed location based on the time and location said image was created;

annotating said image with usage statistics;

annotating said image with any and all user annotations; and

annotating said image with the owner of the metadata.

20. The computer-implemented process of claim 19 wherein said process action of annotating said image with the location which it depicts comprises at least one of:

annotating said image with a location by using a location stamp provided by a Global Positioning System integrated with the camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a location by using a location stamp provided deriving a location from cell site location provided by a camera integrated with the camera that created the image;

annotating said image with a location by using a name-to-geolocation translation application that provides the location said image was captured;

annotating said image with a location derived from a map indicating where said image was taking; and

annotating said image with a location that was manually input by a user.

21. The computer-implemented process of claim 19 wherein the process action of annotating the image with an imputed location further comprises the process actions of:

identifying the time and location said image was created;

identifying other images taken close to the same time and with the same camera when said image was created;

imputing to said image the location of said other images taken at close to the same time with a same camera; and

annotating said image with said imputed location.