KR20010024872A - Videotape indexing system - Google Patents

Abstract

The system of the present invention indexes the video stored on the videotape. The system includes a video recorder that generates a video signal corresponding to the video stored on the video tape and applies an index marker to the video tape according to the command. The computing device receives the video signal from the video recorder, detects the predetermined feature based on the video signal, instructs the video recorder to apply the index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and stores the index marker. . The computing device also issues a second command to the video recorder that includes an index marker that defines the position, such that the video tape advances to the particular position. The video recorder receives this second command and, in response, searches for the video tape for the index marker included in the second command, and advances the video tape to the position of the index marker.

Description

Video tape indexing system

Information stored on digital storage media such as digital video discs (DVDs) and compact discs (CDs) can be accessed fairly easily due to direct addressing. Unfortunately this does not apply to information stored on VHS videotape covering analog storage media, especially most home video libraries and other non-indexing specifiers (indexers). More specifically, in order to access the information stored on the videotape, it is necessary to pan the videotape until the desired information is reached.

When videotape was first introduced, this process was particularly tedious because there was no way to distinguish the information stored on the videotape. Instead, it was necessary to manually pan the tape around (eg in fast forward mode) while watching the video tape to reach the desired information. Recognizing the inefficiency of this process, technicians have developed an improved method of access stored on videotape. For example, in the VHS indexed search system (VISS), an electronic marker is placed at the beginning of each new recording session (eg, television program, home movie, video clip, etc.) on a videotape. Video recorders recognizing these electronic markers can thus scroll relatively easily from the beginning of one clip to the beginning of another clip.

Although the VISS marker represents an advance in the technology, there is a flaw. For example, the VISS markers do not identify the information stored in each marker. As a result, those markers are of little value, especially when the user is not sure what is stored on the videotape. Moreover, it is inconvenient to use VISS markers to access the middle part of a video clip, because the VIS marker must be manually inserted in the middle part (as opposed to the starting point where the marker is automatically inserted). For this reason, conventional video tape indexing systems that rely on VISS markers have not been completely satisfactory.

Thus, there is a need for a more advanced video tape indexing system. In particular, there is a need for a video tape indexing system capable of identifying video clips stored on a video tape or automatically accessing a video clip or the middle thereof. Since the function of these buttons is well known, detailed description thereof is omitted.

The present invention relates to a system for maintaining an index of information stored on a videotape or other recordable medium and using that index to automatically find information on the videotape. The system includes a video recorder (recorder) that applies an index marker (such as a VASS pulse) to a specific location on the video tape, and a computing device (such as a personal computer) that stores these index markers together with identification information corresponding thereto. ). A personal computer is used to retrieve one of these index markers from memory based on identification information, for example, to cause the video recorder to advance the video tape to the specific location identified by the index marker.

1 illustrates a system implementing the present invention comprising a personal computer, a video recorder and a television.

2 illustrates a structure of a personal computer.

3 illustrates the structure of a video recorder.

4 illustrates the process steps of the present invention for generating an index for a video tape in a video recorder.

5 shows the process steps of the present invention for accessing video on a video tape using an index.

The present invention seeks to satisfy this demand. Specifically, the present invention is a system consisting of a video recorder and a computing device such as a personal computer. In operation, the video recorder applies an index marker, preferably a VASS pulse, to the position of the video tape in response to a command from the personal computer. The personal computer stores these index markers with information identifying the portion of the video (eg, video clip) on the video tape corresponding to the index markers. To access a selected portion of the video, the personal computer retrieves the index marker, for example based on its identification information, and issues a command to the video recorder to instruct the video recorder to advance the video tape to the position of the index marker. The video recorder then correspondingly provides the user access to the selected video portion in response.

Thus, unlike conventional devices, the present invention can identify a video (eg, a video clip) on a video tape and automatically access that portion once a portion of the video is selected. Furthermore, the present invention provides a method of accessing the middle portion of a video clip on a video tape by a VASS pulse that can be applied to the video tape at every video scene change. For at least this reason, the present invention constitutes an improvement over conventional methods.

