Methods and apparatus for performing variable block length watermarking of media

• US 9,947,327 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2013
• Issued: 04/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Srinivasan, Venugopal, Topchy, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Opsasnick, Michael N
• Application Number:
  US13/907,286
• Publication Number:
  US 20130268279A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,782 Days
• Field of Search: 704500-504, 704273
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/018 Audio watermarking, i.e. embedding inaudible data in the audio signal

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for performing variable block length watermarking of media are disclosed. An example method to encode auxiliary data in audio data comprises selecting a frequency based on a code, selecting a block size based on the code, a combination of the block size and the frequency to represent of the code, encoding the code in an audio stream according to the block size and the frequency, and transmitting the audio stream including the encoded code.

Claims

1. A method to encode auxiliary data in audio, the method comprising:

selecting, by executing an instruction with a processor and based on a first symbol in a code, a first frequency from a set of frequencies;

selecting a first block size by executing an instruction with the processor, the selection of the first block size based on the first symbol and the code, a combination of the first block size and the first frequency to represent the first symbol;

synthesizing a code frequency according to the first block size and the first frequency by executing an instruction with the processor;

combining, by executing an instruction with the processor, the code frequency with a first block of input audio samples of the audio having the first block size to form a block of encoded audio samples encoded with the first symbol, the code frequency and the first block of input audio samples overlapping in time; and

outputting the encoded audio samples to a device that produces an audio signal from the encoded audio samples.

2. The method of claim 1, further including padding audio samples adjacent the block of encoded audio samples with a number of unmodified samples corresponding to a difference between the first block size and a predetermined block size.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first symbol encoded in the block of encoded audio samples is detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded according to the first block size and the first symbol is not detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded according to a different block size.

4. The method of claim 1, further including accessing a lookup table based on the first symbol to select the first frequency and the first block size.

14. The method of claim 1, further including converting the encoded audio samples into an analog form prior to being output.

15. The method of claim 1, further including:

sampling the audio to determine the input audio samples; and

converting the input audio samples to a frequency domain, the combining of the code frequency with the block of input audio samples being done in the frequency domain.

5. An apparatus to encode auxiliary data in audio, the apparatus comprising:

a selector to select, based on a first symbol in a code, a first frequency from a set of frequencies, and to select a first block size based on the first symbol and the code, a combination of the first block size and the first frequency to represent the first symbol; and

a combiner to;

synthesize a code frequency according to the first block size and the first frequency;

combine the code frequency with a first block of input audio samples of the audio having the first block size to form a block of encoded audio samples encoded with the first symbol, the code frequency and the first block of input audio samples overlapping in time; and

output the encoded audio samples to a device that produces an audio signal from the encoded audio samples.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the selector is to pad audio samples adjacent the block of encoded audio samples with a number unmodified samples corresponding to a difference between the first block size and a predetermined block size.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first block size includes a number of samples of the audio.

8. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the first symbol encoded in the block of encoded audio samples is detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded using the first block size and the first symbol is not detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded using a second block size different than the first block size.

9. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the selector is to access a lookup table based on the first symbol to select the first frequency and the first block size.

16. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the combiner is to convert the encoded audio samples into an analog form prior to being output.

17. The apparatus of claim 5, further including:

a sampler to sample the audio to determine the input audio samples; and

the combiner is to convert the input audio samples to a frequency domain, the combining of the code frequency with the block of input audio samples being done in the frequency domain.

10. An article of manufacture comprising machine readable instructions which, when executed, cause a processor to at least:

select, based on a first symbol in a code, a first frequency from a set of frequencies;

select a first block size based on the first symbol and the code, a combination of the first block size and the frequency to represent the first symbol;

synthesize a code frequency according to the first block size and the first frequency;

combine the code frequency with a first block of input audio samples of the audio having the first block size to form a block of encoded audio samples encoded with the first symbol, the code frequency and the first block of input audio samples overlapping in time; and

output the encoded audio samples to a device that produces an audio signal from the encoded audio samples.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further to cause the machine to pad audio samples adjacent the block of encoded audio samples with a number of unmodified samples corresponding to a difference between the first block size and a predetermined block size.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the first symbol encoded in the block of encoded audio samples is detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded according to the first block size and the first symbol is not detectable at the first frequency when the block of encoded audio samples is decoded according to a different block size.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further to cause the machine to access a lookup table based on the first symbol to select the first frequency and the first block size.

18. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further to cause the machine to convert the encoded audio samples into an analog form prior to being output.

19. The article of manufacture of claim 10, wherein the instructions are further to cause the machine to:

sample the audio to determine the input audio samples; and

convert the input audio samples to a frequency domain, the combining of the code frequency with the block of input audio samples being done in the frequency domain.