JP5423199B2 - Video recording / reproducing apparatus and video recording / reproducing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention provides a DVD recorder or a liquid crystal television with a built-in hard disk drive (HDD) that can perform video search for quickly reproducing a file of video / audio stream information (hereinafter referred to as “stream information” or “program”) from a desired position. The present invention relates to a video recording / reproducing apparatus and a video recording / reproducing method.

  As a video search method, the recorded stream information file is divided into video scene units, and a plurality of reduced images (hereinafter referred to as “thumbnail images”) representing each video scene are displayed in a list on the display device. A method of searching for a desired video scene by selecting one of the thumbnail images is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  As another video search method, a method of easily searching for a desired video scene by displaying attribute list information of video content data separately from a thumbnail image list is known (see, for example, Patent Document 2). ). As an example of this attribute list information, it is disclosed to display the start point and time length of a commercial video (CM video) section.

JP 2006-174092 A (page 3-5, FIG. 11) JP 2009-88689 A (page 4-5, FIG. 16)

  In conventional video recording / playback devices, when searching for a desired video scene, if it is difficult to determine whether a thumbnail video is a CM video or not, the user is forced to examine the video content thoroughly. The video search is complicated and takes time. On the other hand, if the thumbnail image in the CM video section is deleted in order to make the above determination unnecessary, there is a problem that the thumbnail image cannot be displayed when it is desired to reproduce only the CM video section. Also, when it is desired to display a thumbnail image at the boundary position of the CM video section, it takes time to generate the thumbnail image after the program recording is completed, and thus it is difficult to perform the program recording end process in a short time.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and can determine whether or not a corresponding video scene is a CM video from a thumbnail video and easily and quickly search for a desired video scene. An object is to provide a video recording / reproducing apparatus.

  Further, the present invention performs the program recording end process in a short time by reducing the number of thumbnail images generated after the end of recording the stream information, and then immediately ends the recording so that the program can be reproduced and the thumbnail image list can be displayed immediately. An object of the present invention is to provide a video recording / reproducing apparatus with excellent responsiveness to subsequent operations.

  A video recording / playback apparatus according to the present invention is a video recording / playback apparatus that displays a list of thumbnail images for video search, and determines a video scene delimiter position based on video / audio information during recording of stream information. Generating a thumbnail image representative of the video scene, a feature scene extraction unit for generating link information of the thumbnail image file and start time information of the video scene, and obtaining section information of the CM video from the stream information being recorded Video type information indicating whether or not each video scene is a CM section from the section information of the CM video acquired by the video type specification unit, and the thumbnail generated by the feature scene extraction unit A metadata that records the image, the link information, the start time information of the video scene, and the video type information as metadata information. A metadata recording control unit and metadata for reading the thumbnail image file to be displayed with reference to the metadata information and displaying a thumbnail image menu for selecting the video scene from the thumbnail image on a screen of a display device And a display control unit, which replaces the thumbnail image existing in the CM section with a CM identification image held in advance by the video recording / reproducing apparatus and displays the thumbnail image on the screen of the display apparatus.

  The video recording / playback apparatus according to the present invention is a video recording / playback apparatus that displays a list of thumbnail images for video search, and determines a video scene break position based on video / audio information during recording of stream information. And generating a thumbnail image representative of the video scene, a feature scene extraction unit for generating link information of the thumbnail image file and start time information of the video scene, and section information of the CM video from the stream information being recorded. Generated from the feature scene extraction unit, and from the section information of the CM video acquired by the video type specification unit, video type information indicating whether each video scene is a CM section is generated. Recording the thumbnail image, the link information, the start time information of the video scene, and the video type information as metadata information A metadata recording control unit and metadata for reading the thumbnail image file to be displayed with reference to the metadata information and displaying a thumbnail image menu for selecting the video scene from the thumbnail images on a screen of a display device And a display control unit for changing the start time of the metadata information of the video scene immediately after the CM boundary and the video type determination information at the end of recording the stream information.

  As described above, according to the present invention, a thumbnail image of a CM video and a thumbnail image of another video (main video) can be distinguished, and the CM video section is replaced with an image with high visibility. Therefore, there is an effect that a desired video scene can be easily and quickly searched from the thumbnail images.

  Further, as another effect of the present invention, when a thumbnail image is generated during recording of stream information, the program can be reduced by reducing the number of thumbnail images that must be newly generated in the process performed at the end of recording. Since the thumbnail image can be displayed in a short time after the recording is finished, there is an effect that the responsiveness of the operation after the recording is finished is improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a system configuration | structure figure in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a file block diagram in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a relationship diagram of the video scene and thumbnail image in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a syntax diagram of the reproduction | regeneration control information file in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a syntax diagram of the metadata management file in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the specific example of the entry information in the data structure of the metadata management file in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the production | generation of the entry information in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure of an example of the video search screen in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the production | generation procedure of the entry information in the recording process in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart of the reproduction | regeneration processing in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart of the drawing process of the thumbnail image menu in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart of the drawing process at the time of selection frame operation of the thumbnail image menu in Embodiment 1 of this invention.

  FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 according to Embodiment 1 for carrying out the present invention. In the figure, a system control unit 101 performs integrated control of the entire video recording / reproducing apparatus 100. The system control unit 101 includes a metadata recording control unit 141 that configures and records metadata information according to the present invention, and a metadata display control unit that performs reading and display control of metadata related to the list display of the thumbnail images 302. 142 is included. In the following description, it is assumed that the metadata recording control unit 141 and the metadata display control unit 142 are configured as firmware in the system control unit 101, but these are hardware having functions equivalent to the firmware. May be. The video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 includes a recording / reproducing drive unit 102 such as a hard disk device capable of reading and writing information recording. In the following, the case where the recording / reproducing drive unit 102 is a hard disk will be described, but other recording / reproducing means such as an optical disk drive device or a semiconductor memory may be used.

  The recording / playback drive unit 102 includes a stream information file 212 (described later) in which encoded video is multiplexed, a playback control information file 211 that plays back and controls stream information, a metadata management file 213, and a thumbnail image file 214. Is recorded.

  The playback control information file 211 includes video and audio attribute information related to stream information recorded in the recording / playback drive unit 102, and information indicating the correspondence between playback start time information and playback start position information for each access unit of stream information. Holding. The reproduction start time information and the reproduction start position information are used for random access such as time search and special reproduction (fast forward and rewind).

