Patent Application
20160100173
The present invention relates to streaming a video file for viewing. More specifically, the invention relates to segregating the file into two or more segments and re-encoding one or more of the segments to enhance streaming of the file.
The original digital video recorders recorded data on a portable storage device, and the video was viewed on a visual display through a player. Technology has evolved where digital content is available through a computer server and network connection. This evolution allows consumers to view content in the comfort of their home to be viewed on their television or through a computing device, including a smart phone. When the content is selected to be viewed, it is generally not all downloaded on the receiving device. Rather, the data is preloaded into a reserved area of memory, referred to herein as a buffer. In streaming audio or video from a server, buffering refers to downloading a certain amount of data before starting to play the audio or video. Having an advance supply of audio or video frames in memory mitigates disruption if there is a delay in transmission while the data is being played.
When streaming data over the Internet, packets of data can traverse a plurality of routers from a source to a destination. Delays can be introduced at any junction in the streaming. For example, a message may be received during playback that the buffer is being filled but is not completely filled. When the buffer is completely filled, the audio or video file will start playing. Accordingly, there are junctures associated with content viewing that may result in a pause or other disruption when playing the file.
The invention includes a method, computer program product, and system for improving efficiency and reduced bandwidth associated with transmission of data.
A method, computer program product, and system are provided for improving function of a computer, and more specifically, to reducing bandwidth of data transmission. An encoded data stream is divided into two of more time slices. Each slice pertains to a separate segment within the stream, and both a separate start time and end time for each segment are identified. Specifically, a first time slice is identified with a first start time and a first end time, and a second time slice is identified with a second start time and a second end time. The first segment is encoded at a first data resolution, with a first original data size associated with the first resolution. Similarly, the second segment is encoded at a second data resolution, with the second original data size associated with the second resolution. A size of the encoded stream is reduced. More specifically, one of the first and second segments is identified or otherwise designated for re-encoding at a second resolution. Following the designated, the segment is re-encoded at a second resolution, with a re-encoded data size less than an associated original data size. Transmission of the re-encoded time slice with a reduced data size reduces network bandwidth.
Other features and advantages of this invention will become apparent form the following detailed description of the presently preferred embodiment(s) of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The drawings referenced herein form a part of the specification. Features shown in the drawings are meant as illustrative of only some embodiments of the invention, and not of all embodiments of the invention unless otherwise explicitly indicated.
It will be readily understood that the components of the present invention, as generally described and illustrated in the Figures herein, may be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the apparatus, system, and method of the present invention, as presented in the Figures, is not intended to limit the scope of the invention, as claimed, but is merely representative of selected embodiments of the invention.
Reference throughout this specification to “a select embodiment,” “one embodiment,” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “a select embodiment,” “in one embodiment,” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment.
The illustrated embodiments of the invention will be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout. The following description is intended only by way of example, and simply illustrates certain selected embodiments of devices, systems, and processes that are consistent with the invention as claimed herein.
A video is a recordation, reproduction, or broadcast of moving visual images. All videos have an associated resolution, which refers to the sharpness and clarity of an image, and often, but not always, represented by the number of distinct lines or pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. More specifically, in analog or digital images resolution is the term used to describe the number of lines, dots or pixels in each dimension, including two and three dimensional images, used to display an image. Higher resolutions mean that more pixels are used to create the image, resulting in a crisper and cleaner image. At the same time, the higher resolution video utilizes more computing resources than a video with a lower resolution.
Videos may be viewed via download or streaming. A downloaded video is transmitted from one computer system to another, and following the transmission is available for viewing. Video streaming refers to the process of playing sound or video in real time as it is downloaded over a network. The process of streaming video removes the process of sending the video as a file, downloading the received file, and opening the file. High bandwidth network connections are generally needed to work with streaming video. Specific bandwidth requirements depend on the type of content. For example, high resolution streaming video requires more bandwidth than low resolution video. The bandwidth of a media stream is its bit rate. Dropped video frames and/or loss of sound results if the bit rate being maintained on the network for a stream drops below the rate needed to support immediate playback.
Referring to
Following the process of gathering segment details, an index of the segments is created. As shown, the segment counting variable X is initialized (118), and details of each segment are entered and organized within the index. More specifically, an index entry is created and identified as index_entryx, and details of segmentx are assigned to the respective index entry, includes, the start time, start_timex, end time, end_timex, and resolution, resolutionx. with an entry for the size of the segment (120). Following the index entry creation at step (120), the segment counting variable X is incremented (122), and it is determined if all of the segments and their associated details have been entered in the index (124). A negative response to the determination at step (124) is followed by a return to step (120), and a positive response concludes the organization of the index. Accordingly, as shown herein the video stream is segmented and organized in an associated index.
As shown in
The goal of the re-encoding is to enhance transmission of the video and, more specifically, to support and enable efficiency use of computing resources for transmission of the video in a manner that utilizes less bandwidth. A negative response to the determination at step (210) re-encodes the identified segment of interest at a lower resolution than the original segment resolution (214). This re-encoding lowers bandwidth associated with transmission of the re-encoded segment. Following either step (212) or (214), the segment counting variable is incremented (216). It is then determined if all of the identified segments in the stream have been reviewed for re-encoding in view of the segment associated with the identified index entry (218). A negative response to the determination at step (218) is followed by a return to step (210), and a positive response concludes the re-encoding process. Accordingly, one or more segments in the stream are re-encoded at a resolution lower than the original resolution of the segment so that the selected segment(s) have a smaller data size than an associated original data size.
