JPH0981443A - Multimedia data retrieval system, object generator of multimedia data and multimedia data management method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a multimedia data retrieval system which is capable of discriminating the contents of data from the quality of data. SOLUTION: This system is provided with a contents object storage part 1 storing the contents object of multimedia data and a stream object storage part 2 storing the stream object of multimedia data. The contents attribute and the quality attribute of multimedia data stored in a multimedia data storage part 3 are separately stored, the part corresponding to the stream object designated by a stream object management part 5 and corresponding to the contents object designated by a contents object management part 4 is displayed on a multimedia display part 6.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multimedia data search system, a multimedia data object generation device, and a multimedia data management method, and is suitable for application to a multimedia database.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional multimedia database, a plurality of entities having different qualities may be stored for one content. In this case, since the respective entities have the same contents but different qualities, they are stored in the multimedia database as data indicating different contents. For example, in the data of the same content, there are a plurality of entities with different qualities due to different formats, different playback rates of time series data, or different display sizes of image data, and content information is provided to each of these multiple entities. It corresponded.

[0003]

However, the method of associating the content information with each of the plurality of entities cannot distinguish the content of the data and the quality of the data,
When extracting data of desired contents, the user had to consider the quality of the data. That is, since multimedia data of different qualities exist separately for one content, the content cannot be extracted unless the quality is specified, which imposes a burden on the user. In addition, it is difficult to understand the relationship between data having the same content, and since a large number of data having the same content but different qualities are stored independently of each other, redundant data must be stored in the end. It was Furthermore, when using multimedia data, it is difficult to select appropriate data from multiple entities according to the environment, and when the user edits the content of the data by editing work, The editing is effective only for the processed data, and other data, such as the same contents but with quality or MPEG,
There is a problem that it cannot be used for data of different formats such as JPEG, or that processing information must be transmitted to all data having the contents.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a multimedia data retrieval system, a multimedia data object generation apparatus, and a multimedia data management method capable of distinguishing between the content of data and the quality of data. is there.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, according to the invention of claim 1, content object storage means for storing a content object indicating a content attribute of multimedia data, and multimedia data A stream object storage unit that stores a stream object indicating a quality attribute is provided, and multimedia data is searched by designating a content object or a stream object. As a result, the content of the multimedia data and the quality of the multimedia data can be distinguished, and the multimedia data having the same content can be searched for without considering the difference in quality.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the content object indicating the content attribute of the multimedia data and the stream object indicating the quality attribute of the multimedia data are separately stored, and the stream object is associated with the content object. . As a result, a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities can be designated by the content object, and the relevance of the multimedia data having the same content can be clarified.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the same content object is associated with the multimedia data having the same content and different qualities. As a result, a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities can be designated by one content object, and one content object can have a plurality of multimedia data.

According to the invention of claim 4, a multimedia object for displaying multimedia data by separately storing a content object indicating a content attribute of multimedia data and a stream object indicating a quality attribute of multimedia data. Data display means is provided. As a result, only the quality of multimedia data having the same content can be changed, and the multimedia data having the same content can be displayed in consideration of resource restrictions.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, a view object that specifies a view corresponding to a part of multimedia data corresponding to a content object is generated. This allows the view information to be reflected only in the content object,
Since it does not affect a plurality of stream objects corresponding to the content object, it is possible to access a part of the multimedia data while guaranteeing the consistency regarding the view information of the stream object.

According to the invention of claim 6, the view object is generated based on the time from the beginning of the time series data stored in the multimedia data storage means and the view length. This makes it possible to give a content attribute to partial data obtained by temporally cutting out a part of multimedia data.

According to the invention of claim 7, based on the relative coordinates from the origin of the image data stored in the multimedia data storage means and the size of the view,
Create a view object. This makes it possible to give a content attribute to partial data obtained by spatially cutting out a part of multimedia data.

According to the invention of claim 8, the view object is generated based on the number of bytes from the beginning of the text data stored in the multimedia data storage means and the length of the view. As a result, the content attribute can be given to the partial data obtained by cutting out a part of the multimedia data.

According to the invention of claim 9, a keyword indicating the content of the multimedia data and information indicating the length of the content are generated in the content object. By this, the contents of the multimedia data can be designated.

According to the invention of claim 10, information indicating the time when the event corresponding to the time-series data stored in the multimedia data storage means is generated in the content object. This allows the Content Object to have an absolute time and to be synchronized with other Content Objects.

According to the invention of claim 11, stream objects relating to video data having the same contents and different frame rates are generated. As a result, a quality attribute can be given to each of the video data having the same content but different qualities.

According to the twelfth aspect of the invention, stream objects relating to video data having the same contents and different display sizes are generated. As a result, a quality attribute can be given to each of the video data having the same content but different qualities.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the invention, stream objects relating to audio data having the same contents and different coding rates are generated. As a result, a quality attribute can be given to each of the audio data having the same content but different qualities.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, stream objects relating to image data having the same contents and different display sizes are generated. As a result, a quality attribute can be given to each of the image data having the same content and different qualities.

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, load information necessary for displaying multimedia data designated by the stream object on the multimedia data display means is generated in the stream object. With this, the quality of the multimedia data can be changed in consideration of the load required when displaying the multimedia data.

According to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention, stream objects relating to video data having the same contents and different frame rates are selected based on the load information. With this, it is possible to select the video data having an appropriate quality attribute in consideration of the load required for displaying the video data.

According to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention, stream objects relating to audio data having the same content and different coding rates are selected based on the load information. With this, the quality of the audio data can be changed in consideration of the load required for displaying the audio data.

According to the eighteenth aspect of the invention, the stream object relating to the video data or the image data having the same content and different display sizes is selected based on the load information. This makes it possible to change the quality of the video data or the image data in consideration of the load required when displaying the video data or the image data.

According to the nineteenth aspect of the invention, the data corresponding to the view designated by the view object is cut out from the multimedia data and displayed. This allows a part of the multimedia data to be displayed.

Further, according to the invention of claim 20, one is selected from a plurality of stream objects corresponding to the content object based on the load information, and the multimedia data corresponding to the selected stream object is displayed. To do. This makes it possible to select multimedia data having a quality corresponding to the load required when displaying the multimedia data.

According to the twenty-first aspect of the invention, a common identifier representing an event is associated with a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event. By this,
It is possible to collectively manage a plurality of multimedia data representing a common event.

Further, according to the invention of claim 22, a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event is made to correspond to the identifiers indicating the quality. As a result, multimedia data having different qualities can be selected from a plurality of multimedia data representing a common phenomenon.

According to the twenty-third aspect of the present invention, a common content object indicating the content attribute of the first multimedia data and the content attribute of the second multimedia data is generated to generate the first multimedia data. And a second stream object indicating the quality attribute of the second multimedia data, and a second stream object indicating the quality attribute of the second multimedia data. As a result, a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities can be designated by one content object, and one content object can have a plurality of multimedia data.