  The metadata management file 213 is a file that includes the file name of the thumbnail image file 214 associated with each video scene, the start time of the video scene, and the attribute information of the video scene. In addition, information indicating the video genre and the physical characteristics (resolution, color depth) of the picture may be included.

  The thumbnail image file 214 is a file that records a thumbnail image 302 of a video scene used to configure a thumbnail image menu for video search. Here, the thumbnail image menu is a menu screen for selecting a video scene from the thumbnail image 302. A video scene, also called a chapter, is a group of video sections, and the user can play back from the start point of the video scene by specifying the video scene. Note that the thumbnail image 302 may be a representative image of the video scene, and need not be an image at the start point of the video scene. However, in performing a video search, the thumbnail image 302 is preferably a video near the start point of the video scene. The data format of the thumbnail image file 214 may be an uncompressed file such as a bitmap file or RAW data, or image information for generating a thumbnail image 302 in a compressed data format such as PNG or JPEG. .

  The broadcast receiving unit 105 receives a digital broadcast wave that has been encoded and compressed in advance by MPEG-2 Transport Stream (hereinafter referred to as MPEG-2 TS). The digital broadcast wave may be multiplexed with video and audio of a plurality of programs. In this case, the broadcast receiving unit 105 extracts only the MPEG-2 TS of the specific program. The stream control unit 110 performs overall control of the stream flow of the entire system.

  Here, the recording process in the present embodiment will be described. When recording a digital broadcast wave, the MPEG-2 TS output from the broadcast receiving unit 105 is supplied to the stream control unit 110 and recorded on the hard disk as the recording / reproducing drive unit 102 based on an instruction from the system control unit 101. Is done.

  The stream control unit 110 records the stream information in the recording / playback drive unit 102 and starts playback as information for random access to the system control unit 101 for each coding compression unit (GOP: Group Of Picture). Notify time, playback start position, etc. Thereafter, the system control unit 101 records this information as reproduction control information in the recording / reproduction drive unit 102.

  During the recording of the stream information, the feature scene extraction unit 103 determines the segmentation position of the video scene with respect to this stream information, generates a thumbnail image 302 representative of the video scene, the file name of the thumbnail image file 214, and the video Information on the scene break position and information on the start time of the video scene are generated. In the following description, it is assumed that the scene change point of the video is a segment of the video scene. However, the video scene change point may be automatically generated every certain time (for example, every 5 minutes).

  This will be described in more detail below. First, stream information is input from the stream control unit 110 to the feature scene extraction unit 103. The feature scene extraction unit 103 identifies video information of an I picture as a coding compression unit for each GOP as an access unit of stream information. Note that an I picture is a basic picture in a coding compression unit, and is a frame picture obtained by directly coding a video signal. Furthermore, the feature scene extraction unit 103 decodes (decodes) the encoded and compressed I picture and holds the image information. Then, a physical change amount with the image information of the I picture read immediately before is calculated, and it is determined whether or not the scene change point is based on whether or not the physical change amount exceeds a preset threshold value. The physical change amount is a change amount of physical information such as a color histogram, DC component, edge information, texture information, motion vector, or a combination thereof obtained from image information of a picture.

  The metadata recording control unit 141 records the thumbnail image 302 of the video scene generated by the feature scene extraction unit 103 as a thumbnail image file 214 in the recording / playback drive unit 102. Next, the file name of the thumbnail image file 214, video scene delimiter position information, and video scene start time are recorded as metadata information in the metadata management file 213 of the recording / playback drive unit 102.

  When the position information is included in the file name, the file name of the thumbnail image file 214 and the start time of the video scene are recorded in the metadata management file 213 of the recording / playback drive unit 102. The file name of the thumbnail image file 214 can be used as link information to the thumbnail image file 214.

  Such a process for generating the metadata management file 213 and a process for generating the thumbnail image file 214 may be performed before the thumbnail image menu is displayed, may be performed during recording, and playback is started. It may be done later. Moreover, you may implement with respect to the other program which the said apparatus does not record.

  In the above description, the physical change amount is compared for the I picture. However, if the system processing performance is high, the physical change amount may be compared for all video frames.

  The video type identification unit 104 acquires section information of the CM video from the stream information being recorded. Here, the section information is the total number of sections and section determination information (start point and end point information for each CM section). When stream information is input from the stream control unit 110 to the video type identification unit 104, the video type identification unit 104 decodes the stream information and extracts time information of a silent portion from the audio information. Then, the CM video section is specified based on whether or not the silence information has periodicity (15 seconds, 30 seconds, 45 seconds, 1 minute) peculiar to the CM video. Note that when switching from the main video of a program (video other than CM video) to CM video, there is a high possibility that a scene change of the video scene will be performed, so it is combined with information on the scene change point obtained by the feature scene extraction unit 103. By determining, it is possible to specify the CM video section more accurately.

  The metadata recording control unit 141 generates video type information indicating whether each video scene is a CM zone from the CM video section information of the video type specifying unit 104, and links the start time for each video scene and the thumbnail image 302. Information and video type determination information are recorded as metadata information.

  Next, playback processing in the present embodiment will be described. When playing back a recorded program, the system control unit 101 reads the playback control information recorded in the recording / playback drive unit 102. From this reproduction control information, stream information indicating the program can be specified. Note that the read reproduction control information may be held in the memory unit 120 so that it can be read immediately at any time.

  Thereafter, the stream information recorded in the recording / playback drive unit 102 is read and supplied to the video / audio decoder unit 111 via the stream control unit 110. The video / audio decoder unit 111 sequentially captures the encoded and compressed stream information, and then separates it into a video stream and an audio stream. Thereafter, the video stream encoded by MPEG-2 or the like is decoded and decoded into a video signal. On the other hand, an audio stream encoded with AC-3 or the like is similarly decoded and decoded into an output audio signal.

  An OSD (On Screen Display) generation unit 114 generates a video search screen using a thumbnail image 302 described later in accordance with an instruction from the metadata display control unit 142 in the system control unit 101. Then, the video superimposing unit 143 superimposes and displays the output video signal from the video / audio decoder unit 111. The video / audio signal output in this way is input to the display device 113 so that the recorded program can be viewed.

  Note that reference numeral 115 indicated by a broken line in FIG. The decoder block 115 performs stream information recording / reproduction processing based on an instruction from the system control unit 101.

