WO1997023091A1 - Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos - Google Patents

Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1997023091A1
WO1997023091A1 PCT/US1995/013327 US9513327W WO9723091A1 WO 1997023091 A1 WO1997023091 A1 WO 1997023091A1 US 9513327 W US9513327 W US 9513327W WO 9723091 A1 WO9723091 A1 WO 9723091A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
movie
video server
playback
storage device
played back
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US1995/013327
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Michael H. Anderson
David B. Aune
Original Assignee
Micropolis Corporation
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Micropolis Corporation filed Critical Micropolis Corporation
Priority to AU46841/96A priority Critical patent/AU4684196A/en
Priority to PCT/US1995/013327 priority patent/WO1997023091A1/fr
Publication of WO1997023091A1 publication Critical patent/WO1997023091A1/fr

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/47—End-user applications
    • H04N21/472—End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content
    • H04N21/47202—End-user interface for requesting content, additional data or services; End-user interface for interacting with content, e.g. for content reservation or setting reminders, for requesting event notification, for manipulating displayed content for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N7/00—Television systems
    • H04N7/16—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems
    • H04N7/173—Analogue secrecy systems; Analogue subscription systems with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal
    • H04N7/17309—Transmission or handling of upstream communications
    • H04N7/17318—Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Definitions

  • This inventions relates to devices which store movies for playback viewing and, more specifically, to video server systems which supply movies on demand.
  • VCRs are widely used to see movies at the very moment their viewing is desired.
  • Thi ⁇ requires each user to possess a relatively expensive piece of hardware, namely the VCR.
  • Each user must also possess a video cassette of the movie which he wishes to see.
  • Thi ⁇ is an additional expense and inconvenience. This expense and inconvenience grows as each user attempts to keep up with the new movies which are released. It also grows when each user wishes to stock a large number of movies for possible viewing.
  • One technology which has been developed to help solve these problems is to supply electronic signals containing each requested movie from a centralized location.
  • These "video-on-demand" systems are becoming quite popular in hotels. They are also beginning to appear in larger scale systems, such as Community Cable Television (“CATV”) .
  • CATV Community Cable Television
  • One technique for supplying video-on-demand from a central location is to house and operate a large number of video recorders at the central location. When a particular movie is desired to be viewed, the user communicates with the central location and requests that the movie be played. The video cassette containing the movie is inserted into a video player to which the user is connected.
  • Such a system still has a substantial cost per user.
  • the equipment needed to accommodate a large number of simultaneous users also requires a large area.
  • Reliability problems also exist because of the numerous mechanical components which must move during operation.
  • One developing technology for reducing these problems is to utilize what is known as a "video server.”
  • the video and audio portions of the movie are digitized and stored as a stream of digital data in a mass storage system.
  • the digital data is accessed, converted back into an analog " signal, and delivered to the user for viewing.
  • One mass storage system can supply digital data representative of several movies to several users simultaneously. This can result in a lower overall cost per user. It can also result in enhanced reliability, due to the reduction in the amount of moving mechanical components.
  • VCRs usually provided additional functions. VCRs typically can play the desired movie back at high speed, either in the forward direction (i.e., "Fast Forward") or the reverse direction (i.e., "Fast Reverse”) . They also can stop the playback of the movie before it has ended (i.e., "Stop") . Many can also play the movie back at a slow speed (i.e., Slow) or freeze the movie on a particular frame (i.e., "Pause").
  • VCR-type controls are useful and have come to be expected by users. Accordingly, it would be desirable to incorporate these VCR-type controls in a centralized video server system.
  • Playing back a movie at high speed typically requires a much higher bandwidth in many of the components in the video server system, such as the mass storage sy ⁇ tem, the communication network, and the reception equipment. In many systems, this increased bandwidth is simply not available. In other systems, the cost of the increased bandwidth may be too great.
  • Another typical problem with playing back a movie at high speed is a marked reduction in the information which is communicated to the user.
  • the audio is either completely eliminated or played back at a high- pitched and difficult-to-understand rate.
