JP4424507B2 - Video playback device and video playback method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a moving image information display technique that enables a skip operation with improved user convenience in a user skip operation in a moving image playback apparatus.

Conventional video player such as a DVD player or a hard disk recorder with a playback function is normally equipped with a skip function for video playback. This is a function for skipping a scene of a moving image in units of a predetermined time such as a chapter unit or 30 seconds in accordance with an operation such as a user pressing a skip button on the remote controller. This function allows the user to skip uninteresting scenes and shorten the viewing time. Further, in Patent Document 1, in order to further improve the user convenience of this scene skip, a plurality of skip destination thumbnails are prepared in advance for user selection, and each thumbnail is played back for a specified number of seconds so that the user skips. A technique relating to a video playback apparatus that can determine the skip destination after confirming the beginning video or the like is disclosed.
JP 2003-289486 A

  However, in any of the conventional scene skipping techniques, there is a problem that the user cannot confirm the contents of the skipped scene. For example, there is a possibility that scenes that the user determines to “skip” actually include scenes that are of interest to the user or scenes that are important in understanding the contents of moving images. However, the scene will be skipped and the user will not notice it.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a video playback device having a function of displaying a frame in a scene to be skipped as a predetermined number of thumbnails before skip playback when a video playback skip command is received. I will provide a. Specifically, a movie information holding unit that holds movie information that is information for playing a movie, a movie playback unit that plays a movie based on the movie information, and a movie playback skip command that acquires a movie playback skip command Thumbnail information for acquiring thumbnail information by extracting predetermined video information from the video information holding unit based on skip specifying information indicating an acquisition unit, a skip start point specified by a video playback skip command, and a skip end point It is a moving image playback apparatus having an acquisition unit and a thumbnail display unit that displays thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information.

  According to the present invention configured as described above, before the scene skip is finally executed, the frames in the skipped scene can be displayed as a predetermined number of thumbnails. Then, the user can easily determine whether there is a scene of interest by visually checking the thumbnail. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a situation in which a user skips a scene that the user is interested in by skipping a scene, and the convenience of the user when viewing a moving image can be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the spirit of the present invention. In the first embodiment, claims 1 and 5 will be mainly described. In the second embodiment, claims 2 and 6 will be mainly described. In the third embodiment, claims 3 and 7 will be mainly described. In the fourth embodiment, claims 4 and 8 will be mainly described.

  << Example 1 >> <Outline of Example 1> FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an outline of screen display by a moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present example. Now, the user is playing back and watching the reasoning drama recorded on the DVD media. Then, in a scene, the user decided that there was no need to see the next scene, and pressed the skip button on the remote control as shown in the figure to skip that scene and play it back one minute later. Then, the moving image playback apparatus of this embodiment extracts six frames from the frames included in the skipped one-minute scene, and displays thumbnails of the six frames on the display as shown in the figure. It was. As a result, the user can check the frames included in the scene that he / she wanted to skip. Here, for example, the user can know that there is a frame in which a “dying message” is displayed in the scene to be skipped by the thumbnail, and can make a judgment such as canceling the scene skip.

    <Configuration of Embodiment 1> FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of functional blocks in the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, the “moving image playback device” (0200) of this embodiment includes a “moving image information holding unit” (0201), a “moving image playback unit” (0202), and a “moving image playback skip command acquisition unit”. (0203), “thumbnail information acquisition unit” (0204), and “thumbnail display unit” (0205). Note that the functional blocks of the apparatus described below can be realized as hardware, software, or both hardware and software. Specifically, if a computer is used, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a main memory, a bus, a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or a non-volatile memory, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, etc. Hardware components such as storage media, read drives for such media, transmission / reception ports for various communication and printing devices, input devices and their connection ports, other peripheral devices, driver programs for controlling these hardware, and others Examples include application programs and interfaces used for information input. These hardware and software processes the programs developed on the memory in sequence by the CPU, and processes, stores, and outputs the data stored on the memory and hard disk and the data input via the interface. Or used to control each hardware component. The present invention can be realized not only as a system but also as a method. A part of the invention can be configured as software. Furthermore, a software product used for causing a computer to execute such software and a recording medium in which the product is fixed to a recording medium are naturally included in the technical scope of the present invention (the same applies throughout the present specification). Is).

  The “moving image information holding unit” (0201) has a function of holding moving image information. “Movie information” refers to information for playing a movie. The moving picture information holding unit can be realized by a hardware configuration such as a magnetic recording medium such as an HDD or a nonvolatile memory, an optical recording medium such as a DVD medium, or the like. In addition to the above configuration, when the moving image information is stored in a server provided on the network and the moving image information is transmitted to the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment by streaming during moving image reproduction, the moving image information is retained. The unit may be a buffer memory that temporarily holds the streaming moving picture information for display on the display.

  FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of moving image information held in the moving image information holding unit. As shown in this figure, the moving image information is configured as a collection of data for displaying a plurality of frames (still images). In the high-efficiency encoded moving image, for example, the 11th, 21st, and 51st frames in the figure are so-called I frames that are encoded alone (using intra-frame prediction). .., 22,... May be moving image information that is a so-called B frame or P frame encoded with reference to the previous or subsequent frame (using inter-frame prediction). . These frames are continuously displayed on a display or the like in a predetermined number such as 15, 30, 60, etc. per second, so that the moving image information is reproduced and displayed as a moving image in the next moving image reproducing unit. Become. Further, in a thumbnail information acquisition unit described later, several frames are extracted from the frames according to a predetermined condition and acquired as thumbnail information.

  The “moving image reproduction unit” (0202) has a function of reproducing a moving image based on the moving image information held in the moving image information holding unit (0201). As the hardware configuration of the moving image reproducing unit, for example, a video chip, a video memory, and the like can be given. Then, for example, RGB information for each pixel in the frame indicated by the moving image information is stored in a predetermined memory address of the video memory. Subsequently, in the case of analog output, a value corresponding to RGB information is extracted by using a color palette or the like previously held by arithmetic processing of the video chip, and an RGB signal based on the value is sent to the display. The display displays the red, green, and blue colors of each pixel with the intensity corresponding to the received RGB signal, thereby reproducing the pixel color and displaying one frame. Then, the reproduction of the moving image is performed by sequentially transmitting such RGB signals for frame display at intervals of 30 sheets per second.

  In this way, the user can view the moving image reproduced by the moving image reproducing unit and displayed on the display (0210), for example. In addition, when the user wants to skip the scene while watching the video, the user performs the operation such as pressing the skip button on the remote control to send a signal indicating the video playback skip command to the video of this embodiment. Send to playback device.

  The “video playback skip command acquisition unit” (0203) has a function of acquiring a video playback skip command. The “moving image reproduction skip command” refers to a command for skipping and reproducing a moving image at a predetermined interval. The skip playback includes, for example, speed skip playback such as 16 times speed and 32 times speed (normal playback speed), time skip playback such as 30-second intervals, or skip playback between chapters if preset in DVD video. Is mentioned. In this way, the video playback skip command includes, for example, the “scene after 30 seconds” and the “first scene of the next chapter” with the timing at which the video playback skip command is acquired as the start point of the skip. Information indicating the end point of the skip is included. The range of the moving image scene for extracting the frame to be displayed as a thumbnail is determined by the skip start point and the skip end point indicated by the moving image reproduction skip command. For example, when a skip is performed from the 11th frame to the 51st frame in FIG. 3 by the video playback skip command, the 12th to 50th frames in between are the thumbnail display frames in the video playback device of this embodiment. That is, the extraction range is fixed.

  In the hardware configuration, the moving image playback skip command acquisition unit is realized by an I / O (input / output device) that acquires selection information input by the user via an interface such as a remote controller as described above. . Of course, when the interface is a remote controller, the I / O may be specifically constituted by an infrared light receiving unit or a conversion unit for converting the received infrared pulse into a remote control code. Alternatively, if the interface is a touch panel, the I / O may be configured by a mechanism that detects the position of an object that shields light, a pressure-sensitive device, or the like. Alternatively, when a video is being played on the PC software, the video playback skip in which the skip start point and skip end point are specified by operating the seek bar, which is the GUI of the software, using a mouse or the like. An instruction may be obtained.

  In addition, this embodiment is characterized in that frames included in a skip scene whose range is specified by a video playback skip command are displayed as thumbnails as will be described later, and the user is allowed to confirm a scene that may normally be overlooked. is there. Therefore, for example, when skipping at intervals with few scene changes, such as double-speed skipping or 5-second skipping (such as skipping in which a scene skipped from a scene when skipping is specified can be easily predicted), the thumbnail is displayed. It is good also as a structure which does not process. In this case, the moving image reproduction skip command acquisition unit acquires a skip unit acquisition unit for acquiring a skip unit such as double speed or 5 seconds indicated by the acquired moving image reproduction skip command, and a predetermined unit in which the skip unit is set in advance. There may be provided a thumbnail display availability determination unit that determines whether or not the threshold value is equal to or less than the threshold value, and that does not perform thumbnail display when the threshold value is equal to or less than the threshold value.

