Systems and methods for providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions

Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable media can receive a selection of an image. An object included in the image can be detected. An image portion that includes the object can be extracted from the image. The image portion can be provided for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes. An identifier for the object can be received. The identifier can be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present technology relates to the field of media processing. More particularly, the present technology relates to techniques for providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions.

BACKGROUND

Today, people often utilize computing devices (or systems) for a wide variety of purposes. Users can use their computing devices to, for example, interact with one another, create content, share information, and access information. In some instances, a user of a computing device can utilize a camera or other image sensor of the computing device (or system) to capture or record media content, such as images and/or videos.

In some cases, media content such as images can be processed, such as when the images are uploaded to a social networking system. Image processing applied to images can, for example, be utilized to acquire information about the images. Under conventional approaches, image processing can often require significant amounts of computer processing power, time, data consumption, as well as manual effort. As such, conventional approaches can be inefficient, expensive, and inconvenient. Due to these and other reasons, conventional approaches can create challenges for or reduce the overall user experience associated with utilizing computing devices (or systems) to interact and engage with media content, such as images.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments of the present disclosure can include systems, methods, and non-transitory computer readable media configured to receive a selection of an image. An object included in the image can be detected. An image portion that includes the object can be extracted from the image. The image portion can be provided for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes. An identifier for the object can be received. The identifier can be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion.

In an embodiment, the image and the identifier can be presented. One or more options to modify at least one of the identifier or information associated with the image can be provided. An upload command to upload the image can be received. The image and the identifier can be transmitted subsequent to receiving the upload command.

In an embodiment, detecting the object included in the image can further comprise determining a location of the object within the image. The identifier can be presented based on the location of the object within the image. The identifier can be presented to appear to overlay the image. The identifier can be presented to avoid obscuring the object included in the image.

In an embodiment, a second object included in the image can be detected. A second image portion that includes the second object can be extracted from the image. The second image portion can be provided for image analysis based on the one or more object recognition processes. The image portion and the second image portion can be provided in conjunction.

In an embodiment, the one or more object recognition processes can be performed, at least in part, via one or more remote servers.

In an embodiment, the object can include a face of a user represented in the image. The one or more object recognition processes can include one or more facial recognition processes. The identifier can include a name associated with the user.

In an embodiment, the one or more facial recognition processes can utilize, at least in part, one or more people clustering processes.

In an embodiment, the selection of the image can be received from an uploading user. The uploading user can be associated with a set of social connections via a social networking system. The one or more facial recognition processes can utilize, at least in part, one or more face models associated with a subset of social connections out of the set of social connections.

In an embodiment, the subset of social connections can include a specified quantity of highest ranked social connections. Each social connection in the set can be ranked based on at least one of a social coefficient metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, a social affinity metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, a social interaction recency metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, or location data associated with each social connection.

In an embodiment, the identifier can be utilized, at least in part, to define a set of images such that each image in the set includes a respective object associated with the identifier.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Providing Object Recognition Based on Detecting and Extracting Media Portions

People use computing devices (or systems) for a wide variety of purposes. Computing devices can provide different kinds of functionality. Users can utilize their computing devices to produce information, access information, and share information. In some instances, computing devices can include or correspond to cameras capable of capturing or recording media content, such as images or videos. In some cases, computing devices can view, access, download, and save such media content.

In one example, a user of a social networking system can utilize his or her computing device to upload a media content item, such as an image, to the social networking system. The image can include, depict, or represent one or more persons. For instance, the image can include a visual representation of a person, such as when the image depicts the person's face. Conventional approaches to media processing can sometimes require manual effort in order to recognize objects (e.g., the person's face) included, depicted, or represented in the image. Such conventional approaches can, for instance, require a manual tap or click with respect to the person's face object in the image and then a manual selection or input indicating to whom the face belongs. Further, in some cases, conventional approaches can utilize facial recognition processes or techniques to analyze the entire image to identify the person whose face is included in the image. However, such conventional approaches can require significant processing power, time, and/or data consumption.