  The operation unit 130 outputs a request for the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 from the user or the like to the system control unit 101. In general, the operation unit 130 is an operation panel or a remote control disposed on the front panel of the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100. It is assumed that the operation panel and the remote control are provided with at least a thumbnail image menu display instruction key, an up / down / left / right key, a determination key, or a function equivalent to these, so that a program and a video scene can be selected. The system control unit 101 interprets the content of the command requested from the operation unit 130 and controls the decoder block 115 to reproduce arbitrary stream information and generate a thumbnail image menu.

  1 shows an example in which the feature scene extraction unit 103 and the video type identification unit 104 are configured by hardware in the decoder block 115. However, the feature scene extraction unit 103 and the video type identification unit 104 may exist outside the decoder block 115 or equivalently. Firmware having the above functions may be used.

  FIG. 2 shows a logical file structure in the recording / reproducing drive unit 102 in the present embodiment. Root directory 200 that is a directory structure of the highest hierarchy of a file structure that logically forms a hierarchical structure, multimedia directory 201 that is a directory structure arranged in a lower hierarchy of root directory 200, and arranged in a hierarchy lower than multimedia directory 201 The stream management directory 202 and the metadata management directory 203 are the directory structure. Note that the file information in the metadata management directory 203 is collectively referred to as a metadata recording area. An identification image file 221 that is a video that is easily recognized as a CM video, which will be described later, is also recorded immediately below the root directory 200. The identification image file 221 only needs to be recorded in the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100, and may be recorded in the memory unit 120 of FIG. 1 or may be recorded in a program area in the system control unit 101. .

  The still image directory 204 for holding the thumbnail image file 214 for each recorded program is generated for each stream information file, and the thumbnail image file 214 is managed by the directory name and the stream information file name. In FIG. 2, there are two still image directories 204. In the still image directory 204, one or more thumbnail image files 214 for the stream information file are recorded. Here, the stream information file is, for example, a single multimedia file obtained by multiplexing video information encoded and compressed by the MPEG-2 system and audio information encoded and compressed by the AC-3 system. . Also, video search is to specify the position where the video scene is recorded from the stream information file where the video is recorded when the user wants to watch a part where a specific video scene or a specific person is recorded. And play it.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 211 denotes a playback control information file describing management information of a recorded program in the video recording / playback apparatus 100, and 212 encodes and compresses at least one of a video signal or an audio signal of the recorded program and multiplexes it with playback time information. The stream information file 213 is a metadata management file describing management information for each video scene according to the present invention, and 214 is a thumbnail image file recording a reduced image of a video scene of a recorded program. In the present embodiment, the file name of the thumbnail image file 214 indicates the playback time (seconds) from the beginning of the program.

  In the stream information file 212, one file is allocated for each recorded program, and a unique file name is assigned to identify the program. In the present embodiment, a 5-digit number is given as the file name as in the example shown in FIG.

  The thumbnail image file 214 is recorded together for each still image directory 204 associated with the stream information file name, and one file is assigned to each video scene. In the present embodiment, as a naming convention for the file name, the file name is composed of 8-digit numbers and the extension is recorded in png. As the 8-digit number, the number of seconds calculated from the head of the stream information file 212 is recorded. For example, the thumbnail image file 214 with the still image directory name “01000” and the file name “00000295.png” is the thumbnail image 302 at the 295th second from the top of the stream information file 212 with the name 01000.mts. It is shown that. As described above, the still image directory name and the file name of the thumbnail image 302 can be used as link information to the thumbnail image file 214.

  Although the stream information file 212 and the thumbnail image file 214 are shown as examples arranged in separate directories, they may be arranged in the same directory, and the metadata management file 213 and the thumbnail image file 214 are the root directory. 200 may be directly arranged. In FIG. 2, the metadata management file 213 is divided and recorded in a plurality of files, but the metadata information of all recorded programs may be recorded together as a single file. In addition, the thumbnail image file 214 is divided for each video scene to form a file, but may be managed as a single file.

  The metadata management directory 203 shown in the present embodiment may be recorded together in a predetermined physical address space of the recording / reproducing drive unit 102. With this configuration, disk seeks can be suppressed and feature data can be accessed at high speed when feature scene information is erased collectively.

  The data format of the metadata management file 213 in the present embodiment may be a text format or a binary format. Further, the metadata management file 213 may be encrypted in order to prevent a third party from falsifying or leaking information.

  Further, the thumbnail image file 214 in the present embodiment is only required to be able to decode the image information indicating the video data in the stream information file 212, and may be a lossy compressed video or a lossless compressed video. Similarly to the metadata management file 213, the thumbnail image file 214 may be encrypted in order to prevent a third party from falsifying or leaking information.

  Information indicating whether or not the metadata management directory 203 or the metadata management file 213 exists, and whether or not the metadata management file 213 or the thumbnail image file 214 is a valid file if they exist. There is also a method described in the reproduction control information file 211. With this configuration, the system control unit 101 can quickly determine whether or not the metadata management file 213 or the thumbnail image file 214 is present or valid without referring to the information in the metadata recording area. .

  FIG. 3 is a relationship diagram between the video scene and the thumbnail image 302. By performing the recording process described in this embodiment, an entry point 301 is added to the recording start point and the scene change point. An entry point 301 indicates a position at which the location is randomly accessed by processing such as chapter jump, and is added to the head of the video scene. Specifically, the entry points 301 are indicated as #ENT_A, #ENT_B, #ENT_C, and #ENT_D in FIG. In the following description, it is assumed that the section between the entry points 301 # ENT_A and #ENT_B is the video scene #A.

  Since the thumbnail image 302 shown in this embodiment is recorded corresponding to the video scene, it may be set at a position delayed from the position of the entry point 301. Since the entry point 301 indicates a scene change point, it is often during image switching (effects such as fade-in and wipe) and is not suitable as an image to be displayed to the user. For this reason, it is usually preferable that the position of the thumbnail image 302 is a position where a predetermined time has elapsed from the entry point 301, for example, #THM_B in FIG.

  When the user wants to access the entry point 301, the user searches for the entry point 301 by selecting the thumbnail image 302. However, if the entry point 301 and the thumbnail image 302 are too far apart, the user can search for a video. I feel unnatural. Therefore, the predetermined time is preferably within 10 seconds.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the syntax of the playback control information file 211. Disc general information 400 holds information for recording disc attribute information, and disc_name 401 indicating the disc name is recorded.