According to the twenty-fourth aspect of the invention, the content object indicating the content attribute of the multimedia data and the stream object indicating the quality attribute of the multimedia data are separately associated with the multimedia data. With this, the content of the multimedia data and the quality of the multimedia data can be distinguished, and the multimedia data having the same content can be searched for without considering the difference in the quality of the multimedia data. .

[0029]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A multimedia data search system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a multimedia data search system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a content object storage unit 1 stores information about contents (contents) of multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3, that is, a content object. Here, the information about the content is information such as a keyword indicating the content, the length of the content, the time of the content, and a person who appears in the content.

The stream object storage unit 2 stores information about the quality (stream) of the multimedia data described in the content object, that is, a stream object. Here, the information regarding the quality is information such as a format, a display size, a frame rate, and a coding rate.

The multimedia data storage unit 3 stores multimedia data such as video, audio, images and texts, and stores multimedia data of various contents and qualities.

The content object management unit 4 generates a content object to be stored in the content object storage unit 1, searches for a content object stored in the content object storage unit 1, and corresponds to the content of multimedia data. The stream object is generated, and the generated stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2.

The stream object management unit 5 generates a stream object to be stored in the stream object storage unit 2 and retrieves a stream object stored in the stream object storage unit 2.

The multimedia data display unit 6 corresponds to the stream object designated by the stream object management unit 5 among the multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the content object management unit 4 The part corresponding to the specified content object is displayed.

The above-mentioned content object and stream object are managed by an object-oriented database. Next, the relationship between the content object, the stream object, and the multimedia data according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

In FIG. 2, a plurality of stream objects 11 are provided for one content object 10a.
a to 11c correspond. Further, the multimedia data 12a to 12c, which are the substance thereof, correspond to the stream objects 11a to 11c. this is,
It means that the multimedia data 12a to 12c stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3 have the same content corresponding to the content object 10a and have different qualities corresponding to the stream objects 11a to 11c. are doing.

By setting a view on the content object 10a, a new content object 10b can be generated, and the stream object 11a can be created for this content object 10b.
~ 11c correspond. Further, the partial objects of the multimedia data 12a to 12c correspond to the stream objects 11a to 11c of the content object 10b. Next, a class structure of a content object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described.

In FIG. 3, the content object class structure includes a video content class 21, an audio content class 22, an image content class 23, and a text content class 24, which are subordinate to the content class 20 indicating the common attributes of the content objects. are doing.

The content class 20 is the content time length timeLength and the content keyword k.
eywords, stream data set streams corresponding to the content, original content parent when the content is a partial content cut out by an information view, partial content children corresponding to the content, and whether or not the content has a corresponding keyword It has a keyword () method to check.

The video content class 21 also has an attribute of time skipLength from the beginning of the content, an attribute of time absStartTime at which an event occurs, and a setVie for generating partial video content.
w () method, newVideo () method for generating a video stream object corresponding to the content, and pla for displaying the content of the video data.
It has a y () method.

It should be noted that the time absStart at which the event occurred
Time means the absolute time of the content object, and the time at which this event occurred absStartTi
By using me, a plurality of contents can be displayed in synchronization.

In addition, the audio content class 22
Is the time from the beginning of the content skipLength
Attribute, the time at which the event occurred absStartTime attribute, setVi for generating partial audio content
ew () method, newAudio () that creates an audio stream object corresponding to the content
It has a play () method for displaying the method and the content of the audio data.

The image content class 23 is
Upper left relative coordinate skipLengthX, s of the content
attribute of kipLengthY, view size view
LengthX, viewLengthY attributes, setView () method for generating partial image content, newImage () method for generating an image stream object corresponding to the content, and display for displaying the content of the image data.
It has a y () method.

The text content class 24 is
The number of bytes from the beginning of the content skipLength
Attribute, view length viewLength attribute, setView () method for generating partial text content, newText () method for generating a text stream object corresponding to the content, and disp for displaying the content of the text image data.
It has a lay () method.

Next, the class structure of the stream object according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. In FIG. 4, the class structure of the stream object includes a video class 31 and an audio class 3 below the stream class 30 indicating common attributes of the stream object.
3 has an image class 35 and a text class 37. Further, below the class for each medium, there is a class for each format for each medium. That is, the MPEG class 3 is subordinate to the video class 31.
2. Below the audio class 33 is MPEG Audio
JPEG is under the o class 34 and the image class 35.
Class 36 is provided.

The stream class 30 includes content contents corresponding to the stream object, file name fileName of the real multimedia data corresponding to the stream object, and load information loadCPU and loadIO for displaying the multimedia data on the multimedia data display unit 6. Have. The load information loadCPU and loadIO are used for selecting a stream object. That is, when displaying multimedia data on the multimedia data display unit 6, resource restrictions can be satisfied by referring to the load information loadCPU and loadIO and selecting an appropriate stream object.

Also, the video class 31 has the same attribute as the frame rate frameRate of the video data, the attributes of the frame size width and height of the video data, the newRate () method for generating video streams with the same content but different frame rates, and the same. It has a newSize () method for generating video streams of different sizes in the content and a play () method for displaying video data corresponding to the stream object.

The audio class 33 has an attribute of the coding rate codingRate of audio data, a newRate () method for generating audio streams having the same content but different coding rates, and a play () method for displaying audio data corresponding to a stream object. Have.

Also, the image class 35 displays the image data display size width and height attributes, the newSize () method for generating image streams of the same content but different sizes, and the image data corresponding to the stream object.
It has a lay () method.

Further, the text class 37 displays the text data corresponding to the stream object, di.
It has a spray () method. The MPEG class 32, which is a subordinate of the video class 31, handles MPEG format video data, and newRat that generates video streams with the same content but different frame rates.
It has an e () method, a newSize () method for generating video streams with the same content and different sizes, and a play () method for displaying video data corresponding to a stream object.

Also, the MP below the audio class 33
The EGAaudio class 34 handles MPEG-format audio data, and generates new audio streams with the same content but different coding rates.
It has a Rate () method and a play () method for displaying audio data corresponding to the stream object.

Further, the lower JPE of the image class 35
The G class 36 handles still image data in the MPEG format, and has a newSize () method for generating image streams of the same content and different sizes, and a display () method for displaying image data corresponding to a stream object.

When displaying contents, a set stream of stream data of the contents class 20 is set.
A set of stream objects is acquired from ms, a stream object suitable for the display environment is selected, and in the multimedia data corresponding to the selected stream object, the part set in the view of the content object is displayed.

Also, synchronizing a plurality of contents,
For accurate continuous display, a dedicated scheduler is used to select stream objects and determine the start time of each multimedia data.

