Display of an arrangement of a panoramic video by applying navigation commands to said panoramic video

• US 7,916,168 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2002
• Issued: 03/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Santini, Nicolas, Mory, Benoit
• Primary Examiner(s): SENFI, BEHROOZ M
• Application Number:
  US10/218,204
• Publication Number:
  US 20030210327A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,150 Days
• Field of Search: 348/36, 348/39, 348/42, 348/47, 348/48, 348/49, 348/43, 348/333.05, 348/231, 348/334, 348/552, 348/438, 348/148, 348/105, 348/207.99, 348/723, 348/720, 348/333, 348/207, 725/87, 725/61, 725/46
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/00 3D [Three Dimensional] image rendering

Abstract

An arrangement of a panoramic video is obtained by applying navigation commands to said panoramic video. In accordance with the invention, the navigation commands are formed either by navigation commands given at will by the user, or by predefined navigation commands associated with said panoramic video. The choice of the type of navigation command used at a given instant is controlled either automatically or by the user. The invention thus permits to avoid a user losing the thread of the action when navigates freely through a panoramic video.

Claims

1. A display controller for controlling display of panoramic video that includes a plurality of viewpoints that define a field of vision of the panoramic video, the controller comprising:

a first command source that is configured to provide a first type of navigation commands;

a second command source for providing a plurality of second types of navigation commands;

a selection device that is configured to select the first or second command source; and

at least one other source of the second type of navigation commands,

wherein the first type of navigation commands are generated by a user to control the display, the second type of navigation commands are predefined to control the display, and to control the viewpoint independent of the control of the viewpoint by the user and wherein the selection device is configured to select from among the source and the at least one other source when the selection device places the display controller to be controlled by the second type of navigation commands.

2. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the second command source includes a file that is associated with the panoramic video and includes a sequence of navigation commands that corresponds to a particular assembly of the panoramic video.

3. The display controller of claim 2, wherein the file includes parameters of camera motions that are used to form the second type of navigation commands.

4. The display controller of claim 1, including a receiver for receiving codes representing the panoramic video and the second type of navigation commands.

8. A transmission system comprising:

a transmitter that is configured to transmit a panoramic video and predefined navigation commands associated to the panoramic video,

a transmission network that is configured to transmit the panoramic video and the associated predefined navigation commands, and

display controller as claimed in claim 4.

10. The display controller of claim 1, including a display device.

11. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the selection device is configured to be controlled by the user.

12. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the selection device is configured to place the display controller to be controlled by the second type of the navigation commands independent of the user, and to place the display controller to be controlled by the first type of the navigation commands based on an input from the user.

13. The display controller of claim 12, wherein the selection device is configured to place the display controller to be controlled by the second type of the navigation commands based on predefined events associated with a rendering of the panoramic video.

14. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the viewpoint defines a location relative to the panoramic video.

15. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the viewpoint defines an orientation relative to the panoramic video.

16. The display controller of claim 1, wherein each of the source and at least one other source provide the second type of navigation commands corresponding to a particular predefined plurality of view points for viewing of the panoramic video.

17. The display controller of claim 16, wherein the panoramic video corresponds to a program, and the display controller is configured to impose one or more of the view points corresponding to important events of the program.

18. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the second type of navigation commands correspond to a predefined plurality of view points for viewing of the panoramic video.

19. The display controller of claim 18, wherein the panoramic video includes images from a place of interest, and the second type of navigation commands correspond to a visual tour of the place of interest.

20. The display controller of claim 1, wherein the selection device is configured to automatically select the second type of the navigation commands at predefined instants and between these predefined instants automatically select the first type of the navigation commands.

5. A method of displaying a video montage via application of a plurality of types of navigation commands that control a display of a panoramic video, the method comprising acts of:

receiving video data that includes a plurality of viewpoints that define a field of vision of the panoramic video;

displaying panoramic video on a mounting device used for assembling the panoramic video;

selecting either a first or second type of navigation commands to control the displaying,

wherein the first type of navigation commands are provided by a user to control the display of the panoramic video on a display device, and a course of motion of the viewpoint, the second type of navigation commands are supplied by a source of predefined navigation commands to control the display of the panoramic video on the display device and to change the viewpoint independent of the control of the viewpoint by the user and wherein the selecting act further comprises an act of automatically selecting the second type of the navigation commands at predefined instants and between these predefined instants automatically selecting the first type of the navigation commands.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the source includes a file that includes camera motion parameters that are used to form the second type of navigation commands.

7. A program stored on a computer-readable medium containing instructions for implementing the method of claim 5 while it is executed by a processor.

9. A program stored on a computer-readable medium containing instructions for implementing the method of claim 6 while it is executed by a processor.

21. A display controller for controlling display of panoramic video that includes a plurality of viewpoints that define a field of vision of the panoramic video, the controller comprising:

a first command source that is configured to provide a first type of navigation commands;

a second command source for providing a plurality of second types of navigation commands; and

a selection device that is configured to select the first or second command source,

wherein the first type of navigation commands are generated by a user to control the display, the second type of navigation commands are predefined to control the display, and to control the viewpoint independent of the control of the viewpoint by the user and the selection device is configured to automatically select the second type of the navigation commands at predefined instants and between these predefined instants automatically select the first type of the navigation commands.