JPH1188828A - Device for supporting preparation and recording of narration - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the output of a queue from being missed or delayed and the generation of paper turning sounds and page skips by outputting a queue by a time code of video information in narration preparation/recording using a script. SOLUTION: This device is composed of a controller 1, a video storage device 2, a script information storage device 3, a sound synthesizer 4, a display device 5, and an input device 6 as main constitutional elements. The character information of narration sentences is sent and read out to/by the voice synthesizer 4 at specified timing based on the time code of video information extracted from the device 2. The preparation of the narration sentences and the determination of narration inserting timing are executed so that time length required for the reading of the narration sentences can be simply grasped and the narration sentences and queues to be applied to a narrator are simultaneously displayed on the device 5 as an electronic script.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a narration creation / recording support apparatus for efficiently narrating already recorded video information when a video program is created in a television broadcast station or video production. It is.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the course of current television program production, in order to create a completed program, after shooting and editing video, a sentence that effectively explains the program content is read out to a person called a narrator. Narration is added to the video information. Currently, narration sentences are created and recorded in the following manner.

[0003] First, with regard to creation of a narration script, a program creator creates a description to supplement the program as a narration text. However, the narration on the production effect,
Because it needs to be read to specific video information,
There is a limit on the amount of text (number of characters) of the narration. In order to make the narration effective and easy to understand under these restrictions, it is necessary to correct sentences and adjust the amount of sentences in detail. In addition, in order to insert narration at the most effective timing for program production, it is necessary to determine the timing at which reading is started. The text of the narration determined in this way is described in the form of a document in which the connection with the video information is described in text. This document is called a narration script, and is currently often created using a word processor.

[0004] Next, regarding recording of the narration, the narrator reads the text of the narration script from the point in time at which the video information is determined, and the video signal and the audio signal of the program are recorded as the audio signal (narration signal) captured by the microphone. Another audio track on the VTR tape
And recorded as audio information of two programs. On this occasion,
The program creator who has created the narration script instructs the narrator when to start reading out the narration while watching the video information being reproduced on the VTR. This instruction is generally performed by turning on a lamp. The narrator also narrates while watching the video information reproduced by the VTR, the script of the printed paper, and the signals from the program creator such as turning on the lamp.

[0005]

The problems to be solved by the present invention are roughly classified into the following three. (1) The problem of determining the length of the narration In order to convey the contents of the program in an easy-to-understand manner, and for the effect of the production, the narration needs to start from a certain point in the video information and end by a certain point. The narration must not be too long and overlap with the video information that is different from the narration content. For this reason, the narration must adjust the amount of text (the number of characters) of the narration so that the narration is within the time required for the effect. Currently, to adjust the length of time for reading a script, the creator himself checks the reading time according to the video information being reproduced, or converts the number of characters into the reading time.

(2) Problem of Timing to Start Reading Out To make the narrator start reading out the narration from a specific time corresponding to the video information, the program maker gives the narrator a signal called a cue such as turning on a lamp, for example. . The timing of this cue determines which narration corresponds to which video information when a narration script is created. At this time, the program creator describes video information of the entire program in sentences in the narration script, and roughly describes the timing in the form of writing the corresponding narration. The actual timing to put out the queue is
It is necessary for the program creator to store the video at the timing of "here" while repeatedly watching the video information, and note the approximate time at that time on, for example, paper.

(3) Problems during Narration Recording In recording narration, as in the case of creating the narration script described above, the program creator presents to the narrator a cue that the program creator starts reading while watching the video information and the script. Ask them to start reading aloud. However, the cue timing relies on correspondence with the video described in the script, memos of the time and memories of the creator, so that cueing may be forgotten, delayed, overlooked, etc., and narration recording needs to be redone become. Also, when it comes to long programs,
The narration script has a considerable number of pages, and there is a problem that the sound of page turning is recorded and that the page is mistaken.

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic narration making and recording apparatus which does not cause the above three problems.

[0009]

In order to solve the above problems, a narration creation / recording support apparatus of the present invention has a control means, a narration recording function, and transmits video information and time code information indicating start timing of the narration. Video storage means for storing and obtaining the stored video information and time code information in accordance with an instruction from the control means; narration text and cue information indicating the time at which the narration text is to be captured; When the control unit detects the coincidence of the times indicated by the cue information and the time code information extracted from the video storage unit, the script information storage unit from which the narration text is extracted, and the script information storage unit In the electronic script mode in which the narrated sentences are narrated, Not supplied, supplied only in the preview mode to determine the suitability of the narration, voice synthesis means for outputting the narration text as a synthesized voice signal, display means for displaying the video information and the narration text, the narration text and An input unit for inputting the cue information and for supplying a control signal to the video information storage unit and the script information storage unit via the control unit is provided.

