System and method for content-based navigation of live and recorded TV and video programs

• US 9,741,395 B2
• Filed: 04/27/2015
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gibbon, David Crawford, Liu, Zhu, Shahraray, Behzad
• Primary Examiner(s): Dang, Hung
• Application Number:
  US14/696,576
• Publication Number:
  US 20150228308A1
• Time in Patent Office: 848 Days
• Field of Search: 386239-248, 386291-299, 386353-356
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• 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: H04N 21/2187 Live feed
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23418 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics television picture signal circuitry for scene change detection H04N5/147; filtering for image enhancement G06T5/00; methods or arrangements for recognising scenes G06V20/00; arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2387 Stream processing in response to a playback request from an end-user, e.g. for trick-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6587 Control parameters, e.g. trick play commands, viewpoint selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

A system, method and computer-readable medium are presented for providing real-time content-based navigation of live video programming. The method aspect of the invention comprises receiving a live video program, generating an index to the received live video program by extracting images and/or text from the video program, recording the live video program, presenting at least a portion of data associated with the generated index to a user, receiving user input regarding a portion of the recorded video program to which the user desires to navigate and playing back the recorded video program starting at the navigated portion identified by the user input.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

generating an index to a video program based on an indication of a portion of interest in the video program, wherein the index is (1) generated independent of index information transmitted with the video program and (2) is generated automatically, via a processor and without user input, by combining extracted images and text generated from the video program with network-based content provided by an external source, the network-based content being transmitted separately from the video program;

presenting the index on a display, wherein;

presenting of the index occurs on a first computing device different from a second computing device which displays the video program;

the first computing device is a hand-held device comprising a touch-sensitive screen;

the hand-held device presents the extracted images and the text; and

the video program is navigated via touch input received from the touch-sensitive screen of the hand-held device;

receiving, based on the index, user input regarding a location of the video program to navigate to; and

playing the video program, on the display, from the location.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-based content is transmitted concurrently with the video program.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the external source is a server connected via the Internet.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein generating of the index further comprises utilizing content-based sampling.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising extracting the extracted images from the video program using content-based sampling.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating the text using automatic speech recognition.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the hand-held device is wireless.

8. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored which, when executed by the processor, result in the processor performing operations comprising;

generating an index to a video program based on an indication of a portion of interest in the video program, wherein the index is (1) generated independent of index information transmitted with the video program and (2) is generated automatically, without user input, by combining extracted images and text generated from the video program with network-based content provided by an external source, the network-based content being transmitted separately from the video program;

presenting the index on a display, wherein;

presenting of the index occurs on a first computing device different from a second computing device which displays the video program;

the first computing device is a hand-held device comprising a touch-sensitive screen;

the hand-held device presents the extracted images and the text; and

the video program is navigated via touch input received from the touch-sensitive screen of the hand-held device;

receiving, based on the index, user input regarding a location of the video program to navigate to; and

playing the video program, on the display, from the location.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the network-based content is transmitted concurrently with the video program.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the external source is a server connected via the Internet.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein generating of the index further comprises utilizing content-based sampling.

12. The system of claim 8, the computer-readable storage medium having additional instructions stored which, when executed by the processor, result in operations comprising extracting the extracted images from the video program using content-based sampling.

13. The system of claim 8, the computer-readable storage medium having additional instructions stored which, when executed by the processor, result in operations comprising generating the text using automatic speech recognition.

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the hand-held device is wireless.

15. A computer-readable storage device having instructions stored which, when executed by a computing device, result in the computing device performing operations comprising:

generating an index to a video program based on an indication of a portion of interest in the video program, wherein the index is (1) generated independent of index information transmitted with the video program and (2) is generated automatically, without user input, by combining extracted images and text generated from the video program with network-based content provided by an external source, the network-based content being transmitted separately from the video program;

presenting the index on a display, wherein;

presenting of the index occurs on a first computing device different from a second computing device which displays the video program;

the first computing device is a hand-held device comprising a touch-sensitive screen;

the hand-held device presents the extracted images and the text; and

the video program is navigated via touch input received from the touch-sensitive screen of the hand-held device;

receiving, based on the index, user input regarding a location of the video program to navigate to; and

playing the video program, on the display, from the location.

16. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the network-based content is transmitted concurrently with the video program.

17. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein the external source is a server connected via the Internet.

18. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, wherein generating of the index further comprises utilizing content-based sampling.

19. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, having additional instructions stored which, when executed by the computing device, result in operations comprising extracting the extracted images from the video program using content-based sampling.

20. The computer-readable storage device of claim 15, having additional instructions stored which, when executed by the computing device, result in operations comprising generating the text using automatic speech recognition.