Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
  • G06F3/14—Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
  • G06F3/1423—Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
  • G06F3/1431—Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display using a single graphics controller
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/41—Structure of client; Structure of client peripherals
  • H04N21/4104—Peripherals receiving signals from specially adapted client devices
  • H04N21/4122—Peripherals receiving signals from specially adapted client devices additional display device, e.g. video projector
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/43—Processing of content or additional data, e.g. demultiplexing additional data from a digital video stream; Elementary client operations, e.g. monitoring of home network or synchronising decoder's clock; Client middleware
  • H04N21/431—Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
  • H04N21/4312—Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
  • H04N21/4316—Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
  • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
  • H04N21/45—Management operations performed by the client for facilitating the reception of or the interaction with the content or administrating data related to the end-user or to the client device itself, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies, resolving scheduling conflicts
  • H04N21/462—Content or additional data management, e.g. creating a master electronic program guide from data received from the Internet and a Head-end, controlling the complexity of a video stream by scaling the resolution or bit-rate based on the client capabilities
  • H04N21/4622—Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
  • G09G2340/00—Aspects of display data processing
  • G09G2340/04—Changes in size, position or resolution of an image
  • G09G2340/0407—Resolution change, inclusive of the use of different resolutions for different screen areas
  • G09G2340/0428—Gradation resolution change
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
  • G09G2340/00—Aspects of display data processing
  • G09G2340/10—Mixing of images, i.e. displayed pixel being the result of an operation, e.g. adding, on the corresponding input pixels
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
  • G09G2340/00—Aspects of display data processing
  • G09G2340/12—Overlay of images, i.e. displayed pixel being the result of switching between the corresponding input pixels
  • G09G2340/125—Overlay of images, i.e. displayed pixel being the result of switching between the corresponding input pixels wherein one of the images is motion video
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
  • G09G2380/00—Specific applications
  • G09G2380/06—Remotely controlled electronic signs other than labels
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
  • G09G5/00—Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators
  • G09G5/14—Display of multiple viewports

Definitions

• the present invention generally refers to devices for multiple display of differentiated graphic contents, such texts, images, movies, and particularly refers to a method for enhancing the information content of videographic images in such devices.
• the invention may have useful applications in the diffusion to the public of: differentiated information contents based on installation area, such for example stations, airports, subways, etc., as well as in devices with opposite displaying directions assembled on mobile means for public transport such buses, trams, trains, etc.; where the signals are. necessarily displayed, such as for example directionai arrows: or, more generally, information signs, such as for ascent or descent of passengers, messages about next stop, etc.
• the invention may be applied in all cases wherein a main graphic content must be displayed on a plurality of devices placed in different installation solutions and, for this reason, requiring a differentiated display of information from case to case.
• a typical example of such applications can be composed of two graphic panels with TFT LCD technology mounted with opposite display directions (in configuration called "back-to-back") aboard a metro.
• the same display image for example having an arrow to indicate the passengers the descent side, should be able to be turned in the opposite direction in one of the two devices, just to indicate a common descent direction.
• Figure 1 of the appended drawings shows schematically an example of one of the currently used techniques for the playback of two video contents 1 and 2 on as many respective display devices 1a,;:2a.
• a graphics processor 3 such as a Dual Output graphic chipset, with two independent integrated video outputs, as; is commonly the case with Embedded PC.
• FIG. 2 Another typical example of the known art for playing two video contents 1 and 2 on as many respective display devices 1a, 2a is illustrated in Figure 2.
• a graphics processor 4 is used composed of one or more additional graphics cards, each of which is handling a single independent video output as it often happens in case of common desktop PCs.
• Teletext is an interactive service used in the television-area;; consisting of text pages viewable on a television screen by user's request and it is used to provide users with information of various kinds.
• This information is transmitted periodically within video frames, in particular within the vertical blanking interval.
• This technique provides an additional content with an only textual or very low graphic resolution nature. It also requires a specific decoder able to detect and decode the additional information content. Further, such a content does not interact in any way with the images in the video frames and, therefore, provides no differentiated graphic content in relation to the displayed images.