  The playback control information file 211 holds recorded program information 410 in which recorded program management information recorded in the recording / playback drive unit 102 is recorded. In the recorded program information 410, num_of_title 411 indicating the total number of recorded programs is recorded, and the loop statements after the next “for” are repeated by the number of num_of_title 411. The stream information file name 412 is 5-digit numerical information indicating the name of the stream information file 212 associated with the recorded program.

  In the start time information 413 and the end time information 414, the start time and end time of the recorded program are recorded. Since the stream information file name 412, the start time information 413, and the end time information 414 are information for specifying the stream information file 212 and determining the reading position from the stream information file 212, as shown in FIG. This is called playback section information.

  The meta_title_valid_flag 415 is flag information indicating whether or not the recorded program holds metadata for moving image search in the metadata recording area. When the user gives an instruction to play back the recorded program, it is possible to determine whether it is necessary to read the thumbnail image file 214 or the metadata management file 213 by checking the flag information.

  The attribute information management table 420 records attribute information such as video information and audio information multiplexed in the stream information file 212. Further, a packet ID or the like is stored for each video information or audio information constituting the stream, and the video / audio decoding unit 111 uses the packet ID to convert the stream into video data / audio data / stream management data or the like. Can be separated.

  The access point management table 430 is list information in which a stream read position and a reproduction start time for each access unit are recorded, and random access reproduction such as search and special reproduction can be performed using this information. For example, when the video data is encoded with an MPEG-2 video stream, the head of the GOP (Group of Picture) corresponds to the access unit, and the playback start time and playback start address (stream file head) for each GOP. (Position from the beginning) is described. The video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 determines the reproduction start address of the stream information file 212 from the reproduction start time information, and performs random access reproduction.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the syntax of the metadata management file 213. First, num_of_entries 501 indicating the total number of video scenes of a recorded program is recorded. The loop statements after the next “for” are repeated by the number of num_of_entries 501 and the entry information 510 shown in FIG. The entry information 510 includes file_no 511, timecode 512, and type 513.

  file_no 511 indicates the file name of the thumbnail image 302 corresponding to the entry information 510. If a specific value such as 0xFFFF is set in file_no 511, it indicates that there is no thumbnail image 302 related to the video scene. Timecode 512 indicates the time code of the entry point 301 indicated by the thumbnail image 302. In the entry information, type 513 which is video type information indicating whether or not the CM section of the recorded program is recorded. Type 513 is set with a value indicating one of “PRG” indicating the main video in the program, “CM_IN” indicating the CM start point, “CM” indicating the CM section, and “CM_OUT” indicating the CM section end point. The It is not always necessary for the video type (“CM”) to be in the CM section.

  The offset 514 is information indicating how many seconds the entry point 301 and the thumbnail image 302 of the video scene are apart from each other.

  FIG. 6 shows a specific example of entry information 510 recorded in the metadata management file 213. As shown in the figure, the metadata management file 213 is composed of one or more entry information 510 and is stored in the number of num_of_entries 501. These are sequentially assigned IDs 601 starting from “0”.

  For example, the entry information 510 whose ID 601 is 3 is associated with a thumbnail image 302 named 00000858.png, and indicates the position of 00:14:18 as the entry point 301. Furthermore, since Type 513 representing the video type is “PRG”, this thumbnail image 302 indicates that it is the main video in the program. Also, the entry information 510 whose ID 601 is 6 is 00001677. A thumbnail image 302 of “png” is associated with the entry point 301 and indicates a position of 00:27:57. Furthermore, since Type 513 is “CM_OUT”, it means that the thumbnail image 302 is a program video that exists immediately after the end of the CM section.

  Also, the CM section can be determined from the Type 513 information of the entry information 510. For example, since Type 513 from “CM_IN” to “CM_OUT” is one section of the CM video, 00:21:45 to 00:27:57 is one CM section, and 00:37:21 From the second to 00:38:50 is understood to be the next CM section.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram regarding generation of entry information 510 according to the present embodiment. First, the video recording / playback apparatus 100 generates entry information 510 that is a scene change point and a thumbnail image 302 related to the entry during recording. Information generated during recording is generated regardless of whether or not it is a CM section of a recorded program.

  Since the CM section is determined from the periodicity of silent audio and video, the section cannot be determined in real time, and the CM section in the program is determined at the end of recording. Therefore, the merge processing of the video scene information and the CM section information according to the present invention is performed at the end of recording.

  Hereinafter, the merge process between the thumbnail image 320 created during recording and the CM section will be described. In the figure, entry points 301 of entry information 510 generated in real time during recording are indicated by #ENT_A to #ENT_F. Also, thumbnail images 302 recorded corresponding to these entry points 301 are indicated by #THM_A to #THM_F. At the end of recording, the metadata recording control unit 141 acquires CM section determination information 701 from the video type identification unit 104. The CM section indicated by the CM section determination information 701 is from the CM start point 702 (CM_IN_POS) to the CM end point 703 (CM_OUT_POS). That is, in the figure, entry points 301 #ENT_D and #ENT_E are included in the CM section, and #ENT_F is the entry point 301 immediately after the CM section.

  Before the merge processing of the entry information 510 and the CM section, the entry point 301 is determined based on the scene change point, and therefore does not match the boundary of the CM section (hereinafter also referred to as “CM boundary”). Absent. However, the CM boundary position is very useful for the user for video search. Therefore, a new entry point 301 needs to be added to the CM start point 702 and the CM end point 703 from the CM section determination information 701.

  In the above case, it is necessary to create a thumbnail image 302 for a new entry point 301, but there is a problem that it takes a very long time if the processing for generating the thumbnail image 302 is performed by an embedded device (in the case of AVC recording, 20 seconds to 30 seconds). This is because when the thumbnail image 302 is generated during recording, the decoding process of the encoded video is completed in the scene change determination process, so that only the encoding process to the still image has to be performed. Sometimes, when generating the thumbnail image 302, a process and time are required for seeking from the recorded stream information to the access point, releasing copyright protection information, decoding the encoded video, and encoding into a still image. It is to become.