As such, conventional approaches can be inconvenient, inefficient, and/or expensive. Therefore, an improved approach can be beneficial for addressing or alleviating various concerns associated with conventional approaches. The disclosed technology can provide object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions. Various embodiments of the present disclosure can receive a selection of an image. An object included in the image can be detected. An image portion that includes the object can be extracted from the image. The image portion can be provided for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes. An identifier for the object can be received. The identifier can be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion. It is contemplated that there can be many variations and/or other possibilities.

FIG. 1illustrates an example system100including an example media portion recognition module102configured to facilitate providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in the example ofFIG. 1, the media portion recognition module102can include a media selection module104, an object detection module106, and a transceiver module108. In some instances, the example system100can include at least one data store110. The components (e.g., modules, elements, etc.) shown in this figure and all figures herein are exemplary only, and other implementations may include additional, fewer, integrated, or different components. Some components may not be shown so as not to obscure relevant details.

In some embodiments, the media portion recognition module102can be implemented, in part or in whole, as software, hardware, or any combination thereof. In general, a module as discussed herein can be associated with software, hardware, or any combination thereof. In some implementations, one or more functions, tasks, and/or operations of modules can be carried out or performed by software routines, software processes, hardware, and/or any combination thereof. In some cases, the media portion recognition module102can be implemented, in part or in whole, as software running on one or more computing devices or systems, such as on a user or client computing device. For example, the media portion recognition module102or at least a portion thereof can be implemented as or within an application (e.g., app), a program, or an applet, etc., running on a user computing device or a client computing system, such as the user device710ofFIG. 7. In another example, the media portion recognition module102or at least a portion thereof can be implemented using one or more computing devices or systems that include one or more servers, such as network servers or cloud servers. In some instances, the media portion recognition module102can, in part or in whole, be implemented within or configured to operate in conjunction with a social networking system (or service), such as the social networking system730ofFIG. 7. It should be understood that there can be many variations or other possibilities.

The media selection module104can be configured to facilitate receiving a selection of a media content item, such as an image (e.g., photo, picture, video still frame, animated image, etc.) or a video (e.g., a plurality of video still frames with or without audio). In some cases, a user of a computing device (or system) and/or a social networking system (or service) can provide the selection of the media content item, such as the image (or video, etc.), which can be received by the media selection module104. In one example, the user can select the image for uploading, downloading, sharing, posting, publishing, transmitting, and/or other purposes. In some instances, the image selection received by the media selection module104can be provided by an image selection process, such as a random image selection algorithm or a recently acquired image selection algorithm. It should be understood that many variations are possible.

The object detection module106can be configured to facilitate detecting an object included in the image. The object detection module106can also be configured to facilitate extracting, from the image, an image portion (or patch, area, etc.) that includes the object. More details regarding the facial recognition module106will be provided below with reference toFIG. 2A.

The transceiver module108can be configured to facilitate providing the image portion for image analysis based on (i.e., based at least in part on) one or more object recognition processes. The transceiver module108can further be configured to facilitate receiving an identifier for the object. The identifier can be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion. The transceiver module108will be discussed in more detail with reference toFIG. 2B.

Furthermore, in some implementations, the media portion recognition module102can be configured to communicate and/or operate with the at least one data store110, as shown in the example system100. The at least one data store110can be configured to store and maintain various types of data. In some implementations, the at least one data store110can store information associated with the social networking system (e.g., the social networking system730ofFIG. 7). The information associated with the social networking system can include data about users, social connections, social interactions, locations, geo-fenced areas, maps, places, events, pages, groups, posts, communications, content, feeds, account settings, privacy settings, a social graph, and various other types of data. In some implementations, the at least one data store110can store information associated with users, such as user identifiers, user information, profile information, user locations, user specified settings, content produced or posted by users, and various other types of user data. In some embodiments, the at least one data store110can store information that is utilized by the media portion recognition module102. For instance, the at least one data store110can store information about images as well as information useful for object detection and object recognition. It is contemplated that there can be many variations or other possibilities.

In one example, the user of the social networking system can utilize his or her computing system to post, share, and/or send media content via the social networking system. In this example, the user can select an image to be uploaded for posting, sharing, and/or sending via the social networking system. The user's selection of the image can be received by the media selection module104. The object detection module106can then apply one or more face object detection processes (i.e., face detection processes, facial detection processes, etc.) to the image in order to detect any face objects included, represented, and/or depicted in the image.