The narration creation / recording support apparatus of the present invention may further comprise, in addition to the video information and the narration text, a mark indicating that the time indicated by each of the cue information and the time code information coincides with the display means. It is characterized in that it is displayed.

In the narration creation and recording support apparatus of the present invention, when the control means determines that the narration text is to be read aloud, the narrator is presented with a start of reading aloud to the narrator under the control of the control means. It is characterized in that it is performed by a lamp.

Further, the narration creation / recording support apparatus of the present invention, when the control means determines that the narration sentence reading start time is reached, gives an instruction to the narrator to start reading aloud to an earphone or headphones worn by the narrator. It is characterized in that it is performed by an acoustic signal.

In the narration creation / recording support apparatus according to the present invention, the video storage means is constituted by a storage means of a sequential storage type, and the narration is stored in an audio track of the storage means during narration recording. It is a feature.

In the narration creation / recording support apparatus of the present invention, the video storage means is constituted by a random access type storage means, and the cue information includes an identification number of a cut of the video information. This is characterized in that it is made responsive to the change of the order of cuts.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in detail below based on embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG.
1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a narration creation and recording support device of the present invention. The device of the present invention adopts such an overall configuration to enable the support of work so that both work of creating a narration script and recording of narration can be performed more efficiently. The function of each block shown in FIG. 1 will be described.

In FIG. 1, a control device denoted by reference numeral 1 controls a script information storage device, controls input / output of information related to the device,
The retrieved script information is displayed on a display device, the video storage device is controlled, and time code information is retrieved from the device. The control device 1 has a function of controlling each device and data when setting cue information in the narration script, and compares the time code information extracted from the video storage device with the cue information stored in the narration script. And, when it matches, it has a function of sending a narration sentence to a speech synthesizer.

The video storage device denoted by reference numeral 2 stores video information, and stores the stored video information in the control device 1 described above.
Can be taken out and played back under the control of. At the same time, video time code information at the time of reproduction can be extracted. Further, the video storage device 2 is provided with a track for recording an audio signal (in the case where the video storage device is constituted by a random access type storage means (memory or disk, etc.), the track for recording the audio signal is temporally stored. And a memory or disk for recording an audio signal corresponding to the video on a one-to-one basis, and narration is recorded here.

The script information storage means indicated by reference numeral 3 can store narration sentences to be used in addition to video information in the form of coded character information. The accumulation is to be accumulated for each unit of the sentence read out by the narrator, and in each narration sentence, cue information indicating what scene or cut of the video information stored in the image information storage device to start reading out the narration sentence at the time of cutting. Can be given as additional information.

The speech synthesizer denoted by reference numeral 4 is a device for converting a narration sentence sent from the script information storage device 3 through the control device 1 into synthesized speech. The reading speed of the narration sentence can be made variable, and can be set to a speed suitable for the content of the video information and the reading speed of the assumed narrator.

The display device denoted by reference numeral 5 is a video storage device 2.
In addition, when displaying the video information and the narration text extracted from the script information storage device 3 and associating the video information with the narration text, an operation of combining the narration text and the video information based on the time axis of the video (for example, narration time) Perform data display to determine the length and timing of reading start (when creating a narration script). At the time of narration recording, an electronic script and cue can be displayed simultaneously. Further, the display device 5 can graphically display, for example, an approximate narration time length converted from the number of characters together with the display of the time length of the video information on the script editing screen.
This makes it possible to grasp the time correspondence between the narration and the video information.

The input device indicated by reference numeral 6 is used to stop, reproduce, and wind video information extracted from the video storage device 2 in order to input a narration text to the script information storage device 3 and to add cue information to the narration text. Rewind, fast forward, frame forward, frame rewind (above, video storage device 2 is VT
R) is provided.

In the above-described configuration blocks 1 to 6, in the apparatus of the present invention, the script information stored in the script information storage device 3 includes, as shown in FIG. 1, a narration text and a time at which the reading of the narration text is started. And queue information indicating the information. In this way, by adding the time information (cue information) of the video information at the time of starting reading out to the character information of the narration text and storing it in the script information storage device 3, the video information and the narration text are linked, and the cue information Is used so that they can be handled uniformly.