Thus, according to one aspect, the present invention is a system (eg, method, apparatus and computer executable process steps) for indexing video stored on a videotape. In operation, the system detects certain features in the video and then applies a unique index marker, preferably a VASS pulse, to the video tape at the location of the predetermined features. The index marker is then stored in memory. In a preferred embodiment the invention also stores identification information with this index marker. In this way the present invention can associate each index marker and thus associate each part of the video on the video tape with the corresponding identifying information. As a result, the index marker can be retrieved from the memory using this identification information.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the above described characteristic of the video is scene change. In these embodiments, the scene change is detected by detecting a difference between adjacent frames of the video and comparing the difference with a predetermined threshold. If the difference coincides with or exceeds the predetermined threshold, the scene difference is detected. If the difference is less than or equal to the predetermined threshold, the scene difference is not detected. By applying index markers to scene changes, the present invention has greater flexibility in index designation than in the prior art. That is, unlike the prior art, which relies on the VASS pulse, the present invention can also apply an index marker to the middle portion of the video.

According to another aspect, the invention is a system for accessing a portion of video stored on a video tape comprising a plurality of preset index markers, preferably VASS pulses. In operation, the system inputs an index marker corresponding to one of a plurality of preset index markers on the video tape on the video tape, and then inserts the video tape for the preset index marker corresponding to the index marker entered. Search through. The videotape then advances to the position of the preset index marker corresponding to the input index marker.

According to another aspect, the present invention is an apparatus such as a personal computer for indexing video stored on a videotape. The apparatus includes a processor and a memory storing computer executable process steps. The processor may (i) detect certain features in the video, (ii) the video recorder applies index markers, in particular VASS pulses, to the video tape at the location of the predetermined features, and (iii) store the index markers in memory. To execute the process steps.

According to yet another aspect, the invention is an apparatus such as a video recorder for accessing portions of video stored on a video tape comprising a plurality of preset index markers. The apparatus includes a control signal lead for receiving an index marker corresponding to one of a plurality of preset index markers on the video tape. The apparatus also includes circuitry for searching the video tape for a preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker and for advancing the video tape to the position of the preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker.

According to yet another aspect, the present invention is a system for indexing video stored on a video tape. The system includes a video recorder that generates a video signal corresponding to the video stored on the videotape and applies a unique index marker to the videotape according to the command. The system also receives a video signal from the video recorder, detects a predetermined feature based on the video signal, instructs the video recorder to apply the index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and provides the index marker. A computing device for storing is included.

The above brief description of the invention is intended to provide a thorough understanding of the characteristics of the invention. A more complete understanding of the invention will become possible with reference to the following description of the preferred embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

1 shows a system that can implement the present invention. As shown, the system 1 comprises a computing device, a video recorder and a display device. In a preferred embodiment, the computing device is a personal computer (PC) and the display device is a video display device / monitor, such as a television, but other types of devices may be used in the above two cases. Therefore, although the present invention is described herein with respect to the personal computer 2 and the television 4, the present invention is not limited to the specific hardware.

In brief, the television 4 is a standard television capable of receiving analog video signals from the video recorder 3 and generating and displaying video based on those signals. The video recorder 3 is any device such as a video cassette recorder (VCR) or a video tape player capable of generating such video signals from the video tape and outputting these signals to the television 4 and the PC 2 in this case. It is. As will be described in detail below, the video recorder 3 can thus add, recognize, delete, and control indexing markers on the video tape and control its operation in accordance with commands from the PC 2. As such, the PC may be any type of device, such as an IBM 7 compatible computer, an Apple computer, etc., capable of exchanging signals with the video recorder 3 in the following manner.

As shown in Fig. 1, the PC 2 comprises a control signal connection line 5 (e.g., a data line such as serial or parallel or an I ² C port) and a baseband analog connection line 6, both of which are video recorders. Interface to (3). The PC 2 also positions the cursor on the display screen 7 for displaying information (including images / videos) to the user, the keyboard 9 for entering text and user commands, the display screen 7 and A mouse 8 for inputting user commands, a disk drive 10 for reading and writing floppy disks installed therein, and a CD-ROM drive 11 for accessing data stored in the CD-ROM Doing. Of course, the PC 2 is not limited to use with these digital recording media, and others can also be used.