Continuing with the example, the image can include, represent, and/or depict a face of a social connection or friend of the user within the social networking system. The object detection module106can detect, based on the face object detection processes, the face object of the social connection or friend included in the image. Additionally, the object detection module106can also extract, from the image, a corresponding image portion that includes the face object. The transceiver module108can provide the image portion for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes, such as one or more face object recognition processes (i.e., face recognition processes, facial recognition processes, etc.). The transceiver module108can subsequently receive an identifier determined for the object based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion. In this example, the identifier can correspond to a name (e.g., username, account name, etc.) of the user's social connection or friend whose face is included in the image. Furthermore, in this example, the identifier can be in the form of a tag including the name of user's social connection or friend. The identifier (e.g., tag) can be automatically provided in association with the image. If the user so chooses, when he or she initiates the uploading of the image for posting, sharing, and/or sending, the identifier can be included in the image uploading process.

In another example, a second object included in the image, such as a face object associated with another social connection or friend of the user, can be detected by the object detection module106. A second image portion that includes the second object can be extracted from the image by the object detection module106. The second image portion can be provided, by the transceiver module108, for image analysis based on the one or more object recognition processes. In some cases, the image portion and the second image portion can be provided, in conjunction, for image analysis. Moreover, in this example, a second identifier in the form of a second tag including the name of user's other social connection or friend can be received. When the users initiates the uploading of the image for posting, sharing, and/or sending, the second identifier can be included as well. It should be appreciated that the examples herein are provided for illustrative purposes and that many variations are possible.

FIG. 2Aillustrates an example object detection module202configured to facilitate detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the object detection module106ofFIG. 1can be implemented as the example object detection module202. As shown inFIG. 2A, the object detection module202can include an object location determination module204and a media portion extraction module206.

As discussed previously, the object detection module202can be configured to facilitate detecting an object included in an image. In some cases, the object detection module202can utilize one or more object detection processes to detect any objects in the image. For instance, the object detection module202can utilize one or more face object detection processes to detect the presence of any face objects or faces included (i.e., represented, depicted, shown, displayed, etc.) in the image. In some cases, object detection processes applied to an entire image can be more efficient and/or can require less resources (e.g., processing power, time, data consumption, etc.) than object recognition processes applied to the same entire image. This can be because object detection processes are generally configured to detect whether or not any defined (or predefined) objects are present in the image, while object recognition processes are generally configured to recognize or identify any defined (or predefined) objects in the image.

In some embodiments, detecting the object included in the image can further comprise determining a location of the object within the image. The object location determination module204can be configured to determine the location of the object within the image. In some cases, the object location determination module204can determine or identify a set of pixels of the image that includes the object. The set of pixels can, for example, form or correspond to a particular image portion, image patch, or image area, etc. In one example, the object location determination module204can determine where in the image any faces of people are located. The object location determination module204can determine one or more sets of pixels or one or more image portions that include one or more detected faces.

Furthermore, the object detection module202can utilize the media portion extraction module206to facilitate extracting, from the image, an image portion that includes a detected object. The media portion extraction module206can, for instance, extract a copy of the image portion or set of pixels that includes the detected object. In one example, the media portion extraction module206can extract a respective image portion (or a respective copy thereof) that includes each face detected in the image. It should be appreciated that there can be many variations or other possibilities.

FIG. 2Billustrates an example transceiver module252configured to facilitate providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the transceiver module108ofFIG. 1can be implemented as the example transceiver module252. As shown inFIG. 2B, the transceiver module252can include a media portion transmitting module254and an object identifier receiving module256.

In some embodiments, the transceiver module108can utilize the media portion transmitting module254to transmit, send, or provide an image portion of a detected object for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes. As discussed previously, in some cases, object recognition processes can require more resources and/or are more computationally intensive than object detection processes. As such, the disclosed technology can use the object detection processes to detect objects and then extract image portions of any detected objects. The extracted image portions can then be provided, such as by the media portion transmitting module254, to be analyzed based on the object recognition processes. Therefore, instead of applying the object recognition processes to one or more entire images, the object recognition processes can be applied to only one or more image portions. This can save resources and allow the object recognition processes to be performed more efficiently.