Next, the relationship between content objects, stream objects and multimedia data according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described by taking video data as an example.

In FIG. 5, for example, it is assumed that three video data 42a to 42c having different qualities are stored in the multimedia data storage section 3 for the one-hour program "News at 7 o'clock". Here, the video data 42
For example, a has a frame rate of 30 fps, and video data 42b has a frame rate of 15 f, for example.
The video data 42c has a frame rate of 10 fps, for example.

For these video data 42a to 42c, the content object 40a corresponding to the content attribute of the one-hour program "news at 7 o'clock" is generated. Here, the identifier oid corresponding to the content object 40a is c1.

Further, since there are three pieces of video data 42a to 42c having the content attribute of the one-hour program "news at 7 o'clock", the stream objects 41a to 41 corresponding to these video data 42a to 42c, respectively.
Generate c. Here, the stream object 41a
The identifier oid corresponding to the stream object 41b is s1, the identifier oid corresponding to the stream object 41b is s2, and the identifier oid corresponding to the stream object 41c is s1.
3 is assumed.

At this time, a set of stream data in the content class 20 of the content object 40a includes a set of identifiers {s1, s2, s.
3} is described and the stream objects 41a to 41 are described.
Content of stream class 30 of c
The identifier c1 is described in s.

Next, when paying attention to a part of the content "weather forecast" in the one-hour program "news at 7 o'clock", by setting a view in the content object 40a, the content attribute "weather forecast" is set. The content object 40b corresponding to is generated. Here, the identifier oid corresponding to the content object 40b is c
Let it be 2.

At this time, the partial content chil in the content class 20 of the content object 40a
An identifier {c2} corresponding to the content object 40b is described in ds. The original content parent of the content object 40b in the content class 20 is the content object 40a.
The identifier c1 corresponding to is described. Also, in the stream data set streams in the content class 20 of the content object 40b, as in the content class 20 of the content object 40a,
A set of identifiers {s1, s2, s3} is described.

If new video data of different quality is further added, the identifier of the stream object of the new video data is added to the stream data set streams in the content class 20 of the content object 40a, and the content object 40b is added. It is also added to the stream data set streams in the content class 20.

Next, a new method of creating a content object according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the embodiments described below, the content object and the stream object are managed using an object-oriented database, and the objects are generated using the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Further, it is assumed that the object is searched by using the conditional search expression provided by the object-oriented database.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a new method of creating a content object according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 6, first, as shown in step S1, the content object management unit 4 of FIG. 1 activates the new () method provided by the object-oriented database from the corresponding class of FIG. Here, for example, the time length timeLength of the content, the keyword keywords of the content, and the time absStartTime at which the event occurs are used as arguments of the new () method. Then, a new content object is generated as information indicating the content of the multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3.

For example, the time length of the content is tsec
And the keyword is {“A”} and the absolute time is YYMMMMDDDDYYHHMMMMSS. When generating a content object of mmmsec video data, VideoContents. new (timeLength: = t, keyswords: = {“A”}, absStartTime: = YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm,);

Next, as shown in step S2, the generated new content object is stored in the content object storage unit 1. Note that the same can be done when generating audio, image, and text content objects.

Next, a content object search method according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The content object management unit 4 of FIG. 1 retrieves a necessary content object from the content objects stored in the content object storage unit 1 by designating a keyword.

For example, when searching for a content object whose keyword is "A", the keyword () method of the content class 20 in FIG. 3 is invoked, and cs = Contents from Contents
whereContents. keyword
(“A”);

As a result, the content object set cs including A in the attribute of the content keyword keywords is retrieved from the content object of the content class 20.

The target from range where selection condition is a condition retrieval formula provided by the object-oriented database. Further, the keyword () method is such that the keywords attribute of the if activation object includes the keyword keyword → TRUE else → FALSE.

Next, a method of setting the view of the content object according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of setting a view of a content object according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 7, first, as shown in step S11, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
From the argument of the setView () method input by the user, the view start time startTime, the view time length timeLength, the view keyword key
Read the words. Also, from the attribute of the method startup object parent, the used stream
ams, absolute start time absStartTime is read.

Next, as shown in step S12, as shown in FIG.
The content object management unit 4 starts the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Here, for example, the time length of the view timeLeng
th, view keyword keywords, used stream streams, start object paren
t, the start time of the view skipLength, the absolute start time of the activation object + the start time absSt of the view
Let artTime be the argument of the new () method.

Then, the content object storage unit 1
A view for accessing a part of the content object is set from the content object stored in, and a new content object corresponding to the set view is generated.

For example, the video content object v
Since the start time t1 seconds of a part of c1 is the view time length t2 seconds, the view keyword keyword =
When setting the view as “A2”, using the setView () method of the video content class 21 in FIG. 3, vc2 = vc1. setView (startTime: = t1 timeLength: = t2 keywords: = {"A2"}); then, timeLength = t2, keywords = {"A2"}, streams = vc1. streams, parent = vc1, skipLength = t1, absStartTime = vc1. absStart
Convert Time to numerical value, add t1 and absSt again
A video content object vc2 that is converted into a character string in the artTime format is generated.

Next, as shown in step S13, the content object management section 4 determines the attribute c of the original content.
Add the newly created video content object to the children.

Next, as shown in step S14, the generated new content object is stored in the content object storage unit 1. Note that the same can be done when setting the audio, image, and text views.

Next, a new method of creating a stream object according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a new method of creating a stream object according to the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 8, first, as shown in step S21, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
From the argument of the newVideo () method input by the user, the file name fi of the corresponding multimedia data
leName, frame rate frameRate, width of display size width, height of display size height
tt, read the format. Next, step S2
2, the frame rate frameRate,
Display size width width, display size height heig
From ht, referring to the correspondence table shown in FIG. 9, load information loa
Read the values of dCPU and loadIO. Load information lo
frame rate frame for adCPU and loadIO
Since the eRate, the width of the display size, and the height of the display size are specified uniquely, the correspondence table can be created in advance.

For example, in FIG. 9, the frame rate is 10 fps and the display size is 320 × 240 PIXEL.
Load information loadCPU for video data (assuming that the ratio between the display width and the display height is predetermined),
The value of loadIO (percentage of load) is determined to be: loadCPU = 57, loadIO = 1.

Next, as shown in step S23, the content object management unit 4 activates the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Here, for example, the method activation object cont
nts, file name of multimedia data fileN
ame, load information loadCPU, loadIO, frame rate frameRate, width of display size wid
Let th and the height height of the display size be the arguments of the new () method.

Then, the content object storage unit 1
A new stream object of the class shown in FIG. 4 is newly generated from the content object stored in (4) according to each multimedia data.