2 shows the internal structure of the PC 2. As shown, the PC 2 also includes a memory 12, a display interface 14, a keyboard interface 15, a mouse interface 16, a disk drive interface 17, a CD-ROM drive interface 19, a computer. The bus 20 includes a random access memory (RAM) 21, an analog-to-digital (A / D) converter 22, a frame acquisition circuit 24, and a processor 25. The processor 25 includes a microprocessor or the like for executing an application (program) 26 from the RAM 21. The memory 12 is a computer readable medium such as a computer hard disk and / or RAID (redundant row of cheap diskettes) for storing these applications. Among the applications stored in the memory 12 is a video tape index designation 27. Video tape index designation 27 is used to practice the present invention as follows. In addition to the application 26, the memory 12 also stores data 29 and operating system 30. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the operating system 30 is a windowed (windows) operating system, although other systems may be used.

Applications stored in memory 12, including video tape index designations (programs) 27, may be stored on a floppy disk in disk drive 10 or on a CD-ROM in CD-ROM drive 11. . In this case, the processor 25 uses a disk drive interface 17 to access an application stored on a floppy disk and a CD-ROM interface 19 to access an application stored on a CD-ROM.

Wherever the application is stored, its execution is performed using the keyboard 9 or the mouse 8, and the commands are transmitted to the processor 25 via the keyboard interface 15 and the mouse interface 16, respectively. Output results from the application running on the PC 2 may be processed by the display interface 14 and then displayed on the user's display 7, or output from the video tape index designation 27. In the case of a result, it can be output to the video recorder 3 via the control signal connection line 5.

In this regard, the display interface 14 is preferably a display processor which forms an image based on the image data provided by the processor 25 and outputs the image to the display 7. As for the remaining parts of the PC 2, the A / D converter 22 is an analog-to-digital signal which numbers the analog video signal received via the baseband analog connection line 6 and generates a digital video signal therefrom. The frame grabber circuit 24 inputs this digital video signal, generates frames of the digital video based thereon, and processes the frames via the bus 20 to be processed by the video tape index designator 27. To 25).

In brief, the video tape index designation 27 is in computer executable code (ie, process steps (processing procedures)) for indexing the video stored on the video tape. For this purpose, the video tape index designator 27 detects one or more predetermined features in the video, and also adds unique index markers at the locations of the predetermined features of the video and places the index markers in a memory, such as memory 12. The code to issue the first command to the video recorder to store the. Video tape index designator 27 also includes computer executable code for using the index to select a portion of video on the video tape. For this purpose, the video tape index designator 27 is second to retrieve the index marker from the index and also to the video recorder to locate the index marker on the video tape and instruct the video tape to advance to the position of the index marker. Contains code to issue the command. The video tape index designation 27 will be described in more detail next.

As shown in FIG. 1, the video recorder 3 has a control signal connection line 5 and a baseband analog connection line 6 for connecting to a PC 2, and a television connection line 34 for connecting with a television 4. It includes. The television connection line 34 is used to transmit an analog video signal from the video recorder 3 to the television 4. The base band analog connection line 6 is an interface through which an analog video signal is connected to the PC 2 and the control signal connection line 5 is a bidirectional interface through which commands are received from the PC 2 and the other. Information can be exchanged with the PC 2. The video recorder 3 also has several control buttons 35. These control buttons in particular have a play button, fast forward button, rewind button, stop button and program button.

3 shows the structure of the video recorder 3. As shown, the video recorder 3 is particularly characterized by a baseband analog interface 36, a control signal interface 37, a baseband analog interface 38, a VASS pulse circuit 39, a video processing circuit 40, and a tape. The drive 41 is included. The base band analog interface 36 outputs a signal to the base band analog connection line 6 and the base band analog interface 36 inputs a signal (for example, video information to be recorded) from the television 4. The control signal interface 37 receives and processes a command from the PC 2 and a signal received from an external device such as a remote controller. The tape drive 41 includes a mechanism for controlling video tape movement and circuitry for reading information from various tracks on the video tape. Specifically, the tape drive 41 reads audio information from an audio track of a video tape and writes the information therein, and control information (for example, VASS-VHS address search system-described below) in a control track of a video tape. And a video head for reading and recording video information in a video track of a video tape.