Each of the constituent blocks (1 to 6) as described above
In the work of creating a narration script based on the arrangement of (i) and the preparation of the script information, the character information of the narration sentence is specified at a specified timing by the time code of the video information taken out from the video information storage device 2. By making the synthesizer send and read out, it is easy to understand the length of time required to read out the narration sentence, create the narration sentence, determine the narration insertion timing, and send the narration sentence and cue (time code information) to the narrator. And a signal that both times of the queue information coincide with each other) can be presented as an electronic script that simultaneously displays (ie, supports narration).

In addition, during these operations, when the cue information is input from the input device 6 in addition to the narration text, the display device 5 simultaneously displays the character information and the video information of the narration text on the display device 5. Then, time information indicating a specific frame at the time of starting reading out is added to the narration text as cue information.

Here, the first half of the process of creating a narration script (electronic script) (this process is referred to as an input mode) will be sequentially described with reference to FIG. 1. The narration text is input and stored in the script information storage device 3 using the display device 5 and the input device 6. 2. The narration text is read from the script information storage device 3, displayed on the display device 5, and divided into units for reading as separate narration texts. 3. The video storage device 2 is operated using the input device 6, and the video information stored in the video storage device 2 is played back (including stop, playback, rewind, fast forward, frame forward, frame forward).
Then, the reproduced video information is displayed on the display device 5 and stopped at the video information (scene or cut) to be read out. 4. In response to an instruction from the input device 6, the control device 1 extracts the time code of the video information currently displayed on the display device 5 and records the time code in the script information storage device 3 as additional information of the corresponding narration text. This operation is to set the queue information in the narration text.

Similarly, in the process of creating the narration script (electronic script), the narration text is read out using the speech synthesizer 4 based on the cue information set in the input mode, following the input mode described above. The process of confirming the start timing and the reading time length to make it finally the one intended by the creator (this process is called preview mode) will be described in order with reference to FIG. I will explain later. 1. The mode of the control device 1 is switched from the input mode to the preview mode, and the video information is reproduced. 2. The cue information set in the script storage device 3 is extracted in ascending order of time, and the extracted cue information is compared with the time code information of the video information being reproduced. 3. When the two times match, the character information of the narration sentence is sent to the voice synthesizer 4 to generate a voice from the speaker 7. 4. During the reproduction of the video information, the video information and the character information of the narration sentence are displayed on the display device 5, and when the set time of the cue information comes, a mark indicating that it is the cue timing is displayed. 5. Switch between the input mode and the preview mode as needed, and reset the reading start time and the narration length to the ones intended by the creator.

As described above, in the preview mode, in order to confirm whether the narration text is set based on the reading start timing and the reading time length desired by the creator, the narration text is first added to the added time information. Sorted in the order of earliest. Next, when the video information is played back to confirm the timing of the cue information and the length of the narration text, the time of the time code information of the video information and the time of the cue information registered as additional information in the narration text are compared. When the two times match, the character information of the narration sentence is sent to the speech synthesizer 4 to be read aloud. The length and timing of the narration sentence can be confirmed by generating this output from the speaker 7 at the same time as the audio information attached to the video information being reproduced (audio information stored together with the video information in the video storage device from the beginning). Can be.

As described above, when the synthesized voice from the voice synthesizer 4 obtained through the speaker 7 has the narration sentence length and the timing of starting reading out which are intended by the creator, the control device 1 is set to the preview mode. Then, the narrator actually switches to the electronic script mode in which the narration is recorded in the audio track of the video storage device 2 (see also FIG. 3 for the electronic script mode).

In the electronic script mode, the movable piece of the switch SW (see FIGS. 1 to 3) for switching between the electronic script mode and the preview mode provided on the input side of the speech synthesizer 4 is tilted to the electronic script mode side. Therefore, the generation of the synthesized speech is stopped. At this time, a mark indicating that the time of the time code information coincides with the video information, the narration text, and the cue information is displayed on the display device 5, and can be used as an electronic script.

The narrator starts to read out the narration sentence along with the presentation of the mark while watching the displayed video information, the narration sentence and the mark indicating the coincidence of the above-mentioned time, so that the narrator can read the narration sentence. Narration can be recorded.
According to the electronic script in such a form, it is possible to prevent recording of a page turning sound which is a problem in the related art, a page error, a forgetting to put out a cue, and an error.

In the embodiment described above, in the electronic script mode, the reading start time at which the narrator reads out the narration text is displayed on the display device, indicating that the times indicated by the cue information and the time code information match. Although performed by the mark, this may be performed by a lamp which is turned on under the control of the control device. In addition, the start of reading out the narration text may be notified by an acoustic signal to an earphone or headphones worn by the narrator.

