Photosensitivity protection for video display

• US 9,807,445 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2012
• Issued: 10/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Echostar Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Mountain, Dale Llewelyn
• Primary Examiner(s): Pendleton, Brian T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Contino Saumby, Krista A
• Application Number:
  US13/689,516
• Publication Number:
  US 20140150012A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,797 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/00 Image enhancement or restoration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• 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 21/4542 Blocking scenes or portions of the received content, e.g. censoring scenes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display are provided. Content, which may include video content, may be received at a media device. A portion of the video content that corresponds to flashing images may be identified with the media device. A precaution against the flashing images may be identified based at least in part on the identifying of the portion of the video content that corresponds to flashing images. One or more of at least a portion of the video content and/or information about the video content may be displayed based at least in part on the precaution.

Claims

1. A method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display, the method comprising:

receiving video content and corresponding closed-captioning content at a media device;

detecting, by the media device, one or more symbols within a first portion of the received closed-captioning content, the one or more symbols indicating flashing images within the received video content; and

in response to detecting the symbols within the first portion of the closed-captioning content indicating the flashing images within the received video content;

identifying, by the media device, one or more markings in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content;

using the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to determine, by the media device, that one or more frames of the video content contain one or more flashes, wherein the determining comprises matching the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to corresponding markings associated with the determined frames of the video content;

identifying one or more color components corresponding to the one or more flashes within the one or more frames of the video content;

adjusting the one or more flashes by altering the one or more color components to match one or more reference colors that correspond to one or more additional color components of one or more preceding and subsequent frames of video content; and

providing for display by the screen display the one or more frames of the video content.

2. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising displaying one or more warnings about the flashing images within the received video content, the one or more warnings to indicate a time when the flashing images will be displayed on the screen display.

3. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 2, wherein the one or more warnings about the flashing images are to be displayed during display of the video content.

4. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising skipping the flashing images during video content display.

5. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 4, further comprising:

stopping the video content display before the flashing images are displayed during a live broadcast; and

resuming the video content after the flashing images are displayed during the live broadcast.

6. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising displaying an alternative screen.

7. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 6, wherein the alternative screen comprises a blank screen.

8. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 6, wherein the alternative screen comprises a message screen.

9. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising:

dimming a portion of the video content that comprises the flashing images.

10. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising:

adjusting the one or more color components to decrease a brightness characteristic.

16. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, wherein the closed-captioning content received by the media device is generated by a television service provider, by adding the one or more symbols indicating the flashing images within the received video content to the existing closed-captioning information corresponding to the received video content.

17. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the media device, within the frames of the video content that contain the one or more flashes, one or more particular frame portions that contain the one or more flashes, wherein the particular frame portions are determined based on the symbols detected within the corresponding closed-captioning content, and

wherein adjusting the one or more flashes comprises altering the determined particular frame portions that contain the one or more flashes, without altering other frame portions within the same frames of the video content that contain the one or more flashes.

20. The method for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with the screen display of claim 1, wherein matching the markings comprises matching a first timestamp in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to a corresponding timestamp associated with the determined frames of the video content.

11. A system for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display, the system comprising:

a display device comprising a screen display;

a media device communicatively coupled to the display device, wherein the media device comprises;

one or more processors; and

memory communicatively coupled with, and readable by, the one or more processors, the memory having stored therein processor-readable instructions, which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to;

receive from a content provider content comprising video content and corresponding closed-captioning content associated with the video content;

detect one or more symbols within a first portion of the received closed-captioning content, the one or more symbols indicating flashing images within the received video content; and

in response to detecting the symbols within the first portion of the closed-captioning content indicating the flashing images within the received video content;

identifying, by the media device, one or more markings in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content;

using the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to determine that one or more frames of the video content corresponds to the flashing images, wherein the determining comprises matching the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to corresponding markings associated with the determined frames of the video content;

identify a precaution against the flashing images based at least in part on the determined one or more frames of the video content that corresponds to the flashing images; and

output to the display device, based at least in part on the precaution, one or more of at least a portion of the video content and/or information about the video content.

12. The system for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display of claim 11, wherein the precaution comprises displaying one or more warnings about the flashing images, the one or more warnings to indicate a time when the flashing images will be displayed.

13. The system for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display of claim 11, wherein the precaution comprises skipping the flashing images during the video content display.

18. The system for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display of claim 11, further comprising:

a television service provider configured to add the one or more symbols indicating flashing images within the received video content to the existing closed-captioning information corresponding to the received video content.

19. The system for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display of claim 11, the memory having stored therein further processor-readable instructions, which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:

determine, within the frames of the video content that contain the flashing images, one or more particular frame portions that contain the flashing images, wherein the particular frame portions are determined based on the symbols detected within the corresponding closed-captioning content, and

wherein adjusting the flashing images comprises altering the determined particular frame portions that contain the flashing images, without altering other frame portions within the same frames of the video content that contain the flashing images.

14. A non-transitory computer-readable medium for providing photosensitivity protection for content displayable with a screen display, having sets of instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to:

receive content comprising video content and corresponding closed-captioning content associated with the video content;

detect one or more symbols within the received closed-captioning content, the one or more symbols indicating flashing images within the received video content;

in response to detecting the symbols within the first portion of the closed-captioning content indicating the flashing images within the received video content;

identifying, by the media device, one or more markings in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content;

using the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to determine a portion of the video content that corresponds to the flashing images, wherein the determining comprises matching the markings identified in the first portion of the received closed-captioning content to corresponding markings associated with the determined frames of the video content;

determine a precaution against the flashing images based at least in part on the determining of the portion of the video content that corresponds to the flashing images; and

output to a display device for presentation, based at least in part on the precaution, a warning message that changes in time as the flashing images near within the video content to notify a viewer about the flashing images within the video content.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the sets of instructions further cause the computer to output the warning message progressively larger over time as the flashing images near within the video content.