The video processing circuit 40 generates an analog video signal from the video information read by the video head in the tape drive 41 and provides the analog video signal to the PC 2 via the base band connection line 6. The video processing circuit 40 also writes the video information to the video tape in the tape drive 41. The VASS pulse circuit 39 records and reads the VASS pulse in the control track of the installed video tape according to the command received from the PC 2. These VASS pulses contain index markers in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Using current technology, 10,000 VASS pulses from 0 to 9999 can be recorded on a single control track on one video tape. A detailed description of the technical aspects of the VASS pulses is described in ANSI / SMPTE Standard 12M-1995, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

4 and 5 are flowsheets showing process steps for implementing the present invention using the system of FIG. Specifically, FIG. 4 shows building a video tape index and FIG. 5 shows accessing a portion of video on a video tape using the video tape index. Whether the process steps are carried out using the PC 2 (eg by the video index designation 27) or using the video recorder 3 are indicated by (PC) or (VTR) in FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively. It is.

First, in step S401 in FIG. 4, the video recorder 3 generates an analog video signal from the installed video tape and provides the signal to the PC 2. More specifically, in the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the video head of the tape drive 41 reads video information from the video track of the video tape and supplies the video information to the video processing circuit 40. Using this video information, the video processing circuit 40 generates an analog video signal and outputs the analog video signal to the PC 2 via the base band analog connection line 6.

In step S402, the PC 2 receives an analog video signal via the baseband analog connection line 6, processes the analog video signal, and generates a frame of video data therefrom. Specifically, the A / D converter 22 receives and digitizes the analog video signal, and the frame grabber circuit 24 generates a frame of video data using the digitized video signal. Frames of these video data are then temporarily stored in a storage device, such as memory 12 or RAM 21, from which those frames are stored by processor 25, or more specifically processor 25. It is accessible by the video index designation 27 running at. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, surrogate frames may be stored in different memory banks (eg, in different regions of one memory or in different memory devices). For example, the first frame may be stored in bank 1, the second frame in bank 2, the third frame in bank 1, the fourth frame in bank 2. Storing the surrogate frames in this way makes it easier for the processor 25 to access them, thereby increasing the speed and efficiency of the system as a whole.

In this regard, in step S403 video index designation 27 retrieves two adjacent frames of video from memory to detect their predetermined features. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, these predetermined features are scene changes, but it should be noted that the present invention is not limited to detecting scene changes. Step S403 detects scene differences in the video by detecting a difference between adjacent frames of the video and comparing the difference with a predetermined threshold. For example, step S403 will detect differences, such as luminance, chromaticity, etc., in the corresponding pixels of the previous frame or the next frame in time and then compare these differences with, for example, predetermined numerical values stored in the memory 12. One particular method that can be used to detect scene differences in step S403 is, US Patent Application 08, filed June 2, 1997, entitled "Important Scene Detection and Frame Filtering for Visual Indexing Systems". / 867,140, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Next, in step S404, the video index designation 27 controls a command to instruct the video recorder 3 to apply a VASS pulse to the control track of the video tape at a position corresponding to the detected scene change. The video recorder 3 is issued via the signal connection line 5. This is preferably done automatically, meaning that this is done without user intervention, but this action may be made in response to user input. Further, step S404 preferably instructs the video recorder to apply the numbered VASS pulses so that the various pulses can be distinguished from each other on the video tape.

In step S405, the previous command is received by the video recorder 3 via the control signal connection line 5 and supplied to the VASS pulse circuit 39. In response to this command, the pulse circuit 39 writes the numbered VASS pulses to the control track of the video tape. In the meantime, in step S406 (this step can be done together with step S405), the PC 2 stores the number of the VASS pulses recorded in step S405 together with the frame of the video corresponding thereto in the storage device. Let's do it. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, each index marker is stored in a temporary memory such as RAM 21, and when the list of index markers is completed, the list is stored in a permanent memory such as memory 12.