• Video mixer It is a device used to switch different video sources on a single output signal and in some cases to mix them together or add some special effects, such as texts or graphics addition, or the handling of chromatic or structural proprieties of the image.
• the video sources once mixed together in one final video content, can not be selectively reconstructed or discriminated anymore.
• it is necessary to have a number of video outputs at least equal to the number of sources, as shown in the example represented in Figure. 2.
• 3D Imaging represents the set of making and viewing techniques for images, drawings, photographs and videos, designed to communicate an illusion of three dimensions, similar to that generated by the binocular vision of the human visual system, , by presenting two different images separately to the left and right eyes, respectively, of the beholder.
• Alternate darkening system it consists in discriminating, by glasses provided with active synchronized shutters (active shutter glasses) two images, one intended for the right eye and the other intended for the left eye, projected in rapid sequence.
• Polarized lens system it consists incdiscriminating ⁇ by polarized glasses orthogonally oriented one relatively to the other, two images, one intended for the right eye and the other intended for the left .eye, projected in -rapid sequence.
• ⁇ . ⁇ ⁇ . - Autostereoscopy or AS-3D it consists in "hiding" to each eye the image intended for the other eye through the implementation of appropriate technologies directly on the medium (paper print or monitor), thus not requiring the use of other devices.
• Some implementing technologies of this system are based on: lenticular network, parallax barrier, illumination and holographic screen.
• the application of autostereoscopic techniques involves, as mentioned, the implementation of special technologies directly to the display medium.
• the overall image must necessarily be larger, since it must be composed of a plurality of points of view of the original image, observed in the left eye and the right eye respectively, using specific devices depending on the implemented technology. This also means that the illusion of three-dimensionality is achieved only observing the device within determined observation angles.
• the above described techniques involve the use of optical devices, such as glasses with additional filtering or polarized lenses, or opto-electronic devices such as active synchronized shutters.
• the alternate darkening system does not provide information contents in real time, but discriminates, through active synchronized shutters, two images shown at different times.
• the present inventors looked for a further technique for displaying differentiated videographic contents being able to allow a real discrimination of graphic contents on different playback'; devices, advantageously without the need for optical or opto-electronic devices and additional ' resources and without worsening- the: graphics,; processor performance .
• the present invention is the result of such a research and has the object to provide an innovative method for enhancing the information content of videographic images with differentiated graphical contents, and more particularly a method for reconstructing the afore said differentiated images for their display on different playback devices.
• This object is achieved, according to the invention, with a method for enhancing the information content of videographic images comprising: prearranging a main videographic image,
• Figure 3 a block diagram of the whole process according to the invention.
• Figure 4 a block diagram of the video - encoding process
• Figure 5 a block diagram of the video - decoding process
• Figure 6 an example of creating an encoded image
• Figure 7 an example of encoding a single differentiated content in a single 8 bit chromatic channel.
• Figure 8 an example of encoding the positional and controlling information
• Figure 9 an example of decoding and reconstructing a single 8 bit chromatic channel.
• FIG. 3 a block diagram of the whole process is therefore represented whereby, for example, at least two differentiated video contents 11 and 12 are mixed and encoded into a video encoding system 13, then processed in real-time in a video - decoding system 14 so as to separate and reconstruct the distinct and independent video information on as many display devices 15 and 16.
• the proposed method does not change the bit or byte size of the main image nor its resolution. In consequence, the transmission bandwidth necessary to send the image to the display devices is unaffected too.
• the method may be implemented by any data processing device (microprocessor), any programmable logic device (FPGA, CPLD, etc..) or, more generally, by any digital processing logic circuit.
• microprocessor microprocessor
• FPGA programmable logic device
• CPLD CPLD
• digital processing logic circuit any digital processing logic circuit.
• the proposed encoding provides for the enhancement of the main image with one or more differentiated images and informations about the position of these differentiated images and possible controlling information.
• the ; differentiated images are encoded within the main image in the exact position wherein they will have to ⁇ besdisplayed as differentiated contents on different playback devices:
• FIG 6 an example of. creation of. an encoded image is shown.
