JP2006080959A - Image reproduction method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To smoothly reproduce an image picked up by a network camera even in a cellular phone terminal with the restriction of resources and a limit of a communication buffer size. <P>SOLUTION: A parameter setting part 611 of the cellular phone terminal inputs a fixed parameter from an initial setting storage part 58. The fixed parameter is transmitted to the network camera 1 by a parameter setting part 611. The network camera 1 performs the compression processing of an image, etc. according to the received parameter and accumulates pieces of still image data of a plurality of frames. Next, when a communication session is established between the cellular phone terminal and the network camera 1, pieces of the still image data of the plurality of frames are distributed while the session is maintained. The cellular phone terminal switches the pieces of the still image data and continuously reproduces them. Thus, pseudo moving images are reproduced. The pseudo moving images are sequentially reproduced by repeatedly executing such processing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for acquiring and displaying an image captured by a camera via a network in a terminal such as a mobile phone.

  A device called a network camera or a WEB camera has an image pickup sensor and a WEB server function and a network function, and image data picked up by the image pickup sensor can be distributed to various terminals via a network such as the Internet. Yes.

  On the other hand, current mobile phone terminals have a network function and a color image display function, and are increasingly used as multimedia terminals.

  Therefore, as shown in Non-Patent Document 1 below, there is a service that enables browsing of images distributed by a network camera using a mobile phone terminal.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., “Home network-related products”, [searched July 30, 2004], Internet <URL http://panasonic.co.jp/pcc/products/hnetwk/support/technic/mbl_phn_list-c10.html>

  In a service that distributes an image captured by a network camera to a terminal such as a mobile phone, including the service described in Non-Patent Document 1, the user of the mobile phone terminal operates the “Update” button to update the image. There is a need. The number of images that can be acquired in response to the “update” button operation by the user is one image. Therefore, it is necessary to operate the “update” button every time a new image is browsed, which is inconvenient.

  Here, as a method of automatically updating an image, a method of performing a refresh function is conceivable. However, a refresh function in HTML may be limited depending on a terminal such as a mobile phone, and the image is updated in these terminals. After all, it is necessary to operate the “update” button and the like.

  Further, in a PC or the like, an image distributed by a network camera can be reproduced as a moving image. This is because a sufficient buffer memory may be secured in a PC or the like. Or it is because it is possible to use an application on UDP in a PC or the like. On the other hand, depending on a terminal such as a mobile phone, an application operating on UDP may not be permitted. Even when an application that operates on HTTP is used, the maximum communication buffer size is severely limited, and it is difficult to reproduce a moving image as it is.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a technique for continuously playing back images distributed by a network camera in a terminal device having restrictions on resources, communication buffer size, and the like.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention described in claim 1 is a method of reproducing an image distributed from an image capturing device via a network on a viewing terminal, between the viewing terminal and the image capturing device. A first step of establishing a communication session, and a second step of delivering a plurality of frames of image data from the image pickup device to the viewing terminal while the communication session established in the first step is maintained. And a third step of continuously reproducing the plurality of frames of image data received in the second step by the browsing terminal, and repeating the steps from the first step to the third step. The image data is continuously reproduced.

  The invention described in claim 2 is a method of reproducing an image distributed from an image capturing device via a network on a viewing terminal, wherein a first communication session is established between the viewing terminal and the image capturing device. A second step of distributing moving image data from the image capturing device to the viewing terminal while the communication session established in the first step is maintained; and A third step of reproducing the moving image data received in two steps, wherein the moving image data is continuously reproduced by repeatedly performing the steps from the first step to the third step. To do.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to the first or second aspect, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is fixedly set in advance for the viewing terminal. It is determined by parameters.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to the first or second aspect, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is determined by a parameter based on the state information of the viewing terminal. It is characterized by that.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is dynamically corrected according to an external factor. It is determined by the parameter.

  A sixth aspect of the present invention is the image reproduction method according to any one of the third to fifth aspects, wherein the parameter is transmitted from the viewing terminal to the image capturing apparatus.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is the distribution of the image data in the initial state. It is characterized in that it is set so as not to give the maximum load possible to the environment related to reproduction.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the image reproduction method according to the seventh aspect, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is gradually loaded on the environment related to the distribution and / or reproduction of the image data. It is characterized in that it is dynamically modified so as to increase.