The process then proceeds to step S407, which determines if there are remaining video frames to process. If there is remaining, the process returns to step S403 and then repeats the above to generate a video index for the video tape and store it in the storage device, which index of the VASS pulses for all detected scene changes in the video. It contains a list. On the other hand, if there are no remaining frames, the flow then advances to step S408.

Step S408 determines whether to remove similar scenes and monochromatic scenes from the video tape index generated as above. In this regard, a monochromatic scene is detected based on the frame symbol from each part of the frame. This step is optional and is performed by the video tape index designation 27 according to, for example, user input or predetermined settings. Thus, if step S408 determines not to remove similar or single scenes, the process proceeds to step S410. If not, the flow advances to step S409 where VASS pulses corresponding to similar or monochromatic scenes are removed from the videotape and index. For this purpose, step S409 retrieves the frames from the memory 12, determines the difference between adjacent retrieved frames, and subtracts these differences from the first threshold used in step S403 above. Compare with 2 thresholds. If the difference between two adjacent frames matches or exceeds the second threshold, it is determined that the two frames do not become a similar scene, in which case the VASS pulses corresponding to them are not eliminated.

If the VASS pulse and the difference is less than this threshold, it is determined that the two frames are similar scenes. In this case, a command is output from the PC 2 via the control signal connecting line 5. This command instructs the control head in the tape drive 41 to traverse the control track of the video tape and also to the VASS pulse circuit 39 to erase by number a VASS pulse corresponding to a similar or monochromatic scene. For example, if step S409 determines that VASS pulse number 570 is at the point of the similar or monochromatic frame, then ask the control head to search the video tape to find the VASS pulse number 570 and also to the VASS pulse circuit 39. The command is output to erase the pulse. While the VASS pulse is erased from the video tape, the video processor 25 also deletes the VASS pulse determined to correspond to a similar or monochromatic scene from the video tape index (ie from memory). The VASS pulse and its index may be renumbered during this process, if desired, to maintain its continuity. Once all the undesired VASS pulses are removed and their numbers are erased from the video tape index, the process proceeds to step S410. In step S410, the user can add identification information to the index, which is then stored with each VASS pulse. Specifically, the user can retrieve the video tape index from memory and then add this information to the index. The identification information includes, for example, a description of the video on the video tape corresponding to each VASS pulse. Of course, the invention is not limited to the addition of descriptive information. In fact, the user can add whatever information the user desires. Once all identification information has been applied, the process ends.

The video tape index generated by the steps of FIG. 4 can be used to automatically access video stored on a video tape in a video recorder. 5 shows the steps for performing this process. First, a video tape with a stored index is inserted into a video recorder. In step S501, the video tape index designation 27 retrieves the index for the video tape from memory in accordance with a user's input, for example, via the keyboard 9. It simply queries the memory for a specific index / tape ID (e.g. tape #XYZ) or retrieves all the indexes stored in memory, displays those indexes on the display 7 and then installs the video according to user input. By selecting an index for the tape, this can be done. The user can then select a VASS pulse from the selected index. To facilitate selection, the identification information corresponding to each VASS pulse in the index is also displayed. So the user will select a VASS pulse corresponding to, for example, a particular television program, home movie, or the like.

In either case, once the appropriate VASS pulse is selected, processing proceeds to step S502. In step S502, the video tape index designation 27 issues a second command to the video recorder 3 via the control signal connection line 5. The second command includes the numbered VASS pulse selected in step S501, and an instruction to cause the video recorder to advance the video tape to that VASS pulse on the video tape. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, this second command may alternatively be input to the video recorder via a remote control device or the like. This second command is received by the video recorder at step 503.

Next, according to the second command, in step S504, the tape driver 41 (especially the control head) searches the videotape to find the VASS pulse corresponding to the VASS pulse received with the second command and the videotape. Controls forward to the position of the VASS pulse. Specifically, the control head recognizes the current position of the video tape and then begins rewinding or rapidly advancing the tape as appropriate while reading the video tape to detect the first VASS pulse. If the number of first detected VASS pulses is greater than the number of VASS pulses in the second command, the video recorder switches to or continues the rewind mode. On the other hand, if the number of first detected VASS pulses is smaller than the number of VASS pulses in the second command, the video recorder switches to or continues in the fast forward mode. The video recorder then continues in the proper mode by the control head reading the VASS pulse until it reaches the VASS pulse from the second command. Once the pulse is reached, the video recorder stops the tape at the location of the pulse. In the absence of that particular pulse for some reason, the video recorder stops at the position of the next pulse. Then, in step S505, the user can play the tape starting at an appropriate position. The process then ends.

