System and method for dynamic transrating based on content

• US 7,707,485 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2005
• Issued: 04/27/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pixelworks Incorporated
• Original Assignee: VIXS Systems Incorporated (Pixelworks Incorporated)
• Inventors: Laksono, Indra
• Primary Examiner(s): RIES, LAURIE ANNE
• Application Number:
  US11/237,435
• Publication Number:
  US 20070074097A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 715/255, 715/201, 725/32
• US Class Current: 715/201
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4402 involving reformatting operations of video signals for household redistribution, storage or real-time display details of conversion of video standards at pixel level H04N7/01; video transcoding H04N19/40; adapting incoming signals to the display format of the display terminal G09G5/005; media handling at the source in data packet switching networks H04L65/764
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440254 by altering signal-to-noise parameters, e.g. requantization
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440263 by altering the spatial resolution, e.g. for displaying on a connected PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4621 Controlling the complexity of the content stream or additional data, e.g. lowering the resolution or bit-rate of the video stream for a mobile client with a small screen arrangements for using the results of monitoring on user's side in broadcast systems H04H60/65; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10

Abstract

Exemplary techniques for modifying multimedia data based on content are disclosed. One technique comprises determining whether a first portion of multimedia content of multimedia data has a first content characteristic and performing one or more content actions associated with the first content characteristic when the first portion of the multimedia content is determined to have the first content characteristic, wherein the one or more content actions modify a first portion of the multimedia data associated with the first portion of the multimedia content.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, using a multimedia processing device, multimedia data representing multimedia content of a program;

identifying a select template of a plurality of templates based on the program using the multimedia processing device, wherein the select template comprises a plurality of rules, each rule comprising a characteristic and one or more actions to be performed by multimedia processing device in association with the characteristic, the one or more actions comprising at least one action selected from a group consisting of;

changing a bit rate of the multimedia data;

changing a resolution of the multimedia data; and

changing an audio volume of the multimedia data;

analyzing the multimedia content using the multimedia processing device to determine characteristics of the multimedia content; and

modifying, using the multimedia processing device, the multimedia data based on an application of the plurality of rules of the select template to the characteristics of the multimedia content.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the select template is identified based on received program information associated with the multimedia data and wherein the program information includes electronic programming guide information.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the application of the plurality of rules of the select template to the characteristics of the multimedia content comprises:

determining, for each rule of at least a subset of the rules, whether a portion of the multimedia content has a characteristic associated with the rule; and

performing one or more actions associated with the rule to modify the received multimedia data when the portion of the multimedia content is determined to have the characteristic associated with the rule.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the one or more actions further include an action to insert an identifier into a portion of the multimedia data associated with the portion of the multimedia content, the identifier identifying the portion of the multimedia content as having the characteristic.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multimedia content comprises audio content; and

analyzing the multimedia content comprises performing an audio analysis of the audio content using the multimedia processing device to determine whether the audio content has at least one of a change in volume or a select sound.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multimedia content comprises video content; and

analyzing the multimedia content comprises performing an optical character recognition analysis of the video content using the multimedia processing device to determine whether the video content has at least one of the characteristics.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the multimedia content comprises video content; and

analyzing the multimedia content comprises performing a motion detection analysis of the video content using the multimedia processing device to determine whether the video content has at least one of the characteristics.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the multimedia data based on the application of the plurality of rules of the first template to the characteristics of the multimedia content comprises:

analyzing the multimedia content to determine the multimedia content has a select characteristic of a select rule of the plurality of rules; and

changing a bit rate of the multimedia data using the multimedia processing device responsive to determining the select rule comprises an action of changing a bit rate.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the multimedia data based on the application of the plurality of rules of the first template to the characteristics of the multimedia content comprises:

analyzing the multimedia content to determine the multimedia content has a select characteristic of a select rule of the plurality of rules; and

changing a resolution of the multimedia data using the multimedia processing device responsive to determining the select rule comprises an action of changing a resolution.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the multimedia data based on the application of the plurality of rules of the first template to the characteristics of the multimedia content comprises:

analyzing the multimedia content to determine the multimedia content has a select characteristic of a select rule of the plurality of rules; and

changing a volume of the multimedia data using the multimedia processing device responsive to determining the select rule comprises an action of changing a volume.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of rules comprises a select rule comprising a characteristic representing a commercial and an action of at least one of temporarily changing a bit rate or temporarily changing a resolution;

analyzing the multimedia content to determine characteristics of the multimedia content comprises analyzing the multimedia content to determine a portion of the multimedia content has the characteristic representing a commercial; and

modifying the multimedia data based on the application of the plurality of rules of the select template to the characteristics of the multimedia content comprises identifying the select rule for application to the multimedia content so as to change at least one of a bit rate or a resolution for a portion of the multimedia data that represents the portion of the multimedia content.

12. A system comprising:

an interface to receive multimedia data having multimedia content;

a template identification module to identify a select template associated with the multimedia data, wherein the select template comprises a plurality of rules, each rule comprising a characteristic and one or more actions associated with the characteristic, the one or more actions comprising at least one action selected from a group consisting of;

changing a bit rate of the multimedia data;

changing a resolution of the multimedia data; and

changing an audio volume of the multimedia data;

a content analyzer operably coupled to the interface and the template identification module, the content analyzer to analyze the multimedia content to determine, for each rule of at least a subset of the rules of the select template, whether a portion of the multimedia content has a characteristic associated with the rule; and

a transcoder operably coupled to the interface and the content analyzer, the transcoder to perform at least one action of the one or more actions associated with the rule so as to modify the multimedia data when the portion of the multimedia content is determined to have the characteristic associated with the rule.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the template identification module identifies the select template based on received program information associated with the multimedia data.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the one or more actions further include an action to insert an identifier into the portion of the multimedia data, the identifier identifying the portion of the multimedia content as having the characteristic associated with the rule.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein:

the characteristic associated with the rule comprises at least one of a change in volume or a select sound;

the portion of the multimedia content comprises audio content; and

the content analyzer is to determine whether the portion of the multimedia content has the characteristic associated with the rule by performing an audio analysis of the audio content.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein:

the portion of the multimedia content comprises video content; and

the content analyzer is to determine whether the portion of the multimedia content has the characteristic associated with the rule by performing an optical character recognition analysis of the video content.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein:

the portion of the multimedia content comprises video content; and

the content analyzer is to determine whether the portion of the multimedia content has the characteristic associated with the rule by performing a motion detection analysis of the video content.

18. The system of claim 12, wherein the one or more actions comprise one of changing a bit rate of the multimedia data or changing an audio volume of the multimedia data.