KR100312746B1 - Apparatus and method for transmitting user-selected viewing region in video communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for selectively transmitting a display area in a video communication system. Controls the image input and output to the camera 9 and the monitor 11, the arbitrary size input from the camera 9 ( Image input and output unit 10 for transmitting a video of the; Any size A display area controller 20 which receives a moving picture and a display area control signal of a control panel and controls a display area of a selected image to provide a QCIF image of a predetermined size (176x144) to be viewed by a remote user; A control interface unit 30 comprising a keyboard and a mouse to select a display area of an input image; A video codec 40 for compressing an image of a selected region and reconstructing the compressed image data to reproduce a bit string; An image controller (50) for providing protocol control and display data selection for image transmission of the remote system (70) in the local system, and providing a display area control signal when receiving an image from a remote location; A multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 which receives compressed image data and control data and performs multiplexing and demultiplexing; And a remote system 70 symmetric with the local system. Accordingly, since the graphic user interface is provided to the image transmission device, it is possible to select a display area and to transmit the image more efficiently and conveniently.

Description

Apparatus and method for transmitting user-selected viewing region in video communication system

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for selectively transmitting a display area in a video communication system. In particular, in a video communication system such as a video telephone, video communication, and video conferencing, a display of an image at a receiving side without mechanically changing the position of a remote camera In the video communication system for transmitting the selected image by controlling the display area using a control protocol, an image size conversion algorithm, and a user interface in order to more efficiently transmit the image so that the area can be easily selected and transmitted within a certain range, A selective transmission apparatus and method are disclosed.

Recently, as the necessity of video communication has increased and related technologies have been developed, various types of video telephones have been developed, and a technique for low bit video transmission using an early level video codec has been developed. To some extent, the development of intelligent products with the addition of pre-processing, post-processing, and user convenience to improve the transmission image is still incomplete. Up to now, in order to change the area displayed to the user in the developed video phone, the remote user has to manually change the direction of the camera. The disadvantage is a significant increase in price and hardware complexity.

According to US Patent No. 5,872,922, which relates to a graphical user interface (GUI) for video conference control and configuration with a video conference platform, by Michael J. Hogan and Reed Howard Rinn, February 16, 1999 Camera control, initial configuration and data transmission in terms of video conferencing for the proposed method and apparatus for a video conference user interface Intelligent video conferencing has been proposed to provide a window type user interface such as data transmission to change the displayed area of an image through dual camera control.

However, a method of selectively transmitting a video display area in a video conference in Korea has not yet been proposed, and the product price and hardware complexity are remarkable since the video display area depends on the horizontal movement and zoom of the camera. There is a problem that is greatly increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to display an image on a receiving side without mechanically changing the position of a remote camera in a video communication system such as a video telephone, video communication, and video conferencing. It provides a user interface using a simple control protocol and image resizing algorithm so that the area can be easily selected and transmitted within a certain range, and displayed in a video communication system that can selectively transmit the display area of the image more efficiently and conveniently. Provides an optional transmission device for the area.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a selective transmission method of a display area in a video communication system which is particularly suitable for performing the apparatus.

1 is a block diagram showing an apparatus for selectively transmitting a display area in a video communication system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed configuration diagram of the display area controller of FIG. 1. FIG.

3 is a screen showing the operation of the display area selector 20 and the QCIF converter 22 in the display area control of FIG.

4 is a user interface screen for controlling a display area of a video image.

5 is a configuration of a packet for selective video transmission.

6 is a user interface screen of the entire system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a frame configuration diagram of an image and an entire image of a selected region.

8 is a flowchart illustrating a selective transmission method of a display area in a video communication system according to the present invention.

<Explanation of Signs of Major Parts of Drawings>

9: camera 10: video input / output unit

20: display area control unit 21: display area selection unit

22: QCIF converter 30: control interface

40: video codec 50: video controller

60: multiplexing / demultiplexer 70: remote system

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a video communication system including a camera (9) for acquiring an image and a monitor (11) for viewing a transmitted image, the camera (9) and the monitor (11). Control the input and output images, respectively, and the arbitrary size input from the camera 9 ( An image input / output unit 10 for transmitting an image of the); Above any size ( Controls the display area of the selected image by receiving the video and remote display area control signal of) and provides the QCIF image and the local user display area selection signal of a certain size (176x144) that the remote user wants to see. A display area controller 20 for outputting; A control interface unit 30 configured as standard input / output means for selecting a display area of an input image; The local system receives the QCIF image of the area selected by the user, compresses the image, and multiplexes the compressed image data and the control data by the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and the video codec 40 inside the remote system 70. A video codec 40 for reconstructing symmetrically compressed image data to reproduce a bit stream; Receiving the local user display area selection signal, and performing the control for image transmission and the control of the display area selection when transmitting from the local system to the remote system 70, the control data is multiplexed / demultiplexer (60) An image controller (50) for providing the remote display area control signal to the display area controller (20) when received from the remote system (70); Multiplexed to receive the compressed image data and control data from the local system to the remote system 70 to transmit the local transmission image data and control data to the remote system 70, and after the transmission to the remote system (70) A multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 for separating by demultiplexing again at 70); And the camera 9, the image input / output unit 10, the display area controller 20, the control interface unit 30, the video codec 40, and the image control unit present in a local system. 50) and the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 as a symmetrically configured remote system 70 to provide a selective transmission apparatus of a display area in a video communication system.

