Patent Application
20110063727
The present invention relates to projection film and, more particularly, to the use of indicating marks on the projection film for delineating gap regions between images that are either more appropriate or less appropriate for cutting and splicing.
The current wave of three-dimensional (3D) films is gaining popularity, which is made possible by the ease of use of digital technology and especially 3D digital cinema projection systems. However, the availability of new 3D digital cinema projection systems has been inadequate to keep pace with demand the demand for the new systems. Moreover, theater owners are finding that the changeover to the 3D digital cinema projection systems is very expensive business proposition. As a result, there is currently a move to satisfy the demand for 3D films without the use of digital technology by deploying stereoscopic film prints for presentation using a stereoscopic 3D projector.
Stereoscopic film prints are subject to all the same damages problems of any non-digital film media, especially breakage, tearing, and burning of the film itself. Experience from earlier 3D film systems cautions that, when a film is damaged and is therefore in need of repair by splicing, there is a substantial chance that the splicing and/or editing will be made incorrectly. For example, the splice can be incorrect when a segment of film cut on an inter-frame line is mated directly to a segment of film cut on an intra-frame line. From a viewing audience perspective, the effect of such an incorrect splice is severe eye strain, which can be an unpleasant and uncomfortable experience.
3D films have been produced with both thick and thin separation lines between images wherein the thick separation line is placed between left and right partial images in the same stereoscopic image pair, in which the thin separation line is placed at a position between adjacent frames parallel to the thick separation line (e.g., see ISCO OPTIC Instruction Manual for Stereovision-3D, from ISCO-OPTIC GmbH, Göttingen, Germany). These separation lines were apparently used to assist in film centering in the film gate as well as in splicing operations. However, the appearance of these parallel lines is not sufficiently different to prevent the occurrence of splicing errors. Furthermore, the subsequent detection of a splicing error and confirmation of the validity of the splice in a film using these separation lines would be difficult, if not impossible, to locate easily visually. This difficulty arises because the combination of these two separation lines in a film splice appears to be substantially identical to either one of these lines, for most any cut location.
Other problems can arise when the position for making a splice is incorrectly identified or when the splice is incorrectly made. For example, during proper operation of the system, the right-eye image and the left-eye image of a stereoscopic pair provided in a film are projected through a dual lens single-projector 3D film system so that the two images of the pair are substantially superimposed on the viewing screen. Care must be taken during film editing for the stereoscopic film to avoid any disruption in the proper sequencing and alternation of right- and left-eye images.
Needless to say, the known prior methods and apparatus appear to lack any suitable solutions for overcoming the problems related to both identifying clearly and accurately the position at which a film should be cut for splicing and confirming the validity of the splice after the splice has been made.
Splices can be made and validated accurately at a clearly identified position in a film in accordance with the principles of the present invention by introducing first and second indicia onto the film to indicate a location where cuts and splices can and cannot be made, respectively. The first and second indicia are sufficiently different from each other that, when combined by virtue of an incorrect cut and splice, they form a third indicia that is different again from each of the first and second indicia.
Indicia are established on the film to clearly indicate locations where cuts for splices may and may not be safely and correctly made. These indicia are different from each other to signify whether a cut can or cannot be made in the vicinity of the respective indicia. Differences can be exhibited in terms of one or more of a distinctive shape or size or orientation or pattern of the indicia. When cuts and splices are correctly performed, the resulting indicia in the vicinity of the splice match substantially one of the two original indicia. When cuts and splices are incorrectly executed, the resulting indicia in the vicinity of the faulty cut and splice will be third indicia, each third indicia being a combination of portions of the two original indicia. Third indicia will be different from each of the two original indicia and will therefore be readily apparent to be indicative of the presence of an incorrect cut and splice.
One aspect of the invention provides a film, which includes a plurality of images arranged in sequential order, each of a plurality of gaps separating two adjacent images of the plurality of images, a first indicating mark for identifying a region for disallowing cutting of the film, and a second indicating mark for identifying a region proximate one of the gaps for allowing cutting of the film. The second indicating mark exhibits discernibly different properties from the first indicating mark, and any combination of cut portions of each of the first and second indicating marks results in a third indicating mark that is discernibly different from the first and second indicating marks.
