Synchronous data tracks in a media editing system

• US 8,818,173 B2
• Filed: 10/11/2013
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avid Technology Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avid Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Wallace, Ron
• Primary Examiner(s): Vaughn, Jr., William C
• Assistant Examiner(s): ADAMS, EILEEN M
• Application Number:
  US14/052,061
• Publication Number:
  US 20140044413A1
• Time in Patent Office: 319 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 386/278
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/031 Electronic editing of digitised analogue information signals, e.g. audio or video signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

A media editing system provides an editor with full visibility and editing capability for synchronous data that is adjunct to audio and video. The data tracks include one or more streams of data packets, each stream being of a particular data type. Synchronous data tracks are displayed on the timeline, facilitating data track editing independent of the associated media tracks. The UI also enables selective playback and export of the data tracks along with the corresponding video and audio. The system also enables data streams to be filtered and combined. Data from the data tracks can be extracted and imported into a media asset management system, enabling the data to be searched.

Claims

1. A method of filtering a multi-track time-based media composition the method comprising:

providing a time-based media processing software application access to a multi-track time-based media composition, wherein the multi-track time-based media composition comprises a first media track and a first data track, the first data track comprising a stream of data packets, wherein each of the data packets occupies a unique time address corresponding to a media element on the first media track;

enabling a user of the media processing software application to define a filtering rule specifying a rule for filtering at least one of the media track and the data track comprising the stream of data packets;

and causing the media processing software application to filter the multi-track time-based media composition in accordance with a user-defined filtering rule to generate a version of the multi-track media composition comprising at least one media track and one data track comprising the stream of data packets in which at least one of the;

media in the first media track has been altered or removed; and

data packets in the first data stream of the data track have been altered or removed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-track media composition includes two or more data tracks and the filtering removes at least one data track.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein each data track of the multi-track media composition belongs to one of a plurality of types, and the filtering results in a version of the multi-track composition having no more than one of any given type.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein one of the plurality of data track types is a subtitle track.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the multi-track media composition includes a subtitle data track in a first language and a subtitle data track in a second language.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering ensures that all Advanced Format Descriptor values in the generated version conform to a desired output aspect ratio.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering generates a version for young audiences in which inappropriate words in a closed caption track are removed.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering generates a version in which display times for closed captions are adjusted to conform to a time-span of corresponding video.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-track media composition includes a GPS coordinate data track and the filtering generates a version having a data track in which the GPS coordinates are translated into a text string descriptive of the coordinates'"'"' location.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering generates a version in which a data track of the multi-track media composition has been converted into a form adapted to searching.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the form adapted to searching includes text.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising reading the converted data into a media asset management system.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the converted data includes at least one of closed caption text, program description data, positional data, and interactive program content.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-track media composition includes a video track.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering generates a version in which data referenced by at least one data track and at least one media track are combined into a media stream.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-track media composition is stored locally to a client hosting the media processing software application.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-track media composition is stored remotely from a client hosting the media processing software application.

18. A computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium with computer program instructions encoded thereon, wherein the computer program instructions, when processed by a computer, instruct the computer to perform a method of filtering a multi-track time-based media composition, the method comprising;

providing a time-based media processing software application access to a multi-track time-based media composition, wherein the multi-track time-based media composition comprises a first media track and a first data track, the first data track comprising a stream of data packets, wherein each of the data packets occupies a unique time address corresponding to a media element on the first media track;

enabling a user of the media processing software application to define a filtering rule specifying a rule for filtering at least one of the media track and the data track comprising the stream of data packets; and

causing the media processing software application to filter the multi-track time-based media composition in accordance with a user-defined filtering rule to generate a version of the multi-track media composition comprising at least one media track and one data track comprising the stream of data packets in which at least one of the;

media in the first media track has been altered or removed; and

data packets in the data stream of the first data track have been altered or removed.

19. A system for filtering a multi-track time-based media composition, the system comprising:

a memory for storing computer-readable instructions; and

a processor connected to the memory, wherein the processor, when executing the computer-readable instructions, causes the media composition system to;

receive the multi-track time-based media composition at a time-based media processing software application, wherein the multi-track time-based media composition comprises a first media track and a first data track, the first data track comprising a stream of data packets, wherein each of the data packets occupies a unique time address corresponding to a media element on the first media track;

enable a user of the media processing software application to define a filtering rule specifying a rule for filtering at least one of the media track and the data track comprising the stream of data packets;

and cause the media processing software application to filter the multi-track time-based media composition in accordance with a user-defined filtering rule to generate a version of the multi-track media composition comprising at least one media track and one data track comprising the stream of data packets in which at least one of the;

media in the first media track has been altered or removed; and

data packets in the data stream of the first data track have been altered or removed.