In order to achieve the above another object, the present invention provides a video input / output step (S1) for providing a video of any size input from the camera (9), and outputs a display area controlled video to the monitor (11); (b) said arbitrary size ( Selecting a display region of the selected image by receiving a remote control region control signal by selecting a moving image and a display region selection of a local or remote system (S2); (c) Interpolation and Down Sampling methods are used in accordance with QCIF conversion to maintain a constant frame rate of the image by limiting the size of the image to be transmitted within a certain range due to the limitation on the communication line. A display area control step (S3) for providing a QCIF image of a predetermined size (176 × 144) that a remote user wants to see; (d) compressing the predetermined size (176x144) QCIF image in the video codec to provide compressed image data, and providing the control data to the image controller (S4); (e) receiving the compressed image data and the control data, multiplexing them together and providing a transport packet to a remote system (S5); (f) receiving the transmission packet from a remote system (70) and demultiplexing and separating the compressed image data and the control data (S6); And (g) recovering the compressed image data for reproducing the bit stream by restoring the compressed image data in the video codec 40 inside the remote system 70, and displaying the selected image as a user interface by controlling the display area. In the video communication system, characterized in that the step of outputting a video of the area (S7) provides a selective transmission method of the display area.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, an apparatus for selectively transmitting a display area in a video communication system according to the present invention includes a camera 9, an image input / output unit 10, a display area controller 20, a control interface unit 30, and a video codec ( CODEC) 40, an image controller 50, a local system composed of a multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and a remote system 70.

The remote system 70 includes the camera 9, the image input / output unit 10, the display area control unit 20, the control interface unit 30, which exists in a local system. The video codec 40, the image control unit 50, and the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 are constituted by the same components, and are symmetrically formed as a whole.

The image input / output unit 10 controls the image input / output to the camera 9 for image acquisition and the monitor 11 for viewing the transmitted image, respectively, the image input from the camera 9 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the display area is transferred to the display area selection unit 21 in the display area control unit 20.

The control interface unit 30 is composed of standard input / output means such as a keyboard and a mouse to select a display area from an input image.

The video codec 40 receives a QCIF image of a region selected by a user from a local system, compresses the image, and provides compressed image data to the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and provides the inside of the remote system 70. The video codec 40 reproduces a bit string by restoring symmetrically compressed image data.

The image controller 50 provides control data to the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 by performing control for image transmission and control of display area selection.

The multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 is multiplexed to be transmitted to the remote system 70 to receive the compressed image data and the control data to the remote system 70, and after the transmission, the remote system 70 Demultiplexed and separated by the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60. Local transmission image data is transmitted and received at a physical layer of OSI between the local system and the remote system.

Referring to FIG. 2, the display area controller 20 which performs display area control of an image includes two parts, a display area selector 21 and a QCIF converter 22.

The display area selection unit 21 is a remote display area control signal provided from the image control unit 50 and the image input / output unit by the position information of the upper left and lower right of the selected display area of the image in the remote system 70. By receiving the video provided in (10) and controlling the image display area to provide the image of the area to be viewed by the remote user to the QCIF converter 22.

FIG. 3 is a screen illustrating an operation of the display area selection unit 20 and the QCIF converter 22 in the display area control unit 20. The display area selection unit 20 may have any size ( Receiving a video from the video input / output unit 10 and receiving the remote display area control signal including information about two points of the position of the upper left and the position of the lower right in the selected rectangle of the image from the remote user. Take input and use information about two points Outputs a specific portion of the input image to the user interface in size, and the arbitrary size that the remote user wants to see ( : X and y, which are the size of the output image, provide an image of 0 <x <= X, 0 <y <= Y condition satisfied) to the QCIF converter 22.

The operation of the QCIF converter 22 is a random size that the remote user wants to see from the display area selector 21. ) Receives an image of a region of the image) and converts the image into a QCIF image having a predetermined size (176x144) and transmits the image to the video codec 40. Due to the limitation on the communication line, the size of the image to be transmitted should be limited within a certain range, and for the natural connection of the image, the frame rate should be maintained. Therefore, the image to be transmitted from the QCIF converter 22 has a size of 176x144 QCIF. Limited.