  • the fast-moving video is also often confusing and unenjoyable. This problem, of course, exist ⁇ even in connection with the traditional VCR machine.
  • One object of the present invention is to obviate these a ⁇ well as other problems in the prior art.
  • a further object of the present invention is to provide VCR-type controls for a video server system.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a video server ⁇ y ⁇ tem which can playback a desired movie at high speed, either in the forward or reverse direction.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a video server system which can playback a desired movie at a high speed, without increasing the bandwidth requirements of the video server system.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a video server sy ⁇ tem which can playback a movie at a high speed, but in a fashion that conveys a high degree of information and in a comfortable format to the viewer.
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a video server system which can deliver a movie at a high rate of speed which is stored in a compressed digital format, such a ⁇ MPEG ("Motion Picture Experts
  • a still further object of the present invention is to provide a video server system which can playback a movie at a high speed without significant additional cost.
  • each continuous segment which is played back is approximately two seconds in length.
  • the alternating segment ⁇ which are omitted are approximately equal in length to the alternating ⁇ egment ⁇ which are played back.
  • Thi ⁇ timing scheme is believed to be the most comfortable and comprehensible. It also results in a demand for data from the video server system which is most efficient using the video server system selected by Applicants.
  • Another feature of the present invention is directed to eliminating distortions which can occur in the beginning of each played back segment when playing back data stored in MPEG compressed format. The beginning of a played-back segment often may not coincide with the "I- Frame" of a recorded MPEG stream, but rather with a "B- Frame” or "P-Frame" of that stream.
  • I-Frames contain data representative of an entire movie frame
  • B-Frames and P-Frames contain data representative of only changes that have occurred in a movie frame with respect to another movie frame.
  • the system ignores (i.e., drops) , all initial B-Frames or P-Frames which are not preceded by an I-Frame.
  • the system ensures that the reading of each played-back segment from storage begins with an I-frame.
  • FIG. 1(a) is an illustration of a sequential series of movie frames being presented in a forward direction.
  • FIG. 1(b) is an illustration of the sequential series of movie frames shown in FIG. 1(a) being played back on
  • FIG. 2(a) is an illustration of a sequential series of movie frames being presented in a reverse direction.
  • FIG. 2(b) is an illustration of the ⁇ equential ⁇ eries of movie frames shown in FIG. 2(a) being played back on Fast Reverse, beginning with frame number 30, in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram of some of the principle components of a typical video server system adopted to incorporate one embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIG. 4 illustrates a typical stream of data blocks being read from a video server that has stored a movie in MPEG compressed format.
  • FIG. 1(a) is an illustration of a sequential series of movie frames being presented in a forward direction. As can be seen in FIG. 1(a) , the illustrated series begins with frame number 10 and ends with frame number 31. It should, of course, be understood that thi ⁇ i ⁇ merely a portion of the total ⁇ et of frames which comprise a particular movie.
  • FIG. 1(b) is an illu ⁇ tration of the sequential series of movie frames shown in FIG. 1(a) being played back at a high rate of speed in the forward direction (i.e., "Fast Forward") , beginning with frame number 11, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
  • alternating intervening seg ent ⁇ of the movie i.e., fra e ⁇ 15-18 and 23-26, have been deleted from the stream of frames in FIG. 1(b) which i ⁇ being played back.
  • the viewer still hears the audio and still sees the video in each segment in its normal manner. Yet, the movie is effectively being played back at twice its normal rate.
  • FIG. 2(a) illustrates a sequential series of movie frames being presented in reverse order.
  • FIG. 2(b) illustrate ⁇ the sequential memori ⁇ of movie frames ⁇ hown in FIG. 2(a) being played back on Fast Reverse, beginning with frame number 30, in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.
  • each segment of frames which i ⁇ played back on Fast Reverse is actually played back in the forward direction. Only the order of segments is reversed. In this way, a movie can be viewed in the reverse direction, while the actual segments which are being viewed and heard run in the forward direction.
  • this approach is preferred, presenting each and every frame in the playback stream in a reverse order is also considered to be within the scope of the present invention.
  • the audio portion would probably be muted.
  • FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show each segment which is played back and which is omitted to be of 4 frames in length, this length is by no means required.
