User customized animated video and method for making the same

• US 8,963,926 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2010
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Pandoodle Corporation
• Original Assignee: Pandoodle Corporation
• Inventors: Brown, Dirk D., Ludwigsen, David, Brown, Loch T., MacDonald, Christopher James, Rose, Harrison, Amdur, Jeffrey Alan, Glassett, Robert John
• Primary Examiner(s): HAJNIK, DANIEL F
• Application Number:
  US12/948,750
• Publication Number:
  US 20110064388A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,560 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/473
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/20 3D [Three Dimensional] animation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/80 2D [Two Dimensional] animation, e.g. using sprites
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/02 Non-photorealistic rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234318 by decomposing into objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/816 involving special video data, e.g 3D video

Abstract

A customized animation video system and method generate a customized or personalized animated video using user input where the customized animated video is rendered in a near immediate timeframe (for example, in less than 10 minutes). The customized animation video system and method of the present invention enable seamless integration of an animated representation of a subject or other custom object into the animated video. That is, the system and method of the present invention enable the generation of an animated representation of a subject that can be viewed from any desired perspective in the animated video without the use of multiple photographs or other 2D depictions of the subject. Furthermore, the system and method of the present invention enables the generation of an animated representation of a subject that is in the same graphic style as the rest of the animated video.

Claims

1. A system for generating cartoonized representations of a subject and incorporating the cartoonized representations into an animated video, the system comprising:

a cartoonizing application configured to receive a photograph or other two-dimensional depiction of the subject as data input, the cartoonizing application further configured to identify at least one feature of the subject from the photograph or other two-dimensional depiction, to quantify one or more parameters associated with the identified feature, and to select one or more objects from a database of cartoonized objects by matching the parameters of the identified features to corresponding parameters of the objects in the database, the cartoonizing application applying algorithms to quantify the one or more parameters and to select the one or more objects from the database automatically without user intervention, the cartoonizing application thereby generating one or more customizable objects representative of the subject;

a content management application configured to receive the one or more customizable objects from the cartoonizing application and to receive data input defining one or more pre-selected animation settings, the content management application configured to generate data files being an assembly of one or more objects, the assembly of one or more objects including the one or more customizable objects generated by the cartoonizing application or one or more customizable objects selected from the database of cartoonized objects based on the pre-selected animation settings; and

an animation application configured to receive the data files from the content management application and operative to render an animated video using the data files and a selected animated story, wherein the animated video thus rendered includes the assembly of one or more objects integrated seamlessly into the animated story to create a customized animated story incorporating the cartoonized representations of the subject and the pre-selected animated settings,

wherein the animation application is further operative to provide a base storyline as the selected animated story, the base storyline comprising one or more base animation segments, to receive a selection of a plurality of user-customized animation segments, a first one of the selected user-customized animation segments incorporating a first plurality of customizable objects and a second one of the selected user-customized animation segments incorporating a second plurality of customizable objects, the customizable objects including customizable objects representative of the subject and customizable objects selected from the database of cartoonized objects based on the pre-selected animation settings, wherein the second plurality of customizable objects is not identical to the first plurality of customizable objects, to replace one or more of the base animation segments with user-customized animation segments selected from the plurality of the user-customized animation segment, and to render a customized animated video of the base storyline incorporating the replaced user-customized animation segments.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the content management application is configured to modify the one or more customizable objects generated by the cartoonizing application based on the pre-selected animation settings.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the content management application is configured to generate one or more customizable objects being a realistic cartoonized representation of the subject or photorealistic cartoonized representation of the subject or a stylized representation of the subject.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the content management application is configured to generate one or more customizable objects being in the same graphic style as the selected animation story.

5. A method for generating cartoonized representations of a subject and incorporating the cartoonized representations into an animated video, comprising:

receiving a photograph or other two-dimensional depiction of the subject as data input;

identifying at least one feature of the subject from the photograph or other two-dimensional depiction;

quantifying, using an algorithm and without user intervention, one or more parameters associated with the identified feature;

selecting, using an algorithm and without user intervention, one or more objects from a database of cartoonized objects by matching the parameters of the identified features to corresponding parameters of the objects in the database;

generating one or more customizable objects representative of the subject;

receiving data input defining one or more pre-selected animation settings;

generating data files being an assembly of one or more customizable objects, the assembly of one or more customizable objects including the one or more customizable objects representative of the subject or one or more customizable objects selected from the database of cartoonized objects based on the pre-selected animation settings;

rendering an animated video using the data files and a selected animated story,

wherein the animated video thus rendered includes the assembly of one or more customizable objects integrated seamlessly into the animated story to create a customized animated story incorporating the cartoonized representations of the subject and the pre-selected animated settings; and

wherein rendering an animated video using the data files and a selected animated story comprises;

providing a base storyline as the selected animated story, the base storyline comprising one or more base animation segments;

receiving a selection of a plurality of user-customized animation segments, a first one of the selected user-customized animation segments incorporating a first plurality of customizable objects and a second one of the selected user-customized animation segments incorporating a second plurality of customizable objects, the customizable objects including customizable objects representative of the subject and customizable objects selected from the database of cartoonized objects based on the pre-selected animation settings, wherein the second plurality of customizable objects is not identical to the first plurality of customizable objects;

replacing one or more of the base animation segments with user-customized animation segments selected from the plurality of the user-customized animation segments; and

rendering a customized animated video of the base storyline incorporating the replaced user-customized animation segments.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

providing multiple animation segments, at least one of the selected animation segments incorporating the one or more customizable objects representative of the subject or one or more customizable objects selected from the database of cartoonized objects based on the pre-selected animation settings;

receiving a selection of one or more animation segments from the multiple animation segments;

receiving an arrangement of the selected animation segments to form a storyline; and

rendering a customized animated video of the arranged animation segments.