If the image size input from the display area selection unit 21 to the QCIF converter 22 is smaller than the QCIF image, that is, 0 <= x <176 or 0 <= y <144, interpolation method If the input image size is larger than the QCIF image, the image is reduced using a down-sampling method, and if the aspect ratio of the input image is different from the aspect ratio of the QCIF image, the arbitrary portion is cut or enlarged. The conversion is made equal to the aspect ratio of the QCIF image.

4 illustrates a window-based user interface for selecting an image. In the local system, location information of the selection area input to the display area of FIG. 2 is determined by the user interface. The user interface for selecting the display area is used by a user of a remote system that is symmetrical with the local system.

In Fig. 4, ① and ② are image zoom reduction tools for zooming in or out of the image, and ③ and ④ are toolbars for moving the position of the screen, respectively. ⑤ is to enlarge or reduce the selection window horizontally or vertically, ⑥ is to move the position of the selected area, and selection of the image display area is performed by using a mouse or a keyboard.

On the other hand, the image input and compressed in the local system is transmitted to the remote system 70 in a packet unit, and is transmitted in a packet unit for transmitting the selected image as shown in FIG.

The transport packet is divided into three parts, including control data, video data, and audio and user data. The control data is data for mutual control of an image transmission system, and the image data means a bit string generated by the video codec 40 and additionally transmits voice and user data.

Referring to FIG. 5, the control data includes general control and display area control for selective image transmission. The display area control includes a header portion for identification and up, down, left, and right position information of the display area.

6 illustrates a user interface of an entire system for a selective transmission apparatus of a display area in a video communication system. ⑦ in the user interface represents an entire image transmitted from a remote location, and a local user can change the location of the next image to be transmitted using the entire image. ⑧ is an image of receiving the area selected by the remote user, and ⑨ represents the area selected by the remote user. Through the user interface, it is possible to check the image selection status of the remote user and his appearance to be transmitted. Represents a user interface that can adjust the frame rate and compression rate of the video transmitted from the remote location, and should be appropriately adjusted according to the performance of the system or the situation of the transmission line. ⑪ is an information display area that displays the size of the display area (Window size) and the transmission status (Frame rate, Data rate).

Referring to FIG. 7, as described in the user interface of an image transmission system for selective transmission of an image, the local system should transmit the entire input image once to a remote location at a predetermined time in order for a counterpart to select a display area. If the entire video is sent too frequently, the frame rate of the selected video will be lowered, while if the video is sent too frequently, smooth video selection will be difficult. Therefore, it should be appropriately adjusted according to the situation of the transmission line and the capability of the transmission system.

Referring to FIG. 8, in the video communication system according to the present invention, the selective transmission method of the display area may include a random size inputted from the camera 9 to the video input / output unit 10. ) Is provided to the display area selection unit 21 in the display area control unit 21, and the video input / output unit 10 outputs the display area controlled video to the monitor 11 (step S1). . Above any size ( The display area control signal by inputting a moving picture and a display area control signal by a display area selection of a local system or a remote system, and selecting a display area of the selected image to display an image of an area to be viewed by the remote user. To the QCIF converter 22 (step S2). Interpolation and downsampling by the QCIF converter 22 to maintain a constant frame rate of the image by limiting the size of the image to be transmitted within a certain range due to limitations on the communication line. By using to provide the video codec 40 of the predetermined size (176x144) QCIF image that the remote user wants to see (step S3). The predetermined size (176x144) of the QCIF image is input from the video codec 40 and compressed to provide the compressed image data to the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and the image controller 50 provides the control data. Provided to the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60 (step S4). The compressed image data and the control data are inputted from the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, multiplexed, and combined to provide a transport packet to the remote system 70 (step S5). The remote system 70 receives the transmission packet and demultiplexes the multiplexed / demultiplexer 60 to separate the compressed image data and the control data (step S6), and the inside of the remote system 70 The video codec 40 restores the compressed video data to restore the bit stream, and outputs a video of the display area selected by the display area controller 20 as a user interface to the video input / output. The monitor 10 outputs to the monitor (step S7).

For reference, the existing video phone can use 4CIF ( After acquiring the image of the Is converted to QCIF image. If the 4CIF image obtained from the camera is sent as it is, the frame rate per second is too low to see a very unnatural image, so the user of the destination selectively sets the display area of the image for the 4CIF image input from the remote place. By converting the area to a QCIF image, it is possible to easily change the display area of the transmitted image without changing the direction of the camera at a remote location and to enlarge a specific portion without additional degradation.

Accordingly, the present invention is an improved method of efficiently processing image information obtained from a camera, unlike an existing method of reducing and sending a given image information. Accordingly, the present invention can more efficiently adjust the display area selection of an image through a user interface.

