Claims
- 1. An image file for storing a digital image and information related to the digital image, including:
a) digital image data; b) a user identifier; and c) affective information which relates to the feelings or emotions of the user toward the digital image.
- 2. The image file of claim 1 wherein the affective information further specifies the time or period within a range of times that the classification was performed.
- 3. The image file of claim 1 wherein the affective information identifies the importance of the image.
- 4. The image file of claim 1 wherein the image file further includes information related to the capture device.
- 5. The image file of claim 1 wherein the image data is a JPEG compressed image data.
- 6. The image file of claim 1 wherein the digital image file includes affective information and user identifiers for a plurality of users.
- 7. A method for providing a retrieval scheme for stored digital images, using the image file of claim 6, comprising the steps of:
a) a retrieval user providing a user identifier; b) using the user identifier provided by the retrieval user to select, from the plurality of affective information, the particular affective information associated with the retrieval user; and c) using the affective information to facilitate image retrieval.
- 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the affective information identifies the importance of the image to a plurality of users.
- 9. The method of claim 7 wherein the affective information is used to determine the order of presentation of retrieved images.
- 10. The image file of claim 1 wherein the affective information is provided by monitoring the facial expression of the user.
- 11. The image file of claim 1 wherein the affective information is provided by monitoring the physiology of the user.
- 12. The image file of claim 1 wherein the affective information is provided by a user interface which enables the user to indicate important images.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Reference is made to commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/721,222, filed Nov. 22, 2000, entitled “Method for Adding Personalized Metadata to a Collection of Digital Images” by Kenneth A. Parulski et al.; U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______, filed concurrently herewith entitled “Method for Creating and Using Affective Information in a Digital Imaging System” by Tomasz A. Matraszek et al.; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______, filed concurrently herewith entitled “Method for Using Affective Information Recorded With Digital Images for Producing an Album Page” by Tomasz A. Matraszek et al.; the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.