  • the present invention encompasses all lengths of segment ⁇ which are played back and which are omitted. Nonethele ⁇ s, applicants have found that a playback segment of approximately two seconds in length appears to be optimum. This is long enough so that the played back audio and video can convey substantial information to the viewer and will be comfortable for him to view. It is short enough to allow a substantial increase in the effective viewing speed of the movie, without requiring the excised segments to be of a prolonged length.
  • the two second length for a played-back segment also enhances the efficiency of the particular mass storage system with which applicants are currently working. Specifically, applicants are currently storing the movies to be viewed using MPEG compression on a hard disk drive array and recording that data using striping techniques. This technology is discus ⁇ ed in more detail in U.S. Patent No. 4,870,643, entitled “Parallel Disk Array Storage System,” U.S. Patent 5,191,584, entitled “Mass Storage Array With Efficient Parity Calculation,” and U.S. Patent Application Serial No.
  • Applicants also prefer to have the length of the alternating segments which are not played back to be approximately equal to the length of the alternating segments which are played back as shown in FIG. 1(b) and FIG. 2(b).
  • a shorter omitted segment would reduce the playback speed.
  • a longer omitted segment would cause a greater deterioration in the intelligibility of the information which is played back, a ⁇ well as the comfort in viewing and hearing it.
  • the omitted segments might also be much greater in duration than the played back segments.
  • the omitted segments might be shorter in duration then the played back segments if only a small increase in ⁇ peed wa ⁇ desired. Control means might advantageously be added to vary the degree to which the ⁇ peed is enhanced (or reduced) .
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram of some of the principal components of a typical video server system adopted to incorporate one embodiment of the present invention.
  • a typical video server system usually includes a mass storage system 10 and a controller 12 connected to the mass storage system 10. It also includes an ATM ("Asynchronous Transfer Mode") communication network 14 connected to the mas ⁇ ⁇ torage ⁇ ystem 10 and the controller 12, a set top box 16 connected to the ATM communication network 14, and a TV 18 connected to the set top box 16.
  • ATM Asynchronous Transfer Mode
  • a viewer of the TV 18 desiring to see a video on demand will communicate this desire, such that it is received by the controller 12.
  • the communication may take the form of operating the set top box 16 to generate a request signal which is delivered over the ATM communication network 14 to the controller 12. It may also take a more pedestrian form, such as the user of the TV 18 telephoning the operators of the system to program the controller 12 to playback the desired movie. Numerous other form ⁇ are also pos ⁇ ible.
  • the ma ⁇ storage ⁇ y ⁇ te 10 stores the movies to be played back.
  • the controller 12 signals the mass storage sy ⁇ tem 10 to play the movie back.
  • the played back ⁇ ignal i ⁇ delivered from the ma ⁇ s storage sy ⁇ tem 10 over the ATM communication network 14 into the ⁇ et top box 16.
  • the set top box 16 tran ⁇ form ⁇ the received digital information into a type of ⁇ ignal which the TV 18 can receive and playback.
  • the mass storage system 10 should have the ability to rapidly playback segments of the movie to be viewed in a non-sequential order. Storing the movie as digital data on disk drives is well- ⁇ uited to thi ⁇ purpose.
  • the ma ⁇ storage sy ⁇ tem 10 i ⁇ a Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disk Drives, often referred to as a RAID system, such as described in the patents and patent application cited before. Laser disks might also be used.
  • the VCR-type control ⁇ to be implemented, such as Fast Forward, Fast Rever ⁇ e, Play, Pause, Slow and Stop, may be mounted on or otherwise associated with the set top box 16. They may also be activated by a standard remote control device.
  • FIG. 3 a ⁇ VCR control bank 20.
  • the controller 12 would receive the signal from one of the VCR-type controls that were depres ⁇ ed (or otherwise activated) on the control bank 20.
  • the controller 12 in turn, would direct the mass storage system 10 to respond to the VCR command.
  • a Play command would cause each movie frame to be played back sequentially at normal speed.
  • a Fast Forward command would cause appropriate instructions to be issued to the mass storage system 10 to produce a sequential set of movie segments with an alternating series of intervening movie segments mis ⁇ ing therefrom, ⁇ uch as is ⁇ hown in FIG. 1(b).
  • a Fa ⁇ t Reverse command would have the same effect, except that the movie seg ent ⁇ would be played back in the reverse order, such a ⁇ i ⁇ shown in FIG. 2(b) .
  • a Pause command would cause the same movie frame to be repeatedly played back.
  • a Slow command would cause each movie frame to be played back sequentially, except at a slower speed.
  • a Stop command would cause delivery of movie frame data to cease.
