Abstract:
A system for co-ordinating the display of a multimedia tour in a selected geographical area comprises a display and an interface for receiving user input to monitor selected display characteristics of the tour. The system includes at least two media types retrievable from a storage medium for presentation on the display. A map of the selected geographical area is provided for presentation on the display. The system includes a marker for indicating a position on the map, and the marker is adapted for relative displacement with respect to the map. The system provides an inter-relater for synchronising the relative displacement between the map and the marker with the playback of the at least two media types on the display. The playback is performed according to the selected display characteristics of the tour.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to multimedia presentation playback on a display.  
           [0003]    2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART  
           [0004]    Potential purchasers of real estate are often interested in researching the neighbourhood where property is located. Housing and condominium developers are therefore interested in providing their potential and current clients with information about the amenities available near their developments. A typical advertisement for a house or an apartment may include information that a school is nearby, or that there is nightlife in the area. Some consumers may use such well-known tools as maps and telephone books to determine businesses and amenities in a certain area. However, such methods do not generally provide an appreciation of the relative locations of amenities, and their distances from each other. Many consumers will go through a process of cross-referencing a telephone book to a map in an attempt to determine the restaurants and bars that are nearby.  
           [0005]    Some websites provide limited information about the neighbourhoods around commercial developments. However, this information is usually limited to the existence and distance to certain amenities and does not give a sense of the neighbourhood. Further, the information in each website is separate, and thus requires switching among the multiple websites to assemble and fully understand the neighbourhood and commercial information.  
           [0006]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a multimedia presentation which obviates or mitigates at least some of the above disadvantages.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    In general terms, the inventor has developed a method of linking and synchronising various types of media to produce a presentation with comprehensive information including multiple views and a walk through. The method provides an integrated presentation with coordinated display of the media.  
           [0008]    In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a system for coordinating the display of a multimedia tour in a selected geographical area. The system comprises:  
           [0009]    a) a display;  
           [0010]    b) an interface for receiving user input to monitor selected display characteristics of the tour;  
           [0011]    c) at least two media types retrievable from a storage medium for presentation on the display;  
           [0012]    d) a map of the selected geographical area for presentation on the display;  
           [0013]    e) a marker for indicating a position on the map, the marker adapted for relative displacement with respect to the map;  
           [0014]    f) an inter-relater for synchronising the relative displacement between the map and the marker with the playback of the at least two media types on the display, the playback being performed according to the selected display characteristics of the tour.  
           [0015]    In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer program product for co-ordinating the display of a multimedia tour in a selected geographical area. The product comprises:  
           [0016]    a) a computer readable medium;  
           [0017]    b) an interface module stored on the medium for receiving user input to monitor selected display characteristics of the tour;  
           [0018]    c) a media module stored on the medium for presenting at least two media types on the display;  
           [0019]    d) a map module stored on the medium for presenting a map of the selected geographical area on the display;  
           [0020]    e) a marker module coupled to the map module for indicating a position on the map with a marker, the marker adapted for relative displacement with respect to the map;  
           [0021]    f) an inter-relater module stored on the medium synchronising the relative displacement between the map and the marker with the playback of the at least two media types on the display, the playback being performed according to the selected display characteristics of the tour.  
           [0022]    In accordance with a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for coordinating the display of a multimedia tour in a selected geographical area. The method comprises:  
           [0023]    a) receiving user input to monitor selected display characteristics of the tour;  
           [0024]    b) presenting at least two media types on the display;  
           [0025]    c) presenting a map of the selected geographical area on the display;  
           [0026]    d) indicating a position on the map with a marker, the marker adapted for relative displacement with respect to the map;  
           [0027]    e) synchronising the relative displacement between the map and the marker with playback of the at least two media types on the display, the playback being performed according to the selected display characteristics of the tour. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0028]    These and other features of the preferred embodiments of the invention will become more apparent by way of example only in the following detailed description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein:  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 1 shows components of a viewer;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 2 is a screen display of the viewer of FIG. 1;  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 3 is an example map on the display of FIG. 2;  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 4 is an example navigation on the display of FIG. 2;  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 5 is a time line used by the system of FIG. 1;  
         [0034]    [0034]FIGS. 5 a,    5   b,    5   c,  and  5   d  are views similar to FIG. 3 using the time line of FIG. 5;  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 6 is a flow chart implementing the time line of FIG. 5; and  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 7 is a further embodiment of the flow chart of FIG. 6; 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0037]    Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a system  100  for multimedia presentations comprises a processor  20  which controls a navigation interface  104 , a map display  106  and a video player  108 . The processor  20  implements an inter-relater  102  which co-ordinates the navigation interface  104 , the map display  106 , and the video player  108 . The processor  20  further controls a photo display  110  for still photos of milestones such as restaurants and stores, and a text display  112  for providing the names of the milestones to a user of the system  100 . The multimedia data for the map display  106 , video player  108 , photo display  110 , and text display  112  can be retrieved from a computer readable storage medium  26 . Accordingly, the inter-relater  102  provides synchronous playback of video on the video play  108  and display of a map on the map display  106 . The playback is co-ordinated with display of still photos of the milestone on the photo display  110 , and text describing the milestone on the text display  112  to provide a multimedia tour as selected by the user.  