  The “thumbnail information acquisition unit” (0204) has a function of extracting predetermined video information from the video information holding unit based on the skip specifying information and acquiring thumbnail information. “Skip identification information” refers to information indicating the skip start point and the skip end point specified by the video playback skip command, as described in the video playback skip command acquisition unit. Further, “predetermined video information” refers to video information within the skip range specified by the skip specification information as described above, and “extraction” refers to all of the frames constituting the video information within the range, Or it means extracting a part. That is, here, a process of extracting frames included in the scene to be skipped as thumbnail candidates is performed. Note that the process of extracting frames in the predetermined moving image information as thumbnail candidates may be executed based on various rules as follows.

  FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of a rule in this frame extraction process. In this rule, as shown in FIG. 5A, for example, a moving image reproduction skip command of 20-second skip is acquired. At this time, when the number of thumbnails to be displayed is set in advance as a rule, for example, 3 sheets, the scene from the skip start point to the skip end point is equally divided according to the set number of sheets, and from the skip start point For example, frame A, frame B, and frame C are extracted every 5 seconds.

  Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 5B, it is assumed that the rule is frame extraction for scene change such as scene change or initial frame extraction for an important scene. In that case, for example, using scene analysis and extraction techniques disclosed in various patent documents such as JP 2004-295923 PR, JP 2005-167456 PR, JP 04-294694 PR, The beginning frame D of the important scene 1, the beginning frame E of the important scene 2, the beginning frame F of the important scene 3 and the like are specified in advance before moving image reproduction, and the reproduction position (timing) information of the frame is stored. In the frame extraction process, a frame between the skip start point and the skip end point indicated by the video playback skip command is determined based on the playback position information and the like, and here, frame D and frame E are extracted. It is said that it is done.

  Or, for example, one commercial is broadcast every 15 seconds or 30 seconds in the case of commercials, and in the cycle of one minute of talk, three minutes of live scenes, and one minute of commercials after 5 minutes of opening for TV live music programs If the progress schedule of the (program) moving image can be predicted, a frame that is played back in accordance with the progress schedule time may be acquired before the moving image is played back. Then, frames included in the range indicated by the skip start point and the skip end point may be extracted.

  In addition, when the moving image information is moving image information that is encoded with high efficiency and is configured of I frames, B frames, and P frames, the extracted frame is preferably an I frame. This is because the B and P frames need to be decoded with reference to the previous and subsequent frames in order to display thumbnails, so that the processing load for thumbnailing is higher than that for displaying I frames. Therefore, when a B frame or a P frame is specified as a frame extracted by the above process, an I frame of a GOP (group of pictures) including the B frame or the P frame may be extracted as a substitute frame.

  Then, thumbnail information is acquired based on the frame extracted in this way. The thumbnail information is, for example, information generated based on the extracted frame, such as image information that has been subjected to reduction / resize processing for displaying thumbnails, or arrangement position information of the resized image within the screen. Etc. Alternatively, the image information itself of the extracted frame may be stored in a video memory or the like, and in this case, the thumbnail information is the identification information of the extracted frame for displaying thumbnails, the storage memory address thereof, etc. It may be only. Based on the thumbnail information, thumbnail display processing is performed in the next thumbnail display section.

  The “thumbnail display unit” (0205) has a function of displaying thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information. As described above, if the thumbnail information is the image information of the resized frame or the arrangement position information thereof, the thumbnail display is performed on the display or the like by the same processing as the image display described in the video playback unit according to the information. Good to do. Alternatively, if the thumbnail information is information indicating the extracted frame identification information or the storage memory address, the image information of the frame is acquired based on the information, the resizing process is performed, and the thumbnail is displayed on the display in the same manner as described above. May be. Then, the user can easily check whether or not a scene that is interested in the skip-designated scene is included by looking at the thumbnail displayed in this way.

    <Hardware Configuration Example of First Embodiment> FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present embodiment. An example of the operation of the hardware configuration unit in the thumbnail display process in the skip scene will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in this figure, the moving image reproducing apparatus includes a “CPU (central processing unit)” (0501) and a “main memory” (0502) which are thumbnail information acquisition units. Also, it is a “recording device” (0503) that is a moving image information holding unit, a “video chip” (0504) that is a moving image reproduction unit and a thumbnail display unit, a “video memory” (0505), and a moving image reproduction skip command acquisition unit. “I / O” (0507) is also provided. These are connected to each other through a data communication path such as a “system bus” (0508) to transmit / receive information and process information. The video chip is also connected to a “display” (0506) for displaying moving images and thumbnails.

  The “main memory” provides a work area that is a work area of a program executed by the CPU and a data area that stores data to be processed by the program. A plurality of memory addresses are assigned to the “main memory” and “video memory”, and programs executed by the “CPU” exchange data with each other by specifying and accessing the memory addresses. It is possible to perform and process.