In some implementations, the one or more object recognition processes can be performed, at least in part, via one or more remote servers. In one example, one or more face object recognition processes can be performed via one or more servers of a social networking system or service (e.g., the social networking system730ofFIG. 7). It is contemplated that many variations are possible. For instance, in some cases, the object recognition processes can be performed by the same computing device(s) or system(s) that performs the object detection processes. In some embodiments, one or more identifiers for objects (e.g., identifiers for face objects) can be provided from the one or more remote servers to the computing device (or system) that transmitted or provided the image to the remote servers. The one or more remote servers can provide options or suggestions to the computing device regarding who or what is depicted in the image. In some cases, if the object recognition processes determines equal or substantially similar (i.e., similar within an allowable deviation) recognition confidence scores for multiple possible recognitions, then the computing device can be presented with (e.g., from the remote servers) at least one optional or suggested identifier for each of the multiple possible recognitions. For example, if one or more face recognition processes, applied to a given face, determines equal or substantially similar recognition confidence scores for Person X, Person Y, and Person Z, then the computing device can be presented with an optional or suggested identifier (e.g., tag, name) for each of Person X, Person Y, and Person Z.

Furthermore, in some embodiments, the transceiver module108can utilize the object identifier receiving module256to receive an identifier for the object. The identifier can, for example, be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the provided image portion. In some cases, the identifier can correspond to a tag or a marker that indicates a name or a label associated with the object, which has been recognized based on the one or more object recognition processes. Again, there can be many variations or other possibilities.

FIG. 3illustrates an example scenario300associated with providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The example scenario300illustrates a client302, such as a client computing device or system, and a server(s)304.

As shown in the example ofFIG. 3, an image306can be selected at the client302. The image306can include (i.e., represent, depict, show, display, etc.) a face308of a user. In this example, one or more face object detection processes can be performed at the client302to detect the user's face or face object308. Having detected the face object308, an image portion310including the face object308can be extracted from the image306. The client302can then provide or transmit the image portion310to the server(s)304. The server(s)304can perform one or more face object recognition processes with respect to the image portion310to recognize the face object308and determine an identifier312for the face object308. The server(s)304can then transmit the identifier312to be received at the client302. Many variations are possible.

FIG. 4illustrates an example scenario400associated with providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The example screenshot400illustrates an example interface402, such as a user interface of an application utilizing or otherwise associated with the disclosed technology.

As shown inFIG. 4, the example interface402can enable a first user404to select an image406to be uploaded, posted, shared, sent, and/or otherwise processed at a social networking system. The image406can include a second user, such as a friend or social connection of the first user404. In particular, the image406can include the second user's face408.

In this example scenario400, subsequent to a selection of the image406by the first user404, the second user's face or face object408can be detected during face detection. An image portion including the second user's face object408can be provided for image analysis based on face recognition. In this example, an identifier410can be determined based on the face recognition. The identifier410can indicate a name of the second user (“John Doe”). In some instances, the image406and the identifier410can be presented, as shown. One or more options to modify at least one of the identifier410or information associated with the image406can also be provided. The one or more options can include an option412to remove the identifier410. Moreover, an upload command to upload the image can be received, such as when the first user404clicks on, taps on, or otherwise interacts with the “Post” button. In some instances, the identifier for the second user, the name of the second user, a tag associated with the second user, and/or the one or more options, etc., can be presented before the first user404clicks on, taps on, or otherwise interacts with the “Post” button. In some cases, the image406and the identifier410can be transmitted subsequent to receiving the upload command.

Moreover, in some cases, a location of the face object408within the image406can be determined, such as during face detection. The identifier410can be presented based on the location of the face object408within the image406. As shown in the example scenario400, the identifier410can be presented to appear to overlay the image406and can be presented to avoid obscuring the face object408included in the image406.

As discussed, the selection of the image406can be received from the first user404(i.e., an uploading user). The uploading user404can be associated with a set of social connections via the social networking system. For instance, the uploading user404can have a list of friends via the social networking system. In some embodiments, facial recognition processes applied to provided image portions can utilize, at least in part, one or more face models or face templates associated with a subset of social connections out of the set of social connections. In some implementations, the subset of social connections can include a specified quantity of highest ranked social connections (e.g., the top 50 friends closest to the uploading user404, the top 100 friends who have recently interacted with the uploading user404, the top 220 friends who have the most social interactions with the uploading user404, etc.). Each social connection in the set can be ranked based on at least one of a social coefficient metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, a social affinity metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, a social interaction recency metric for each social connection relative to the uploading user, or location data associated with each social connection. It should be appreciated that many variations are possible.

