Tag information production apparatus, tag information production method and recording medium

• US 8,055,076 B2
• Filed: 07/05/2006
• Issued: 11/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kikuchi, Hiroaki, Imaida, Hideyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Le; Brian Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): BEKELE, MEKONEN T
• Application Number:
  US11/428,653
• Publication Number:
  US 20070014405A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,952 Days
• Field of Search: 382/203, 382/223, 382/226, 382/228, 345/156, 434/247
• US Class Current: 382/203
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• 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 27/323 Time code signal, e.g. on a cue track as SMPTE- or EBU-time code

Abstract

A tag information production apparatus is disclosed which can apply tag information to a main image through a realistic amount of work. A time information acquisition section acquires time information of a main image selected on a working screen, and a key region setting section sets a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator. An identification information application section applies, to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region. A key image production section produces a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen.

Claims

1. A tag information production apparatus, comprising:

a time information acquisition section configured to acquire time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

a key region setting section configured to set a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator and including;

a follow-up section configured to move the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen, and

an estimation section configured to determine an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time, and to estimate a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region;

an identification information application section configured to apply, to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region; and

a key image production section configured to produce a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen.

2. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the key region has a circular shape, a polygonal shape or an arbitrary shape set in advance by the operator.

3. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the time information is given as a time code.

4. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the time information is given as a frame number.

5. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the key image has a screen size equal to a fraction of the screen size of the main image.

6. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

an integrating outputting section configured to cause the set key region to be displayed in a superimposed relationship on the main image of the working screen.

7. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said key region setting section sets a region which satisfies a color condition designated in advance by the operator from among partial regions designated in the working screen as a key region.

8. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said key region setting section automatically extracts a partial region specified arbitrarily by the operator from within the main image and automatically sets a key region of the key screen corresponding to each point of time so that the key region may follow up movement of the partial region in the screen.

9. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said key region setting section automatically sets a key region of the key screen corresponding to each point of time between a start point and an end point so that the key region may follow up a positional change between a key region set on the working screen corresponding to the start point and the key region set on the working screen corresponding to the end point.

10. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said key region setting section automatically extracts a partial region which satisfies a condition determined in advance from within the main image and sets a key region corresponding to the partial region.

11. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the condition determined in advance is given as a particular color having a hue value within a predetermined range.

12. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the condition determined in advance is given as a particular combination of colors.

13. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the condition determined in advance is given as a particular symbol or shape.

14. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the condition determined in advance is given as a particular character string.

15. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the identification information is given as a lightness value.

23. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an index production section configured to produce index information for a plurality of the key regions, wherein the index information includes

a time code corresponding to the time information acquired by the time information acquisition section, and

for each of the plurality of key regions, region identification information that identifies the key region within the main image and object identification information designated by an operator.

24. The tag information apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an index production section configured to produce index information listing the key region, wherein the index information includes embedded link information associated with the key region.

25. The tag information apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the embedded link information includes a Uniform Resource Locator (URL).

26. The tag information apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the embedded link information includes a commercial message identifier.

16. A tag information production apparatus, comprising:

a time information acquisition section configured to acquire time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

an identification information application section configured to apply, to a key region set at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

an index information production section configured to produce index information which lists corresponding relationships between the region identification information applied to the key region and the time information;

a follow-up section configured to move the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen; and

an estimation section configured to determine an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time, and to estimate a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region.

17. The tag information production apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the index information lists object identification information for identification of an object designated as the key region in an associated relationship with the region identification information and the time information.

18. A tag information production apparatus, comprising:

a time information acquisition section configured to acquire time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

a key region setting section configured to set a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator and including;

a follow-up section configured to move the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen, and

an estimation section configured to determine an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time, and to estimate a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region;

an identification information application section configured to apply, to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

a key image production section configured to produce a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen; and

an index information production section configured to produce index information which lists corresponding relationships between the region identification information applied to the key region and the time information.

19. A tag information production method, comprising:

acquiring, via a time acquisition section, time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

setting, via a setting section, a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator;

applying, via an application section to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

producing, in a key image production section, a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen;

moving, via a follow-up section, the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen;

determining, via an estimation section, an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time; and

estimating, via the estimation section, a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region.

20. A tag information production method, comprising:

acquiring, via a time acquisition section, time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

applying, via an application section to a key region set at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

producing, in a production section, index information which lists corresponding relationships between the region identification information applied to the key region and the time information;

moving, via a follow-up section, the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen;

determining, via an estimation section, an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time; and

estimating, via the estimation section, a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region.

21. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having embedded therein instructions, which when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

acquiring time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

setting a key region at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator;

applying, to the set key region, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

producing a key image to which time information same as the time information of the main image is applied and in which the region identification information is applied to the key region set through the working screen;

moving the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen;

determining an acceleration of the key region moved by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time; and

estimating a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having embedded therein instructions, which when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method according to a method comprising:

acquiring time information of a main image selected on a working screen;

applying, to a key region set at a position corresponding to a partial region in the main image specified arbitrarily by an operator, region identification information which allows identification between the key region and a peripheral region;

producing index information which lists corresponding relationships between the region identification information applied to the key region and the time information;

moving the key region set in the main image to follow and track movement of the partial region within the working screen;

determining an acceleration of the key region tracked by the follow-up section between two separate locations on the working screen at two separate points in time; and

estimating a location of the key region between the two separate locations of the key region on the working screen based on the determined acceleration of the key region.