Patent Application
20100194896
While the increasing use of the world wide web provides many avenues for groups to upload and exchange digital pictures doing so is still a multi-step, often cumbersome process. Web services that host pictures typically require manual authentication and extensive browsing just to gain access to pictures of interest. Picture takers also need to manipulate permissions settings to manage picture access.
Another recent development in electronics industry and use of electronic devices by consumers is the proliferation of wireless communication devices. Short range communication devices in particular are increasingly found in many aspects of daily life. Smaller and relatively low-powered transceivers are integrated into a wide variety of devices to enable the automatic exchange of information, and to simplify many processes such as user authentication, contact information exchange between mobile devices, and other similar scenarios.
This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This summary is not intended to exclusively identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
Embodiments are directed to associating captured images with nearby device information in order to facilitate identification of people in the captured image or in the vicinity to the captured images, and facilitate subsequent access to the captured image for those people. Image capturing devices according to embodiments are enabled to detect nearby devices with short range transmitters and use identifiers of such devices to store that information in association with captures image data. Captured images may then be made available through direct access following the capture of the image or through a networked image download service.
These and other features and advantages will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description and a review of the associated drawings. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are explanatory and do not restrict aspects as claimed.
As briefly described above, nearby device identifier information may be detected and recorded during image capture by a digital camera for access to the captured image by owners of the detected nearby devices. In the following detailed description, references are made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustrations specific embodiments or examples. These aspects may be combined, other aspects may be utilized, and structural changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. The following detailed description is therefore not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
While the embodiments will be described in the general context of program modules that execute in conjunction with an application program that runs on a firmware on a digital camera or on an operating system on a personal computer, those skilled in the art will recognize that aspects may also be implemented in combination with other program modules.
Generally, program modules include routines, programs, components, data structures, and other types of structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that embodiments may be practiced with other computer system configurations, including hand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and comparable computing devices. Embodiments may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.
Embodiments may be implemented as a computer-implemented process (method), a computing system, or as an article of manufacture, such as a computer program product or computer readable media. The computer program product may be a computer storage medium readable by a computer system and encoding a computer program that comprises instructions for causing a computer or computing system to perform example process(es). The computer-readable storage medium can for example be implemented via one or more of a volatile computer memory, a non-volatile memory, a hard drive, a flash drive, a floppy disk, or a compact disk, and comparable media. The computer program product may also be a propagated signal on a carrier (e.g. a frequency or phase modulated signal) or medium readable by a computing system and encoding a computer program of instructions for executing a computer process.
Throughout this specification, the term “platform” may be a combination of software and hardware components for managing access to captured images such as pictures, video, etc. Examples of platforms include, but are not limited to, a hosted service executed over a plurality of servers, an application executed on a single server, and comparable systems. The term “server” refers to a computing device executing one or more software programs typically in a networked environment. More detail on these technologies and example operations is provided below.
Referring to
In a digital camera such as the one shown in diagram 100, a user may capture a still image by pressing a button 102. Flash 108 may be engaged to illuminate the objects to be captured in the still image. Camera lens 108 may have a shutter that opens and closes to allow light to enter camera's picture capture components. Image processor 104 may process captured images and manage their storage. Communication module 110 may handle communication with other computing devices for uploading/storage of captures images, receiving configuration instructions, and with nearby devices using a short range transmitter to associate captured images with identifiers of the nearby devices.
As discussed in more detail below in conjunction with
When images are captured, users may upload the images to portable storage devices, other computing devices, or networked systems such as a web access service. The images may then be made available to others, such as the people in the captured images, by physical transfer (e.g. on a portable storage device), electronic mail or other communication means, or by enabling others to download the images from a computing device or networked system. However, that typically involves user intervention in form of determining who should receive the images, uploading the images, setting access privileges, and comparable actions.
In a system according to embodiments, determination of who should have access to the captured images and providing the pictures steps may be automated through associating the captured images with identifier information from nearby devices with short range transmitters. For example, a digital camera according to embodiments may determine nearby devices (e.g. cellular phones) with Bluetooth transceivers and record their identifiers along with captured images. Later, the pictures may be stored such that owners of the determined devices can have access to the captured images. The captured images may include still images or video images. However, embodiments are not limited to these, even audio recordings may be employed for a system according to embodiments. The identifier information may be associated with the recorded image by employing a database, inserting data (e.g. a tag) into the image file, or other methods.
In
According to some embodiments, computer 208 may execute an image processing application that determines a user profile id associated with the short range transmitter identifier to further tag a user profile id into the metadata. Computer 208 may then upload the images to server 210. Uploaded images may be accessed by user 202 (or any other user) using information associated with the nearby device identifier to receive access to uploaded picture. The user may access the server 210 through network(s) 212.
According to embodiments, devices 203 and 205 may be a cell phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, a laptop, a digital music player, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip, and similar devices with short range transceivers.