  The present invention establishes a communication session between a viewing terminal and an image capturing device, and distributes still image data of a plurality of frames while this session is maintained. Thereby, the browsing terminal can reproduce | regenerate a pseudo | simulation moving image by switching and reproducing the still image data of several frames continuously. Then, by repeating such processing, it is possible to continuously reproduce the pseudo moving images by switching the pseudo moving images one after another.

  In addition, since the attribute of the image data to be distributed is determined by the parameter transmitted from the viewing terminal, the viewing terminal can smoothly reproduce a high-quality image.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an overall view of an image distribution system according to each embodiment of the present invention. The network camera 1 is a device having an image capturing function, a network connection function, and a WEB server function, and is generally a device also called a WEB camera. The mobile phone terminal 5 has a network connection function in addition to a voice call function as a basic function of the mobile phone. The network camera 1 is connected to the Internet 2, the mobile phone terminal 5 is connected to the mobile phone network 3 via the base station 4, and the Internet 2 and the mobile phone network 3 are further connected. The network camera 1 and the mobile phone terminal 5 can communicate with each other.

  In such a system configuration, the network camera 1 distributes captured images to various terminals using a WEB server function or other image distribution functions. That is, the network camera 1 can distribute captured images to terminals connected to the Internet 2 and various terminals connected to various networks connected via the Internet 2. The mobile phone terminal 5 has a web content browsing function and an image browsing function, and can browse images distributed by the network camera 1.

<First Embodiment>
Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the network camera 1. The network camera 1 includes an image sensor 11, an image processing unit 12, a communication unit 13, a memory 14, and a CPU 15. The image sensor 11 includes an optical lens, a CCD image sensor, and the like, and can capture a subject image. The image data output from the image sensor 11 is subjected to various types of image processing in the image processing unit 12. Image processing includes image compression processing and the like.

  The CPU 15 executes various programs stored in the memory 14. The memory 14 stores a WEB server program and other application programs (not shown), and the CPU 15 can implement the WEB server function in the network camera 1 by executing the WEB server program. The communication unit 13 has a function of transmitting / receiving data to / from the Internet 2.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the mobile phone terminal 5. The cellular phone terminal 5 includes an antenna 51, a communication unit 52, a CPU 53, a memory 54, an operation unit 55, and a display unit 56. The communication unit 52 has a function of transmitting / receiving data to / from the base station 4 via the antenna 51. The communication unit 52 includes a buffer memory 57 and a function of temporarily storing received data. The CPU 53 executes various programs stored in the memory 54. The memory 54 stores a WEB browser program and other application programs (not shown), and the CPU 53 can browse WEB content by executing the WEB browser program.

  The memory 54 stores an image acquisition program 61. The image acquisition program 61 is a program that operates on HTTP, and for example, a JAVA (R) application program can be used. As a specific example, a program called i-appli for a mobile phone made by NTT Docomo and an EZ app for a mobile phone made by au correspond. The image acquisition program 61 has a function of transmitting parameters to the network camera 1, a function of downloading an image from the network camera 1, and a function of displaying the downloaded image on the display unit 56.

  The operation unit 55 includes operation buttons for executing various functions of the mobile phone terminal 5, a cross cursor, and the like. By operating the operation unit 55, the user can perform input operations of various characters such as a telephone number and an e-mail address, a process of connecting to a network, a browsing operation of WEB contents, and the like. The display unit 56 is composed of an LCD or the like, and displays WEB content and images. The display unit 56 is used for displaying telephone numbers and mails.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a part of the processing contents of the image acquisition program 61. The image acquisition program 61 includes a parameter setting unit 611 and an external factor acquisition unit 612 as functional blocks related to parameter setting and transmission. The parameter setting unit 611 and the external factor acquisition unit 612 are a part of functions realized when the image acquisition program 61 is executed using hardware resources such as the CPU 53 and the memory 54.

  Further, the mobile phone terminal 5 stores a fixed parameter for determining the attribute of the received image data in the initial setting storage unit 58. Here, the attribute of the image data includes a compression rate, a resolution, and the like if it is still image data. In addition, for a plurality of frames of still image data continuously captured, the block size (number of frames) and the like are also included in the image data attributes. For moving image data, the compression rate, sampling rate, data size of moving image data, and the like are included in the attributes of the image data. That is, the attribute of the image data is a condition of processing executed until the still image data or the moving image data is generated from the image information output from the image sensor 11, and the quality and data size of the generated image data are determined. To decide.

