Authored video programs

• US 8,180,194 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2007
• Issued: 05/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Brodersen, Rainer, Wallace, Gregory Kent
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, William
• Application Number:
  US11/679,799
• Publication Number:
  US 20070166009A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,904 Days
• Field of Search: 386/241, 386/282, 717/108, 717/125, 717/153
• US Class Current: 386/241
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/213 Read-only discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2562 DVDs [digital versatile discs]; Digital video discs; MMCDs; HDCDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• 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 5/85 on discs or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction

Abstract

A storage medium is encoded with a video program created using authoring systems and methods. The processor-based authoring system removes an author from consideration of low-level configuration functions during authoring. The authoring system includes an authoring engine having an interactive graphical authoring interface, a data management engine, an emulator, a compiler, a multiplexer and a simulator. The authoring methods include the use of summary authoring data, a compiler that builds a skeleton-form layout structure comprising abstracted components that include movie chapters, menu buttons and command segements. The compiler resolves abstracted connections between combinations of the abstracted components to produce a video program. Instructions associated with the command segments and a configuration of the command segments within a video program video space and domain structure are abstracted the functional during authoring.

Claims

1. A non-transitory storage medium encoded with an authored video program, wherein the video program is authored by a process that includes the steps of:

generating a predetermined program chain (“

PGC”

) data structure from a plurality of command segments associated with a plurality of user abstraction components, wherein the user abstraction components comprise high level command segments not disclosed in an authoring standard, and wherein a PGC data structure defines a set of low-level command combinations in accordance with an authoring standard; and

compiling the video program by resolving abstracted connections between combinations of user abstracted components and respective extracted PGC'"'"'s from the plurality of user abstracted components, wherein;

the plurality of user abstracted components includes menu buttons, movie chapters and interconnected command segments; and

instructions associated with the plurality of command segments and a configuration of the command segments within the video program are abstracted.

2. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the menu buttons are associated with one or more authored menus, and wherein the creating a PGC data structure includes:

quantifying the one or more authored menus;

quantifying the menu buttons associated with each authored menu; and

forming the PGC data structure from an integer multiple of command segments for each authored menu, wherein each of the multiple command segments includes at least one instruction for each menu button in each authored menu.

3. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the authoring includes:

receiving connection information including authored source and destination designations for the one or more authored menus and the menu buttons; and

merging the connection information into the abstracted instructions in corresponding abstracted command segments to produce the video program.

4. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 3, wherein the receiving connection information includes querying at least one of a button and a chapter for source and target information.

5. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 4, wherein the merging includes replacing instructions with corresponding source and target information.

6. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 4, wherein the receiving connection information further includes:

obtaining a connection object having a source index referring to a button;

querying the connection object for a target index based on the source index; and

querying at least one of a button and a chapter for source and target information based on the source and target indices.

7. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 3, wherein the abstracted instructions include a predetermined value until the step of merging replaces the predetermined value with corresponding connection information.

8. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined value is a no operation value.

9. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 3, wherein the process further includes replacing the connection information with a corresponding connected element identifier.

10. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the integer multiple is independently defined for each of the one or more PGC data structures and wherein each of the plurality of command segments includes a video manager domain associated with at least one of the one or more authored menus.

11. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the integer is independently defined for each of the one or more authored menus and wherein the integer is 1 for at least one authored menu.

12. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the creating includes:

forming the PGC data structure having indices therein;

resolving connections associated with the indices to obtain element identifiers; and

replacing the indices in the PGC data structure with the element identifiers.

13. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 12, wherein the indices are formed with a predetermined value.

14. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 13, wherein the predetermined value is a no-op value.

15. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 13, wherein replacing each of the indices with an associated element identifier comprises replacing the predetermined value with the associated element identifier.

16. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 12, wherein resolving connections to the indices includes:

determining a connection object referencing a button as its source;

obtaining a pointer associated with the connection object for identifying a target index of the button; and

determining source and target identifiers corresponding to the source and target indices.

17. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 16, wherein the replacing the indices includes replacing two of the indices with corresponding source and target identifiers.

18. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the PGC data structure comprises:

command segments having predetermined command structures including;

at least one movie router command segment;

a plurality of menu command segments corresponding to authored menus associated with the menu buttons;

a plurality of end command router command segments, each command router command segment corresponding to an authored movie;

one or more movie display command segments each movie display command segment corresponding to an authored movie; and

a plurality of remote key router command segments, each remote key router command segment corresponding to an authored menu key response.

19. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 18, wherein each of the menu command segments comprises a menu display command segment for displaying a menu and a button router command segment for initiating an authored action when a corresponding user menu button is depressed.

20. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 18, wherein the PGC data structure further comprises a video manager wherein the video manager includes the at least one movie router command segment, the plurality of menu command segments and the plurality of end command router command segments.

21. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 18, wherein a presentation command segment is formed for each authored movie and wherein each presentation command segment comprises a movie display command segment and a number of remote key router command segments corresponding to a total number of chapters authored in a corresponding movie.

22. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 18, wherein each of the plurality of remote key router command segments corresponds to a related chapter point in a corresponding movie.

23. A non-transitory storage medium encoded with a video program, wherein the video program is authored by a system comprising:

means for generating a predetermined program chain (“

PGC”

) data structure from a plurality of command segments associated with a plurality of user abstraction components, wherein the user abstraction components comprise high level command segments not disclosed in an authoring standard, and wherein a PGC data structure defines a set of low-level command combinations in accordance with an authoring standard; and

means for authoring a video program by resolving abstracted connections between combinations of user abstracted components and respective extracted PGC'"'"'s from the plurality of user abstracted components, wherein

the plurality of user abstracted components includes menu buttons, movie chapters and interconnected command segments, and

instructions associated with the plurality of command segments and a configuration of command segments within a video space and domain structure of the video program are abstracted.

24. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 23, wherein the menu buttons are associated with one or more authored menus, and wherein the means for creating the PGC data structure is for:

quantifying the one or more authored menus,

quantifying the menu buttons associated with each of the one or more menus, and

forming the PGC data structure from an integer multiple of command segments for each authored menu, wherein each of the multiple command segments includes at least one instruction for each menu button in the each authored menu.

25. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 24, wherein the authoring means is for:

receiving connection information including authored source and destination designations for the one or more authored menus and the menu buttons, and

merging the connection information into instructions in corresponding command segments to produce the video program.

26. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 23, wherein the PGC data structure initially has indices therein, wherein the indices in the PGC data structure are associated with element identifiers.

27. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 23, wherein the PGC data structure comprises:

command segments having predetermined command structures including;

at least one movie router command segment;

a plurality of menu command segments corresponding to authored menus associated with the menu buttons;

a plurality of end command router command segments, each command router command segment corresponding to an authored movie;

one or more movie display command segments each movie display command segment corresponding to an authored movie; and

a plurality of remote key router command segments, each remote key router command segment corresponding to an authored menu key response.

28. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 27, wherein each of the menu command segments comprises a menu display command segment for displaying a menu and a button router command segment for initiating an authored action when a corresponding user menu button is depressed.

29. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 27, and further comprising a video manager wherein the video manager includes the at last one movie roster command segment, the plurality of menu command segments and the plurality of end command router command segments.

30. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 27, wherein a presentation command segment is formed for each authored movie and wherein each presentation command segment comprises a movie display command segment and a number of remote key router command segments corresponding to a total number of chapters authored in a corresponding movie.