Another aspect of the invention provides a film that includes a plurality of stereoscopic image pairs of first and second images arranged in sequential order, a first indicating mark for identifying a region for disallowing cutting of the film positioned substantially alongside an intra-frame gap formed between first and second adjacent images from a same stereoscopic image pair, and a second indicating mark for identifying a region for allowing cutting of the film positioned substantially alongside an inter-frame gap formed between first and second adjacent images from different stereoscopic image pairs. The second indicating mark exhibits discernibly different properties from the first indicating mark, and any combination of cut portions of each of the first and second indicating marks results in a third indicating mark which is discernibly different from the first and second indicating marks.
Yet another aspect of the invention provides a method for producing a film, which includes a plurality of pairs of first and second images arranged in sequential order, with an inter-frame gap formed between first and second adjacent images from different consecutive pairs of stereoscopic images, and an intra-frame gap formed between first and second adjacent images from a same pair of stereoscopic images. The method includes writing a first indicating mark to the film in proximity to the intra-frame gap with a film recorder, the first indicating mark for identifying a region for disallowing cutting of the film positioned substantially alongside the intra-frame gap, and writing a second indicating mark to the film in proximity to the inter-frame gap with a film recorder, the second indicating mark for identifying a region for allowing cutting of the film positioned substantially alongside the inter-frame gap. The second indicating mark exhibits discernibly different properties from the first indicating mark, and any combination of cut portions of each of the first and second indicating marks results in a third indicating mark which is discernibly different from the first and second indicating marks.
The details of one or more implementations are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Even if described in one particular manner, it should be clear that implementations may be configured or embodied in various manners. For example, an implementation may be performed as a method, or embodied as an apparatus configured to perform a set of operations, or embodied as an apparatus storing instructions for performing a set of operations. Other aspects and features will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the claims.
The above-mentioned and other features and advantages of this invention, and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and the invention will be better understood by reference to the following description of embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
The exemplary embodiments set out herein illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention, and such exemplary embodiments are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.
The description herein is generally presented in terms of stereoscopic film and stereoscopic image pairs for 3D presentations. But it will be understood that the principles of the present invention are also applicable to 2D films and images, as will be explained in more detail below.
In accordance with the principles of the present invention, indicia are established on the film to clearly indicate locations where cuts for splices may and may not be safely or correctly made. These indicia are different from each other to signify whether a cut can or cannot be properly made in the vicinity of the respective indicia. Differences can be exhibited in terms of one or more of a distinctive shape or size or orientation or pattern of the indicia. When cuts and splices are correctly performed, the resulting indicia in the vicinity of the splice match substantially one of the two original indicia. When cuts and splices are incorrectly executed, the resulting indicia in the vicinity of the faulty cut and splice will be a third indicia that is a combination of portions of the two original indicia. This third indicia will be different from each of the two original indicia and will therefore be readily apparent to be indicative of the presence of an incorrect cut and splice.