FIG. 5illustrates an example method500associated with providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It should be appreciated that there can be additional, fewer, or alternative steps performed in similar or alternative orders, or in parallel, within the scope of the various embodiments unless otherwise stated.

At block502, the example method500can receive a selection of an image. At block504, the example method500can detect an object included in the image. At block506, the example method500can extract, from the image, an image portion that includes the object. At block508, the example method500can provide the image portion for image analysis based on one or more object recognition processes. At block510, the example method500can receive an identifier for the object. The identifier can be determined based on the one or more object recognition processes being applied to the image portion.

FIG. 6illustrates an example method600associated with providing object recognition based on detecting and extracting media portions, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Again, it should be appreciated that there can be additional, fewer, or alternative steps performed in similar or alternative orders, or in parallel, within the scope of the various embodiments unless otherwise stated.

At block602, the example method600can present the image and the identifier. At block604, the example method600can provide one or more options to modify at least one of the identifier or information associated with the image. At block606, the example method600can receive an upload command to upload the image. At block608, the example method600can transmit the image and the identifier subsequent to receiving the upload command.

In some embodiments, the one or more facial recognition processes can utilize, at least in part, one or more people clustering processes. In some embodiments, the identifier can be utilized, at least in part, to define a set of images such that each image in the set includes a respective object associated with the identifier. The set of images can, for instance, form an album, which can be shared or synchronized among one or more users.

It is contemplated that there can be many other uses, applications, features, possibilities, and/or variations associated with the various embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, in some cases, user can choose whether or not to opt-in to utilize the disclosed technology. The disclosed technology can also ensure that various privacy settings and preferences are maintained and can prevent private information from being divulged. In another example, various embodiments of the present disclosure can learn, improve, and/or be refined over time.

Social Networking System—Example Implementation

FIG. 7illustrates a network diagram of an example system700that can be utilized in various scenarios, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The system700includes one or more user devices710, one or more external systems720, a social networking system (or service)730, and a network750. In an embodiment, the social networking service, provider, and/or system discussed in connection with the embodiments described above may be implemented as the social networking system730. For purposes of illustration, the embodiment of the system700, shown byFIG. 7, includes a single external system720and a single user device710. However, in other embodiments, the system700may include more user devices710and/or more external systems720. In certain embodiments, the social networking system730is operated by a social network provider, whereas the external systems720are separate from the social networking system730in that they may be operated by different entities. In various embodiments, however, the social networking system730and the external systems720operate in conjunction to provide social networking services to users (or members) of the social networking system730. In this sense, the social networking system730provides a platform or backbone, which other systems, such as external systems720, may use to provide social networking services and functionalities to users across the Internet.

The user device710comprises one or more computing devices (or systems) that can receive input from a user and transmit and receive data via the network750. In one embodiment, the user device710is a conventional computer system executing, for example, a Microsoft Windows compatible operating system (OS), Apple OS X, and/or a Linux distribution. In another embodiment, the user device710can be a computing device or a device having computer functionality, such as a smart-phone, a tablet, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile telephone, a laptop computer, a wearable device (e.g., a pair of glasses, a watch, a bracelet, etc.), a camera, an appliance, etc. The user device710is configured to communicate via the network750. The user device710can execute an application, for example, a browser application that allows a user of the user device710to interact with the social networking system730. In another embodiment, the user device710interacts with the social networking system730through an application programming interface (API) provided by the native operating system of the user device710, such as iOS and ANDROID. The user device710is configured to communicate with the external system720and the social networking system730via the network750, which may comprise any combination of local area and/or wide area networks, using wired and/or wireless communication systems.

