Multimedia file sharing method and system thereof

• US 8,806,051 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2012
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Inventors: Wang, Chun-Yu, Lin, Hsu-Cheng, Tsai, Chia-Ying, Liu, Jian-Hong
• Primary Examiner(s): Bates, Kevin
• Assistant Examiner(s): McCray, Clarence D
• Application Number:
  US13/370,292
• Publication Number:
  US 20130138736A1
• Time in Patent Office: 915 Days
• Field of Search: 707/667, 709/231
• US Class Current: 709/231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]

Abstract

A multimedia file sharing method and a system thereof are provided herein, which applies the virtual file technology to achieve near real time multimedia sharing and transparent receiving functions. In the method, an interface software system is established through a network to speed up playing of multimedia files by different multimedia players. The interface software provides a speeding up and near real time multimedia playing effect for sharing multimedia through the network, by which for different transmissions of multimedia files or for playing multimedia files with different formats, the multimedia player is not necessary to modify or add the software of the players to meet the streaming protocols or container. In addition, the interface software is capable of providing the effect of playing the multimedia files by the players with satisfied quality and near real time performance.

Claims

1. A multimedia file sharing method, comprising:

establishing a virtual multimedia file system at a sharing device;

performing, by the virtual multimedia file system, a multimedia file transmission training process, to create a multimedia transmission training file, wherein the multimedia transmission training file comprises a plurality of different settings of slice sizes and read sequences for a plurality of different software multimedia players and different multimedia file formats;

when a first multimedia file is to be shared, generating a corresponding metafile according to the multimedia transmission training file and slicing the first multimedia file into a plurality of slices according to the setting of the slice size corresponding to the multimedia file format of the first multimedia file; and

transferring the metafile to each one or more shared devices so as to enable the one or more shared devices to sequentially obtain the plurality of slices of the first multimedia file according to the setting of the read sequence corresponding to the software multimedia player of each one or more shared devices.

2. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, wherein the multimedia file transmission training process comprises:

analyzing, by the virtual multimedia file system, read behaviors of the different software multimedia players on the different multimedia formats to generate the multimedia transmission training file;

establishing a multimedia sharing transmission process according to the multimedia transmission training file; and

storing, by the sharing device, contents of the first multimedia file to be shared in a storage medium of the one or more shared devices according to the multimedia sharing transmission process.

3. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 2, wherein a method for generating the multimedia transmission training file comprises:

reading a file extension-name list of the different multimedia formats which are preset to be supported and step settings of the slice sizes;

respectively reading, according to the list, at least one multimedia file and the slice size thereof which meets each of the multimedia formats, and slicing the at least one multimedia file according to the step setting of the slice size corresponding to the multimedia format of each of the at least one multimedia file; and

starting the software multimedia players which are preset to be supported, recording the read sequence of the sliced slices of the at least one multimedia file while playing the at least one multimedia file, and creating the read sequence.

4. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, wherein the metafile comprises a length of the first multimedia file to be shared, the number of the slices after being sliced, an offset value of each of the slices in the first multimedia file, and a file name of the slice and a length thereof.

5. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, wherein a method for transferring the slices to the one or more shared devices comprises:

detecting a transmission bandwidth between the sharing device and the one or more shared devices by using an algorithm; and

determining the number of the slices to be transmitted to the one or more shared devices and the read sequence thereof according to the detected transmission bandwidth by using a residual bandwidth and a ratio thereof, and then forwarding, by part of the shared devices that have received the slices, the slices to the other shared devices that have not received the slices.

6. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 5, wherein the method for transferring the slices to the one or more shared devices further comprises:

determining which part of the slices of the first multimedia file to be shared are read first in part of the shared devices; and

reserving the residual bandwidth with a priority for the part of the slices that are read first for transmission.

7. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining, by the one or more shared devices, a part of the slices according to the metafile through the virtual multimedia file system; and

playing the obtained part of slices and synchronously obtaining the other slices corresponding to the first multimedia file.

8. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 7, further comprising obtaining, by the one or more shared devices, the slices according to the corresponding read sequence in the metafile.

9. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, wherein

after receiving the metafile of the first multimedia file to be shared from the sharing device, a name and a size of the first multimedia file to be shared currently is shown in a directory structure of the virtual multimedia file system, and the first multimedia file is directly played by player software of the one or more shared devices;

and

when a part of the slices of the first multimedia file is found absent, the one or more shared devices directly request for the slices from the sharing device according to the contents of the metafile.

10. The multimedia file sharing method according to claim 1, wherein

after receiving the metafile of the first multimedia file to be shared, one of the shared devices sequentially receives the slices corresponding to the first multimedia file and transferred from the sharing device;

and

the one shared device determines whether to forward the received slices to the other shared devices.