  Although it is technically possible to generate a new thumbnail image 302 at the end of recording, the user has to wait for a long time after the end of recording, resulting in poor convenience. Therefore, it is necessary to devise not to create the thumbnail image 302 as much as possible at the end of recording. In this regard, the present invention is characterized in that the metadata management file 213 is rewritten with respect to the entry information 510 immediately after the end of the recording based on the CM section determination information 701 after the end of recording. Yes. As a result, the thumbnail image 302 used for search by the user is not newly generated, but the generated thumbnail image 302 is diverted. Therefore, the processing time required for the recording end process is small, and the thumbnail image 302 is displayed. There is an advantage that the response to the user's operation is quick.

  A specific example of merge processing at the end of recording will be described with reference to FIG. #ENT_D is identified as the entry point 301 immediately after the CM start point 702 (CM_IN_POS) boundary position. First, the TimeCode 512 recorded in the metadata management file 213 is corrected to the position of # ENT_D2, which is the CM boundary position. Then, the type 513 as the video type information is changed from “PRG” to “CM_IN”. Similarly, #ENT_F is identified as the entry point 301 immediately after the boundary position of the CM end point 703 (CM_OUT_POS). The TimeCode 512 for this entry is updated by the same process. The video type information 513 is changed from “PRG” to “CM_OUT”. For the entry point 301 in the CM section, the TimeCode 512 is not changed, and only the video type information 513 is changed from “PRG” to “CM”.

  By updating only the entry information 510 by such a method, it is not necessary to newly create the thumbnail image 302, and access to the CM video boundary point can be facilitated. However, when the time difference between the CM boundary point and the entry point 301 is large, that is, when T11 and T21 are larger than the threshold value α (α is a predetermined time), the user does not match the random access seek destination with the thumbnail image 302. You may feel that. Only in that case, it is better not to update the TimeCode 512 and Type 513 of the existing entry information 510, but to generate a new thumbnail image 302 corresponding to the entry information 510 and its entry point 301.

  However, in this embodiment, since the entry information 510 is added based on the scene change point during recording, the probability that a scene change will occur at the boundary point between the main video and the CM video is very high. Therefore, according to the present invention, the probability of generating the thumbnail image 302 at the end of recording is low.

  At the entry point 301 immediately after the CM start point 702, an easily identified image file, that is, a highly visible image file is replaced in a thumbnail image menu described later. Therefore, at the CM start point, if the threshold α is exceeded, file_no 511 on the metadata management file 213 may be set to 0xFFFF, and Type 513 may be changed to “CM_IN”. Then, it is not necessary to generate the thumbnail image file 214 for the entry, and the responsiveness related to the recording end process can be maintained high.

  The determination criterion such as the threshold value α may be selected by the user on the initial setting screen of the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 or the like. Moreover, you may comprise so that threshold value (alpha) may be determined according to the time of T11 and T21.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of a video search screen according to the present embodiment. This video search screen shows a screen image output to the display device 113 when a video scene search is performed during playback of a recorded program. For example, when a display instruction for video scene search is issued from the operation unit 130 during playback of a recorded program, the video search screen is displayed superimposed on the playback screen of the recorded program.

  The video search screen is called a thumbnail image menu 800 and includes a playback time display area 801 and a thumbnail image information area 802. The figure shows an example in which the thumbnail image menu 800 superimposed on the playback video of the recorded program is opaque, but a certain transmittance is set for the purpose of improving the visibility of the recorded program video. May be.

  In the figure, the thumbnail image information area 802 and the playback time display area 801 are displayed in association with each other, but video search can be performed using only the thumbnail image information area 802 so that the line of sight does not move as much as possible during video search. Is desirable. For this purpose, the thumbnail image 302 displays only the still image of the main part, and even if a plurality of thumbnail images are registered in the CM section, the thumbnail image 302 is changed to one image with high visibility. Since a limited number of images or thumbnail images in the display area can be searched for a wider range of playback time, a list of thumbnail images with high searchability for program videos can be configured. With such a configuration, since the movement of the user's line of sight is reduced, the stress in video search can be reduced.

  A playback time display area 801 shows a chapter section for the entire program being played back, and shows a bar shape from the start time to the end time. The left end of the bar-shaped figure indicates the start point, and the right end indicates the end point. In this example, the chapter section is displayed with a black boundary line for each video scene, and when the video scene is a CM section, black is drawn in the lower half, so that it can be distinguished from the main video section. Easy to use. In addition, the section indicated by the currently selected video scene is drawn as a selection section area 810 in a color different from the color of the playback time display area. Thus, the playback time display area 801 allows the user to easily know the start position and time length of the currently selected video scene in the entire recorded program.

  Next, a list of thumbnail images 302 is displayed in the thumbnail image information area 802. In this example, a total of seven thumbnail images 302 are displayed. The thumbnail images 302 are arranged from left to right in the order of time. That is, the temporally previous thumbnail image 302 is arranged on the left, and the temporally subsequent thumbnail image 302 is arranged on the right. A selected image frame 820 is displayed on one of the seven thumbnail images 302, and the user can move the selected image frame 820 in the left-right direction in order to select a desired thumbnail image 302. In the upper part of the selected image frame 820, the time code of the entry point 301 in the video scene to which the currently selected thumbnail image 302 belongs is displayed ("00:15:13" in the example in the figure).

  There may be seven or more thumbnail images 302 present in a long-time recorded program. In this case, when the selected image frame 820 reaches both ends and an attempt is made to read a thumbnail image 302 in a direction not currently displayed, a new thumbnail image 302 is read and displayed in the thumbnail image information area 802 and is currently being displayed. The thumbnail images 302 are displayed as if they were moved as a whole.

  Among the thumbnail images 302, one or more thumbnail images 302 existing in the CM section are displayed on the screen of the display device 113 in place of one CM identification image 830 that can be easily identified as the CM section.

  In addition, the selected image frame 820 and the selected segment area 810 can be associated with each other by drawing them in the same color, but it can also be recognized as the same color as much as possible in consideration of the characteristics of human eyes. . Even if the human eye is the same color, the color feels lighter as the drawing area increases. Although the selected image frame 820 has a certain area, the selected segment area 810 varies depending on the length of the target video scene. As a result, there is a possibility that the colors of the selected image frame 820 and the selected segment area 810 may be different. Therefore, the display color is changed according to the ratio of the areas of the selected image frame 820 and the selected segment area 810. By adjusting, it is possible to improve the color recognizability so that both colors are perceived as the same color in consideration of the characteristics of the human eye. The metadata display control unit 142 performs adjustment and determination of this color.