For example, if the content object is vc,
Frame rate 10fps, display size 320x2
40PIXEL, the file name of the multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3 is “x
1. When the stream object vs for the video data of the MPEG format is generated by "mpeg", newVi of the video content class 21 of FIG. 3 is generated.
Using the deo () method, vs = vc. newVideo (fileName: = “x1.mpeg”, frameRate: = 10, width: = 320, height: = 240, format: = “Mpeg”); contents = vc, fileName = “x1.mpeg”, = 10, width: = 320, height: = 240, loadCPU = 57, loadIO = 1, the stream object vs of the Mpeg class 32 of FIG. 4 is generated.

Next, as shown in step S24, the content object management unit 4 adds the newly generated stream object to the attribute streams of the method activation object (content).

Next, as shown in step S25, the generated new stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2. Note that when an audio stream object is generated, the newAudio () method of the audio content class 22 of FIG. 3 is used. When an image stream object is generated, the image content class 23 of FIG.
The newImage () method of is used. In addition, when a text stream object is generated, as shown in FIG.
NewText () of the text content class 24 of
Use method. As a result, audio, image, and text can be processed in the same manner as when a video stream object is generated.

Next, a method of generating video stream objects having different frame rates according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a method of generating video stream objects having different frame rates according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 10, first, as shown in step S31, the stream object management unit 5 of FIG.
Is the file name f of the corresponding multimedia data from the argument of the newRate () method input by the user.
ileName and frame rate frameRate are read. This frame rate is different from the current frame rate and is newly input by the user. In addition, the content contents, the width of the display size, and the height of the display size are read from the attributes of the method activation object. These are not newly input by the user, but are described in the attributes of the method activation object.

Next, as shown in step S32, the frame rate frameRate and the width of the display size wid
From th and the height height of the display size, referring to the correspondence table shown in FIG. 9, the load information loadCPU, loadI
Read the value of O.

Next, as shown in step S33, the stream object management unit 5 activates the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Here, for example, contents contents, file name fileName of multimedia data, load information loadCPU, loadIO, frame rate fra
The meRate, the width of the display size, and the height of the display size height are used as arguments of the new () method.

The stream object storage unit 2
For the video stream object stored in
Generate video stream objects with the same content but different frame rates.

For example, for the video data whose video stream object is vs1, the frame rate is 15
fps, display size is the same, the stream object vs for the video data in which the file name of the multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3 is “x2.mpeg” and the format is MPEG format
2 is generated, new of MPEG class 32 in FIG. 4 is generated.
Using the Rate () method, vs2 = vs1. newRate (fileName: = “x2.mpeg”, frameRate: = 15); Then, contents = vs1. contents, fileName = "x2.mpeg", frameRate = 15, width: = vs1. width, height: = vs1. height, loadCPU, loadIO = frameRate,
A stream object vs2 of the Mpeg class 32 in FIG. 4 is generated from the width and the height by referring to the correspondence table in FIG.

Next, as shown in step S34, the content object management unit 4 adds the newly generated stream object to the attribute streams of the corresponding content.

Next, as shown in step S35, the generated stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2. Next, a method of generating video stream objects having different display sizes according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described.

First, the stream object management unit 5 in FIG. 1 determines the file name fileName, the width of the display size, and the height of the display size of the corresponding multimedia data from the arguments of the newSize () method input by the user. Read. Also, from the attribute of the method startup object, the content
nts, frame rate frameRate are read.

Next, the frame rate frameRat
e, width of display size width, height of display size he
load, referring to the correspondence table shown in FIG. 9, load information l
Read the values of oadCPU and loadIO.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Is an object-oriented database provided by ne
Invokes the w () method. Here, for example, contents contents, file name fileName of multimedia data, load information loadCPU, loa
dIO, frame rate frameRate, display size width width, and display size height height
It is used as an argument of the ew () method.

The stream object storage unit 2
For the video stream object stored in
A video stream object with the same content but different display size is generated.

For example, for the video data whose video stream object is vs1, the frame rate is the same, the display size is 160 × 112 PIXEL, and the file name of the multimedia data stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3 is “x2. .Mpeg ”, the stream object vs2 for the video data in the MPEG format is generated by using the newSize () method of the Mpeg class 32 of FIG. newSize (fileName: = “x2.mpeg”, width: = 160, height: = 112); then, contents = vs1. contents, fileName = "x2.mpeg", frameRate = vs1. frameRate width: = 160 height: = 112 loadCPU, loadIO = frameRate,
A stream object vs2 of the Mpeg class 32 in FIG. 4 is generated from the width and the height by referring to the correspondence table in FIG.

Next, the content object management unit 4
Adds the newly generated stream object to the attribute streams of the corresponding content. Next, the generated stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2.

Next, a method of generating audio stream objects having different coding rates according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the stream object management unit 5 in FIG.
The file name fileName and coding rate codingRate of the corresponding multimedia data are read from the argument of the te () method. Also, from the attribute of the method startup object, the content
Read nts.

Next, the coding rate codingR
Refer to the correspondence table from ate, load information loadCPU,
Read the value of loadIO. Next, the stream object management unit 5 activates the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Here, for example, contents contents, file name fileName of multimedia data, load information loadC
PU, loadIO, coding rate coding
Let Rate be the argument of the new () method.

The stream object storage unit 2
Audio stream objects having the same content and different coding rates are generated for the audio stream objects stored in.

For example, for the audio data whose audio stream object is as1, the coding rate is 64 kbps, and the multimedia data storage unit 3
The file name of the multimedia data stored in is “x2.ma” and the format is MPEGAudio.
When the stream object as2 for the audio data of the format is generated, the newRate () method of the MpegAudio class 34 of FIG. 4 is used, and as2 = as1. newRate (fileName: = “x2.ma”, codingRate: = 64); then, contents = as1. contents, fileName = "x2.ma", codingRate = 64, loadCPU, loadIO = codingRate
Is obtained by referring to the correspondence table from Mpe of FIG.
Stream object as of gAudio class 34
2 is generated.

Next, the content object management unit 4
Adds the newly generated stream object to the attribute streams of the corresponding content. Next, the generated stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2. Next, a method of generating image stream objects having different display sizes according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described.

First, the stream object management unit 5 in FIG. 1 determines the file name fileName, the display size width width, and the display size height height of the corresponding multimedia data from the arguments of the newSize () method input by the user. Read. Also, from the attribute of the method startup object, the content
Read nts.

Next, referring to the correspondence table, the values of the load information loadCPU and loadIO are read from the display size width width and the display size height height. Next, the stream object management unit 5 activates the new () method provided by the object-oriented database. Here, for example, content contents,
File name of multimedia data fileName,
Load information loadCPU, loadIO, width of display size width, height of display size height new
() As an argument of the method.

The stream object storage unit 2
Image stream objects having the same content but different display sizes are generated for the image stream objects stored in.