  The fixed parameter is a parameter that is fixedly set depending on the model of the mobile phone terminal 5. For example, the fixed parameters are written in the initial setting storage unit 58 when the mobile phone terminal 5 is shipped. Alternatively, the user may freely rewrite the fixed parameter.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the contents of the parameters. The parameters are classified into a first parameter 71 and a second parameter 72. The first parameter includes, for example, terminal model information, terminal resource information, and terminal associated information. The terminal model information is information for specifying the terminal model, such as the product number and manufacturing number of the mobile phone terminal 5. The terminal resource information is information that specifies the CPU processing capacity, the memory size, and the like of the mobile phone terminal 5. The terminal-associated information is, for example, position information if the mobile phone terminal 5 is a terminal that can acquire position information, or information on a fee system with which the mobile phone terminal 5 is contracted.

  On the other hand, the second parameter is, for example, resolution information, compression rate information, sampling rate, still image block size, moving image size, and the like.

  That is, the second parameter is a parameter that directly determines the attribute of the image data distributed from the network camera 1 to the mobile phone terminal 5, and the first parameter is a parameter that is a factor for determining the second parameter. It is.

  In the first embodiment, since the parameters stored in the initial setting storage unit 58 are fixed parameters, the terminal model information corresponds to the fixed parameters. Alternatively, a fixed parameter may be configured from terminal model information and terminal resource information.

  This first parameter is converted into a second parameter by the parameter converter 7. Here, the parameter conversion unit 7 may be provided in the mobile phone terminal 5 or may be provided in the network camera 1. When the parameter conversion unit 7 is provided in the mobile phone terminal 5, the parameter setting unit 611 is provided with the parameter conversion unit 7.

  Refer to FIG. 4 again. When the parameter conversion unit 7 is provided in the mobile phone terminal 5, the fixed parameter as the first parameter 71 stored in the initial setting storage unit 58 is converted into the second parameter by the parameter conversion unit 7. Then, it is transmitted to the network camera 1. Alternatively, the initial setting storage unit 58 may store a fixed parameter as the second parameter 72 in advance. In this case, the fixed parameter as the second parameter is transmitted to the network camera 1 without being converted.

  When the network camera 1 receives the second parameter, the image processing unit 12 performs image processing based on the received parameter, and sequentially stores the still image data B1, B2,. For example, the compression rate, resolution, block size, and the like of still image data are determined based on the second parameter.

  In the state where the network camera 1 stores a plurality of still image data B1, B2,..., BN in the memory 14, the image acquisition program 61 executes image acquisition processing in the mobile phone terminal 5. Specifically, first, a process for establishing a communication session between the mobile phone terminal 5 and the network camera 1 is executed, and then a plurality of still image data is downloaded while the established communication session is maintained. Is executed. In this embodiment, the communication session establishment process is an HTTP session establishment process. At this time, since the still image data B1, B2,..., BN stored in the network camera 1 are data generated based on the second parameter transmitted from the mobile phone terminal 5, the mobile phone terminal 5 can smoothly receive and reproduce still image data.

  A reproduction processing method in the mobile phone terminal 5 will be described. Still image data received from the network camera 1 is stored in the memory 54 via the buffer memory 57 of the communication unit 52. 3 corresponds to any one of the still image data B1, B2,... BN. In other words, here, among the N still image data B1, B2,... BN stored in the network camera 1, K still image data C1 while the established communication session is maintained. , C2,..., CN are received. Here, among the still image data stored in the network camera 1, which still image data is to be distributed is determined according to a predetermined algorithm. For example, the latest K still image data may be distributed. Further, the total data size of the still image data distributed while the established communication session is maintained needs to be a size that does not exceed the maximum communication buffer size defined by the communication protocol. That is, here, it is necessary to set the size not exceeding the maximum communication buffer size defined in HTTP.

  When the mobile phone terminal 5 receives the still image data C1, C2,..., CK, the still image data C1, C2,..., CK are continuously displayed while sequentially switching at the set frame rate. It is displayed on the part 56. Thereby, the pseudo moving image can be reproduced in the mobile phone terminal 5.