  • a Pause command could be implemented by the controller 12 repeatedly sending instruction to the mas ⁇ ⁇ torage system 10 to playback the same movie frame, a broad variety of other techniques could be used a ⁇ well.
  • the set top box 16 could contain a buffer and this buffer could be used to hold the last movie frame.
  • the set top box 16 could, instead, be a distribution node in a small community which would receive movie data for several viewer ⁇ , tran ⁇ late that data into the required audio and video or TV ⁇ ignal ⁇ , and deliver each to a televi ⁇ ion set.
  • the set top box 16 could, instead, be a distribution node in a small community which would receive movie data for several viewer ⁇ , tran ⁇ late that data into the required audio and video or TV ⁇ ignal ⁇ , and deliver each to a televi ⁇ ion set.
  • other means would need to be included to receive the VCR-type commands from the TV viewer and to process them.
  • Sy ⁇ tem ⁇ which ⁇ tore the de ⁇ ired movie ⁇ in a digital format typically compress the movie data prior to storage. This reduces the amount of storage space which is needed, a ⁇ well a ⁇ the bandwidth requirement ⁇ for the ma ⁇ ⁇ torage system and communication network.
  • Some compression techniques achieve compression, in part, by only storing changes which occur from movie frame to movie frame, rather than all of the information in each movie frame itself.
  • FIG. 4 illustrate ⁇ a typical ⁇ tream of data block ⁇ being read from a video ⁇ erver that ha ⁇ ⁇ tored a movie using one such compres ⁇ ion technique, MPEG.
  • a ⁇ i ⁇ well known in the art the block ⁇ in FIG. 4 marked with an "I" are "I- Frames," each one of which contain data representative of an entire single movie frame. Following each I-Frame is a series of "B-Frames" or “P-Frames,” designated in FIG. 4 as "B/P" frames.
  • the B/P designation in FIG. 4 i ⁇ meant to indicate that the de ⁇ ignated frame i ⁇ either a B-Frame or a P-Frame.
  • P-Frame ⁇ contain data representative of a change from a frame prior in time.
  • B-Frames contain data representative of a change from either a prior or subsequent frame.
  • a B-Frame or P-Frame is chosen during compres ⁇ ion depending upon which achieves the maximum compression.
  • Applicant ⁇ have conceived of ⁇ everal technique ⁇ to eliminate this distortion.
  • One technique is simply to drop all leading B-Frames or P-Frames which are not proceeded by anantecedent I- Fra e from the data ⁇ tream which is read before it is converted into the television signal. This could be done, for example, by the set top box 16 shown in FIG. 3 or, to reduce network traffic, on the data-storage side of the ATM communication network 14.
  • Set top boxes which are designed to receive and decode MPEG movie data usually include a chip which is already designed to perform this dropping function to avoid initial distortion ⁇ when channel ⁇ are changed.
  • Other technique ⁇ could alternatively be implemented to avoid these types of distortion ⁇ .
  • techniques could be employed to synchronize the reading of frames from the mas ⁇ storage ⁇ y ⁇ tem so that orphan B- Frame ⁇ or P-Frame ⁇ are never read in the first instance.
  • Such techniques could include recording a special header to mark the beginning location of each I- Frame.
  • the present invention has thus-far been described as useful in the delivery of movies in a video server sy ⁇ tem, the pre ⁇ ent invention not means limited to this application.
  • the present invention i ⁇ also applicable to ⁇ ystems which provide only video information or only audio information.
  • the present invention i ⁇ al ⁇ o u ⁇ eful in any application in which ⁇ equential information needs to be reviewed at a faster than normal rate and in which a spotted fast-pace review of that information i ⁇ acceptable.
  • the present invention is of far broader scope than what has thus-far been described and is limited only by the following claims.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Databases & Information Systems (AREA)
  • Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
  • Television Signal Processing For Recording (AREA)
  • Two-Way Televisions, Distribution Of Moving Picture Or The Like (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un système serveur de vidéos, capable de lire les films à une vitesse supérieure à la vitesse d'enregistrement. Une mémoire (10) mémorise un ou plusieurs films à lire. La mémoire (10) peut faire lire le film par segments sélectionnés. Une commande (12) est connectée à la mémoire (10) pour permettre à cette dernière de lire un ensemble séquentiel de segments de film, ces séquences alternant avec des séquences manquantes. En plus de la commande d'avance et de retour rapides, le système comporte des commandes de pause, de ralenti, d'arrêt et de lecture (20).
PCT/US1995/013327 1995-12-20 1995-12-20 Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos WO1997023091A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU46841/96A AU4684196A (en) 1995-12-20 1995-12-20 Vcr-type controls for video server system
PCT/US1995/013327 WO1997023091A1 (fr) 1995-12-20 1995-12-20 Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/US1995/013327 WO1997023091A1 (fr) 1995-12-20 1995-12-20 Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO1997023091A1 true WO1997023091A1 (fr) 1997-06-26