    (Processing of Moving Image Information Holding Unit and Moving Image Reproducing Unit) Here, first, moving image reproduction processing is performed based on moving image information recorded in a “recording device” such as an HDD. For this purpose, the information of the frames A, B,... Constituting the moving picture information is read from the predetermined memory address of the recording device, and the pixels of the respective frames are stored in the predetermined memory addresses A, B,. Each piece of RGB information is stored. Of course, if these input images are high-efficiency encoded images, a frame decoding process is performed by a “CPU” or “video chip” as necessary, and storage into a video memory is executed. good. Then, as described above, the RGB signal is sent to the “display” by “video chip” processing using a color palette or the like. Subsequently, the display displays the red, green, and blue of each pixel with the intensity in accordance with the received RGB signal, thereby reproducing the color of the pixel and displaying one frame. Under the control of the video chip, transmission processing of RGB signals and the like for frame display as described above is sequentially performed at intervals of 30 sheets per second, etc., and the frames are sequentially displayed on the display so that the moving image is displayed. Playback is performed. Then, while watching the video displayed on the display in this way, the user performs an operation such as pressing the skip button on the remote control when he / she wants to skip the scene.

    (Processing of Moving Image Playback Skip Command Acquisition Unit) Subsequently, an infrared signal indicating a moving image playback skip command output from the remote controller or the like by the user's operation is received by the infrared light receiving unit that is “I / O”. The light receiving unit that receives the infrared signal of the moving image reproduction skip command demodulates it into a remote control code and identifies it as a moving image reproduction skip command. Then, the thumbnail generation program developed in the work area of “main memory” acquires skip specific information indicating the skip start point and skip end point, and the predetermined memory address of the main memory at the skip start point and skip end point. Is stored.

  Specifically, the skip start point is, for example, the identification information of the frame displayed on the display at the timing when the moving image playback skip command is acquired by I / O, or “position of 4 minutes 30 seconds from the start of playback”. Information on the playback position (timing) of the frame. These pieces of information are stored at memory address 1 of the main memory. For example, when the demodulated remote control code is a code indicating “30-second skip”, the skip end point is reproduced after 30 seconds from the information “30 seconds later” or the frame of the skip start point. Examples include frame identification information and playback position (timing) information of the frame, such as “after 5 minutes from the start of playback”.

  As described above, a skip interval such as “after 30 seconds” may be designated by the remote control code, or the remote control code indicates only skip, and the skip interval is recorded in advance on a recording device or the like, It may be configured to be read from a “recording device” built in the moving image playback device in response to acquisition of a playback skip command. Further, the GUI may be used so that the user can freely set the skip interval indicated by the remote control code or the skip interval recorded in the recording device built in the moving image reproducing apparatus.

    (Process of Thumbnail Information Acquisition Unit) Next, the thumbnail information acquisition unit is expanded in the work area of the main memory based on the information of the skip start point and the skip end point stored in the memory addresses 1 and 2 of the main memory. The instruction of the thumbnail generation program is executed, and processing for obtaining thumbnail information is performed. Specifically, a header indicating the playback position (timing) of the frame is added to each frame constituting the moving image information, so that the header is referenced and stored in the memory address 1 by the CPU comparison calculation process. For example, 900 frames having a playback position between the playback position information of the skip start point and the playback position information of the skip end point stored in the memory address 2 are specified. Here, assuming that the number of images displayed as thumbnails is five, numerical information indicating the number of images recorded in advance in a recording device or the like is read out and stored in a predetermined memory address of the main memory. Then, the extraction process of five frames from the specified 900 frames is performed, for example, by the CPU's arithmetic processing to divide 900 frames into six, and the first thumbnail image is 150 frames from the skip start frame. Frame A, which is the eye, the second frame is the frame D, which is the 300th frame, and so on.

  Then, the identification information “A” and “D” of the extracted frame is stored in the memory address 3 and the memory address 4 of the main memory. Then, processing such as resizing the image such as frame A or frame D identified by the stored identification information for thumbnail display is performed by CPU calculation such as adding and averaging adjacent pixel values. . Then, image information such as the resized frame A and frame D is transmitted to the video memory.

    (Processing of Thumbnail Display Unit) Subsequently, in order to display the resized image information stored in the video memory in this way as a thumbnail on one screen, the “video chip” displays the image size, the number of images, etc. Based on the information, a determination process of the arrangement position of the thumbnail image is performed. Of course, if a thumbnail display screen or the like is set as a template in advance, the arrangement position determination processing and the like can be omitted. In any case, RGB signals are sent to the “display” using a color palette, etc., so that each image stored in the video memory is displayed as a thumbnail at the arrangement position thus determined. The thumbnail display is performed.