For example, for image data whose image stream object is 1, the display size is 16
0x112 PIXEL, multimedia data storage unit 3
The stream object is2 for the image data in which the file name of the multimedia data stored in is "x2.jpeg" and the format is JPEG
To generate newS of Jpeg class 36 in FIG.
Using the size () method, is2 = is1. newSize (fileName: = “x2.jpeg”, width: = 160, height: = 112); contents = is1. contents, fileName = "x2.jpeg", width: = 160 height: = 112 loadCPU, loadIO = width, heig
It is obtained from ht by referring to the correspondence table, J in FIG.
The stream object is2 of the peg class 36 is generated.

Next, the content object management unit 4
Adds the newly generated stream object to the attribute streams of the corresponding content. Next, the generated stream object is stored in the stream object storage unit 2.

Note that generation of a stream object for data whose JPEG compression rate is changed and generation of a stream object for data whose text font is changed can be similarly performed.

Next, a method of reproducing the video data designated by the video stream object according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a method of reproducing video data designated by a video stream object according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 11, first, as shown in step S41, the stream object management unit 5 of FIG.
Is the skip time s from the argument of the play () method.
kipLength, display time duration, display start time startTime, display position posX, po
Read sY. In addition, the file name file of multimedia data is set from the attribute of the method startup object.
Read Name.

Next, as shown in step S42, as shown in FIG.
The multimedia data display section 6 of the
The multimedia data corresponding to the eName is read from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the portion of the designated range is displayed at the designated display start time and display position.

That is, the stream object management unit 5 uses the file name fileName of the multimedia data described in the video stream object stored in the stream object storage unit 2, the skip time skipLength, and the display time duration.
n, display start time startTime, display position pos
X and posY are passed to the multimedia data display unit 6.

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the skip time skipLength among the multimedia data specified by the file name fileName stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3.
And the portion specified by the display time duration at the time specified by the display start time startTime,
Display at the position specified by the display position posX, posY.

For example, the portion from the t1 second to the t2 second of the multimedia data designated by the stream object vs of the MPEG format is recorded at time YY MM month DD day HH hour MM minute SS. When the reproduction is started at the position (x, y) for mmm second, p of the Mpeg class 32 of FIG.
using the lay () method, vs. play (skipLength: = t1, duration: = t2, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.
mmm ″, posX: = x, posY: = y);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Display file name fileName = vs. fileNa
me, skip time skipLength = t1 second, display time duration = t2 second, display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm seconds At the display position posX, posY = (x, y), the MPEG playback device is activated and the video data designated by the video stream object is played back.

Next, a method of reproducing audio data designated by an audio stream object according to the tenth embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the stream object management unit 5 in FIG. 1 uses the arguments of the play () method to determine the skip time skipLength, the display time duration, and the display start time startTi.
Read me. In addition, the file name file of multimedia data is set from the attribute of the method startup object.
Read Name.

Next, the multimedia data display unit 6 of FIG. 1 reads the multimedia data corresponding to the file name fileName from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the portion within the designated range is displayed at the designated display start time. indicate.

That is, the stream object management unit 5 uses the file name fileName of the multimedia data described in the audio stream object stored in the stream object storage unit 2, the skip time skipLength, and the display time durati.
On, the display start time startTime is passed to the multimedia data display unit 6.

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the skip time skipLength among the multimedia data specified by the file name fileName stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3.
And the portion specified by the display time duration at the time specified by the display start time startTime,
To be displayed.

For example, the portion from t1 seconds to t2 seconds of the multimedia data designated by the MPEG Audio format stream object as is recorded at time 19Y.
Year MM month DD day HH MM minute SS. When the reproduction is started in mmm seconds, the MpegAudio class 34 in FIG.
Using the play () method of as. play (skipLength: = t1, duration: = t2, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is a display file name fileName = as. fileNa
me, skip time skipLength = t1 second, display time duration = t2 second, display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. At the time of mmm second, the MPEGAudio reproducing apparatus is activated to reproduce the audio data designated by the audio stream object.

Next, a method of displaying the image data designated by the image stream object according to the eleventh embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the stream object management unit 5 in FIG. 1 uses the argument of the display () method to specify the skip coordinate skipLength.
X, skipLengthY, display width viewLeng
thX, display height viewLengthY, display start time startTime, display position posX, posY are read. Also, the file name fileName of the multimedia data is determined from the attribute of the method startup object.
Read e.

Next, the multimedia data display unit 6 of FIG. 1 reads the multimedia data corresponding to the file name fileName from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the portion of the designated range is designated at the designated display start time, Display at the display position.

That is, the stream object management section 5 has a file name fileName of multimedia data described in the video stream object stored in the stream object storage section 2, skip coordinates skipLengthX, skipLength.
Y, display width viewLengthX, display height view
LengthY, display start time startTime, display positions posX, posY are passed to the multimedia data display unit 6.

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is a skip coordinate skipLength of the multimedia data specified by the file name fileName stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3.
X, skipLengthY, display width viewLeng
The portion specified by thX and the display height viewLengthY is displayed at the time specified by the display start time startTime and the position specified by the display positions posX and posY.

For example, in the multimedia data specified by the stream object is in the JPEG format, from the relative coordinates (x1, y1) to the origin, the width x2,
The portion of height y2 is the time 19YY, MM month, DD day, HH hour, MM minute, SS. When displaying at the position (x, y) for mmm second, using the display () method of the Jpeg class 36 of FIG. 4, is. display (skipLengthX: = x1, skipLengthY: = y1, viewLengthX: = x2, viewLengthY: = y2, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.
mmm ″, posX: = x, posY: = y);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the display file name fileName = is. fileNa
me, skip coordinates skipLengthX, skipLen
gthY = (x1, y1), display width viewLengthX = x2, display height viewLength = y2, display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm second With the display position posX, posY = (x, y), the JPEG display device is activated and the image data specified by the image stream object is displayed.

Next, a method of displaying the text data designated by the text stream object according to the twelfth embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the stream object management unit 5 of FIG. 1 uses the skip byte skipLength from the argument of the display () method.
h, display byte viewLength, display start time s
The startTime and the display positions posX and posY are read. Also, from the attribute of the method startup object,
The file name fileName of the multimedia data is read.

Next, the multimedia data display unit 6 of FIG. 1 reads the multimedia data corresponding to the file name fileName from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the portion of the designated range is designated at the designated display start time, Display at the display position.

That is, the stream object management unit 5 has a file name fileName of the multimedia data described in the video stream object stored in the stream object storage unit 2, a skip byte skipLength, and a display byte viewLe.
ngth, display start time startTime, and display positions posX and posY are passed to the multimedia data display unit 6.

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is a skip byte skipLength of the multimedia data specified by the file name fileName stored in the multimedia data storage unit 3.
h, the portion specified by the display byte viewLength is displayed at the time specified by the display start time startTime and the position specified by the display positions posX and posY.