In one embodiment, the network750uses standard communications technologies and protocols. Thus, the network750can include links using technologies such as Ethernet, 702.11, worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), 3G, 4G, CDMA, GSM, LTE, digital subscriber line (DSL), etc. Similarly, the networking protocols used on the network750can include multiprotocol label switching (MPLS), transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), hypertext transport protocol (HTTP), simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP), file transfer protocol (FTP), and the like. The data exchanged over the network750can be represented using technologies and/or formats including hypertext markup language (HTML) and extensible markup language (XML). In addition, all or some links can be encrypted using conventional encryption technologies such as secure sockets layer (SSL), transport layer security (TLS), and Internet Protocol security (IPsec).

In one embodiment, the user device710may display content from the external system720and/or from the social networking system730by processing a markup language document714received from the external system720and from the social networking system730using a browser application712. The markup language document714identifies content and one or more instructions describing formatting or presentation of the content. By executing the instructions included in the markup language document714, the browser application712displays the identified content using the format or presentation described by the markup language document714. For example, the markup language document714includes instructions for generating and displaying a web page having multiple frames that include text and/or image data retrieved from the external system720and the social networking system730. In various embodiments, the markup language document714comprises a data file including extensible markup language (XML) data, extensible hypertext markup language (XHTML) data, or other markup language data. Additionally, the markup language document714may include JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) data, JSON with padding (JSONP), and JavaScript data to facilitate data-interchange between the external system720and the user device710. The browser application712on the user device710may use a JavaScript compiler to decode the markup language document714.

The markup language document714may also include, or link to, applications or application frameworks such as FLASH™ or Unity™ applications, the SilverLight™ application framework, etc.

In one embodiment, the user device710also includes one or more cookies716including data indicating whether a user of the user device710is logged into the social networking system730, which may enable modification of the data communicated from the social networking system730to the user device710.

The external system720includes one or more web servers that include one or more web pages722a,722b, which are communicated to the user device710using the network750. The external system720is separate from the social networking system730. For example, the external system720is associated with a first domain, while the social networking system730is associated with a separate social networking domain. Web pages722a,722b, included in the external system720, comprise markup language documents714identifying content and including instructions specifying formatting or presentation of the identified content.

Users may join the social networking system730and then add connections to any number of other users of the social networking system730to whom they desire to be connected. As used herein, the term “friend” refers to any other user of the social networking system730to whom a user has formed a connection, association, or relationship via the social networking system730. For example, in an embodiment, if users in the social networking system730are represented as nodes in the social graph, the term “friend” can refer to an edge formed between and directly connecting two user nodes.

In addition to establishing and maintaining connections between users and allowing interactions between users, the social networking system730provides users with the ability to take actions on various types of items supported by the social networking system730. These items may include groups or networks (i.e., social networks of people, entities, and concepts) to which users of the social networking system730may belong, events or calendar entries in which a user might be interested, computer-based applications that a user may use via the social networking system730, transactions that allow users to buy or sell items via services provided by or through the social networking system730, and interactions with advertisements that a user may perform on or off the social networking system730. These are just a few examples of the items upon which a user may act on the social networking system730, and many others are possible. A user may interact with anything that is capable of being represented in the social networking system730or in the external system720, separate from the social networking system730, or coupled to the social networking system730via the network750.

The social networking system730also includes user-generated content, which enhances a user's interactions with the social networking system730. User-generated content may include anything a user can add, upload, send, or “post” to the social networking system730. For example, a user communicates posts to the social networking system730from a user device710. Posts may include data such as status updates or other textual data, location information, images such as photos, videos, links, music or other similar data and/or media. Content may also be added to the social networking system730by a third party. Content “items” are represented as objects in the social networking system730. In this way, users of the social networking system730are encouraged to communicate with each other by posting text and content items of various types of media through various communication channels. Such communication increases the interaction of users with each other and increases the frequency with which users interact with the social networking system730.

The social networking system730includes a web server732, an API request server734, a user profile store736, a connection store738, an action logger740, an activity log742, and an authorization server744. In an embodiment of the invention, the social networking system730may include additional, fewer, or different components for various applications. Other components, such as network interfaces, security mechanisms, load balancers, failover servers, management and network operations consoles, and the like are not shown so as to not obscure the details of the system.