  Of course, the above example is only an example. For example, the moving image information holding unit is an optical recording medium such as “DVD-ROM”, and the moving image information in the DVD-ROM read by the reading drive is stored in the video memory. Also good. Further, the I / O that is the moving image reproduction skip command acquisition unit may be configured by a detection mechanism that detects the position of a finger, a pen, or the like on the display if the interface is a touch panel, for example. Alternatively, if the interface is a mouse or the like, the I / O may be an input device connection port that accepts a moving operation of a seek bar of a video playback application using the mouse. In any case, in accordance with the moving image playback skip command input in such a manner, the skip start point and the skip end point are respectively stored at predetermined memory addresses in the main memory, and thumbnail information is generated and acquired in the same manner as described above. Absent.

  In addition to obtaining the thumbnail information, the beginning frame of the important scene is specified in advance by a CPU calculation process based on a predetermined rule, and is included in the skip scene by referring to the header. Processing for discriminating frames and extracting them as thumbnail image frames may be performed.

    <Processing Flow of First Embodiment> FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow in the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. Note that the steps shown below may be processing steps that constitute a program for controlling a computer recorded on a medium. As shown in this figure, first, a moving image is reproduced based on the moving image information held in advance (step S0601). Then, for example, the “30-second skip” button on the remote control is pressed by the user who has viewed the playback video, and a video playback skip command is sent from the remote control. The video playback device acquires this video playback skip command (skip S0602), extracts predetermined video information based on the video playback skip command, and acquires the specified number of thumbnail information (step S0603). Then, thumbnails are displayed based on the acquired thumbnail information (step S0604).

    <Simple Explanation of Effects of First Embodiment> As described above, before a scene is skipped by a user's instruction, a frame in the scene to be skipped is displayed as a predetermined number of thumbnails by the video playback device of the present embodiment. can do. Then, the user can easily determine whether there is a scene of interest by visually checking the thumbnail. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a situation in which a user skips a scene that the user is interested in by skipping a scene, and the convenience of the user when viewing a moving image can be improved.

  << Example 2 >> <Outline of Example 2> Based on Example 1, the moving image playback apparatus of this example is characterized in that, for example, thumbnail display for the number of sheets designated by the user or the like is performed in the thumbnail display. To do. Therefore, the skip interval of one operation such as “chapter skip” is long, that is, the user who skips many frames by one skip specifies the thumbnail display number of the first embodiment by specifying a large number of thumbnails to be displayed. Then you can check the frames that were not displayed. Therefore, the user can further suppress the possibility of missing an important scene by skipping. On the other hand, when the skip interval in one operation such as “10-second skip” is short, there are cases where the images displayed as thumbnails are frames indicating almost the same scene. Thus, by specifying a small number, it is possible to suppress the processing load on the moving image playback apparatus without impairing the effect of confirming the frames included in the skip scene.

    <Configuration of Second Embodiment> FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of functional blocks in the moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, the “moving image playback apparatus” (0700) of the present embodiment is based on the first embodiment, and includes a “moving image information holding unit” (0701), “moving image playback unit” (0702), “ A “video playback skip command acquisition unit” (0703), a “thumbnail information acquisition unit” (0704), and a “thumbnail display unit” (0705). The “moving image information holding unit”, “moving image reproduction unit”, “moving image reproduction skip command acquisition unit”, “thumbnail information acquisition unit”, and “thumbnail display unit” have already been described in the first embodiment. Since it has already been described, its description is omitted. A feature point of the moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present embodiment is that it further includes a “number designation unit” (0706).

  The “number designation unit” (0706) has a function of designating the number of thumbnails to be acquired to the thumbnail information acquisition unit. Thereby, for example, the number of thumbnails can be displayed in accordance with the user's skip tendency, the display size (resolution) of the display, and the like. The numerical value of the designated number of sheets may be determined by acquiring numerical information input by the user using an interface such as a remote controller as described above. The input numerical value may be acquired every time when skipping, or may be stored in a recording medium such as an HDD by a user setting at the time of product purchase or the like and read during skip processing.

  Alternatively, in addition to the designation by the user, for example, information such as the display resolution may be acquired, and the “resolution-designated number table” may be used to designate the number of thumbnails to be displayed according to the resolution. good. As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a situation where it is difficult to check the frame because there are more thumbnails than the resolution. Alternatively, a configuration may be used in which a history of the user's skip interval is stored, and a user who is determined to have a long skip interval from the history is designated to display a large number of thumbnails. .

  Also, if the frame extracted as a thumbnail is the first frame of an important scene, for example, it is a soccer video and there are 6 goal scenes in the skip scene, but the number of thumbnails specified is 4 and so on. It is also assumed that the number of important frames included from the point to the skip end point is greater than the designated number. Therefore, a priority order value based on, for example, the image content calculated from the size of cheers is provided for the extraction candidate frame, and a specified number of frames are extracted from the frames with a higher priority order value as thumbnails. There may be.