11. A multimedia file sharing system, comprising:

a first device, comprising a first virtual multimedia file system and a first storage medium, wherein the virtual multimedia file system performs a multimedia file transmission training process to create a multimedia transmission training file comprising a plurality of different settings of slice sizes and read sequences for a plurality of different software multimedia players and different multimedia file formats, and stores the multimedia transmission training file in the first storage medium, the first virtual multimedia file system generates a metafile corresponding to a first multimedia file to be shared according to the multimedia transmission training file and slices the first multimedia file into multiple slices according to the setting of the slice size corresponding to the multimedia file format of the first multimedia file; and

a second device, comprising a second virtual multimedia file system, a second software multimedia player and a second storage medium, wherein the second device communicates with the first device through a network, wherein while playing the first multimedia file by the second software multimedia player, the second device obtains the corresponding slices sequentially according to the setting of the read sequence corresponding to the second software multimedia player, and temporarily stores the slices in the second storage medium of the second device, and then sequentially plays the slices according to the metafile through the second virtual multimedia file system.

12. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein the generating of the multimedia transmission training file by the first device comprises:

reading a file extension-name list of the different multimedia formats which are preset to be supported and step settings of the slice sizes;

respectively reading, according to the list, at least one multimedia files and the slice size thereof which meets each of the multimedia formats, and slicing the at least one multimedia file according to the step setting of the slice size corresponding to the multimedia format of each of the at least one multimedia file; and

starting the software multimedia players which are intended to be supported, recording the read sequence of the slices of the at least one multimedia file while playing the at least one multimedia file, and creating the read sequence.

13. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein the meta data comprises a length of the first multimedia file to be shared, the number of the slices after being sliced, an offset value of each of the slices in the first multimedia file, and a file name of the slice and the length thereof.

14. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein the first device detects a transmission bandwidth by using an algorithm, and determines the number of the slices to be transmitted and the read sequence thereof according to the detected transmission bandwidth by using a residual bandwidth and a ratio thereof.

15. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein after the second device receives the metafile of the first multimedia file to be shared from the first device, a name and a size of the first multimedia file to be shared currently is shown in a directory structure of the second virtual multimedia file system, and the first multimedia file is directly played by the second software multimedia player, wherein when a part of the slices of the first multimedia file is found absent, the second device requests for the slices according to the contents of the metafile.

16. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein the second device obtains part of the slices according to the metafile through the second virtual multimedia file system, respectively plays the obtained part of slices, and synchronously obtains the other part of the slices corresponding to the first multimedia file.

17. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 16, wherein the second device obtains the slices according to the corresponding read sequence in the metafile.

18. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, wherein after the second device receives the metafile of the first multimedia file, the second device sequentially receives the slices corresponding to the first multimedia file and transferred from the first device, and the second device determines whether to forward the received slices.

19. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 11, further comprising:

a third device, comprising a third virtual multimedia file system, a third software multimedia player and a third storage medium, wherein the third device communicates with the first device and the second device through a network, wherein while playing the first multimedia file by the third software multimedia player, the third device obtains the corresponding slices from the first device or the second device according to the setting of the read sequence corresponding to the third software multimedia player, temporarily stores the slices in the third storage medium, and then sequentially obtains the corresponding slices by the third virtual multimedia file system.

20. The multimedia file sharing system according to claim 19, wherein the first device detects a transmission bandwidth by using an algorithm, and determines the number of the slices to be transmitted and the read sequence thereof according to the detected transmission bandwidth by using a residual bandwidth and a ratio thereof, determines which part of the slices of the first multimedia file are read first in the second device or the third device and preferentially reserves the residual bandwidth for the part of the slices that are read first for transmission.

21. A multimedia file sharing system, comprising:

a sharing device, comprising a first virtual multimedia file system, wherein the virtual multimedia file system performs a multimedia file transmission training process to create a multimedia transmission training file comprising a plurality of different settings of slice sizes and read sequences for a plurality of different multimedia players and different multimedia file formats, the first virtual multimedia file system generates a metafile corresponding to a first multimedia file to be shared according to the multimedia transmission training file and slices the first multimedia file into multiple slices according to the setting of the slice size corresponding to the multimedia file format of the first multimedia file; and

multiple shared devices, wherein each of the shared devices comprises a second virtual multimedia file system, a software multimedia player and a storage medium, wherein the shared devices communicate with the sharing device through a network, wherein when any one of the shared devices plays the first multimedia file, the shared device sequentially obtains the corresponding slices from the sharing device or the other shared devices in a sequence according to the setting of the read sequence corresponding to the software multimedia player, and temporarily stores the slices in the storage medium.