  On the other hand, when the parameter conversion unit 7 is provided in the network camera 1, a fixed parameter as a first parameter is transmitted from the mobile phone terminal 5 to the network camera 1, and the network camera 1 receives the first parameter. Is converted into a second parameter. The subsequent processing is the same as the processing described above. Still image data is generated and stored based on the second parameter.

  By adopting such a method, the cellular phone terminal 5 can receive an image having an attribute determined based on a fixed parameter and reproduce it as a pseudo moving image. By repeatedly executing such processing, the pseudo moving images received while maintaining the respective communication sessions can be joined and reproduced, and the pseudo moving images can be reproduced continuously as a whole. Is possible. Specifically, a plurality of frames of images are acquired while maintaining a certain Nth communication session, and the images of the plurality of frames are reproduced as pseudo moving images from the time of acquisition. Then, when the next N + 1-th communication session is established and a new multiple frame image is acquired, the new multiple frame image is reproduced as a pseudo moving image. By repeating such processing, it is possible to continuously reproduce the pseudo moving image. As a result, it is possible to view the pseudo moving image on the terminal while using the mobile phone terminal 5 having a resource limitation, a protocol limitation, or a maximum communication buffer size limitation.

  Next, additional functions provided in the image distribution system according to the first embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the image acquisition program 61 includes an external factor acquisition unit 612 as a functional block. The external factor acquisition unit 61 is a functional unit that acquires information for dynamically correcting parameters during communication of image data.

  The external factor acquisition unit 61 has a function of measuring the current communication speed, for example. The communication speed of communication using a mobile phone varies depending on the load state of the Internet 2 and the load state of the mobile phone network 3. Therefore, the image attributes determined based on the fixed parameters may not be appropriate. Therefore, the external factor acquisition unit 612 notifies the parameter setting unit 611 of a parameter correction instruction.

  The parameter setting unit 611 receives the instruction from the external factor acquisition unit 612, corrects the parameter, and transmits the correction parameter to the network camera 1 as the first parameter or the second parameter. Thereby, in the network camera 1, the image processing unit 12 executes image processing based on the correction parameter. In this way, parameters are dynamically corrected even during communication, enabling smooth image distribution and smooth image reproduction.

  As described above, the external factor acquisition unit 612 corrects the parameter according to the externally changing environment, separately from the capability of the mobile phone terminal 5 itself.

<Second Embodiment>
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, about 2nd Embodiment, only a different part from 1st Embodiment is demonstrated.

  In the second embodiment, the processing contents of the image acquisition program 61 are partly different from those in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a part of the processing contents of the image acquisition program 61. The image acquisition program 61 includes a parameter setting unit 611, an external factor acquisition unit 612, a terminal information acquisition unit 613, and an accompanying information acquisition unit 614 as functional blocks related to parameter setting and transmission. Each of these functional units 611 to 614 is a part of a function realized when the image acquisition program 61 is executed using hardware resources such as the CPU 53 and the memory 54.

  In the first embodiment, the mobile phone terminal 5 stores the fixed parameter for determining the attribute of the received image data in the initial setting storage unit 58. However, in the second embodiment, the mobile phone terminal 5 is fixed. Parameters are not stored in advance. In the second embodiment, the terminal information acquisition unit 613 and the accompanying information acquisition unit 614 determine parameters according to the current state information of the mobile phone terminal 5.

  The terminal information acquisition part 613 determines terminal resource information as a 1st parameter among the 1st parameters shown in FIG. For example, CPU processing capacity and memory size are generated as the first parameter.

  The terminal-accompanying information acquisition unit 614 determines terminal-accompanying information as the first parameter among the first parameters shown in FIG. For example, the position information and fee structure information described above are generated as the first parameter. Here, the reason for determining the parameter based on the position information is to cope with the case where the communication speed varies depending on the position of the mobile phone terminal 5. The reason for determining the parameters based on the fee structure information is to consider the user burden. For example, if the fee structure has no restriction on the amount of packet communication, the setting is made such that the parameter value is increased and a high-resolution image is distributed. On the other hand, in case of a pay-as-you-go system, parameters are set so that the price is not high.