In
According to other embodiments, a nearby device (e.g. 203) that has received a notification from the digital camera 206 may alert user (e.g. 202) to the availability of images for download. In subsequent access to the server storing the tagged images, the user may use the nearby device as a key in authenticating to the server and receive access to the images having nearby device tag for display, printing, download and other purposes. According to further embodiments, digital camera 206 may offer to transmit the captured image directly to one of the nearby devices (203, 205).
While the example systems in
Example embodiments also include methods. These methods can be implemented in any number of ways, including the structures described in this document. One such way is by machine operations, of devices of the type described in this document.
Another optional way is for one or more of the individual operations of the methods to be performed in conjunction with one or more human operators performing some. These human operators need not be collocated with each other, but each can be only with a machine that performs a portion of the program.
Process 300 begins with operation 302, where a user takes a picture with a digital camera. At subsequent operation 304, the digital camera saves the picture. Following the saving operation, the digital camera determines availability of nearby devices via querying nearby devices using camera's short range transceiver. Alternatively, the determination may occur prior to capturing of the image (i.e. the camera may preemptively search for nearby devices, then associate them with the image when it is captured).
At operation 308, upon finding nearby devices, the digital camera adds found device's short range transceiver identifier into the metadata of the picture in subsequent operation 310. In operation 312, the tagged picture may be stored remotely in a personal computer or a networked system.
If no nearby devices are found at operation 308, the picture may be stored remotely without the identifier information.
The operations included in process 300 are for illustration purposes. Tagging the short range transceiver identifier of a nearby device into a picture's metadata and remote storage may be implemented by similar processes with fewer or additional steps, as well as in different order of operations using the principles described herein. For example, the nearby devices may be detected before the picture is taken or captured pictures may be offered for transmission to the detected nearby devices.
Process 500 begins with operation 502, where a personal computer receives a picture from the digital camera. At subsequent operation 504 a photo application running on the personal computer performs a search for a short range transceiver identifier embedded in the picture's metadata. If at process 508 no short range transceiver identifiers are found, then the photo application may end user profile identifier tagging, and may upload the picture into a server for later access.
Upon finding a short range transceiver identifier in process 508, the photo application queries a web service to resolve short range transceiver's unique user identifier number matching the nearby device to a user profile identifier. If at process 512 a matching user profile identifier is found, then at process 514 the photo application adds a profile identifier tag into the picture's metadata for the corresponding short range transceiver identifier and uploads the picture into the server for later access. If no matching user profile identifier may be found at process 512, the photo application may upload the picture into the server for later access.
In some embodiments, the short range transceiver identifier may be a Bluetooth tag (UUID), a wireless USB HID tag, and others. The user profile identifier may be a .NET Passport® or a Windows Live ID® by MICROSOFT CORP. of Redmond, Wash., and others such as commonly used social networking websites. Embodiments described here are not limited to specific examples provided.
The operations included in process 500 are for illustration purposes. Tagging profile information into the picture's metadata and remote storage may be implemented by similar processes with fewer or additional steps, as well as in different order of operations using the principles described herein.
As discussed previously, computing devices 611-613 are used to facilitate communications through a variety of modes between subscribers to tagged picture service. Information associated with user profiles and facilitating communications may be stored in one or more data stores (e.g. data store 616), which may be managed by any one of the servers 618 or by database server 614.
Network(s) 610 may comprise any topology of servers, clients, Internet service providers, and communication media. A system according to embodiments may have a static or dynamic topology. Network(s) 610 may include a secure network such as an enterprise network, an unsecure network such as a wireless open network, or the Internet. Network(s) 610 may also comprise a plurality of distinct networks such as Unified Communications network, PSTN, and cellular network. Network(s) 610 provides communication between the nodes described herein. By way of example, and not limitation, network(s) 610 may include wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media.
Many other configurations of computing devices, applications, data sources, and data distribution systems may be employed to implement a system for providing access to captured images based on associating nearby device identifiers with the captured image data. Furthermore, the networked environments discussed in
Image processing application 722 and notification module 724 may be separate applications or integral modules of a hosted service that provides image access services to client applications/devices. Notification module 724 may notify nearby devices of tagged pictures.
Digital camera 700 may have additional features or functionality. For example, the digital camera 700 may also include additional data storage devices (removable and/or non-removable) such as, for example, magnetic disks, or optical disks. Such additional storage is illustrated in
Digital camera 700 may also contain communication connections 716 that allow the device to communicate with other devices 718, such as over a wireless network in a distributed computing environment, a cellular link, and comparable mechanisms. Other devices 718 may include computer device(s) that execute image processing services, access management services, and comparable ones. Communication connection(s) 716 is one example of communication media. Communication media can include therein computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and includes any information delivery media. The term “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media includes wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and other wireless media.
The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the manufacture and use of the composition of the embodiments. Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims and embodiments.