The user profile store736maintains information about user accounts, including biographic, demographic, and other types of descriptive information, such as work experience, educational history, hobbies or preferences, location, and the like that has been declared by users or inferred by the social networking system730. This information is stored in the user profile store736such that each user is uniquely identified. The social networking system730also stores data describing one or more connections between different users in the connection store738. The connection information may indicate users who have similar or common work experience, group memberships, hobbies, or educational history. Additionally, the social networking system730includes user-defined connections between different users, allowing users to specify their relationships with other users. For example, user-defined connections allow users to generate relationships with other users that parallel the users' real-life relationships, such as friends, co-workers, partners, and so forth. Users may select from predefined types of connections, or define their own connection types as needed. Connections with other nodes in the social networking system730, such as non-person entities, buckets, cluster centers, images, interests, pages, external systems, concepts, and the like are also stored in the connection store738.

The social networking system730maintains data about objects with which a user may interact. To maintain this data, the user profile store736and the connection store738store instances of the corresponding type of objects maintained by the social networking system730. Each object type has information fields that are suitable for storing information appropriate to the type of object. For example, the user profile store736contains data structures with fields suitable for describing a user's account and information related to a user's account. When a new object of a particular type is created, the social networking system730initializes a new data structure of the corresponding type, assigns a unique object identifier to it, and begins to add data to the object as needed. This might occur, for example, when a user becomes a user of the social networking system730, the social networking system730generates a new instance of a user profile in the user profile store736, assigns a unique identifier to the user account, and begins to populate the fields of the user account with information provided by the user.

The connection store738includes data structures suitable for describing a user's connections to other users, connections to external systems720or connections to other entities. The connection store738may also associate a connection type with a user's connections, which may be used in conjunction with the user's privacy setting to regulate access to information about the user. In an embodiment of the invention, the user profile store736and the connection store738may be implemented as a federated database.

Data stored in the connection store738, the user profile store736, and the activity log742enables the social networking system730to generate the social graph that uses nodes to identify various objects and edges connecting nodes to identify relationships between different objects. For example, if a first user establishes a connection with a second user in the social networking system730, user accounts of the first user and the second user from the user profile store736may act as nodes in the social graph. The connection between the first user and the second user stored by the connection store738is an edge between the nodes associated with the first user and the second user. Continuing this example, the second user may then send the first user a message within the social networking system730. The action of sending the message, which may be stored, is another edge between the two nodes in the social graph representing the first user and the second user. Additionally, the message itself may be identified and included in the social graph as another node connected to the nodes representing the first user and the second user.

In another example, a first user may tag a second user in an image that is maintained by the social networking system730(or, alternatively, in an image maintained by another system outside of the social networking system730). The image may itself be represented as a node in the social networking system730. This tagging action may create edges between the first user and the second user as well as create an edge between each of the users and the image, which is also a node in the social graph. In yet another example, if a user confirms attending an event, the user and the event are nodes obtained from the user profile store736, where the attendance of the event is an edge between the nodes that may be retrieved from the activity log742. By generating and maintaining the social graph, the social networking system730includes data describing many different types of objects and the interactions and connections among those objects, providing a rich source of socially relevant information.

The web server732links the social networking system730to one or more user devices710and/or one or more external systems720via the network750. The web server732serves web pages, as well as other web-related content, such as Java, JavaScript, Flash, XML, and so forth. The web server732may include a mail server or other messaging functionality for receiving and routing messages between the social networking system730and one or more user devices710. The messages can be instant messages, queued messages (e.g., email), text and SMS messages, or any other suitable messaging format.

The API request server734allows one or more external systems720and user devices710to call access information from the social networking system730by calling one or more API functions. The API request server734may also allow external systems720to send information to the social networking system730by calling APIs. The external system720, in one embodiment, sends an API request to the social networking system730via the network750, and the API request server734receives the API request. The API request server734processes the request by calling an API associated with the API request to generate an appropriate response, which the API request server734communicates to the external system720via the network750. For example, responsive to an API request, the API request server734collects data associated with a user, such as the user's connections that have logged into the external system720, and communicates the collected data to the external system720. In another embodiment, the user device710communicates with the social networking system730via APIs in the same manner as external systems720.