  In the example of FIG. 8, the selection section area 810 displays the start point and time length of the video scene with the selected image frame 820 in the playback time display area 801 with the position and length, but the thumbnail image information area 802. The start point and time length of the entire recorded program of the video scene group indicated by the seven thumbnail images 302 group existing in the screen may be displayed. In the figure, the background color of the thumbnail image information area 802 is rendered between the thumbnail image information area 802 and the playback time display area 801 so that the video scene group can be associated with the entire recorded program. doing. With this configuration, the user can easily know the position and length of the video scene indicated by the currently displayed thumbnail images 302 group.

  In the thumbnail image information area 802, the currently selected image frame 820 can be moved left and right by an operation such as pressing the left and right keys from the operation unit 130. For example, if the right key is pressed when the selected image frame 820 is not positioned at the rightmost end, the position of the thumbnail image 302 list is not changed, and only the selected image frame 820 moves to the right. On the other hand, when the right key is pressed when the selected image frame 820 is positioned at the rightmost end, if there is a thumbnail image 302 to be read next, the image is read and displayed at the rightmost end. Then, the entire seven thumbnail images 302 currently displayed are shifted to the left and displayed. For this reason, the thumbnail image 302 displayed at the leftmost end displayed until then in the thumbnail image information area 802 is not displayed. Although the right key has been described above, the same processing is performed on the left key in the opposite direction.

  By pressing the left / right key, the selected image frame 820 and the thumbnail image 302 in the thumbnail image information area 802 are sequentially updated, but the display content of the reproduction time display area 801 is also updated in conjunction with the selection. The playback time display area 801 updates the section information display of the video scene shown in the selection section area 810 and the thumbnail image information area 802 described above.

  When the enter key of the operation unit 130 is pressed, the entry point 301 of the video scene indicated by the selected thumbnail image 302 is searched, and reproduction is performed from this entry point 301.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a procedure for generating the entry information 510 in the recording process according to the present embodiment. When the program recording operation is started (S101), the digital broadcast stream information obtained by the broadcast receiving unit 105 is recorded and reproduced via the stream control unit 110 based on a command from the system control unit 101. Recorded in the section 102. The stream control unit 110 transfers the stream information and detects the GOP header until the recording is completed and the stream information does not flow (S102). Here, it is assumed that not all the pictures included in the video are analyzed, but only an I picture called a key frame is analyzed. When the key frame is extracted in the stream control unit 110 (S103), this picture is decoded (S104), and a scene change determination process is performed (S105). As a result, if a scene change does not occur, the process moves to S102, and the process returns to the next picture (S106).

  When a scene change is detected in step S106 (S106), the position where the scene change occurred is set as the boundary of the video scene, entry information 510 at this position is generated (step S107), and this entry information 510 is recorded and reproduced. It records in the metadata management file 213 of the drive unit 102 (S108). The entry information 510 generated in this way becomes information for forming a video scene (chapter). The above operation is executed until the recording process of the program is completed and the stream control unit 110 detects the end of the stream information. When the stream control unit 110 detects a flag indicating the end of the stream information from the stream information, it is determined that the recording stream has ended (S102), and the process proceeds to step S110.

  In step S110, CM section information is acquired from the video type identification unit 104. The CM section information refers to the total number of CM sections in the recorded program, and CM section determination information 701 (information about start and end points for each CM section). Whether or not it is a CM section is determined based on the periodicity of the video / audio change point. Therefore, the CM section is determined at the end of the program recording.

  The processing after step S110 is processed for all CM sections (S111), and when the processing for all CM sections is completed, the program recording end processing is completed. When there is an unprocessed CM section, the processes in and after S112 are sequentially performed.

  In step S112 and subsequent steps, as described in FIG. 7, the CM boundary position and the Timecode 512 that is the start position of the entry information 510 that is temporally closest to the CM boundary position after the CM boundary position. Are compared to determine whether or not the difference is longer than a certain threshold time α (S112). If the time is shorter than the threshold time α, the Timecode 512 and Type 513 of the entry information 510 are changed, and the process proceeds to Step S111. At that time, the information is also updated for the offset 514 of the entry information 510. On the other hand, if the comparison result is longer than the threshold time α, a new entry information 510 is added (S114). Thereafter, the generation process of the thumbnail image 302 related to the entry information 510 is performed (S115), and the process proceeds to step S111.

  FIG. 10 is a reproduction processing flowchart of the present embodiment. In this figure, a program recorded by the user is played back, a thumbnail image menu 800 relating to this program is displayed on the screen 113, and the user selects a desired thumbnail image 302, thereby corresponding to the thumbnail image 302. Playback from the video scene.

  First, a reproduction target program is selected from the recorded programs of the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 (S201). The system control unit 101 reads a stream information file 212 that is a reproduction target program. Also, the metadata display control unit 142 reads the metadata management file 213 (S202). Thereafter, the metadata management file 213 is stored in the memory unit 120 as a database so that the thumbnail images 302 can be read quickly.

  Thereafter, a reproduction instruction for the program is issued (S203), and the completion of preparation for starting reproduction is awaited (S204). Note that the database processing and the reproduction start instruction processing described above are performed simultaneously by asynchronous commands. By performing the simultaneous processing in this way, it is possible to reduce a wasteful time for constructing a metadata database later. Thereafter, reading of stream information from the recording / playback drive unit 102 is started based on a command from the system control unit 101, supplied to the video / audio decoder unit 111 via the stream control unit 110, and decoding of video and audio Is performed (S205).

  The user requests the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 for desired processing from the operation unit 130. The processing content from the operation unit 130 is processed as a coded command, and the system control unit 101 branches the processing according to the command (S206). If the command is a playback end instruction, the playback process ends (S207).

  When the display instruction key for the thumbnail image menu 800 for video search provided in the operation unit 130 is pressed (S208), the metadata display control unit 142 displays the metadata management file 213 in the database developed in the memory unit 120. , The thumbnail image file 214 to be displayed is read, and the thumbnail image menu 800 is drawn on the screen (S209).

