Identifying and utilizing synchronized content

• US 10,140,310 B1
• Filed: 06/30/2015
• Issued: 11/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kendall, Mitch Ray, Girdhar, Puneet, Lakshmanan, Geetika Tewari
• Primary Examiner(s): Spieler, William
• Application Number:
  US14/788,492
• Time in Patent Office: 1,246 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/1794 Details of file format conversion
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/275 Synchronous replication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/685 using automatically derived transcript of audio data, e.g. lyrics speech recognition G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/062 Combinations of audio and printed presentations, e.g. magnetically striped cards, talking books, magnetic tapes with printed texts thereon

Abstract

Methods, systems and apparatus for identifying and utilizing content synchronization information are described. Methods for creating and utilizing a synchronization file that can be used to notify users when synchronization availability exists, and to identify ways to repair synchronization unavailability are described. The synchronization file includes a complete set of individual content elements that make up a content item, such as a book, where each content element has an indication whether play-back of an audio version of the content item can be synchronized with the presentation of a corresponding text version of the content item. Methods, systems and apparatus are also disclosed for providing the synchronization availability information to the user in a manner that enables the user to increase the benefits of synchronized presentation of the content item.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an audiobook a comprising audio data representing a content item;

an electronic book comprising text data representing the content item; and

a synchronization file for the content item, the synchronization file comprising;

audiobook availability data that identifies first audio portions of the audio data that are available for synchronized output with the text data;

audiobook null data that identifies second audio portions of the audio data that are unavailable for synchronized output with the text data;

electronic book availability data that identifies first text portions of the text data that are available for synchronized output with the audio data; and

electronic book null data that identifies second text portions of the text data that are unavailable for synchronized output with the audio data; and

a user device comprising;

one or more processors;

a speaker configured to output the audio data of the audiobook;

a display operable to display the text data of the electronic book; and

one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

outputting, during a first period of time, a first portion of the content item where the audio data and the text data are synchronized;

at least partly during the first period of time and while the first portion of the content item is output;

identifying, using the synchronization file, a second portion of the content item where synchronization of the audio data and the text data is less than a predetermined threshold, wherein the second portion of the content item is scheduled to be output during a second period of time that is subsequent the first period of time;

outputting, using at least one of the display or the speaker, an alert indicating that the content item does not have synchronization availability for the second portion of the content item;

presenting, on the display, an input control configured to cause the user device to refrain from presenting the second portion of the content item;

receiving input via the input control; and

based at least in part on receiving the input, refraining from presenting the second portion of the content item.

2. The system of claim 1, the computer-executable instructions causing the one or more processors to perform further operations comprising:

calculating a value indicating a synchronization availability for the second portion of the content item;

determining that the value indicating the synchronization availability for the second portion of the content item is less than a threshold value for synchronization availability;

based at least in part on the value being less than the threshold value, refraining presenting the second portion of the content item.

3. An electronic device comprising:

one or more processors;

memory storing;

an audio file comprising audio data representing a content item;

a text file comprising text data representing the content item; and

a synchronization file that corresponds the content item, the synchronization file comprising;

audio availability information indicating first audio portions of the audio data that are available for synchronized output with the text data;

audio null data indicating second audio portions of the audio data that are not available for synchronized output with the text data;

text availability information indicating first text portions of the text data that are available for synchronized output with the audio data; and

text null data indicating second text portions of the text data that are not available for synchronized output with the audio data;

a speaker configured to output the audio data in the audio file;

a display configured to present the text data in the text file; and

one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

outputting, during a first period of time, a first portion of the content item where the audio data and the text data are synchronized;

identifying, from the synchronization file, a second portion of the content item for which output availability of a first one of the audio data or the text data is less than a threshold, wherein the second portion of the content item is scheduled to be output during a second period of time that is subsequent the first period of time; and

outputting, during the second period of time, a second one of the audio data or the text data that is available for output while refraining from outputting the first one of the audio data or the text data for which the output availability is less than the threshold.