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PCT/US1995/013327 WO1997023091A1 (fr) 1995-12-20 1995-12-20 Commandes du type magnetoscope a cassettes pour un systeme serveur de videos

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WO (1) WO1997023091A1 (fr)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US9574002B2 (en) 2011-06-06 2017-02-21 Amgen Inc. Human antigen binding proteins that bind to a complex comprising β-Klotho and an FGF receptor

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4948187A (en) * 1988-03-15 1990-08-14 Deutsche Gesellschaft Fur Wiederaufarbeitung Von Kernbrennstoffen Mbh Crane operated lifting apparatus
US5140437A (en) * 1989-04-02 1992-08-18 Sony Corporation Recording/reproducing compressed data on a rotatable record medium in which at least one intraframe code signal and at least (n-1) interframe code signals are recorded in each track
WO1993016557A1 (fr) * 1992-02-11 1993-08-19 Koz Mark C Serveur de fichiers video adaptable et modes d'utilisation

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4948187A (en) * 1988-03-15 1990-08-14 Deutsche Gesellschaft Fur Wiederaufarbeitung Von Kernbrennstoffen Mbh Crane operated lifting apparatus
US5140437A (en) * 1989-04-02 1992-08-18 Sony Corporation Recording/reproducing compressed data on a rotatable record medium in which at least one intraframe code signal and at least (n-1) interframe code signals are recorded in each track
WO1993016557A1 (fr) * 1992-02-11 1993-08-19 Koz Mark C Serveur de fichiers video adaptable et modes d'utilisation

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US9574002B2 (en) 2011-06-06 2017-02-21 Amgen Inc. Human antigen binding proteins that bind to a complex comprising β-Klotho and an FGF receptor
US11248052B2 (en) 2011-06-06 2022-02-15 Amgen Inc. Antigen binding proteins that bind to a complex comprising β-Klotho and an FGF receptor

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
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