  When the terminal information acquisition unit 613 and the terminal-associated information acquisition unit 614 generate the first parameter, the parameter setting unit 611 transmits the first parameter to the network camera 1. As in the first embodiment, the first parameter is converted to the second parameter and then transmitted to the network camera 1 or the first parameter is transmitted as it is, and the network camera 1 receives the second parameter. Is converted to The subsequent processing is the same as in the first embodiment. Image attributes are determined based on the parameters generated by the terminal information acquisition unit 613 and the terminal associated information acquisition unit 614, and a plurality of still image data are distributed during one communication session. The image is reproduced. By repeatedly executing such processing, it is possible to continuously reproduce the pseudo moving images one after another. Specifically, a plurality of frames of images are acquired while maintaining a certain Nth communication session, and the images of the plurality of frames are reproduced as pseudo moving images from the time of acquisition. Then, when the next N + 1-th communication session is established and a new multiple frame image is acquired, the new multiple frame image is reproduced as a pseudo moving image. By repeating such processing, it is possible to continuously reproduce the pseudo moving image.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, the parameter is determined according to the current state information of the mobile phone terminal 5 instead of a fixed parameter.

  Also in the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the external factor acquisition unit 612 corrects parameters based on external factors such as communication speed. As a result, even during communication, it is possible to dynamically correct parameters and maintain an optimal reproduction environment.

  Next, additional functions provided in the image distribution system according to the second embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, it has been described that the image acquisition program 61 sets a parameter based on the current state information of the mobile phone terminal 5. Basically, the image acquisition program 61 sets a parameter as high as possible based on the current state information in order to provide a high-quality image to the viewer (here, high resolution and high frame rate). For example, a parameter value that increases the quality of an image is called a high parameter value). In other words, the parameters are set so as to make maximum use of the environment related to the distribution of the image data and the capacity of the environment related to the reproduction of the image data.

  However, when such parameters are set, the image may not be reproduced smoothly from the initial time due to changes in the external environment. For example, there is a case where a delay in the delivery of a high-resolution image occurs due to a decrease in communication speed.

  Therefore, the parameter setting unit 611 sets the parameter of a little restraint so as not to give the maximum load to the environment related to the distribution and reproduction of the image data when setting the parameter based on the current state information. is there. As a result, the image quality may be slightly inferior at the initial time when the image is started to be browsed, but the image reproduction waiting time does not occur and the image can be reproduced smoothly. .

  In this way, after setting the parameters of the restraint at the initial time, the parameter setting unit 611 gradually increases the value of the parameter. For example, the resolution of the image is gradually increased, the compression rate of the image is decreased, or the frame rate is increased. In this way, at the initial stage, the focus is on smooth image reproduction rather than high quality, and by gradually adjusting the image quality to be improved, the optimum image reproduction environment can be prepared. .

  Note that similar control may be performed in the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, a fixed parameter is set in the initial setting storage unit 58. However, the parameter setting unit 611 corrects the fixed parameter at the initial time so as to set a parameter with a slight limit. May be. Alternatively, the fixed parameter itself may be set so as not to give the maximum load to the environment. Similarly, by gradually adjusting the parameter value to be higher, it is possible to smoothly reproduce a high-quality image.

<Third Embodiment>
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8 and other drawings. As for the third embodiment, only parts different from the first and second embodiments will be described.

  In the first and second embodiments, the network camera 1 distributes a plurality of frames of still image data, and the mobile phone terminal 5 continuously switches and reproduces the still image data, thereby reproducing the pseudo moving image. Can be played. In the third embodiment, moving image data is reproduced in the mobile phone terminal 5 by distributing moving image data having a relatively small data size during one communication session.

  FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of the network camera 1. Unlike the first and second embodiments, the image processing unit generates moving image data D using a plurality of frames of image data sequentially input from the imaging sensor 11. The generated moving image data D is stored in the memory 14.

  FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram of the mobile phone terminal 5. The processing contents of the image acquisition program 1 are the same as those in the first or second embodiment. That is, a fixed parameter is transmitted to the network camera 1 as in the first embodiment. Alternatively, as in the second embodiment, the terminal information acquisition unit 613 and the accompanying information acquisition unit 614 determine parameters according to the current terminal state information and transmit them to the network camera 1. Further, the first parameter may be converted to the second parameter and then transmitted to the network camera 1, or the first parameter may be transmitted to the network camera 1 as it is and converted to the second parameter in the network camera 1. The points that may be performed are also the same. Further, the external factor acquisition unit 612 can acquire external environment change information and correct parameters.