For example, in the multimedia data designated by the text stream object ts, the portion from the beginning abyte to bbyte is set to the time 19YY.
Year MM month DD day HH hour MM minute SS. When displaying at the position (x, y) in mmm second, the Text class 37 in FIG.
Using the display () method of ts. display (skipLength: = a, viewLength: = b, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.
mmm ″, posX: = x, posY: = y);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Display file name fileName = ts. fileNa
me, skip byte skipLength = a, display byte viewLength = b, display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm second The display position is posX, posY = (x, y), the text display device is activated, and the text data specified by the text stream object is displayed.

In the ninth to twelfth embodiments described above, an example has been described in which the user designates a stream object from the stream object management unit 5 to reproduce or display multimedia data. However, as shown in the thirteenth to sixteenth examples below, the multimedia data may be played or displayed by the user designating the content object from the content object management unit 4.

Next, a method of reproducing the video data designated by the video content object according to the thirteenth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 12 shows the first of the present invention.
9 is a flowchart showing a method of reproducing video data designated by a video content object according to the third embodiment.

In FIG. 12, first, as shown in step S51, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
Is the display start time startTime and the display position pos from the arguments of the play () method input by the user.
Read X and posY. In addition, the skip time skipLength is determined from the attribute of the method activation object.
h, the display time duration, and the set streams of the corresponding stream objects are read.

Next, as shown in step S52, the stream object management unit 5 selects one stream object from the stream object set streams.

Next, as shown in step S53, the stream object management unit 5 reads the video data corresponding to the selected stream object from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the video data of the portion specified by the video content object. Is displayed on the multimedia data display unit 6.

That is, pl of the video class 31 in FIG.
The ay () method is activated to play the video data of the portion described in the content object. Here, the arguments of the play () method of the video class 31 are the skip time skipLength and the display time durati.
on, display start time startTime, display position po
Let sX and posY.

For example, the video content object v
The video data of the portion described in c is read out from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the time is YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. When the reproduction is started in mmm seconds, the play () of the video content class 21 in FIG.
Using the method, vc. play (startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Next, vc. One stream object vs is selected from the set of stream objects described in streams. Here, if the selection method of the stream object is not specified, the first stream object is selected from the set of stream objects.

Then, when the reproduction of the multimedia data designated by the stream object vs is started at the position (x, y), p of the Mpeg class 32 of FIG.
using the lay () method, vs. play (skipLength: = vc.skipLength
h, duration: = vc. timeLength, startTime: = "YYMMDDHHMMSS.
mmm ″, posX: = x, posY: = y);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm seconds The display position posX, posY = (x, y) is selected by the video stream object, and the video data of the portion specified by the video content object is reproduced.

Next, a method of reproducing audio data designated by an audio content object according to the fourteenth embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
Display start time star from the argument of the lay () method
Read tTime. In addition, the skip time skipLength, from the attribute of the method activation object,
The reproduction time duration and the set streams of the corresponding stream objects are read.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Selects one stream object from the stream objects set streams. Next, the stream object management unit 5 reads the audio data corresponding to the selected stream object from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and displays the audio data of the portion designated by the audio content object on the multimedia data display unit 6. .

That is, the play () method of the audio class 33 shown in FIG. 4 is activated to reproduce the audio data of the portion described in the content object. Here, the arguments of the play () method of the audio class 33 are skip time skipLength, reproduction time duration, and display start time startTime.

For example, the audio data of the portion described in the audio content object ac is read from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the time MM month DD day HH hour MM minute SS. When the reproduction is started at mmm seconds, the play () method of the audio content class 22 shown in FIG. play (startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Next, ac. From the set of stream objects described in streams, one stream object as is selected. Here, if the selection method of the stream object is not specified, the first stream object is selected from the set of stream objects.

When the reproduction of the multimedia data designated by the stream object as is started, the pla of the MpegAudio class 34 shown in FIG.
Using the y () method, as. play (skipLength: = ac.skipLength, duration: = ac.timeLength, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. The video data of the portion selected by the audio stream object and designated by the audio content object is reproduced as mmmsec.

Next, a method of displaying the image data designated by the image content object according to the fifteenth embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
Display start time sta from the argument of the play () method
rtTime, display positions posX, posY are read. In addition, the skip coordinates skipLengthX, skipLeng are determined from the attributes of the method activation object.
thY, display width viewLengthX, display height vi
ewLengthY, the set streams of the corresponding stream objects are read.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Selects one stream object from the stream objects set streams. here,
If you do not specify how to select the stream object,
Select the first stream object from the set of stream objects.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Reads the image data corresponding to the selected stream object from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and displays the image data of the portion designated by the image content object in the multimedia data display unit 6.
To be displayed.

That is, d of the image class 35 in FIG.
The display () method is activated to reproduce the image video data of the portion described in the content object. Here, the display class of image class 35
Argument of y () method is skip coordinate skipLen
gthX, skipLengthY, display width viewL
lengthX, display height viewLengthY, display start time startTime, display position posX, po
Let sY.

For example, the image data of the portion described in the image content object ic is read from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the time is 19YY year MM.
Month DD day HH hour MM minute SS. When the display is started in mmm seconds, the dis of the image content class 23 in FIG. 3 is set.
Using the play () method, ic. display (startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Next, ic. From the set of stream objects described in streams, one stream object is is selected. Here, if the selection method of the stream object is not specified, the first stream object is selected from the set of stream objects.

Then, when the reproduction of the multimedia data designated by the stream object is at the position (x, y) is started, d of the Jpeg class 36 in FIG.
using the isplay () method, is. display (skipLengthX: = ic.skipLengthX, skipLengthY: = ic.skipLengthY, viewLengthX: = ic.viewYmethY: MD = YmthY: HythM: Yth: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Yth: Ye: HY: Mth: Ye: Ym: Ym: Ym: Ym: Yh: H. To execute.

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm second The display position posX, posY = (x, y) is displayed by the image data of the portion selected by the image stream object and designated by the image content object.

Next, a method of displaying the text data designated by the text content object according to the sixteenth embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, the content object management unit 4 of FIG.
Display start time sta from the argument of the play () method
rtTime, display positions posX, posY are read. In addition, the skip byte skipLength and the display byte view are displayed from the attribute of the method activation object.
wLength, the set streams of the corresponding stream objects are read.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Selects one stream object from the stream objects set streams. here,
If you do not specify how to select the stream object,
Select the first stream object from the set of stream objects.

Next, the stream object management unit 5
Reads the text data corresponding to the selected stream object from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and displays the text data of the portion specified by the text content object in the multimedia data display unit 6.
To be displayed.