• An area is defined in the: main image, for example, of 250/200 pixels wide by 50/100 pixels height wherein, for example, a directional arrow of a defined color is shown ( Figure 6, a). It is then created a differentiated content of the same size of the defined area, such as a directional arrow with another color having opposite direction to the previous ( Figure 6, b). At this point, the differentiated content is encoded in the defined area on the main image, thus generating the encoded image to be transmitted ( Figure 6, c).
• the real encoding is carried out at the level of each color component constituting the pixel of the main image and the differentiated contents to be encoded.
• the pixels defined in the differentiated content area on the encoded image are composed using the 4 most significant bits (MSBs, Most Significant Bits) of each chromatic channel constituting the main image and the 4 most significant bits of each chromatic channel forming the differentiated content.
• the resulting encoded image is then ready to be transmitted to the various devices of graphic reproduction.
• Figure 7 an example of encoding is shown, wherein the 4 bits obtained from the main image are placed at the higher position of the byte constituting the chromatic component of the encoded image, whereas the 4 bits obtained from the differentiated contents are placed at the lower position.
• Table 1 shows an example of encoding with a single differentiated content of a 24-bit pixel (then consisting of 8 bits for the chromatic red component, 8 bits for the green and 8-bit for the blue ones), that will be the differentiated content area in the encoded image.
• Sub-pixels of Differentiated Content 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
• each image (which can be static or dynamic) could be enhanced with, more differentiated contents, and; then differently played on various devices for graphic playback.
• the encoding of positional data can be carried out entering in binary encode the pixel coordinates on the graphic matrix corresponding to the two opposite vertices related to each area inside which the differentiated content is encoded. It will be still possible to use different information for the determination of each differentiated content area, such as, by way of example, a vertex, its position in relation to the area and the pixel dimensions (width and height) of the area itself.
• the coordinates could be defined according to format "row, column” and reported on the pixel matrix having as reference (0, 0) the first pixel in the upper left corner, i.e. the usually transmitted first pixel containing the image information, as shown in Figure 6.
• Figure 8 shows an example of encoding corresponding to the location of a single area with differentiated content. It is also shown how it may be possible to insert a controlling byte, through which the presence of differentiated content areas in the image itself is indicated to the graphics processor during the receiving step, and, consequently, the decoding and processing of the areas is started.
• the encoding may be implemented on any RGB color component, depending on the number of differentiated encoded areas, or possibly on all three color components depending on the number of positional information determining them.
• the encoding may be implemented using the less significant bit (LSB) of the red color component of each pixel constituting the image, encoding the whole string of 40 bits in the first row (then using 40 pixels) starting from the reference pixel in the upper left corner (0, 0).
• LSB less significant bit
• the receiving graphics processor may proceed with the processing of the encoded image discriminating the display of differentiated content on different devices.
• the most significant bits of the main image and the most significant bits in the differentiated contents for each color component of every pixel can be decoded and thereby the various images can be reconstructed.
• the 4 most significant bits of each chromatic component of the encoded image are used to reconstruct the 4 most significant bits of each chromatic component of the main image, while the 4 less significant bits are used to reconstruct the 4 most significant bits of each chromatic component of the differentiated content.
• the complete reconstruction both of the main and differentiated content images is carried out also reporting at the bottom the same 4 bits decoded and placed; in the most significant portion of the byte. In this way. an.8;bit binary;; approximation of the chromatic level is carried out for each color component, as shown in Figure 9.
• Tha reconstruction of the main image and differentiated content images can be carried but, ; depending on the application and the type of encoded image, by or

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Multimedia (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Databases & Information Systems (AREA)
• Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
• Computer Graphics (AREA)
• Marketing (AREA)
• Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
• Compression Or Coding Systems Of Tv Signals (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=44579242

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2011
  • 2011-04-11 WO PCT/IT2011/000107 patent/WO2012140678A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2011-04-11 EP EP11721579.8A patent/EP2697707A1/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events