4. The electronic device of claim 3, further comprising processing circuitry configured to synchronize play-back of the audio data and presentation of the text data of the second portion of the content item such that the audio data and the text data are both available simultaneously.

5. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to produce a first output that indicates, based at least in part on the electronic device being in a synchronized play-back/presentation mode, the second portion of the content item for which synchronized play-back/presentation is unavailable.

6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to produce a second output that indicates, prior to outputting the second portion of the content item and while the electronic device is in the synchronized play-back/presentation mode, a particular time at which the synchronized play-back/presentation of the second portion of the content item is going to become unavailable.

7. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to produce a third output that indicates, while the electronic device is in the synchronized play-back/presentation mode, a third period of time at which the synchronized play-back/presentation will become available after synchronized play-back/presentation has become unavailable for the second portion of the content item during the second period of time.

8. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to output, using the display, a graphic that represents a measurement of the synchronization availability of the content item.

9. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein:

the audio file comprises a plurality of audio content elements that, when compiled in a sequence, comprise an audio version of the content item; and

the text file comprises a plurality of text content elements that, when compiled in a sequence, comprise a text version of the content item.

10. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the synchronization file further comprises:

a start time for playback of each of the plurality of content elements included in the audio file; and

a stop time for playback of each of the plurality of content elements included in the audio file.

11. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the synchronization file further comprises:

a start location for presentation of each of the plurality of text content elements; and

an end location for presentation of each of the plurality of text content elements.

12. The electronic device of claim 9, wherein the synchronization file further comprises:

an indicator of whether synchronized play-back of the plurality of audio content elements with the presentation of the plurality of text content elements is available.

13. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

an electronic data store comprising;

a first content item, the first content item being associated with;

a first audio version of the first content item;

a first text version of the first content item;

a first synchronization file that indicates first portions of the first content item for which synchronized output of the first audio version and the first text version is available, and further indicates second portions of the first content item for which synchronized output of the first audio version and the first text version is unavailable;

a first synchronization value indicating an overall synchronization availability between the first text version and the first audio version;

a second content item, the second content item being associated with;

a second audio version of the second content item;

a second text version of the second content item;

a second synchronization file that indicates first portions of the second content item for which synchronized output of the second audio version and the second text version is available, and further indicates second portions of the second content item for which synchronized output of the second audio version and the second text version is unavailable; and

a second synchronization value indicating an overall synchronization availability between the second text version and the second audio version of the second content item; and

one or more computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

providing, at least partly via a display associated with a user-computing device, a first icon indicating the first content item and a second icon indicating the first synchronization value for the first content item;

providing, at least partly via the display, a third icon indicating the second content item and a fourth icon indicating the second synchronization value for the second content item;

receiving, from the user-computing device, input data indicating a selection of the third icon indicating the second content item, wherein the second synchronization value is greater than the first synchronization value; and

based at least in part on receiving the input data indicating the selection of the third icon indicating the second content item, providing the second content item to the user-computing device.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

the user-computing device comprising;

a network interface that can be coupled to the electronic data store to receive the second content item from the electronic data store;

memory comprising;

the second content item comprising;

the second audio version;

the second text version; and

the second synchronization file that indicates the first portions of the second content item for which synchronization is available and the second portions of the second content item for which synchronization is unavailable.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the second synchronization file further comprises:

a start location and an end location that define where at least one of the first portions of the second content item occurs in the second text version; and

a start location and an end location that define when at least one of the first portions of the second content item occurs in the second audio version.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the user-computing device further comprises:

processing circuitry configured to produce a first output that indicates, based at least in part on the user-computing device being in a synchronized play-back/presentation mode, that synchronized play-back/presentation is unavailable for at least one of the second portions of the second content item.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to product a second output that indicates in advance, based at least in part on the user-computing device being in a synchronized play-back/presentation mode, when synchronized play-back/presentation is going to become unavailable for the at least one of the second portions of the second content item.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to provide, using a display, a fourth output comprising a graphic that represents the second synchronization value indicating the overall synchronization availability for the second content item.