In streaming video, buffering refers to downloading a certain amount of data before starting to play the video. Referring to
As shown and described in
As shown and described herein, the video stream is separated into segments, with each of the segments identified in an associated index. See
The process of entering size and resolution data into the index may take place when the index is created. In one embodiment, the process shown and described in
Referring to
Referring to
As shown in
The video (760) may be pre-configured and segmented based upon content, or alternative or additional criteria. At the same time, the video (760) may not be pre-configured. In the case of the video that is not pre-configured, the segment manager (770) functions to separate or otherwise divide the video into a plurality of segments, as shown in
The view manager (774) is provided in communication with the segment manager (770). The view manager (774) functions to support and enable viewing of the video following the re-encoding of one or more selected segments. The view manager (774) designates or otherwise selects the segment(s) of the video that they are interested in viewing. These segments may include re-encoded segments, or segments encoded at their original size and resolution. Based on the designation, the segment manager (770) streams the selected or designated segment(s) to the computer (710). As described above, the segment manager (770) re-encodes one or more segments of the video at a lower resolution, thereby reducing storage space and reducing viewing quality of the re-encoded segment(s). At the time of streaming the video to be viewed, the segment (770) may omit the re-encoded segments or broadcast the re-encoded segments, thereby focusing the view on segments containing the original resolution.
The server described above in
Indeed, executable code could be a single instruction, or many instructions, and may even be distributed over several different code segments, among different applications, and across several memory devices. Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated herein within the tool, and may be embodied in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may be collected as a single data set, or may be distributed over different locations including over different storage devices, and may exist, at least partially, as electronic signals on a system or network.
Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of agents, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the invention. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the invention can be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the invention.
Referring now to the block diagram of
The computer system can include a display interface (806) that forwards graphics, text, and other data from the communication infrastructure (804) (or from a frame buffer not shown) for display on a display unit (808). The computer system also includes a main memory (810), preferably random access memory (RAM), and may also include a secondary memory (812). The secondary memory (812) may include, for example, a hard disk drive (814) and/or a removable storage drive (816), representing, for example, a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, or an optical disk drive. The removable storage drive (816) reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit (818) in a manner well known to those having ordinary skill in the art. Removable storage unit (818) represents, for example, a floppy disk, a compact disc, a magnetic tape, or an optical disk, etc., which is read by and written to by removable storage drive (816).
In alternative embodiments, the secondary memory (812) may include other similar means for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into the computer system. Such means may include, for example, a removable storage unit (820) and an interface (822). Examples of such means may include a program package and package interface (such as that found in video game devices), a removable memory chip (such as an EPROM, or PROM) and associated socket, and other removable storage units (820) and interfaces (822) which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit (820) to the computer system.
The computer system may also include a communications interface (824). Communications interface (824) allows software and data to be transferred between the computer system and external devices. Examples of communications interface (824) may include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, or a PCMCIA slot and card, etc. Software and data transferred via communications interface (824) is in the form of signals which may be, for example, electronic, electromagnetic, optical, or other signals capable of being received by communications interface (824). These signals are provided to communications interface (824) via a communications path (i.e., channel) (826). This communications path (826) carries signals and may be implemented using wire or cable, fiber optics, a phone line, a cellular phone link, a radio frequency (RF) link, and/or other communication channels.
In this document, the terms “computer program medium,” “computer usable medium,” and “computer readable medium” are used to generally refer to media such as main memory (810) and secondary memory (812), removable storage drive (816), and a hard disk installed in hard disk drive (814).
Computer programs (also called computer control logic) are stored in main memory (810) and/or secondary memory (812). Computer programs may also be received via a communication interface (824). Such computer programs, when run, enable the computer system to perform the features of the present invention as discussed herein. In particular, the computer programs, when run, enable the processor (802) to perform the features of the computer system. Accordingly, such computer programs represent controllers of the computer system.
The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computer program product. The computer program product may include a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.
The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that can retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.
Computer readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computer readable storage medium or to an external computer or external storage device via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, and/or a wireless network. The network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, and/or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing/processing device receives computer readable program instructions from the network and forwards the computer readable program instructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium within the respective computing/processing device.
Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations of the present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages. The computer readable program instructions may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present invention.
Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer readable program instructions.
These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects of the functions/acts specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams block or blocks.
The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that the instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement the functions/acts specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams block or blocks.
The flowcharts and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. The implementation of one or more segments of a video files configured at a different resolution(s) supports improvement of machine efficiency. Specifically, the reduced resolution provides reduced data for transmission and broadcast, thereby utilizing fewer computing resources and reducing bandwidth of data transmission. Accordingly, the modification of one or more data file segments continues to enables transmission of the file, while providing faster viewing, and/or reduced bandwidth associated with transmission of the video.
It will be appreciated that, although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. In particular, the video file demonstrated herein may be replaced with a data file in the form of still images, or alternate data formats to support and enable reduced data storage and associated transmission of the data across a network. Similarly, in one embodiment, the non-selected segment(s) is re-encoded at a different resolution to occupy a smaller footprint, with the video or data transmission to include both the original segment(s) and the re-encoded segment(s). Accordingly, the scope of protection of this invention is limited only by the following claims and their equivalents.