  When the user presses the left / right key on the remote controller (S210), the user is instructed to move the selected image frame 820, and the thumbnail image menu 800 is redrawn (S211). Further, when the user finds a desired video scene, the user presses the “OK” key (S212). Then, the metadata display control unit 142 performs seek and playback processing for the designated video scene.

  In order to reproduce the designated video scene, the time code 512 that is the start time information of the entry point 301 is acquired from the entry information 510 of the video scene corresponding to the thumbnail image 302 displayed in the selected image frame 820. Next, the metadata display control unit 142 is instructed to seek to the time information extracted from the entry information 510.

The metadata display control unit 142 reads the playback control information file 211 from the recording / playback drive unit 102, obtains the address position of the instructed time position, and performs a seek process to play back from that position (S213). By performing this operation, if the user designates the thumbnail image 302 on the screen, the corresponding video scene can be reproduced from the entry point 301.

  FIG. 11 is a drawing process flow diagram of the thumbnail image menu 800 of the present embodiment. This figure explains in detail the processing of step S209 in FIG.

  When the display of the thumbnail image menu 800 is instructed, first, the current reproduction time of the program being reproduced is acquired (S301). Then, the metadata display control unit 142 acquires the database of the metadata management file 213 held in the memory unit 120 (S302). Thereafter, in order to display the thumbnail image menu 800, the thumbnail image file 214 corresponding to the seven thumbnail images 302 constituting the image is read (S303). The seven thumbnail image files 214 correspond to the thumbnail images 302 of a total of seven video scenes including the video scene to which the current time belongs and three before and after the video scene.

  For example, if the current time is 00:30:30 and the database information as shown in FIG. 6 is obtained, the video scene to which the current time belongs has ID 601 of 7. For this reason, in addition to the thumbnail image file 214 (0000014.png) whose ID 601 is 7, three thumbnail image files 214 before and after are read.

  In the figure, after the current time, thumbnail image files 214 with IDs 601 of 8, 9, and 10 are read. Note that the thumbnail image 302 with the ID 601 of 9 has a File_no 511 of 0xFFFF, and therefore, an alternative image (for example, an image that clearly indicates a state of no image) held in advance by the video recording / playback apparatus 100 is read.

  Prior to the current time, the thumbnail image file 214 with ID 601 of 4, 5, 6 should be read corresponding to the passage of time, but the thumbnail image 302 with ID 601 of 5 is skipped because it is in the CM section. The That is, the thumbnail image files 214 with IDs 601 of 3, 4, and 6 are read.

  When the thumbnail image file 214 to be read is determined, it is sequentially determined whether or not the type 513 of the video scene is “CM_IN” (S304). When the type 513 of the video scene is “CM_IN”, it is replaced with a CM identification image 830 held in advance by the video recording / playback apparatus 100 (S305), the image file is read, and the memory unit in the video recording / playback apparatus 100 It is stored in 120 (S306). If it is not “CM_IN” in the determination process of S304, the thumbnail image file 214 indicated by File_no 511 of the entry information 510 is read out and similarly stored in the memory unit 120 in the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 (S306). .

  When reading of all the image files is completed (S303), the seven thumbnail images 302 developed in the memory unit 120 are arranged on the video buffer from the left to the right in the order of time passage (S307). The selected image frame 820 is displayed at the center position indicating the video scene to which the current time belongs (S308). With this arrangement, when a video search start instruction is given, not only the temporally subsequent thumbnail image 302 but also the temporally previous thumbnail image 302 can be confirmed.

  Next, the reproduction time display area 801 is displayed (S309). As described with reference to FIG. 8, the playback time display area 801 indicates the time of the entire recorded program in a bar-shaped figure and also indicates the break position of the video scene.

  Thereafter, the color condition information for displaying the selection section area 810 in the reproduction time display area 801 is acquired (S310). Usually, if the selected image frame 820 and the selected segment area 810 have the same color, it is easy to associate them. However, the human eye has the characteristic that even if the colors are the same color, the larger the display area, the lighter the color, and the smaller the color, the darker the color.

  Therefore, focusing on the fact that the selected segment area 810 changes according to the length of the selected video scene while the area of the selected image frame 820 is constant, the selected segment area 810 depends on the display area of the selected segment area 810. The color density of the selected segment area 810 is changed (for example, the luminance is changed) at a certain rate, and the selected segment area 810 is displayed (S310, S311). With this configuration, the user can easily recognize the color of the selected image frame 820 and the corresponding selected segment area 810 as the same color, and thus a user interface with which the correspondence can be easily grasped can be provided.

  In the playback time display area 801, the boundary between video scenes is displayed in black. However, when the video scene section is very small (the width is within 1 pixel), a boundary line cannot be added to the video scene section on the screen of the display device 113. However, as a characteristic of the human eye, there is a characteristic that the boundary of the area is emphasized and felt when the color density difference between adjacent areas is large. Therefore, when a boundary line cannot be added as described above, the display color of the selected segment area 810 can be made darker than the surrounding colors to make the boundary easier to understand.

  Finally, as shown in FIG. 8, the start point and time length of the entire recorded program of the video scene group indicated by the seven thumbnail images 302 existing in the thumbnail image information area 802 are specified.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a drawing process when the selection frame is operated while the thumbnail image menu 800 according to the present embodiment is being displayed. In the figure, the process of step S211 in FIG. 10 is described in detail. In addition, the same number is attached about the same matter as the matter demonstrated in FIG.

  When the left / right key is pressed while the thumbnail image menu 800 is displayed, the position of the selected image frame 820 moves. When it is not necessary to re-read the thumbnail image 302, for example, when the position of the selected image frame is not the rightmost edge among the seven images when the right key is pressed (S401), the position of the selected image frame 820 is pressed by pressing the right key. Only one moves rightward (S402). Thereafter, drawing in the playback time display area 801 is performed in the processing described in S309 to S311.

  On the other hand, if it is necessary to re-read the thumbnail image 302 in S401, for example, if the selected image frame 820 is the rightmost edge of the seven images when the right key is pressed, the thumbnail image 302 indicated by the entry information 510 at the rightmost edge is displayed. The entry information 510 immediately after is read. Thereafter, the thumbnail image file 214 is read according to the procedure described in S304 to S306. In this case, the position of the selected image frame 820 is not updated in S402, but the thumbnail images 302 are moved one by one to the left as a whole, and a new thumbnail image 302 is displayed at the rightmost end.