Film projector 100, which is depicted not to scale, includes an illuminator 107 in this embodiment that includes a high intensity lamp such as arc lamp 101 having envelope 102 at the center of which is a luminous arc. Reflector 103 is shown in this exemplary embodiment as substantially elliptically shaped to follow an ellipse 106 for reflecting light rays 104 from the luminous arc near the first focal point of ellipse 106 to form an image 105 of the arc near the second focal point of ellipse 106. For most film projectors, image 105 of the luminous arc is formed at or near the film gate, which is shown here as aperture 110 cut into an aperture plate. Aperture 110 is depicted in
Stereoscopic film 120 comprises film substrate 121 having a row of perforations 125 along each edge. The perforations allow for engagement by a sprocket or other such mechanism (none shown) to advance the film smoothly and continuously from one image to the next. As mentioned above, the images on film 120 are grouped in pairs of left and right images. Stereoscopic image pairs (R1, L1), (R2, L2), and (R3, L3) as shown in
Lens system 130 comprises lens body 131 having an entrance end 133 and an exit end 134. Entrance end 133 faces film 120 and exit end 134 faces screen 150. In this embodiment, lens system 130 is a stereoscopic dual lens having an upper portion for projecting right-eye images and a lower portion for projecting left-eye images. The upper portion of lens system 130 includes entrance lens element 136 on the film side and exit lens element 138 on the screen side. The lower portion of the lens system includes entrance lens element 137 on the film side and exit lens element 139 on the screen side. Upper and lower portions of lens system 130 are separated by gap 132. Gap 132 is controllably adjustable by adjustment element 135 to have a variable gap width that can be expanded or contracted. In this embodiment, gap 132 is lined with a coating or the like to prevent leakage of light between the upper and lower portions of the lens system.
Lens system 130 also includes a filter module or assembly 140. Filter assembly 140 can include one or more of any of linear or circular polarizers or other non-polarizing filter elements, such as red/blue filters for anaglyphic 3D or multi-band interference filters, all of which are well known in the art and are suitable for separating the right- and left-eye images so that an audience member 160 can perceive a stereoscopic presentation.
In
When properly aligned, the projections of right-eye image 122 and left-eye image 123 are substantially superimposed on screen 150. Both projected images have their respective centers substantially co-located at screen center 151, as represented in
When filter module 140 employs polarizing components, such as linear polarizers 142 and 143, screen 150 should exhibit a polarization preserving property. One such polarization preserving screen is a silver screen. On the other hand, when filter module 140 does not employ polarizing component, screen 150 may be realized without the need for a polarization preserving property.
Audience member 160 is provided with 3D glasses with a right-eye portion 171 and a left-eye portion 181. Since polarization elements are used in the lens system, the 3D glasses include right-eye portion 171 comprising a linear polarizer 172 having an axis of polarization 173 in a first direction, and left-eye portion 181 comprising a linear polarizer 182 having an axis of polarization 183 in a second direction that is orthogonal to the first direction for polarization axis 173. In other embodiments where circularly polarization elements are employed in the lens system—such as where clockwise and counter-clockwise circular polarizations are used—for projecting the respective stereoscopic images, 3D glasses will be provided with corresponding circular polarizers in the two eye portions.
As shown in the exemplary embodiment of
In the description herein, various terms may be used to explain the marks placed on the film in accordance with the principles of the present invention. These terms may include “marks”, “indicia”, “tick marks”, “warning bars”, “indicating marks”, “indicator marks”, and the like. The use of any or all of these terms in intended to convey the same meaning without limitation or modification, unless expressly stated to the contrary.
Film print 120 has a number of stereoscopic image pairs arranged in an uninterrupted sequence of alternating right- and left-images. Right- and left-eye images 122 and 123, respectively, of the same stereoscopic pair (R2, L2) are representative images in the film reel. Right-eye image 122 and left-eye image 123 are each bounded by a respective frame boundary, shown as a maximum extent of rectangular area 205. Rectangular area 205, in turn, defines a maximum extent for a corresponding projected image. In one example, the rectangle 205 corresponds to the maximum extent of an image having a standard width (W) of 0.825″ on the film, based on a well known film format. It should be appreciated that rectangular areas 205 are not generally present or actually visible on the film. Instead, each rectangle can be considered as a virtual geometric entity to assist in the definition and understanding of image and non-image areas on the film. The size of the rectangular area is usually set by standard or convention. Regions inside the boundaries of rectangular area 205 are considered as image areas, and generally contain image content. Portions of the regions within rectangular area 205 are shown in black for ease of comprehension.