At this point, the invention has been described above using various hardware circuits in addition to computer code, but most of the functionality of this circuit may be performed by computer code as another method. For example, the A / D converter 22 and the frame grabber circuit 24 (function of) in the PC 2 may be partly implemented by computer code, but hardware is more preferred. Similarly, video processing circuit 40 and VASS pulse circuit 39 may also be implemented in one device, for example in a single separate circuit, or even as a microprocessor (non-display) that executes suitable computer code. . Moreover, it should be noted that any of the above functions, executed by computer code, may be implemented using separate hardware circuitry. For example, the above steps regarding detecting scene changes may be implemented by suitable hardware.

Moreover, while the preferred embodiment of the present invention uses the VASS pulse as an index marker, it should be noted that the present invention is not necessarily limited to using the VASS pulse. That is, the present invention can use various types of unique (eg numbered) index markers that can be added to an analog tape and then tracked on the tape. For this reason, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the scope of the video tape. In other words, the present invention can be applied to any type of analog tape, such as an audio tape, where an index marker can be filled in and such a marker can be tracked thereon.

Finally, it should be noted that the process steps shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 need not be realized in the same order as indicated, and that the indicated order is merely one way to realize the present invention. Thus, other order of execution is acceptable as long as the functionality of the present invention is maintained.

The present invention has been described with respect to certain exemplary embodiments. It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and variations thereof, and that various changes and modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. There will be.

Claims (43)