That is, d of the text class 37 in FIG.
The display () method is activated to reproduce the text data of the portion described in the content object.
Here, the arguments of the display () method of the text class 37 are skip bytes skipLength,
Display byte viewLength, display start time sta
rtTime and display positions posX and posY.

For example, the text data of the portion described in the image content object tc is read from the multimedia data storage unit 3, and the time is 19YY year MM.
Month DD day HH hour MM minute SS. When the display is started in mmm seconds, the dis of the text content class 24 in FIG. 3 is set.
Using the play () method, tc. display (startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.mmm”,);

Next, tc. One stream object ts is selected from the set of stream objects described in streams. Here, if the selection method of the stream object is not specified, the first stream object is selected from the set of stream objects.

When the reproduction of the multimedia data designated by the stream object ts is started at the position (x, y), d of the text class 37 of FIG. 4 is used.
Using the isplay () method, ts. display (skipLength: = tc.skipLength
h, viewLength: = tc. viewLength
h, startTime: = “YYMMDDHHMMSS.
mmm ″, posX: = x, posY: = y);

Then, the multimedia data display section 6
Is the display start time startTime = 19YY MM month D
Day H HH MM minutes SS. mmm second The display position posX, posY = (x, y) is displayed by the text data of the portion selected by the text stream object and designated by the text content object. Next, the first of the present invention
A method of displaying a plurality of multimedia data according to the seventh embodiment will be described.

When a plurality of multimedia data are displayed synchronously or a plurality of multimedia data are continuously displayed, a stream object used in the thirteenth to sixteenth embodiments is selected, A dedicated scheduler for accurately adjusting the display start time of the multimedia data and setting the display positions of the multimedia data so as not to overlap is provided in the stream object management unit 5.

This scheduler is used in the thirteenth embodiment to the first embodiment.
6 play () method and display used in Example
When displaying a plurality of multimedia data by the ay () method, load information loadCPU, loadI
Based on O, select a stream object that can execute within resource constraints. In addition, the display start time (time to start the player) to be displayed on the multimedia data display unit 6 is determined in consideration of the delay in the time required for display. Furthermore, the display location of each content is determined so that the display does not overlap. Then, using the parameters calculated by the scheduler, the multimedia data specified by the stream object of the ninth to twelfth embodiments is played or displayed.

For example, in FIG. 9, the frame A has a frame rate of 15 fps and the display width has a quality of 320 PIXEL.
Of the video data is displayed on the multimedia data display unit 6, and the frame rate is 15 fps and the display width is 3
When simultaneously displaying the video data of the content B with the quality of 20 PIXEL on the multimedia data display unit 6, since the CPU load of the video data of the frame width of 15 fps and the display width of 320 PIXEL is 72%, the content A
The CPU load when simultaneously displaying the video data of 1 and the video data of the content B is 144%, which exceeds the processing capability of the CPU. In this case, for example, the frame rate of the video data of the content A is 15 fps to 10 fps.
And the frame rate of the video data of the content B is reduced from 15 fps to 5 fps for display. As a result, the CPU load is from 86% to 86%.
The video data of the content A and the video data of the content B can be displayed simultaneously and normally, because the video data of the content A falls within the range of the processing capability of the CPU.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to have a plurality of multimedia data for the same content, and when the user designates a content, a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to the designated content can be obtained. Multimedia data suitable for the environment can be selected and displayed from the multimedia data, and when the user processes the content for editing work, the processing information can be reflected only in the content. The processing information can be transmitted when using the data.

By separately managing the content object indicating the content attribute of the multimedia data and the stream object indicating the quality attribute of the multimedia data, it is possible to manage a plurality of entities for the same content. , It is possible to easily use multimedia data according to the environment. For example, when a plurality of multimedia data are reproduced at the same time, the quality of the multimedia data to be used can be changed and reproduced in consideration of resource restrictions.

[0175] In addition, the view function of the content object allows partial access to the multimedia data. Information of this view is reflected only in the content object and affects a plurality of stream objects corresponding to the view. Since there is none, it is possible to guarantee the consistency regarding the view information of all stream objects.

Further, since the content object has the absolute time information, it is possible to synchronize with other multimedia data when reproducing the multimedia data.

Since the stream object has the load information, the multimedia data to be used can be decided based on this load information.

[0178]

As described above, according to the invention of claim 1, by separately storing the content object indicating the content attribute of the multimedia data and the stream object indicating the quality attribute of the multimedia data, It is possible to distinguish the content of data from the quality of data, and it is possible to search for multimedia data having the same content without considering the difference in quality. That is, it is possible to save the trouble of separately managing and searching multimedia data having the same content but different qualities as multimedia data having different contents.
If the contents are the same, multimedia data of different qualities can be managed and searched in a related manner.

According to the invention of claim 2, by associating a stream object with a content object, a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities can be designated by the content object, It is possible to clarify the relationship between the same multimedia data.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities are combined by associating the same content object with the multimedia data having the same content and different qualities. Can be specified by one Content Object,
A plurality of multimedia data can be associated with one content object.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, by changing only the quality without changing the contents of the multimedia data, it is possible to display the multimedia data having the same contents in consideration of resource restrictions. .

According to the invention of claim 5, by reflecting the view information only on the content object, it is possible to access a part of the multimedia data while guaranteeing the consistency of the view information of the stream object. it can.

Further, according to the invention of claim 6, by cutting out a part of the multimedia data in time,
Content attributes can be given to partial data. According to the invention of claim 7, a content attribute can be given to the partial data by spatially cutting out a part of the multimedia data.

Further, according to the invention of claim 8, by cutting out a part of the multimedia data, a content attribute can be given to the partial data. According to the invention of claim 9, the contents of the multimedia data can be designated by giving the keyword and the length of the multimedia data.

According to the tenth aspect of the invention, by giving the absolute time to the content object, it is possible to synchronize with other content objects. Further, according to the invention of claim 11, by giving a stream object to each of the video data having the same content and different frame rates, a quality attribute is given to a plurality of video data having the same content and different qualities. You can

According to the twelfth aspect of the invention, a stream object is given to each of the video data having the same contents and different display sizes, so that a quality attribute is given to a plurality of video data having the same contents and different qualities. be able to.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, a quality attribute can be given to a plurality of audio data having the same content but different qualities by giving a stream object to each of the audio data having different coding rates.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, a quality attribute is given to a plurality of image data having the same content and different qualities by giving a stream object to each of the image data having the same content and different display sizes. be able to.

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, by generating the load information, it is possible to change the quality of the multimedia data in consideration of the load required when displaying the multimedia data.

According to the sixteenth aspect of the invention, by generating the stream object based on the load information, it is possible to change the quality of the video data in consideration of the load required for displaying the video data. it can.

According to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention, the quality of the audio data can be changed in consideration of the load required for displaying the audio data by generating the stream object based on the load information. it can.