  In the present embodiment, in the thumbnail image 302 displayed in the thumbnail image information area 802, one or more thumbnail images 302 belonging to the CM video section are replaced with one CM identification image 830 and displayed, thereby performing video search. In doing so, it is only necessary to pay attention to the thumbnail image information area 802, so that the psychological burden on the user can be reduced.

  In addition, when the thumbnail image 302 that is a representative image of the entry information 510 created during the program recording is included in the CM section, the video scene in the CM section is presented to the user when the thumbnail image menu 800 is displayed. Therefore, searchability can be improved.

  In addition, since the thumbnail image 302 in the CM section is replaced with a CM identification image 830 with high visibility, even if it is difficult to distinguish between the CM video and the program video, it is determined whether the CM video is based on the CM identification image 830. Can be easily determined. Further, even if there are a plurality of thumbnail images 302 in the CM video section, the thumbnail images 302 are replaced with one CM identification image 830, so that the thumbnail images 302 in the CM video section can be displayed in a small amount in the video search in the program. Therefore, the searchability of the video is improved.

  Furthermore, since the setting color of the selected segment area 810 in the reproduction time display area 801 is determined based on the area of the selected segment area 810, the perceived appearance of the selected image frame 820 to be associated is determined. It can be approached. Therefore, it becomes easier for the user to recognize the relationship between the selected image frame 820 and the corresponding selected segment area 810, and the visibility can be improved.

  Regarding the generation of the thumbnail image 302, since it is not necessary to newly generate the thumbnail image 302 after the program recording ends, the thumbnail image menu 800 can be displayed in a short time after the program recording ends, and the video recording / reproducing apparatus having high responsiveness. 100 can be provided.

  In the present embodiment, the thumbnail image menu 800 displays a list of the thumbnail image 302 and the CM identification image 830 of the main video section of the program in a mixed manner. When played back as a target, it is not necessary to display the CM video as the playback video, so it is also possible to display the thumbnail image menu 800 excluding the CM identification image 830. With such a configuration, since the thumbnail images 302 of more program sections are displayed in the thumbnail image menu 800, the searchability can be improved.

  Further, it is possible to reproduce only the main part or only the CM part. In the latter case, the image information in which the Type 513 of the entry information 510 described in the metadata management file 214 is set to “CM_IN” does not need to be replaced with the CM identification image 830, and is associated with the entry information 510. The thumbnail image 302 is displayed. Further, the thumbnail image 302 in the CM section may be displayed.

  In addition, since the video scene can be divided and displayed as a thumbnail image menu 800 based on the amount of physical change between video and audio, such as color histogram, DC component, motion vector, edge information, texture information, etc., the user can perform fewer operations. Can specify a desired video scene. Furthermore, since the selected thumbnail image 302 is the starting point of the video scene, it is not necessary to perform fine adjustment by an operation such as rewinding after jumping to this position. Therefore, it is possible to provide the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 with less user operation load in video search.

  The thumbnail images held in the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 need only hold image information indicating scene change points and image information at CM video boundary positions, and need to hold thumbnail images of all encoding compression units. There is no. Therefore, since the amount of image information handled by the video recording / reproducing apparatus may be small, the hardware / software of the video recording / reproducing apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment does not require high information processing capability, and the product cost increases. It is possible to efficiently search for a desired video scene while suppressing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Image recording / reproducing apparatus 103 Characteristic scene extraction part 104 Image | video classification specific | specification part 141 Metadata recording control part 142 Metadata display control part 214 Thumbnail image file 302 Thumbnail image 413 Start time information 801 Playback time display area 810 Selection division area 820 Selection image Frame 830 CM identification image

Claims (6)

A video recording / playback apparatus for displaying a thumbnail image list for video search,
During the recording of the stream information, the position of the video scene is determined based on the video / audio information, a thumbnail image representing the video scene is generated, and the link information of the thumbnail image file and the start time information of the video scene A feature scene extraction unit for generating
A video type identification unit for obtaining CM video section information from the stream information being recorded;
Video type information indicating whether each video scene is a CM zone is generated from the section information of the CM video acquired by the video type identification unit, and the thumbnail image, the link information, and the link information generated by the feature scene extraction unit are generated. A metadata recording control unit for recording video scene start time information and the video type information as metadata information;
A metadata display control unit that reads out the thumbnail image file to be displayed with reference to the metadata information and displays a thumbnail image menu for selecting the video scene from the thumbnail image on a screen of a display device; ,
A video recording / reproducing apparatus, wherein a thumbnail image existing in a CM section is displayed on a screen of a display device in place of a CM identification image held in advance by the video recording / reproducing apparatus. Display the playback time display area that can identify the start position and time length of the entire recorded program of the video scene selected when displaying the thumbnail image list for video search,
The color of the selected segment area indicating the currently selected video scene on the playback time display area and the color of the selected image frame indicating the currently selected video image in the thumbnail image list are perceived as the same color. The video recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the density of the video is adjusted. The video recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein a setting color of the selected divided region in the reproduction time display region is determined based on a region area of the selected divided region . A video recording / playback method for displaying a list of thumbnail images for video search,
During the recording of the stream information, the position of the video scene is determined based on the video / audio information, a thumbnail image representing the video scene is generated, and the link information of the thumbnail image file and the start time information of the video scene A step of generating
Obtaining CM video section information from the stream information being recorded;
Video type information indicating whether each video scene is a CM zone is generated from the CM video section information, and the thumbnail image, the link information, the start time information of the video scene, and the video type information are metadata information. As a step to record as
Reading the thumbnail image file to be displayed with reference to the metadata information, and displaying a thumbnail image menu for selecting the video scene from the thumbnail image on the screen of a display device,
A video recording / reproducing method, wherein a thumbnail image existing in a CM section is displayed on a screen of a display device in place of a CM identification image held in advance by the video recording / reproducing device. Display the playback time display area that can identify the start position and time length of the entire recorded program of the video scene selected when displaying the thumbnail image list for video search,
The color of the selected segment area indicating the currently selected video scene on the playback time display area and the color of the selected image frame indicating the currently selected video image in the thumbnail image list are perceived as the same color. The video recording / reproducing method according to claim 4 , wherein the density of the video is adjusted. 6. The video recording / reproducing method according to claim 5 , wherein the setting color of the selected segment area in the reproduction time display area is determined based on the area of the selected segment area .

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