In the method of indexing video stored on a videotape, Detecting a predetermined feature of the video, Adding an index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and And storing the index marker in a memory. The method of claim 1, Wherein the predetermined feature comprises a scene change in the video. The method of claim 2, The detecting step detects a scene difference in the video by (i) detecting a difference between adjacent frames of the video and (ii) comparing the difference with a predetermined threshold, wherein the detecting step detects the difference between the predetermined threshold and the predetermined threshold. And if the difference is equal to or exceeds the threshold, detecting the scene difference, and the detecting step does not detect the scene difference if the difference is less than or equal to the predetermined threshold. The method of claim 1, And the index marker comprises a VASS pulse. The method of claim 1, And said adding step is performed in response to user input. The method of claim 1, And the storing step further comprises storing identification information with an index marker. The method of claim 6, And wherein said identification information includes a description of a video on a video tape corresponding to an identification marker. The method of claim 1, Wherein said detecting and storing step is performed in a personal computer and the adding step is performed in a video recorder. A method of accessing a portion of video stored on a videotape containing a plurality of preset index markers, the method comprising: Inputting an index marker corresponding to one of a plurality of preset index markers on the videotape, Searching the videotape for a preset index marker corresponding to the input index marker, and Advancing the video tape to the position of a preset marker corresponding to the index marker. The method of claim 9, The input marker and the plurality of preset index markers access a portion of video comprising a VASS pulse. The method of claim 9, Wherein the input step comprises retrieving a list of pre-stored index markers from memory and selecting input markers from the list. The method of claim 9, Wherein the input step is performed on a personal computer and the search and advance steps are performed by a video recorder. An apparatus for indexing video stored on a video tape, the apparatus comprising: Memory for storing computer executable process steps, and (Iii) instruct the video recorder to detect a predetermined feature in the video, (ii) add an index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and (iii) store the index marker in memory. An apparatus for indexing a video comprising a processor that executes steps. The method of claim 13, An interface through which an analog signal corresponding to video on the video tape is received from a video recorder, An analog-to-digital converter for digitizing the analog signal to generate a digital video signal, and A frame grabber circuit for generating frames of video based on the digital video signal and outputting frames of video to a processor; And the processor detects a predetermined feature in the video based on the frame of the video. The method of claim 14, The processor determines (i) the difference between adjacent frames of video, (ii) compares the difference with a predetermined threshold, and detects a predetermined feature, And the predetermined characteristic is detected when the difference coincides with or exceeds the predetermined threshold, and is not detected when the difference is less than or equal to the predetermined threshold. The method of claim 13, And the predetermined feature comprises a scene change in the video. The method of claim 13, And the index marker comprises a VASS pulse. The method of claim 13, And the processor issuing a command in response to a user input. The method of claim 13, And the processor executes a process step to store identification information with an index marker. The method of claim 19, And the identification information includes a description of the video on the video tape corresponding to the identification marker. The method of claim 13, The processor may (i) retrieve an index marker from memory, and (ii) issue a second command to the video recorder to instruct the video recorder to find the index marker on the video tape and advance the video tape to the location of the index marker. Video indexing apparatus for executing the processing steps. The method of claim 21, The processor is configured to: (i) retrieve a list of a plurality of index markers from memory, (ii) display the list, and (i) retrieve index markers from the list according to user selection to retrieve index markers. Indexing device. The method of claim 13, And the device is a personal computer. An apparatus for accessing portions of video stored on a video tape that includes a plurality of preset index markers, the apparatus comprising: An interface for receiving an index marker corresponding to one of a plurality of preset index markers on the video tape, and For accessing a portion of the video comprising circuitry for searching the videotape for a preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker and for controlling the video tape to advance to the position of the preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker. Device. The method of claim 24, Prior to retrieving the index markers, circuitry for adding a plurality of preset index markers to the video tape in response to a command received from an external device. The method of claim 24, And the received index marker and a plurality of preset index markers are for accessing a portion of video that is a VASS pulse. The method of claim 24, And the index marker accesses a portion of video received from a personal computer via a data line. The method of claim 24, The device is a video recorder. In a computer executable process step stored on a computer readable medium for indexing video stored on a video tape, Code for detecting a predetermined feature in the video, Code for instructing the video recorder to apply an index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and Computer-executable process steps comprising code for storing an index marker in memory. The method of claim 29, The detection code detects a predetermined feature by (i) determining a difference between adjacent frames of video and (ii) comparing the difference with a predetermined threshold, wherein the predetermined feature matches the predetermined threshold or Or if the threshold is exceeded, and the predetermined characteristic is not detected if the difference is less than the predetermined threshold. The method of claim 29, A computer executable process step wherein the feature is a scene change in video. The method of claim 29, Wherein said index marker is a VASS pulse. The method of claim 29, Computer-executable process step of causing the code to issue an instruction in response to a user input. The method of claim 29, And the storing code stores the identification information in memory along with an index marker. The method of claim 29, Said identification information being a description of a video on a videotape corresponding to an identification marker. The method of claim 29, Code for retrieving the index marker from the memory, and issuing a second command to the video recorder to direct the video recorder to find the index marker on the video tape and advance the video tape to the position of the index marker. Computer executable process steps. The method of claim 36, The search code includes code for retrieving a list of a plurality of index markers from memory, code for displaying a list, and code for retrieving index markers from the list according to user selection. . A system for indexing video stored on videotape, A video recorder for generating a video signal corresponding to the video stored on the video tape and applying an index marker to the video tape according to the command; A computing device for receiving a video signal from the video recorder, detecting a predetermined feature based on the video signal, instructing the video recorder to apply an index marker to the video tape at the location of the predetermined feature, and storing the index marker System comprising a. The method of claim 38, The computing device issues a second command to the video recorder comprising an index marker defining a position such that the video tape advances to a specific position; The video recorder receives a second command from the computing device, and in response thereto (iii) searches for the video tape for the index marker included in the second command and (ii) advances the video tape to the location of the index marker. The method of claim 38, The predetermined feature is a scene change in video. The method of claim 38, The index marker is a VASS pulse. The method of claim 38, The video tape comprises a plurality of tracks, one of which is a control track, wherein a VASS pulse is applied to the control track by the video recorder. An apparatus for accessing portions of video stored on a video tape that includes a plurality of preset index markers, the apparatus comprising: Means for receiving an index marker corresponding to one of a plurality of preset index markers on the video tape, Means for searching the videotape for a preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker, and Means for controlling the video tape to advance to a position of a preset index marker corresponding to the received index marker.