    <Processing Flow of Second Embodiment> FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow in the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. Note that the steps shown below may be processing steps that constitute a program for controlling a computer recorded on a medium. As shown in this figure, first, information on the number of thumbnails to be acquired is acquired (step S0801). Subsequently, the moving image is reproduced based on the previously stored moving image information (Skip S0802). Then, for example, the user who viewed the reproduced moving image pressed the “Skip 30 seconds” button on the remote controller and sent a moving image reproduction skip command from the remote controller. In the video playback device, this video playback skip command is acquired (Skip S0803), predetermined video information is extracted based on the video playback skip command, and thumbnail information of the specified number is acquired (step S0804). . Then, thumbnails are displayed based on the acquired thumbnail information (step S0805).

    <Simple Explanation of Effects of Second Embodiment> As described above, the moving image playback apparatus according to the present embodiment can perform thumbnail display in a number corresponding to, for example, a user's skip tendency or screen size. Therefore, it is possible to further suppress the occurrence of a situation in which the user misses an important scene because the number of thumbnails to be displayed is smaller than a long skip interval. Or, conversely, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of such a situation that only thumbnails of the same frame are displayed unnecessarily due to a short skip interval, making it difficult to see. In addition, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a situation where the number of thumbnails is larger than the screen resolution, making it difficult to view.

  << Example 3 >> <Outline of Example 3> The moving image reproducing apparatus of this example is characterized in that, based on Examples 1 and 2, a scene skip is executed only after thumbnail display is performed. As described above, the scene skip is executed only after the thumbnail display, so that the user can surely perform the scene skip after confirming the frame in the skip scene by the thumbnail display. Further, as will be described later in the fourth embodiment, when the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment is configured to use the thumbnail as a GUI (graphical user interface), it waits for a user operation on the GUI. In addition, if the operation is not accepted, processing such as scene skip can be performed.

    <Configuration of Third Embodiment> FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of functional blocks in the moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, the “moving image playback device” (0900) of the present embodiment is based on the first embodiment, and “moving image information holding unit” (0901), “moving image playback unit” (0902), “ A “video playback skip command acquisition unit” (0903), a “thumbnail information acquisition unit” (0904), and a “thumbnail display unit” (0905). Although not shown in the figure, a “number designation unit” may be further provided based on the second embodiment. The “video information holding unit”, “video playback unit”, “video playback skip command acquisition unit”, “thumbnail information acquisition unit”, “thumbnail display unit”, and “number specification unit” , Have already been described in Examples 1 and 2, and the description thereof will be omitted. A feature of the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment is that the moving image reproducing unit further includes “post-display execution means” (0906).

  The “post-display execution means” (0906) executes the video playback skip command acquired by the video playback skip command acquisition unit (0903) only after receiving the thumbnail display completion signal output by the thumbnail display unit (0905). It has a function. Then, by adjusting the output timing of this thumbnail display completion signal and adjusting the execution timing of the video playback skip command after receiving the display completion signal, the video playback skip is executed after waiting for user operation reception can do. The post-display execution means is specifically realized by, for example, a method realized by on / off screen switching control by a video chip. The “on / off screen switching” is the following processing. That is, the video memory normally has an area A (on-screen) for storing image information displayed on the display, and an area B (off-screen) for storing image information to be displayed next on the display. It has a double structure. Therefore, when the image stored in the region B is displayed on the display following the image of the region A, a switching process is performed in which the region A is off-screen and the region B is on-screen by the processing of the video chip. That is, after the thumbnail display is performed based on the thumbnail information stored in the area A of the video memory and the display is completed, the video chip receives the thumbnail display completion signal, and the skip destination stored in the next area B The switching process is performed so that a moving image is displayed from the frame. Thereby, the post-display execution means can be realized. Of course, this switching process is not executed simultaneously with the reception of the thumbnail display completion signal, but may be controlled to be performed after a predetermined time has elapsed. As a result, it is possible to perform processing such as executing a video playback skip when there is no input operation after providing a time to accept, for example, an operation input for canceling a scene skip from a user who has confirmed the thumbnail screen. . The above effect may be realized by controlling the output timing of the thumbnail display completion signal to be delayed.

    <Processing Flow of Third Embodiment> FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow in the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. Note that the steps shown below may be processing steps that constitute a program for controlling a computer recorded on a medium. As shown in this figure, first, a moving image is reproduced based on the moving image information held in advance (step S1001). Then, for example, the user who viewed the reproduced moving image pressed the “Skip 30 seconds” button on the remote controller and sent a moving image reproduction skip command from the remote controller. The video playback device acquires this video playback skip command (Skip S1002), extracts predetermined video information based on the video playback skip command, and acquires thumbnail information (Step S1003). Then, thumbnails are displayed based on the acquired thumbnail information (step S1004). Subsequently, after the thumbnail display is completed, a thumbnail display completion signal is output (step S1005), and when the thumbnail display completion signal is confirmed to be received by a video chip or the like, the moving image reproduction skip command acquired in step S1002 is executed (step S1005). S1006).