         [0038]    The processor  20  is coupled to a display screen  22  and to user input devices  24 , such as a keyboard, mouse, or other suitable devices. If the display screen  22  is touch sensitive, then the display screen  22  itself can be employed as the user input device  24 . The computer readable storage medium  26  is coupled to the processor  20  for providing instructions to the processor  20  to instruct and/or configure the inter-relater  102 , as further explained below. The computer readable medium  26  can include hardware and/or software such as, by way of example only, magnetic disks, magnetic tape, optically readable medium such as CD-ROMs, and semiconductor memory such as PCMCIA cards. In each case, the medium  26  may take the form of a portable item such as a small disk, floppy diskette, cassette, or it may take the form of a relatively large or immobile item such as hard disk drive, solid state memory card, or RAM. It should be noted that the above listed example medium  26  could be used either alone or in combination with other storage media.  
         [0039]    The navigation interface  104 , the map  106 , and the video player  108  are connected to an orienter  114 . The display screen  22  as shown in FIG. 2 contains a display of each of the navigation interface  104 , the map display  106 , the video player  108 , the photo display  110 , and the text display  112 . The navigation interface  104  presents the user with choices to control the multimedia presentation along a route in a geographical area. The map display  106  presents the user with a map of a portion of the geographical area. The map display  106  also uses a marker  304  to show the position of the presentation along the route. The video player  108  presents a video playback along the route. The photo display  110  presents photos of milestones along the route. The text display  112  presents text relating to the milestones along the route. In use, the inter-relater  102  controls the operation of the navigation interface  104 , the map display  106 , and the video player  108  for synchronised play back, which interrelates the display of each of the media. The inter-relater also controls the photo display  110  and text display  112 , using them to display the photos and text at the milestones along the route display. In one example of synchronised playback, the video displayed by the video player  108  shows video of the same position as the marker  304  in the map display  106 . As the presentation is displayed, the video moves along the route and the marker  304  indicates the changing position. As milestones are shown in the video displayed by the video player  108 , the photo display  110  and the text display  112  show photos and text, respectively, relating to the milestone. The orienter  114  keeps track of a direction of travel and co-operates with the navigation interface  104 , the map display  106  and the video  108  for co-ordinated play back.  
         [0040]    During use, the display screen  22  presents the multimedia tour to the user. The navigation interface  104  presents options on routes and allows the user to choose milestones of interest through the input device  24 . Choosing a route from the navigation interface  104  begins the multimedia tour at a starting point determined by the route. During the tour, the video player  108  plays pre-recorded video along the chosen route. Other visual media may be embedded into the video playback. One such type of visual media is a 3D animated object. The map  106  displays the current position of the video playback through the marker  304 . At certain milestones along the route, the still photo display  110  and text display  112  show information corresponding to the milestone. Audio commentary is also played in synchronisation with the video playback provided by the video player  108  and the map provided by the map display  106 .  
         [0041]    The video player  108  shows pre-recorded video of a particular route in the geographical area. During recording, the camera moves in a particular direction of travel. This direction of travel is used by the orienter  114  to co-ordinate the presentation. Still photos and corresponding text descriptions are associated with milestones along the route. The order in which the photos and text are displayed is determined by the direction of travel provided by the orienter. The orienter  114  interacts with the map  106  to co-ordinate the direction of travel in the video playback with animation of the map  106 .  
         [0042]    Referring to FIG. 3, a particular display of the map  106  is shown in more detail. The map contains a route of travel  302 , and a marker  304  showing the current position. The map also displays a number of streets and routes. The marker  304  is placed generally in the centre of the map  106 , that is in a fixed position. The map display  106  moves and turns under the fixed marker  304  during a presentation in the direction of travel directed by the orienter  114 . It is also recognised that the marker  304  could also move relative to a stationary map shown on the map display  106 . Accordingly, the map shown by the map display  106  on the display screen  22  continuously changes during the presentation in synchronisation with the other media. In other words, the media display information about the same location. For example, the photo display  110  and text display  112  show detailed information about a particular milestone along the tour. The map display  106  shows the location of the milestone. As the presentation moves from milestone to milestone, the video played by the video player  108  shows the locations passed between milestones. Thus when each milestone is reached, the video played by the video play  108  on the display screen  22  shows the immediate area of the milestone. The photo display  110  and text display  112  continue to show information about the milestone until the route approaches another milestone. During a particular presentation, the map display  106  will display the route  302 . Movement of the map displayed by the map display  106  behind the marker  304  shows movement along the route  302 , as further set forth below with reference to FIGS. 5 a,    5   b,    5   c  and  5   d.    