Actual dimensions for the rectangular areas 205 are typically determined in accordance with the format selected for the stereoscopic presentation. In the exemplary embodiment shown in
Outer edges 206 outside the rectangular areas 205 represent the expected extent of the camera aperture. That is, outer edges 206 delineate that portion of film print 120 corresponding to the portion of a film negative that would be exposed by a camera or a film recorder. Ancillary information may be introduced onto the film beyond outer edges 206. For example, as shown in
Stereoscopic film can be confusing for an individual tasked with editing the film print. In general, it is not apparent where a pair of images begins and ends or even which two consecutive or adjacent images belong to the same pair. As seen in
Furthermore, the portion of the edited film following the splice will produce a sequence of images in which the order of the left- and right-eye images will be reversed or interchanged compared to the intended (or correct) order. That is, the projected right-eye image will be seen by the left eye, and the projected left-eye image will be seen by the right eye. In industry parlance, the projected presentation will switch from being stereoscopic to being pseudoscopic. Compounding this undesirable experience, of the right- and left-eye images projected simultaneously and at a frame rate of 24 frames/second, the right-eye image represents the scene at a time 1/24 second earlier than the left-eye image (since the right-eye image belongs to a stereoscopic pair X and the left-eye image belongs to the next stereoscopic pair X+1). The presence of indicating marks 207 and 208 on the film print help to avoid and minimize the occurrence of such errors during editing. Moreover, the presence of indicating marks 207 and 208 aid in the detection of such an error in the film subsequent to editing.
It is important to avoid separating a stereoscopic pair of images by cutting so that a stereoscopic image pair would be kept together during editing. By avoid this cutting error, it is less likely that images associated with the same eye would be spliced together to form adjacent images as an incorrect stereoscopic pair.
In accordance with the principles of the present invention, the film print 120 is provided with at least a first type of indicating mark, such as mark 208, to indicate or identify locations at which a cut should not be made. As shown in
In this exemplary embodiment shown in the figures, indicating marks 208 are provided in the form of bars or elongated strips alongside the gap and image(s) that the marks are protecting from a cut or splice. As such, these marks may be referred to as “warning bars”. Each intra-frame gap 124 on the film is provided with indicating mark 208 alongside and in close proximity to the gap, while avoiding placement of the mark in the viewable area of the associated image or images. Each mark 208 thereby defines the presence of images in the same stereoscopic image pair because the mark 208 is located in the vicinity of the intra-frame gap between the two images in the same stereoscopic image pair.
In some exemplary embodiments, it is possible that indicating marks 208 are provided at some, but not all, intra-frame gaps 124. For example, marks 208 may only be provided at or near the beginning and ending portions of each film reel, where splicing is expected to be performed by a theatre upon receipt of a film shipment. In this latter example, individual reels of a film are spliced together to build up a single continuous film stored on and played from a large film platter.
Each indicating mark 208 has a length at least equal to the gap width of intra-frame gap 124, i.e., at least co-extensive in length with the gap width. Generally, mark 208 is produced to extend beyond the gap width so that it is also adjacent to a portion of one or both images in the stereoscopic image pair. In some instance, mark 208 can be considerably longer so that it is as long as the four consecutive perforations. For this latter example, mark 208 would extend symmetrically alongside portions of each image on both sides of an intra-frame gap to cover a length of approximately two consecutive perforations (e.g., P1 and P2 in
It is not nearly as important to have the warning bars of marks 208 placed adjacent to images, even though locations where cuts should not be made include the image areas. Image areas are generally more easily discernable to experienced film splicers and film editors. Since film editing personnel are well-trained to avoid cutting through image areas, warning marks are deemed to be more necessary at and near the intra-frame gaps.
In the example shown in
Inter-frame gap 128 on the film is provided with indicating mark 207 alongside and in close proximity to the gap, while avoiding placement of the mark in the viewable area of the associated image or images. Each mark 207 thereby defines the proximity of images belonging to different consecutive stereoscopic image pairs because the mark 207 is located in the vicinity of the inter-frame gap 128 formed between one image from one stereoscopic image pair, e.g., image R1 from the (L1, R1) pair, and an image from another stereoscopic image pair, e.g., image L2 from the (L2, R2) pair.