  In the network camera 1, the image processing unit 12 determines the attribute of the moving image data based on the received parameter, and executes image processing based on the parameter. Specifically, the moving image data D is generated based on parameters including a compression rate, a sampling rate, a moving image size, and the like.

  When the mobile phone terminal 5 downloads the moving image data D from the network camera 1, the moving image data D is temporarily stored in the buffer memory 57 and then stored in the memory 61. Then, the image acquisition program 61 reproduces the moving image data D. By repeating such processing, moving image data of a relatively small size is acquired during a single communication session, and the moving image data is continuously played back so that the mobile phone terminal 5 can also play back the moving image data. It becomes. Specifically, the moving image data is acquired while maintaining a certain Nth communication session, and the moving image data is reproduced from the acquired time. Then, when the next N + 1-th communication session is established and new moving image data is acquired, new moving image data is reproduced. By repeating such processing, it is possible to continuously reproduce moving image data.

  In the above-described embodiment, the image acquisition program 61 has been described as operating on HTTP. However, the protocol in which the image acquisition program 61 operates in the present invention is not particularly limited, and HTTP is an example. Of course, the present invention can also be applied to other protocols and proprietary protocols of mobile phone carriers. For example, the present invention can be applied to a program called BREW that operates on a mobile phone of au.

  Also in the third embodiment, as described in the second embodiment, the parameter setting unit 611 does not place a maximum load on the environment related to the distribution or reproduction of image data at the initial stage. In the initial state of image reproduction, smooth image reproduction is ensured by setting the parameters of the lower limit and gradually controlling so that the value of the parameter is increased. Images can be played back smoothly.

1 is an overall view of an image distribution system. It is a block diagram of the network camera in 1st and 2nd embodiment. It is a block diagram of a mobile phone terminal in the first and second embodiments. It is a functional block diagram in connection with the parameter transmission process in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the classification | category of a parameter. It is a functional block diagram in connection with the parameter transmission process in 2nd Embodiment. It is a block diagram of the network camera in 3rd Embodiment. It is a block diagram of the mobile telephone terminal in 3rd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Network Camera 2 Internet 3 Mobile Phone Network 4 Base Station 5 Mobile Phone Terminal

Claims (8)

A method of reproducing an image distributed from an image capturing device via a network on a browsing terminal,
A first step of establishing a communication session between the viewing terminal and the imaging device;
A second step of delivering a plurality of frames of image data from the imaging device to the viewing terminal while the communication session established in the first step is maintained;
A third step of continuously playing back the plurality of frames of image data received by the browsing terminal in the second step;
With
An image reproduction method, wherein image data is continuously reproduced by repeatedly performing the steps from the first step to the third step. A method of reproducing an image distributed from an image capturing device via a network on a browsing terminal,
A first step of establishing a communication session between the viewing terminal and the imaging device;
A second step of delivering moving image data from the imaging device to the viewing terminal while the communication session established in the first step is maintained;
A third step of reproducing the moving image data received by the browsing terminal in the second step;
With
An image reproducing method, wherein the moving image data is continuously reproduced by repeatedly performing the steps from the first step to the third step. The image reproduction method according to claim 1 or 2,
The image reproduction method according to claim 2, wherein the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is determined by a parameter set in advance for the viewing terminal. The image reproduction method according to claim 1 or 2,
The image reproduction method characterized in that the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is determined by a parameter based on the state information of the viewing terminal. The image reproduction method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The image reproduction method according to claim 2, wherein the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is determined by a parameter that is dynamically modified according to an external factor. The image reproduction method according to any one of claims 3 to 5,
The image reproducing method, wherein the parameter is transmitted from the viewing terminal to the image capturing apparatus. The image reproduction method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
In the initial state, the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is set so as not to give the maximum load possible for the environment related to the distribution and / or reproduction of the image data. Image playback method. The image reproduction method according to claim 7,
The image reproduction method wherein the attribute of the image data distributed in the second step is dynamically modified so as to gradually increase the load on the environment related to the distribution and / or reproduction of the image data. .

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