In the above-described embodiment, it is assumed that the video storage device is of a type that sequentially stores information such as a VTR. Therefore, narration is recorded on the audio track. Alternatively, if the video storage device is configured to be randomly accessible and the order of the cut video can be changed, and the cue information also includes the identification number of the video information of the cut, the video is associated with the corresponding video information. When the order of the cuts is changed, the narration sentence is also moved at the same time, so that there is an advantage that work such as resetting of cue information is not required.

In this case, the video information and the cue (a signal that both times of the time code information and the cue information match),
The relationship between the narration and the narration is as shown in FIG. 4. Considering that the target video information moves in the entire program due to, for example, editing work, the cue and the narration as the target are started. It is assumed that the cut is associated with the temporal position from the beginning of the video information of the cut corresponding to the time.

[0034]

According to the narration creation / recording support apparatus of the present invention, the narrator can adjust the number of characters in a narration sentence which is currently being read out by the creator himself or by calculating an approximate time based on the number of characters. By using this, it becomes possible to grasp (estimate) the time required to read out the narration when inputting the narration text.

According to the apparatus of the present invention, when specifying the queue for instructing the start of reading out the narration, the apparatus of the present invention stores the time code information of a specific frame of the corresponding video information as additional information to the narration text. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a queue from being forgotten to be put out, a delay in putting out a queue, and the like, and to be presented at an accurate timing every time.

Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention can present a program image to a creator by narration by a speech synthesizer, so that a specific image can be obtained as to whether the text content and timing of the narration are appropriate for production. Yes, it is effective for producing higher quality programs.

[0037] In addition, the video of the program is submitted to the narrator at the time of recording the narration, and the character information and the cue information of the narration sentence synchronized with the video information are automatically presented based on the cue information specified in advance. In this way, it is possible to prevent a mistake in hitting the queue and a delay in putting out the queue. Further, it is possible to prevent the paper turning sound and the page skipping that have occurred with the script of the paper. Furthermore, data created as an electronic script can be broadcasted using a route such as a teletext broadcast, so that it can be used as data such as subtitle broadcast.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a narration creation / recording support device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating how the device of the present invention operates in the input mode.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating how the apparatus of the present invention operates in the preview / electronic script mode.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing respective temporal positions of video information, a cue, and a narration when a random access type video storage device is used in the device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 control device 2 video storage device 3 script information storage device 4 voice synthesis device 5 display device 6 input device 7 speaker SW switch

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yuichi Mochizuki 1-10-11 Kinuta, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo Japan Broadcasting Corporation Broadcasting Research Institute

Claims (6)

[Claims] A narration recording function for storing video information and time code information indicating a start timing of the narration, wherein the stored video information and time code information are stored in accordance with an instruction from the control means. Video storage means to be taken out, narration text and cue information indicating the time at which the narration text is taken out are stored, and the time indicated by the stored cue information and the time code information taken out from the video storage means, respectively. When the control means detects the match, the script information storage means from which the narration text is retrieved, and the narration text retrieved from the script information storage means, are not supplied in the electronic script mode for narration recording,
Speech synthesizing means which is supplied only in the preview mode for judging the suitability of the narration and outputs the narration text as a synthesized voice signal, display means for displaying the video information and the narration text, the narration text and the cue information A narration creation / recording support apparatus, comprising: input means for inputting, and input means for supplying a control signal to the video storage means and the script information storage means via the control means. 2. The narration creation / recording support device according to claim 1, wherein, in addition to the video information and the narration text, a mark indicating that the time indicated by each of the cue information and the time code information coincides with each other. A narration creation / recording support device characterized in that it is displayed on a display means. 3. The narration creation / recording support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the control unit determines that the narration text-to-speech start time is reached, the control unit controls the narrator to indicate the start of the narration. A narration creation / recording support apparatus characterized in that the narration creation / recording support apparatus is performed by a lamp that is lit. 4. The narration creation / recording support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the control means determines that the narration text-to-speech start time is reached, the narrator wears the earphone or the earphone attached to the narrator. A narration creation / recording support device, wherein the narration is performed by an audio signal to headphones. 5. The narration creation / recording support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said video storage means is constituted by a sequential storage type storage means, and said narration is stored in said storage means during narration recording. A narration creation and recording support device characterized in that it is stored in an audio track. 6. The narration creation and recording support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said video storage means is constituted by a random access type storage means, and said cue information includes identification of a cut of video information. A narration creation / recording support apparatus characterized in that the number is included so that responsiveness can be given to the change of the cut order of the video information.