Indicating marks 207 are different in some visually discernible manner from indicating marks 208. In some examples from experimental practice, it has been found that the use of orthogonal marks has been useful. One exemplary set of orthogonal marks is shown in the figures in which mark 207 is oriented in a substantially perpendicular direction to indicating mark 208 so that one mark appears wider than it is long while the other mark appears longer than it is wide. These types of marks may also be viewed as being complementary. Regardless of the terminology used, it is important to realize that the two marks should be discernibly (or visibly) different. Moreover, when portions of these marks are joined together by an incorrect cut and splice operation, the resulting mark should be discernibly different or distinguishable from marks 207 and 208, as discussed in conjunction with
Since both tick marks 207 and warning bars 208 are located outside frame boundaries defined by rectangular areas 205, these indicating marks will not be projected onto screen 150 during a normal presentation. Furthermore, by providing these marks inside the boundaries defined by edge limits 206 away from the edges of the film print 120, the indicating marks will also not interfere with any ancillary information on the film including optical soundtracks 201, 201′, and 201″.
Indicating marks 207 and 208 may also be printed in different colors to improve their detection, whether the detection is done by an automated machine or by a human. For example, tick marks 207 can be written in a green color and warning bar 208 can be written on the film in a red color. This color combination has a universal meaning that can be used herein to more clearly define regions that are respectively safe and unsafe for cutting and editing.
Indicating marks 207 and marks 208 are shown in the figures as being centered or positioned symmetrically with respect to respective inter- or intra-frame gaps. In other exemplary embodiments, one or both of marks 207 and marks 208 may be positioned in an asymmetric manner with respect to their associated frame gaps. Asymmetric positioning may result in a longer or larger portion of an indicating mark being positioned above a frame gap than the portion of the same mark positioned below the frame gap.
Once the splicing and editing of the film is complete, it may be necessary to perform an inspection of the film to check for editing errors or to perform additional quality control operations. The presence of indicating marks 207 and 208 are believed to be useful in these operations. For example, in a case where indicia or indicating marks 207 and 208 have been ignored and an improper cut and edit—such as cutting at least one warning bar 208—has been made, the resulting splice can be examined for correctness and validity. As used herein, a splice is considered “valid” when the images that are spliced together correspond to images meant for different eyes, even though these images do not necessarily belong to the same stereoscopic image pair for the same scene. If the splice does not include a warning bar 208 or some portion thereof, then the splice represents a valid splice, and indicates a valid stereoscopic sequence. Such a validity check assumes that the cuts have been done in the vicinity of a gap region, whether at an inter-frame gap or an intra-frame gap, and not across an image area where a warning bar 208 is absent. If the resulting mark at the splice includes two halves or two portions of different warning bars 208, such that the resulting film appears to have a single warning bar 208 marking the region that spans the splice, it also represents a valid splice, and indicates a valid stereoscopic sequence. Such a splice is considered valid in this particular context because the two images spliced together are associated with different eyes.
Splices can occur for a multitude of different reasons. For example, a splice may arise from an improper cut at a warning bar 208 that is subsequently spliced back together when the mistake is realized. Another type of splice may arise from an improper cut of the film, that is followed by splicing two unrelated images such as right- and left-eye images from different pairs of stereoscopic images, e.g., representing different frames or scenes. In this case, even though the two spliced images do not form the same stereoscopic pair for a particular frame, at least they will not result in pseudoscopic images when they and subsequent image pairs are projected. Generally, any adverse effect arising from viewing two unrelated images is likely to be transient in nature lasting usually for only 1/24th of a second or so.
Tick marks 207 and warning bars 208 not only serve as indicators for locations at which cuts or edits may be made or should not be made, but they can also be used as an inspection tool to provide a rapidly observable determination about whether an edit or splice in the stereoscopic film is valid. Although indicia 207 and 208 are shown as tick marks and warning bars, respectively, in the examples shown in the figures, it is contemplated that different designs or other patterns may be used to provide visually distinctive and discernible indicating marks in accordance with the principles of the present invention in order to facilitate inspection, film editing, splicing, and/or quality control tasks. The indicating marks may also be written as machine readable patterns, shapes, or codes.