         [0043]    Referring to FIG. 4, the navigation interface  104  is shown in more detail. The navigation comprises a number of route choices  402 , which trigger corresponding displays on the map display  106 . Each route choice  402  thus produces a corresponding route  302  in the map display  106 . A navigation interface  104  operates under the control of the user through the input device  24 . The navigation interface  104  allows the end user to change the tour parameters, such as, but not limited to, geographical area, beginning of the tour, end of the tour, direction of the tour, milestones of interest (e.g. restaurants, stores, bars, clubs), speed of the tour, and route. It also provides functions such as skip, stop, pause, as well as links to major areas of interest. The user may thus choose a route of interest using the input device  24  and the navigation interface  104 . The inter-relater  102  will then play the appropriate presentation in the direction of travel provided by the orienter  114 . During the presentation, the user may stop the presentation on the display screen  22  using the navigation interface  104 , or skip to an area of particular interest on the map  106 , an expanded overview map, or a list of locations. The user may also change the route being displayed on the display screen  22  using the navigation interface  104 . Furthermore, the navigation interface  104  may allow the user to navigate through the geographic area using the map alone, as displayed on the map display  106 . In this case, the user chooses tour parameters by first selecting a starting point for the tour, and then selecting an ending point for the tour. A navigation interface  104  then directs the inter-relater  108  to display on the display screen  22  an appropriate route from the user&#39;s chosen start point to the user&#39;s chosen ending point.  
         [0044]    Referring to FIGS. 5, 5 a,    5   b,    5   c,    5   d,  and  6 , the operation of the system  100  is shown in more detail by the numerals 500 and 600. Referring particularly to FIG. 5, the time line of events is shown. The beginning of the tour is shown as  510 , and the tour passes through milestones  520  and  530  before ending at the location designated by the numeral  540 . Examples of milestones  520 ,  530  are such as, but not limited to restaurants, stores, schools, banks, clubs, and bookstores. As time passes along line  502 , the video playback  504 , audio playback  506 , and the map display  508  are outputted on the display screen  22 , or in the case of audio through an audio device such as, but not limited to, speakers or headphones. The display of the three media chosen (video, audio, and the map) is synchronised by the inter-relater  102 . The orienter  114  controls the direction of travel, so that the map shown by the map display  106  on the display screen  22  moves in the same direction as the video shown by the video player  108  on the display screen  22 . The audio provided by an audio player is also synchronised with the display on the display screen  22  to provide appropriate commentary along the tour.  
         [0045]    The tour begins at milestone  510  as shown in FIG. 5 a.  The marker  304  indicates the milestone  510  as the current location. It will be recognised that some streets may not fit in the display screen  22  due to animation of the map. At milestone  520 , the map is as shown in FIG. 5 b  with the centre of the map at milestone  520 . Arrival at milestone  520  triggers the photo display  110  to show a picture  522  corresponding to the milestone  520 , and the text display  112  to show text  524  corresponding to the milestone  520 . The photo  522  and the text  524  corresponding to milestone  520  are shown until the tour reaches milestone  530 . Upon reaching milestone  530 , a photo  532  of milestone  530  and a text description  534  of milestone  530  replace photo  522  and text  524 . The map is as shown in FIG. 5 c,  with milestone  530  at the centre of the map. The tour ends at the endpoint  540 , with a map as shown in FIG. 5 d.  Between the milestones, the map is continuously animated. The video played by the video player  108  shows the progression of the tour between milestones.  
         [0046]    The tour begins by selecting ( 602 ) a route. The inter-relater  102  then plays ( 604 ) video, plays ( 606 ) audio, and animates ( 608 ) the map. The play back of the audio by the audio player, video by the video player  108  and map by the map display  106  are synchronised by the inter-relater  102 . The playback of the video by the video player  108  shows the geographical area along the route between milestones. When the presentation reaches ( 610 ) milestone  520 , the inter-relater  102  then shows ( 612 ) photo  522  and displays ( 614 ) text  524 , both corresponding to the milestone  520 . The presentation then continues ( 616 ), with the display showing the continuing video, audio and map as well as the photo  522  and the text  524 . The video shows the area between milestone  520  and milestone  530  in synchronisation with the movement between the marker  304  and the map on the map display  106 . Upon reaching ( 610 ) milestone  530 , photo  532  and text  534  are shown ( 612 ,  614 ). The presentation then continues ( 616 ) with display of video, audio and animation of the map. The tour ends ( 626 ) upon reaching the endpoint  540 .  
         [0047]    During play back of the presentation, the user may click or otherwise interact with a photo to obtain further information. Referring to FIG. 7, the sequence of events upon choosing ( 702 ) photo  522  is shown. The presentation is paused ( 704 ), and detailed information about photo  522  is shown ( 706 ). The user may then review the information at their leisure. When the user closes the detailed information window, the presentation resumes ( 708 ). Spacing the milestones  520 ,  530  along the route allows time for the user to consider the photo and text and decide whether to view more information. Alternatively, a pause function may be triggered by the user to allow time to consider the photo and text, and decide whether to view more information on the milestone.  
         [0048]    It will be recognised that in the operation shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, that any number of milestones may be used. The embodiment above shows two milestones, and accordingly, steps  612  and  614  are performed twice. With more milestones, milestones are consecutively reached at step  610 , and steps  612  and  614  are performed for each milestone. The presentation ends at step  626  after all milestones have been visited and the end of the tour is reached.  
         [0049]    Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as outlined in the claims appended hereto.