    <Simple Explanation of Effects of Third Embodiment> As described above, the scene skip is executed only after the thumbnail display by the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. Therefore, the scene can be skipped after the user has confirmed the frames in the skip scene with thumbnail display. Further, as will be described later in the fourth embodiment, when the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment is configured to use the thumbnail as a GUI (graphical user interface), it waits for a user operation on the GUI. In the case where the operation is not accepted, processing such as scene skip can be performed.

  << Example 4 >> <Outline of Example 4> FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of an outline of screen display by the moving image reproducing apparatus according to the present example. As shown in this figure, the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment performs thumbnail display based on any one of the first, second, and third embodiments, and the displayed thumbnail has a GUI function as a feature point. It is a point. In other words, for example, a process is performed in which playback is started from the scene when the user selects a desired thumbnail image by operating the cursor (black frame α in the figure) on the screen with the direction key or the enter key of the remote controller, for example. Is called. As described above, if there is a frame of interest in the scene to be skipped by the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment, the user can issue a playback instruction immediately from there.

    <Configuration of Embodiment 4> FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of functional blocks in the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, the “moving image playback device” (1200) of the present embodiment is based on the first embodiment and includes a “moving image information holding unit” (1201), a “moving image playback unit” (1202), “ A moving image reproduction skip command acquisition unit (1203), a “thumbnail information acquisition unit” (1204), and a “thumbnail display unit” (1205). Although not shown in the figure, the “number designation section” and “post-display execution means” may be further provided based on the second and third embodiments. The “video information holding unit”, “video playback unit”, “video playback skip command acquisition unit”, “thumbnail information acquisition unit”, “thumbnail display unit”, and “number specification unit” Since “post-display execution means” has already been described in the first, second, and third embodiments, the description thereof will be omitted. A feature of the moving image playback apparatus of the present embodiment is that the thumbnail display section further includes “GUI moving image playback command acquisition means” (1206).

  The “GUI moving image playback command acquisition means” (1206) has a function of acquiring a GUI moving image playback command. The “GUI video playback command” refers to a video playback command using thumbnails. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a display display screen for explaining an example of thumbnail display provided with the function of the GUI moving image reproduction command acquisition means. As shown in this figure (a), for example, the displayed thumbnail is numbered, and when the user presses the corresponding number (channel) key on the remote controller, the video playback command is acquired and selected. That is, moving image playback from a frame is executed. Alternatively, for example, four thumbnail images other than the number keys on the remote controller may be arranged on the top, bottom, left, and right of the display, respectively, and the moving image playback command may be acquired by pressing the direction key on the remote controller.

  Specifically, for example, the identification information of the frame corresponding to the thumbnail and the numerical value attached to it are stored in a predetermined memory address of the main memory. When an infrared signal indicating the numeric key selected by the user by remote control operation is received by I / O, the frame identification information stored in the main memory in association with the numerical value indicated by the remote control code demodulating the infrared signal To get. Then, it may be realized by referring to the moving image reproduction position included in the header of the frame identified by the identification information and performing the moving image reproduction processing from the moving image reproduction position.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 5B, the display has a touch panel function, and when the user touches a desired thumbnail with a finger or a pen, a video playback command is acquired, and the video is played from the frame indicated by the thumbnail. It is good also as a structure. Specifically, the GUI moving image playback command acquisition function by the touch panel is, for example, a light projecting unit that irradiates light according to coordinates on the display, and the light on the display of the finger when the light irradiation is blocked by a finger or the like. And a light-receiving unit that detects position information at Alternatively, if the touch panel is pressure-sensitive or electrostatic, there is a method realized by a sheet that senses and measures the pressure and static electricity on the display.

    <Processing Flow of Fourth Embodiment> FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow in the moving image reproducing apparatus of the present embodiment. Note that the steps shown below may be processing steps that constitute a program for controlling a computer recorded on a medium. As shown in this figure, first, a moving image is reproduced based on the moving image information held in advance (step S1401). Then, for example, the user who viewed the reproduced moving image pressed the “Skip 30 seconds” button on the remote controller and sent a moving image reproduction skip command from the remote controller. The video playback device acquires this video playback skip command (skip S1402), extracts predetermined video information based on the video playback skip command, and acquires thumbnail information (step S1403). Based on the acquired thumbnail information, the thumbnail is displayed as a GUI (step S1404). Then, the user uses the GUI function to send a moving image playback command to the moving image playback device, for example, by pressing a numeric key on the remote controller corresponding to the display thumbnail. In this way, the moving image playback apparatus acquires the GUI moving image playback command using the thumbnail (step S1405), and plays back the moving image based on the GUI moving image playback command (step S1406).

