Overlaying camera-derived viewer emotion indication on video display

• US 8,421,823 B2
• Filed: 03/09/2011
• Issued: 04/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nishikawa, Yuko
• Primary Examiner(s): HARRISON, CHANTE E
• Application Number:
  US13/043,799
• Publication Number:
  US 20120229506A1
• Time in Patent Office: 769 Days
• Field of Search: 345/473, 345/629, 725/12
• US Class Current: 345/629
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• 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 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q

Abstract

A method whereby an actual image of a TV viewer as captured by a camera housed in the TV, or an emoticon selected by the processor of the TV through the use of facial recognition method, can be displayed on the viewer'"'"'s display or a friend'"'"'s display along with title of video, audio captured by a microphone also housed in the viewer'"'"'s TV, and text inputted by the viewer.

Claims

1. Audio video apparatus, comprising:

video display;

processor controlling the display to present video;

computer readable storage medium accessible to the processor and bearing instructions executable by the processor to configure the processor to;

present on the display an emotion presentation user interface (UI), the UI including a first selector element selectable to cause an actual image of a viewer of the display as captured by a camera to be overlaid onto video, the UI including a second selector element selectable by a user to cause an emoticon to be overlaid onto video, the emoticon being established by the processor responsive to selection of the second selector element to match closely as possible the actual image of the viewer as captured by the camera and processed by the processor executing a recognition engine;

receive a viewer selection of the first selector element or the second selector element;

responsive to a viewer selection of the first selector element, generate an actual image of a viewer of the display and overlay the image on the video; and

responsive to a viewer selection of the second selector element, correlate the image to an emoticon and overlay the emoticon on the video.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor further configure the processor to:

present, along with the image or emoticon, audio generated by a viewer and captured by a microphone communicating with the processor.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the instructions executable by the processor further configure the processor to:

present, along with the image of the viewer derived from the camera, a title of the video, the processor accessing a program guide to ascertain the title and present an alpha-numeric representation thereof along with the image of the viewer derived from the camera.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor causes the image or emoticon to be sent to an audio video display device remote from the apparatus.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processor receives user identification of the audio video display device remote from the apparatus.

6. System comprising:

a viewer video display;

a processor coupled to the viewer video display;

a camera communicating with the processor;

the processor configured for executing logic on a computer readable storage medium to present on the display an emotion presentation user interface (UI), the UI including a first selector element selectable to cause an actual image of a viewer of the display as captured by a camera to be overlaid onto video, the UI including a second selector element selectable by a user to cause an emoticon to be overlaid onto video, the emoticon being established by the processor responsive to selection of the second selector element to match closely as possible the actual image of the viewer as captured by the camera and processed by the processor executing a recognition engine.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the image of the viewer derived from the camera is an actual image of the viewer.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor executes a facial recognition method to correlate one of plural emoticons to a facial image from the camera, and the image of the viewer derived from the camera is the one of plural emoticons.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the presentation video display is established by the viewer video display.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the presentation video display is a display other than the viewer video display, the viewer of the viewer video display being permitted to input an address associated with the presentation video display.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured for presenting, along with the image of the viewer derived from the camera, audio generated by the viewer and captured by a microphone communicating with the processor.

12. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor is further configured for presenting, along with the image of the viewer derived from the camera, a title of the video, the processor accessing a program guide to ascertain the title and present an alpha-numeric representation thereof along with the image of the viewer derived from the camera.

13. Method comprising:

capturing an image of a viewer of a first audio video display using a camera associated with the first audio video display;

presenting on the display an emotion presentation user interface (UI), the UI including a first selector element selectable to cause an actual image of a viewer of the display as captured by a camera to be overlaid onto video, the UI including a second selector element selectable by a user to cause an emoticon to be overlaid onto video, the emoticon being established by the processor responsive to selection of the second selector element to match closely as possible the actual image of the viewer as captured by the camera and processed by the processor executing a recognition engine; and

responsive to user selection of the first or second selector element, presenting the actual image of the viewer or the emoticon, respectively.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the emoticon is displayed on the first audio video display.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the emoticon is displayed on the second audio video display.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising presenting a title of video being watched along with the emoticon.

17. The method of claim 15, comprising receiving from a viewer of the first audio video display an identity of the second audio video display.

18. The method of claim 13, comprising presenting audio captured by a microphone associated with the first audio video display along with the emoticon.

19. The method of claim 13, comprising receiving text input from a viewer of the first audio video display and presenting the text along with the emoticon.

20. The method of claim 13, comprising executing facial recognition on the image at least in part to select the emoticon.