System and related interfaces supporting the processing of media content

• US 7,237,038 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2005
• Issued: 06/26/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Rudolph, Eric H., Miller, Daniel J.
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, VIET DUY
• Application Number:
  US11/071,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20050155039A1
• Time in Patent Office: 845 Days
• Field of Search: 709/246, 709/250, 719/321, 719/323, 345/418, 345/619
• US Class Current: 709/246
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols

Abstract

A software enabled, matrix switch is presented wherein a scalable plurality of inputs, coupled to media content sources, provide media content which is recursively routed through select media processing object(s) coupled to a scalable plurality of matrix switch outputs in accordance with a user-defined media processing project.

Claims

1. A software enabled, matrix switch embodied on a computer-readable medium comprising:

a scalable plurality of inputs, dynamically coupled to select source(s) to receive media content;

a scalable plurality of outputs, dynamically coupled to select object(s), wherein the software enabled, matrix switch recursively routes media content through the select object(s) to manipulate the received media content in accordance with a user-defined media processing; and

a primary output configured to be coupled to a rendering filter for rendering data of the user-defined media processing project.

2. A software enabled, matrix switch according to claim 1, wherein the scalable plurality of inputs are implemented as software objects dedicated to communicating information from a software object to the switch.

3. A software enabled, matrix switch according to claim 2, wherein the software objects are component object model (COM) objects.

4. A software enabled, matrix switch according to claim 2, wherein the scalable plurality of outputs are implemented as software objects such as, for example, component object model (COM) objects.

5. A software enabled, matrix switch according to claim 1, further comprising:

a memory space, shared among the plurality of inputs and outputs to receive and buffer media content from various sources until presentation to one of the plurality of outputs.

6. A software enabled, matrix switch according to claim 1, wherein the matrix switch is generated by a render engine in a media processing filter graph to selectively couple one or more inputs to one or more outputs recursively processing media content through a plurality of software objects in accordance with a user-defined media processing project.

7. A media processing system embodied on a computer-readable medium, comprising:

a source to provide media content; and

a software enabled, matrix switch filter, coupled to the source, to receive the media content on one or more of a scalable plurality of inputs and selectively route the content to object(s) coupled to one or more of a scalable plurality of output(s), to recursively transform the received content prior to rendering, wherein the matrix switch filter comprises a primary output configured to be coupled to a rendering filter for rendering data of a user-defined media processing project.

8. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the objects coupled to the scalable plurality of outputs include one or more of a transition filter or an effects filter.

9. A media processing system according to claim 7, further comprising:

a render engine, exposing the source and the software enabled, matrix switch filter to higher-level applications, to enable a user to generate a media processing project.

10. A media processing system according to claim 9, wherein the render engine automatically generates a filter graph reflecting a user-defined media processing project.

11. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the matrix switch filter includes memory space to buffer content received from one or more input(s) for routing to one or more of the output(s).

12. A media processing system according to claim 11, wherein the memory space includes a buffer segment dedicated to an independent output thread, wherein the matrix switch filter insulates upstream processing from downstream processing, and vice versa.

13. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the media processing system invokes an instance of the software enabled, matrix switch filter for each type of media sourced in the media processing project.

14. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the software enabled, matrix switch filter is implemented in software as an object of an operating system executing on a computing system implementing the media processing system.

15. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the matrix switch filter is implemented as a component object model (COM) object of an operating system executing on a computing system implementing the media processing system.

16. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the scalable plurality of inputs and the scalable plurality of outputs are implemented as software objects of an operating system executing on a computing system implementing the media processing system.

17. A media processing system according to claim 7, wherein the dynamic routing of media content from source(s) to output object(s) is facilitated by a plurality of object calls performed by the matrix switch in accordance with a user-defined media processing project.

18. A system according to claim 7, wherein the objects are media processing filters.

19. A computer-implemented method comprising:

implementing a matrix switch for processing media content in accordance with a user-defined media processing project, the matrix switch comprising;

a scalable plurality of inputs dynamically coupleable to select source(s) to receive media content;

a scalable plurality of outputs dynamically coupleable to select object(s); and

a primary output configured to be coupled to a rendering filter for rendering data of the user-defined media processing project;

processing the media content by;

dynamically coupling one or more of the inputs to one or more of the sources to receive the media content; and

dynamically coupling one or more of the scalable plurality of outputs to the select object(s) to recursively route media content through the select object(s) to manipulate the received media content in accordance with the user-defined media processing project.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising providing a memory space and sharing the memory space among the plurality of inputs and outputs effective to receive and buffer media content from various sources until presentation to one of the plurality of outputs.