As described above, the apparatus and method for selectively transmitting the display area in the video communication system according to the present invention is an image display area at the receiving side without mechanically changing the position of the remote camera in the video communication system such as video communication and video conferencing. Can be easily selected within a certain range, that is, a display area can be selected for an image obtained from After converting to QCIF video, it can be compressed and transmitted to the remote user. By suggesting a graphical user interface, the video display area can be easily and efficiently adjusted by the display area control signal by the user. In the video communication system such as, there is an effect that can be applied as an intelligent additional function.

While the foregoing has been described with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art will be able to variously modify and change the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims below. It will be appreciated.

Claims (4)

In a video communication system having a camera (9) for image acquisition and a monitor (11) for viewing the transmitted image, An image input / output unit (10) for controlling an image inputted to and outputted from the camera (9) and the monitor (11), and for transmitting a video input from the camera (9); Controlling the display area of the selected video by receiving the video and remote display area control signals to provide a QCIF image and a local user display area selection signal of a certain size that the remote user wants to see, and a display area for outputting video when received from a remote site Control unit 20; A control interface unit 30 configured as standard input / output means for selecting a display area of an input image; A video codec 40 for receiving and compressing a QCIF image of a region selected by a local user, providing compressed image data to a multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and reconstructing the compressed image data to reproduce a bit stream; Receives the local user display area selection signal, performs control for image transmission and control of display area selection to provide control data to the multiplexer / demultiplexer 60, and control the remote display area when the image is received. An image controller 50 for providing a signal to the display area controller 20; And A video communication system including a multiplexing / demultiplexer (60) for receiving compressed image data and control data, multiplexing and combining the region-transmitted image data in a region, and demultiplexing and separating the received region-transmitted image data. At least two, And transmitting and receiving the compressed image data and the control data between the respective video communication systems. The display area control unit 20 of claim 1, The remote display area control signal provided from the image control unit 50 is input by the video information input from the image input / output unit 10 and the position information of the selected display area of the image received from the remote place, and the image is selected from the remote user. Display area selector 21 for providing an image of an area to be viewed by a remote user by controlling the image display area to output information about two points of the upper left position and the lower right position in the rectangle to the user interface for receiving. ; And Receiving an image of the area to be viewed by the remote user from the display area selection unit 21 to limit the size of the image to be transmitted on the communication line in a certain range and to maintain a constant frame rate, from the display area selection unit 21 If the input image size is smaller than the QCIF image, the image is enlarged. If the input image size is larger than the QCIF image, the image is enlarged. If the aspect ratio of the input image is different from the aspect ratio of the QCIF image, the portion is cut or enlarged to equal the aspect ratio of the QCIF image. And a QCIF converter (22) configured to provide a QCIF image of a predetermined size by converting the image to a predetermined size. (a) an image input / output step (S1) of providing a moving picture of an arbitrary size input from the camera 9 and outputting the display area controlled moving picture to the monitor 11; (b) receiving a remote display area control signal by selecting a moving image and a display area of the local or remote system, and selecting a display area of the selected image (S2); (c) a display area for providing a QCIF image of a certain size that a remote user wants to view by using interpolation and iterative method according to QCIF conversion in order to maintain a constant frame rate of the image by limiting the size of the image to be transmitted within a certain range Control step S3; (d) compressing the QCIF image of a predetermined size in a video codec to provide compressed image data, and providing image control data to the image controller (S4); (e) receiving the compressed image data and the control data, multiplexing them together and providing a transport packet to a remote system (S5); (f) receiving the transmission packet from a remote system (70) and demultiplexing and separating the compressed image data and the control data (S6); And (g) restoring the compressed image data in the remote system 70 to restore the compressed image data to reproduce the bit string, and outputting a moving image of the display region selected by the user interface by the display region control; And (S7), the selective transmission method of the display area in the video communication system. (a) an image input / output step (S1) of providing a moving picture of an arbitrary size input from the camera 9 and outputting the display area controlled moving picture to the monitor 11; (b) receiving a remote display area control signal by selecting a moving image and a display area of the local or remote system, and selecting a display area of the selected image (S2); (c) a display area for providing a QCIF image of a certain size that a remote user wants to view by using interpolation and iterative method according to QCIF conversion in order to maintain a constant frame rate of the image by limiting the size of the image to be transmitted within a certain range Control step S3; (d) compressing the QCIF image of a predetermined size in a video codec to provide compressed image data, and providing image control data to the image controller (S4); (e) receiving the compressed image data and the control data, multiplexing them together and providing a transport packet to a remote system (S5); (f) receiving the transmission packet from a remote system (70) and demultiplexing and separating the compressed image data and the control data (S6); And (g) restoring the compressed image data in the remote system 70 to restore the compressed image data to reproduce the bit string, and outputting a moving image of the display region selected by the user interface by the display region control; A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing (S7) on a computer.