System and method for processing subpicture data

• US 7,197,234 B1
• Filed: 05/24/2002
• Issued: 03/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ARRIS Enterprises LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Digeo Incorporated (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chatterton, Geoff
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Thai Q.
• Assistant Examiner(s): DUNN, MISHAWN N
• Application Number:
  US10/155,720
• Time in Patent Office: 1,768 Days
• Field of Search: 345/150, 345/186, 345/199, 345/203, 345/507, 345/509, 345/511, 345/515, 345/543, 345/544, 345/549, 345/564, 345/682, 345/683, 345/686, 386/95
• US Class Current: 386/248
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2545 CDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2562 DVDs [digital versatile discs]; Digital video discs; MMCDs; HDCDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/28 by using information signals recorded by the same method as the main recording G11B27/22 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/3027 used signal is digitally coded
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91321 the copy protection signal being a copy protection control signal, e.g. a record inhibit signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91328 the copy protection signal being a copy management signal, e.g. a copy generation management signal [CGMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91364 the video signal being scrambled
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42646 for reading from or writing on a non-volatile solid state storage medium, e.g. DVD, CD-ROM
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4344 Remultiplexing of multiplex streams, e.g. by modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43632 involving a wired protocol, e.g. IEEE 1394 high-speed IEEE 1394 serial bus H04L12/40052
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8063 : using time division multiplex of the PCM audio and PCM video signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 : involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8227 : the additional signal being at least another television signal

Abstract

A method is described for rendering subpicture images comprising: reading a subpicture image from a digital versatile disk (“DVD”); identifying regions within the subpicture image for which α is below a specified threshold value; and rendering on a video screen only those regions of the subpicture image for which α is above the specified threshold value.

Claims

1. A method for rendering subpicture images comprising:

reading a subpicture image from a digital versatile disk (“

DVD”

);

identifying regions within said subpicture image for which a translucence level, α

, is below a specified threshold value, wherein identifying further comprises locating, within a subpicture image buffer, an indication that α

is below said specified threshold value, and an indication that said α

value repeats until an end of a current line of said subpicture image; and

rendering on a video screen only those regions of said subpicture image for which α

is above said specified threshold value.

2. The method as in claim 1 wherein said specified threshold value is zero.

3. The method as in claim 1 wherein said indication comprises fourteen sequential zeros followed by a palette entry code corresponding to α

=0.

4. The method as in claim 1 implemented by a processor which supports hardware-assisted zero run length counting.

5. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

detecting that one or more regions of said subpicture image have changed; and

regenerating on said video screen only said regions of said subpicture image which have changed, while maintaining all remaining regions.

6. The method as in claim 5 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new bitmap data.

7. The method as in claim 5 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new palette data.

8. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

detecting that a highlight associated with a first region has been moved to a second region on said subpicture image; and

regenerating on said video screen only said first region without said highlight and said second region with said highlight, while maintaining all remaining regions.

9. The method as in claim 8 wherein said highlight is moved responsive to a user selection input via a remote control device.

10. A tangible computer readable medium, other than a carrier wave or other propagation medium, including computer program code which, when executed by a machine, causes said machine to perform the operations of:

reading a subpicture image from a digital versatile disk (“

DVD”

);

identifying regions within said subpicture image for which a translucence level, α

, is below a specified threshold value, wherein identifying further comprises locating, within a subpicture image buffer, an indication that α

is below said specified threshold value, and an indication that said α

value repeats until an end of a current line of said subpicture image; and

rendering on a video screen only those regions of said subpicture image for which α

is above said specified threshold value.

11. The computer readable medium as in claim 10 wherein said specified threshold value is zero.

12. The computer readable medium as in claim 10 wherein said indication comprises fourteen sequential zeros followed by a palette entry code corresponding to α

=0.

13. The computer readable medium as in claim 10 including additional program code to cause said machine to perform the operations of:

detecting that one or more regions of said subpicture image have changed; and

regenerating on said video screen only said regions of said subpicture image which have changed, while maintaining all remaining regions.

14. The computer readable medium as in claim 13 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new bitmap data.

15. The computer readable medium as in claim 13 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new palette data.

16. The computer readable medium as in claim 10 including additional program code to cause said machine to perform the operations of:

detecting that a highlight associated with a first region has been moved to a second region on said subpicture image; and

regenerating on said video screen only said first region without said highlight and said second region with said highlight, while maintaining all remaining regions.

17. The computer readable medium as in claim 16 wherein said highlight is moved responsive to a user selection input via a remote control device.

18. A system comprising:

DVD reader means for reading a subpicture image from a digital versatile disk (“

DVD”

);

image analysis means for identifying regions within said subpicture image for which a translucence level, α

, is below a specified threshold value, wherein said image analysis means identifies said regions by locating, within a subpicture image buffer, an indication that α

is below said specified threshold value, and an indication that said α

value repeats until an end of a current line of said subpicture image; and

image rendering means for rendering on a video screen only those regions of said subpicture image for which α

is above said specified threshold value.

19. The system as in claim 18 wherein said specified threshold value is zero.

20. The system as in claim 18 wherein said indication comprises fourteen sequential zeros followed by a palette entry code corresponding to α

=0.

21. The system as in claim 18 wherein said image analysis means detects that one or more regions of said subpicture image have changed and responsively regenerates on said video screen only said regions of said subpicture image which have changed, while maintaining all remaining regions.

22. The system as in claim 21 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new bitmap data.

23. The system as in claim 21 wherein said changed regions are comprised of new palette data.

24. The system as in claim 18 wherein said image analysis means detects that a highlight associated with a first region has been moved to a second region on said subpicture image;

and regenerates on said video screen only said first region without said highlight and said second region with said highlight, while maintaining all remaining regions.

25. The system as in claim 24 wherein said highlight is moved responsive to a user selection input via a remote control device.