Methods and systems for synchronizing visualizations with audio streams

• US 7,526,505 B2
• Filed: 10/18/2004
• Issued: 04/28/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Olson, Kipley J., Feller, Chris, Dideriksen, Tedd, Novak, Michael J., Harris, Geoffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Le; Miranda
• Application Number:
  US10/967,606
• Publication Number:
  US 20050069151A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,653 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1, 707100-102, 707/104.1, 707200-201, 707/3, 707/10, 709/231, 725/37, 725/91, 715/201
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 3/00 Systems employing more than two channels, e.g. quadraphonic H04S5/00, H04S7/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99952 Coherency, e.g. same view to multiple users

Abstract

Methods and systems are described that assist media players in rendering visualizations and synchronizing those visualizations with audio samples. In one embodiment, visualizations are synchronized with an audio stream using a technique that builds and maintains various data structures. Each data structure can maintain data that is associated with a particular pre-processed audio sample. The maintained data can include a timestamp that is associated with a time when the audio sample is to be rendered. The maintained data can also include various characteristic data that is associated with the audio stream. When a particular audio sample is being rendered, its timestamp is used to locate a data structure having characteristic data. The characteristic data is then used in a visualization rendering process to render a visualization.

Claims

1. A computing device for synchronizing a visualization with audio samples, the computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

one or more processors;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to provide a system comprising;

one or more audio sources configured to provide audio samples that are to be rendered by a media player;

an audio sample pre-processor communicatively linked with the one or more audio sources and configured to receive and pre-process audio samples before the audio samples are rendered, the pre-processing providing characterizing data associated with each audio sample, wherein the characterizing data is derived from the audio samples, and wherein the audio sample preprocessor comprises a timestamp module that provides a timestamp for each audio sample by querying a media player audio sample renderer for a time associated with an audio sample that is currently being rendered and using the time to ascertain the timestamp, each timestamp being maintained by a data structure associated with the audio sample and configured to hold the characterizing data, and wherein the audio sample pre-processor further comprises a Fast Fourier Transform that it utilizes to process the audio samples to provide frequency data associated with the audio samples; and

one or more effects configured to receive the characterizing data and use the characterizing data to automatically create a visualization that is synchronized with an audio sample that is being rendered by the media player.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the audio sample pre-processor is configured to maintain the data structures.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the timestamp is assigned by the timestamp module based upon when the audio sample is calculated to be rendered by the media player.

4. The computing device of claim 1, wherein said characterizing data comprises frequency data.

5. A computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media and configured to provide a media player comprising;

an audio sample pre-processor configured to receive and pre-process audio samples before the audio samples are rendered by the media player, the pre-processing providing frequency data associated with each audio sample, wherein the characterizing data is derived from the audio samples, wherein the audio sample pre-processor pre-processes the audio samples by using a Fast Fourier Transform to provide the frequency data, and wherein the audio sample preprocessor comprises a timestamp module that provides a timestamp for each audio sample by querying a media player audio sample renderer for a time associated with an audio sample that is currently being rendered and using the time to ascertain the timestamp each timestamp being maintained by a data structure associated with the audio sample and configured to hold the characterizing data; and

one or more effects configured to receive the frequency data and use the frequency data to automatically create a visualization that is synchronized with an audio sample that is being rendered by the media player.

6. A computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media and configured to provide a system comprising;

an audio sample pre-processor configured to receive and preprocess audio samples before the audio samples are rendered by a renderer that comprises part of a media player, the audio sample preprocessor preprocessing the audio samples to provide characterizing data derived from each audio sample, the characterizing data comprising a timestamp associated with each audio sample, the timestamp being assigned in accordance with when the audio sample is calculated to be rendered by the renderer, wherein the audio sample pre-processor comprises a Fast Fourier Transform that it utilizes to process the audio samples to provide frequency data associated with the audio samples;

multiple data structures configured to hold the characterizing data, each data structure being associated with an audio sample;

an audio rendering object configured to call the audio sample pre-processor to ascertain the characterizing data associated with an audio sample that is currently being rendered by the renderer;

the audio sample pre-processor being configured to ascertain said characterizing data by querying the renderer for a time associated with the currently-rendered audio sample, and then using said time to identify a data structure having a timestamp that is nearest in value to said time; and

one or more effects configured to receive characterizing data that is associated with the data structure having the timestamp that is nearest in value to said time, and use the characterizing data to automatically create a visualization that is synchronized with the audio sample that is being rendered by the renderer.

7. The computing device of claim 6, wherein the characterizing data comprises frequency data.

8. The computing device of claim 6, wherein the visualization is rendered in a rendering area in which other media types can be rendered.

9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the other media types comprise a video type.

10. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the other media types comprise a skin type.

11. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the other media types comprise a HTML type.

12. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the other media types comprise an animation type.

13. A computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media and configured to provide a system comprising;

a timestamp module for assigning timestamps to audio samples that are to be rendered by a media player renderer;

a spectrum analyzer for processing the audio samples to derive frequency data from the audio samples, wherein the spectrum analyzer comprises a Fast Fourier Transform that is utilized to provide the frequency data;

multiple data structures each of which being associated with an audio sample, the data structures each containing timestamp data and frequency data for its associated audio sample; and

the system being configured to use the timestamp data to ascertain a data structure associated with an audio sample that is currently being rendered by the media player renderer and provide the frequency data associated with that audio sample so that the frequency data can be used to automatically create a visualization associated with that audio sample.

14. A computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media and configured to implement a method comprising;

receiving multiple audio samples;

pre-processing the audio samples before they are rendered by a media player renderer, the pre-processing deriving characterizing data from each audio sample, wherein said pre-processing comprises using a Fast Fourier Transform to provide frequency data associated with the samples, wherein the characterizing data comprises a time stamp associated with the audio sample, the timestamp being provided based when the audio sample is calculated to be rendered by the media player rendered;

maintaining characterizing data for each audio sample in a data structure associated with each audio sample;

determining when an audio sample is being rendered by the media player renderer, wherein said determining comprises;

ascertaining a time associated with a currently-rendering audio sample;

selecting a data structure having a timestamp that is nearest the time; and

providing characterizing data associated with selected data structure to a component configured to create the visualization; and

responsive to said determining, using the characterizing data that is associated with the audio sample that is being rendered to automatically create a visualization.

15. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the characterizing data comprises frequency data associated with each sample.

16. A computing device comprising:

one or more computer-readable storage media;

computer-readable instructions on the one or more computer-readable storage media and configured to implement a method comprising;

receiving multiple audio samples;

pre-processing the audio samples before they are rendered by a media player renderer, the pre-processing comprising at least (1) using a Fast Fourier Transform to derive frequency data from the samples, and (2) associating a timestamp with each audio sample, the timestamp being provided based upon when the audio sample is calculated to be rendered by the media player renderer;

maintaining frequency data and a timestamp for audio each sample in a data structure;

determining when an audio sample is being rendered by a media player renderer by;

ascertaining a time associated with a currently-rendered audio sample; and

selecting a data structure having a timestamp that is nearest the time; and

providing characterizing data associated with the selected data structure to a component configured to provide the visualization responsive to said determining, using the characterizing data that is associated with the audio sample that is being rendered to automatically create a visualization.