The present invention provides a method and system suitable for use in film production, editing, and inspection, in which a film is provided both with at least a first type of indicating marks to indicate or identify location(s) where it is not suitable to perform a cut or edit, i.e., where cuts or edits are disallowed or should not be made; and a second type of indicating marks to indicate location(s) that are appropriate for making cuts or edits. The first type of marks should be sufficiently different from the second type of marks so as to allow for ready visual distinction during editing and/or inspection tasks. In some applications, it may be sufficient to provide a film with only one type of marks, e.g., the first type of indicating marks to identify a “no cut” zone, or the second type of marks to identify a “cut” zone. For example, in situations where the “cut” regions are readily identifiable by existing procedures, it is sufficient to provide only the first type of marks to indicate one or more “no cut” regions. In the scenario of having only one type of marks, an invalid splice will include only half of the indicating mark (as opposed to a composite mark containing portions of both types of indicating marks).
These marks may be written onto the film at any appropriate stage during film production or printing, e.g., using a film recorder. Furthermore, these marks may be used in quality control and inspection operations—whether done manually or in an automated manner—to indicate whether a splice is valid or proper, in which these operations are based on the types of composite or resulting mark found at a splice location. In the case of an automated method to perform splice inspection, a processor may also be configured or programmed to detect an invalid splice and to provide a warning in the event that a bad or invalid splice is found.
A system and a computer readable medium are also provided for implementing the method of the present invention. For example, the system may include one or more processors, memory devices and so on, and the computer readable medium may be programmed to contain instructions for implementing various steps related to the method of the present invention.
Although the principles of the present invention are illustrated above with examples for 3D projection, they can also be applied to 2D films such as a television or movie film or the like. The presence of a sequence of nighttime images, which would appear light in a negative, does not allow one to see a discernible gap between the images or frames. In the event that a splice should be required in such a nighttime sequence, the editor would experience significant difficulty in locating the inter-frame gap between consecutive or adjacent images, thereby making the cutting and splicing operation very difficult. In this case, a series of alternating indicating marks alongside the corresponding image regions (e.g., a first type of marks for indicating “no cut” regions) and gap region (e.g., a second type of marks for indicating “cut” regions) could prove invaluable in speeding up the editing process while affording a concomitant increase in the likelihood that the cut and splice will be performed correctly. In the case of a 2D film, the inter-frame gap is the only type of gap existing between adjacent images (i.e., intra-frame gap does not exist).
It will be understood by persons skilled in this art that the indicating marks taught herein can be written onto the film at various stages in the film production process. Obviously, a camera recorder can be adapted to write each type of indicating mark. Furthermore, during the production of a conformed negative, each indicating mark could also be written onto the film. Other stages in film production may also be more or less adaptable to the writing of these indicating marks. Writing techniques are well known in the art and are not described herein.
All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the present principles and the concepts contributed by the inventor to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions.
Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include both currently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in the future, including any elements developed at any that perform the same function, regardless of structure.
A number of implementations have been described herein. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made. For example, one or more elements of different implementations may be combined, supplemented, modified, or removed to produce other implementations. Additionally, one of ordinary skill will understand that other structures and processes may be substituted for those disclosed and the resulting implementations will perform at least substantially the same function(s), in at least substantially the same way(s), to achieve at least substantially the same result(s) as the implementations disclosed. In particular, although illustrative embodiments have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the present principles is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein by one of ordinary skill in the pertinent art without departing from the scope or spirit of the present principles. Accordingly, these and other implementations are contemplated by this application and are within the scope of the following claims.
The present patent application claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/243,099, “Method and System with Indicating Marks for Three-Dimensional (3D) Projection Film,” filed on Sep. 16, 2009. The teachings of the above-identified provisional patent application are expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61243099 | Sep 2009 | US |