According to the eighteenth aspect of the present invention, by generating the stream object based on the load information, the load necessary for displaying the video data or the image data is taken into consideration, and the video data or the image data is taken into consideration. The quality of can be changed.

According to the nineteenth aspect of the present invention, a part of the multimedia data can be displayed by cutting out the data corresponding to the view from the multimedia data.

According to the invention of claim 20, by selecting one from a plurality of stream objects corresponding to the content object based on the load information, it is possible to cope with the load required for displaying the multimedia data. It is possible to select the multimedia data having the quality to be reproduced.

According to the twenty-first aspect of the invention, a plurality of multimedia data representing a common event can be collectively managed by associating a common identifier representing an event with a plurality of multimedia data. .

According to the twenty-second aspect of the present invention, a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event is made to correspond to the identifiers indicating the quality, respectively. Different multimedia data can be selected.

According to the invention of claim 23, a content object common to the first multimedia data and the second multimedia data is generated, and the first multimedia data and the second multimedia data are generated. By generating a stream object for each of the above, and a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities can be designated by one content object, and one content object has a plurality of multimedia data. Can be

According to the twenty-fourth aspect of the invention, by separately associating the content object indicating the content attribute and the stream object indicating the quality attribute,
It is possible to distinguish the content of multimedia data from the quality of multimedia data, and it is possible to search for multimedia data having the same content without considering the difference in quality of multimedia data.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a multimedia data search system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a relationship between a content object, a stream object, and multimedia data according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a class structure of a content object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a class structure of a stream object according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a relationship among a content object, a stream object, and video data according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of generating a video content object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of setting a view of a video content object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method of generating a video stream object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a relationship between a frame rate and width of video data and a load amount according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method of generating video stream objects having different frame rates according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a method of reproducing video data from a stream object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a method of reproducing video data from a content object according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Content Object Storage 2 Stream Object Storage 3 Multimedia Data Storage 4 Content Object Management 5 Stream Object Management 6 Multimedia Data Display 10a, 10b, 40a, 40b Content Objects 11a, 11b, 11c, 41a, 41b , 41c stream objects 12a, 12b, 12c multimedia data 20 content class 21 video content class 22 audio content class 23 image content class 24 text content class 30 stream class 31 video class 32 MPEG video class 33 audio class 34 MPEG audio class 35 image Class 36 JPEG Class 37 Text Class 42 , 42b, 42c video data

Claims (24)

[Claims] 1. A multimedia data storage unit for storing multimedia data, a content object storage unit for storing a content object indicating a content attribute of the multimedia data, and a stream object indicating a quality attribute of the multimedia data. Stream object storing means for storing; content object managing means for searching multimedia data corresponding to the content object by designating the content object; and corresponding stream object by designating the stream object. A multimedia data search system comprising: stream object management means for searching multimedia data. 2. A multimedia data storage unit for storing a plurality of multimedia data having the same content but different qualities, a content object storage unit for storing a content object indicating a content attribute of the multimedia data, and the multimedia. Stream object storage means for storing a stream object indicating a quality attribute of data, object management means for associating the stream object with the content object, and designating a stream object corresponding to the content object by designating the content object. A multimedia data search system comprising: multimedia data search means for searching corresponding multimedia data. 3. A multimedia data storage means for storing a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities, a content object storage means for storing a content object indicating a content attribute of the multimedia data, and the multimedia. A stream object storage means for storing a stream object indicating a quality attribute of data, and an object management means for associating the same content object with a plurality of multimedia data having the same content and different qualities are provided. Multimedia data retrieval system. 4. A multimedia data storage means for storing multimedia data, a content object storage means for storing a content object indicating a content attribute of the multimedia data, and a stream object indicating a quality attribute of the multimedia data. Stream object storage means for storing; content object management means for generating the content object and associating the content object with the stream object; stream object management means for generating the stream object; and displaying the multimedia data. A multimedia data search system comprising: multimedia data display means. 5. The content object management means further comprises view object generation means for generating a view object that specifies a view corresponding to a part of the multimedia data corresponding to the content object. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4. 6. The view object generation means generates a view object based on a time from the beginning of time series data stored in the multimedia data storage means and a view length. The multimedia data search system according to claim 5. 7. The view object generation means generates a view object based on the relative coordinates from the origin of the image data stored in the multimedia data storage means and the size of the view. The multimedia data search system according to claim 5. 8. The view object generation means generates a view object based on the number of bytes from the beginning of the text data stored in the multimedia data storage means and the view length. The multimedia data search system according to claim 5. 9. The content object management means generates a keyword indicating the content of the multimedia data and information indicating the length of the content in the content object, according to claim 4. Multimedia data retrieval system. 10. The content object management means generates in the content object information indicating the time at which an event corresponding to the time-series data stored in the multimedia data storage means occurs. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4. 11. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4, wherein the stream object management means generates stream objects for video data having the same content and different frame rates. 12. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4, wherein the stream object management means generates a stream object for video data having the same content and different display sizes. 13. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4, wherein the stream object management unit generates stream objects for audio data having the same content and different coding rates. 14. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4, wherein the stream object management means generates a stream object for image data having the same content and different display sizes. 15. The stream object management means generates load information necessary for displaying multimedia data designated by the stream object on the multimedia data display means in the stream object. The multimedia data search system according to claim 4. 16. The stream object management means selects stream objects for video data having the same content and different frame rates based on the load information.
The multimedia data retrieval system described in. 17. The stream object management means selects stream objects for audio data having the same content and different coding rates based on the load information. Multimedia data retrieval system. 18. The stream object management means selects stream objects for video data or image data having the same content and different display sizes based on the load information. The multimedia data retrieval system described in. 19. The multimedia data according to claim 5, wherein the multimedia data display means cuts out data corresponding to a view designated by the view object from the multimedia data and displays the data. Search system. 20. The multimedia data display means selects one of a plurality of stream objects corresponding to the content object based on the load information, and outputs multimedia data corresponding to the selected stream object. The multimedia data search system according to claim 15, wherein the multimedia data search system is displayed. 21. A multimedia data storage means for storing a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event and a common identifier representing the event for a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event. A multimedia data search system, comprising: a content object generating means for performing the same. 22. A multimedia data storage means for storing a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event, and a stream object for associating a plurality of multimedia data corresponding to one event with identifiers representing quality, respectively. A multimedia data retrieval system comprising: a generating unit. 23. Content object generating means for generating a common content object indicating a content attribute of the first multimedia data and a content attribute of the second multimedia data, and a quality attribute of the first multimedia data. Showing first
And a stream object generating means for generating a second stream object indicating a quality attribute of the second multimedia data. 24. Management of multimedia data, wherein a content object indicating a content attribute of the multimedia data and a stream object indicating a quality attribute of the multimedia data are separately associated with the multimedia data. Method.