Reproduction equipment, reproduction equipment specifying equipment, reproduction equipment specifying system and methods and recording media for said equipment and system

• US 7,142,692 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2001
• Issued: 11/28/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Arimura, Koji, Kadono, Shinya, Inoue, Hisashi, Noridomi, Kenichi, Nakamura, Kazuhiko, Katsura, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): EDWARDS, PATRICK L
• Assistant Examiner(s): EDWARDS, PATRICK L
• Application Number:
  US09/941,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20020076082A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,917 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 382/233, 382/278, 348/469, 713/176
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58

Abstract

A reproduction equipment converts an identification code of the reproduction equipment into a plurality of signal sequences using a correspondence table and embeds the obtained plurality of signal sequences in AV signals as a digital watermark. A reproduction equipment specifying equipment compares correlation values of the AV signals, containing the digital watermark embedded therein with all signal sequences contained in a correspondence table. A comparison of the correlation values with a previously set threshold value determines the embedded signal sequences and the identification code of the reproduction equipment which may be extracted.

Claims

1. A reproduction equipment comprising:

a coded signal input unit operable to input coded AV (“

audio, video, or audio video”

) signals;

a decoding unit operable to decode the coded AV signals inputted from said coded signal input unit, and further operable to generate AV signals to be reproduced;

an identification code generating unit operable to generate an identification code specifying the reproduction equipment;

a digital watermark embedding unit operable to input the AV signals to be reproduced from said decoding unit to embed the identification code generated by said identification code generating unit as a digital watermark into said AV signals to be reproduced, wherein a digital watermark embedded signal is generated;

an output unit operable to output the digital watermark embedded AV signals; and

said identification code generation unit is further operable to convert the identification code into a binary bit string, each position of a specific value bit of the binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences, and still further operable to output the binary bit string as an output of said identification code generating unit;

wherein an output of said identification code generating unit is composed of a binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences.

2. A reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 1, wherein said identification code is at least one of an equipment ID of said reproduction equipment, a card ID of an IC card connected to said reproduction equipment, a user ID of a user of the reproduction equipment, a raw material ID of said coded AV signals, a medium ID of a recording medium in which said coded AV signals are stored, a reproduction date and time, and an initial value of a signal sequence to be embedded among the plurality of the signal sequences as said digital watermark.

3. A reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 1, wherein said identification code generating unit is further operable to convert the identification code into the binary bit string utilizing a table of correspondence of at least one of character strings and numbers that express identification codes, and a corresponding signal sequence among the plurality of said signal sequences.

4. A reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 3, wherein said digital watermark embedding unit embeds a different signal sequence in each of a predetermined unit of said AV signals to be reproduced.

5. A reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 4, wherein said digital watermark embedding unit embeds a plurality of signal sequences, to be embedded as the digital watermark, randomly at a same proportion per fixed time in said AV signals to be reproduced.

6. A reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 1, wherein said plurality of signal sequences are signal sequences with which cross correlation values are smaller than a previously set threshold value.

7. The reproduction equipment as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a unit operable to record a copy of said digital watermark-embedded AV signals.

8. A reproduction equipment specifying equipment comprising:

an input unit operable to input AV signals containing a binary bit string, each position of a specific value bit of the binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences of the same contents as that of a reproduction equipment, the binary bit string being embedded in the AV signals as a digital watermark;

a signal sequences recording unit operable to record the plurality of signal sequences;

a correlation value calculation unit operable to calculate correlation values of the AV signals and all of said signal sequences recorded by said signal sequence recording unit and further operable to output a maximum correlation value among correlation values obtained;

a threshold value setting unit operable to set a threshold value for said correlation values;

a comparison unit operable to compare said maximum correlation value with said threshold, and further operable to output a one of said plurality of signal sequences for which said maximum correlation value exceeds said threshold value;

an identification code judgment unit operable to determine an identification code in accordance to the one of said signal sequences output from said comparison unit; and

an identification code output unit operable to output said identification code.

9. A reproduction method, comprising;

inputting coded AV signals;

decoding said coded AV signals to generate coded AV signals to be reproduced;

generating an identification code;

converting the identification code into a binary bit string, each position of a specific value bit of the binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences;

embedding the binary bit string as a digital watermark into said AV signals to be reproduced, wherein digital watermark-embedded AV signals are generated; and

outputting said digital watermark-embedded AV signals.

10. A reproduction method as set forth in claim 9, wherein said identification code is at least one of an equipment ID of a reproduction equipment, a card ID of an IC card connected to said reproduction equipment, a user ID of a user of the reproduction equipment, a raw material ID of said coded AV signals, a medium ID of a recording medium in which said coded AV signals are stored, a reproduction date and time, and an initial value of a signal sequence to be embedded among the plurality of signal sequences as said digital watermark.

11. A reproduction method as set forth in claim 9, wherein the plurality of signal sequences are signal sequences having cross correlation values that are smaller than a previously set threshold value.

12. A reproduction method as set forth in claim 9, wherein the step of embedding includes embedding a different signal sequence in each of a predetermined unit of the AV signals to be reproduced.

13. A reproduction method as set forth in claim 12, wherein the step of embedding includes embedding said plurality of signal sequences randomly at the same proportions per fixed time in said AV signals to be reproduced.

14. A recording medium, in which watermark-embedded AV signals are recorded by the reproduction method of claim 9.

15. A reproduction equipment specifying method, comprising:

inputting AV signals containing a binary bit string, each position of a specific value bit of the binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences of the same contents as that of a reproduction equipment, the binary bit string being embedded in the AV signals as a digital watermark;

recording the plurality of signal sequences;

calculating correlation values of the input AV signals and all of the plurality of signal sequences to output a maximum correlation value among said correlation values obtained;

setting a threshold value for said correlation values;

comparing said maximum correlation value with said threshold value to output a one of said plurality of signal sequences for which said maximum correlation value exceeds said threshold value;

determining an identification code in accordance with said one of said signal sequences; and

outputting said identification code.

16. A medium, in which a reproduction equipment specifying program is recorded, comprising:

inputting AV signals containing a binary bit string, each position of a specific value bit of the binary bit string indicating a corresponding signal sequence among a plurality of signal sequences of the same contents as that of a reproduction equipment, the binary bit string being embedded in the AV signals as a digital watermark;

recording the plurality of signal sequences;

calculating correlation values of the input AV signals and all of the plurality of signal sequences to output a maximum correlation value among said correlation values obtained;

setting a threshold value for said correlation values;

comparing said maximum correlation value with the threshold value to output a one of the plurality of signal sequence for which said maximum correlation value exceeds said threshold value;

determining an identification code in accordance with said one of the signal sequences and said correspondence table; and

outputting said identification code.