    <Simple Explanation of Effects of Embodiment 4> As described above, the moving image playback apparatus according to the present embodiment allows the user to directly issue a moving image playback instruction from the thumbnail display screen. Therefore, the user can more easily reproduce the moving image, and the convenience for the user can be further enhanced.

The figure showing an example of the outline | summary of the screen display by the moving image reproducing device of Example 1 The figure showing an example of the functional block in the moving image reproducing device of Example 1. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of moving image information held in a moving image information holding unit of the moving image reproducing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an example of a rule in a frame extraction process in the thumbnail information acquisition unit of the video playback device of the first embodiment. Schematic showing an example of a hardware configuration in the moving image reproducing device of the first embodiment. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing flow in the moving image reproduction device according to the first embodiment. The figure showing an example of the functional block in the moving image reproducing device of Example 2. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process flow in the moving image reproduction device according to the second embodiment. The figure showing an example of the functional block in the moving image reproducing device of Example 3. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process flow in the moving image playback device according to the third embodiment. The figure showing an example of the outline | summary of the screen display by the moving image reproduction apparatus of Example 4. The figure showing an example of the functional block in the moving image reproducing device of Example 4. Schematic diagram showing an example of a thumbnail display provided with the function of the GUI video playback command acquisition means of the video playback device of Embodiment 4 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process flow in the moving image playback device according to the fourth embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

0200 Video playback device 0201 Video information holding unit 0202 Video playback unit 0203 Video playback skip command acquisition unit 0204 Thumbnail information acquisition unit 0205 Thumbnail display unit 0210 Display

Claims (8)

A video information holding unit that holds video information that is information for playing a video;
A video playback unit that plays back a video based on the video information stored in the video information storage unit;
A video playback skip command acquisition unit for acquiring a video playback skip command;
A thumbnail information acquisition unit that extracts predetermined video information from the video information holding unit based on skip specification information indicating a skip start point and a skip end point specified by the video playback skip command, and acquires thumbnail information;
A thumbnail display section for displaying thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information;
A moving picture reproducing apparatus having   The moving image reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a number designation unit that designates the number of thumbnails to be acquired with respect to the thumbnail information acquisition unit.   The video playback device according to claim 1, wherein the video playback unit includes a post-display execution unit that executes the acquired video playback skip command only after receiving a thumbnail display completion signal output from the thumbnail display unit.   4. The moving image reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the thumbnail display unit includes a GUI moving image reproduction command acquisition unit that is a moving image reproduction command using a thumbnail. A video playback step for playing back a video based on the video information stored in advance;
Movie playback skip command acquisition step for acquiring a video playback skip command;
A thumbnail for extracting thumbnail information from predetermined video information stored in advance based on skip specification information indicating a skip start point and a skip end point specified by a video playback skip command. An information acquisition step;
A thumbnail display step for displaying thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information;
A method for reproducing a moving image. A number specification step for specifying the number of thumbnails to be acquired;
A video playback step for playing back a video based on the video information stored in advance;
Movie playback skip command acquisition step for acquiring a video playback skip command;
A thumbnail for extracting thumbnail information from predetermined video information stored in advance based on skip specification information indicating a skip start point and a skip end point specified by a video playback skip command. An information acquisition step;
A thumbnail display step for displaying the specified number of thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information;
A method for reproducing a moving image. A video playback step for playing back a video based on the video information stored in advance;
Movie playback skip command acquisition step for acquiring a video playback skip command;
A thumbnail for extracting thumbnail information from predetermined video information stored in advance based on skip specification information indicating a skip start point and a skip end point specified by a video playback skip command. An information acquisition step;
A thumbnail display step for displaying thumbnails based on the acquired thumbnail information;
A post-display execution step of executing the acquired video playback skip command only after receiving a thumbnail display completion signal output after the thumbnail display;
A method for reproducing a moving image. A video playback step for playing back a video based on the video information stored in advance;
Movie playback skip command acquisition step for acquiring a video playback skip command;
A thumbnail for extracting thumbnail information from predetermined video information stored in advance based on skip specification information indicating a skip start point and a skip end point specified by a video playback skip command. An information acquisition step;
A thumbnail display step for displaying a thumbnail so that a GUI video playback command, which is a video playback command using a thumbnail, can be acquired based on the acquired thumbnail information;
A GUI video playback command acquisition step of acquiring a GUI video playback command using the thumbnail;
A method for reproducing a moving image.

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