The action logger740is capable of receiving communications from the web server732about user actions on and/or off the social networking system730. The action logger740populates the activity log742with information about user actions, enabling the social networking system730to discover various actions taken by its users within the social networking system730and outside of the social networking system730. Any action that a particular user takes with respect to another node on the social networking system730may be associated with each user's account, through information maintained in the activity log742or in a similar database or other data repository. Examples of actions taken by a user within the social networking system730that are identified and stored may include, for example, adding a connection to another user, sending a message to another user, reading a message from another user, viewing content associated with another user, attending an event posted by another user, posting an image, attempting to post an image, or other actions interacting with another user or another object. When a user takes an action within the social networking system730, the action is recorded in the activity log742. In one embodiment, the social networking system730maintains the activity log742as a database of entries. When an action is taken within the social networking system730, an entry for the action is added to the activity log742. The activity log742may be referred to as an action log.

Additionally, user actions may be associated with concepts and actions that occur within an entity outside of the social networking system730, such as an external system720that is separate from the social networking system730. For example, the action logger740may receive data describing a user's interaction with an external system720from the web server732. In this example, the external system720reports a user's interaction according to structured actions and objects in the social graph.

Other examples of actions where a user interacts with an external system720include a user expressing an interest in an external system720or another entity, a user posting a comment to the social networking system730that discusses an external system720or a web page722awithin the external system720, a user posting to the social networking system730a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or other identifier associated with an external system720, a user attending an event associated with an external system720, or any other action by a user that is related to an external system720. Thus, the activity log742may include actions describing interactions between a user of the social networking system730and an external system720that is separate from the social networking system730.

The authorization server744contains logic to determine if certain information associated with a user can be accessed by a user's friends, external systems720, and/or other applications and entities. The external system720may need authorization from the authorization server744to access the user's more private and sensitive information, such as the user's work phone number. Based on the user's privacy settings, the authorization server744determines if another user, the external system720, an application, or another entity is allowed to access information associated with the user, including information about actions taken by the user.

In some embodiments, the user device710can include a media portion recognition module718. The media portion recognition module718can, for example, be implemented as the media portion recognition module102ofFIG. 1. As discussed previously, it should be appreciated that there can be many variations or other possibilities. For example, in some instances, the media portion recognition module718(or at least a portion thereof) can be included in the social networking system730. Other features of the media portion recognition module718are discussed herein in connection with the media portion recognition module102.

Hardware Implementation

The foregoing processes and features can be implemented by a wide variety of machine and computer system architectures and in a wide variety of network and computing environments.FIG. 8illustrates an example of a computer system800that may be used to implement one or more of the embodiments described herein in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The computer system800includes sets of instructions for causing the computer system800to perform the processes and features discussed herein. The computer system800may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the computer system800may operate in the capacity of a server machine or a client machine in a client-server network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. In an embodiment of the invention, the computer system800may be the social networking system730, the user device710, and the external system820, or a component thereof. In an embodiment of the invention, the computer system800may be one server among many that constitutes all or part of the social networking system730.

The computer system800includes a processor802, a cache804, and one or more executable modules and drivers, stored on a computer-readable medium, directed to the processes and features described herein. Additionally, the computer system800includes a high performance input/output (I/O) bus806and a standard I/O bus808. A host bridge810couples processor802to high performance I/O bus806, whereas I/O bus bridge812couples the two buses806and808to each other. A system memory814and one or more network interfaces816couple to high performance I/O bus806. The computer system800may further include video memory and a display device coupled to the video memory (not shown). Mass storage818and I/O ports820couple to the standard I/O bus808. The computer system800may optionally include a keyboard and pointing device, a display device, or other input/output devices (not shown) coupled to the standard I/O bus808. Collectively, these elements are intended to represent a broad category of computer hardware systems, including but not limited to computer systems based on the x86-compatible processors manufactured by Intel Corporation of Santa Clara, Calif., and the x86-compatible processors manufactured by Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Inc., of Sunnyvale, Calif., as well as any other suitable processor.

The elements of the computer system800are described in greater detail below. In particular, the network interface816provides communication between the computer system800and any of a wide range of networks, such as an Ethernet (e.g., IEEE 802.3) network, a backplane, etc. The mass storage818provides permanent storage for the data and programming instructions to perform the above-described processes and features implemented by the respective computing systems identified above, whereas the system memory814(e.g., DRAM) provides temporary storage for the data and programming instructions when executed by the processor802. The I/O ports820may be one or more serial and/or parallel communication ports that provide communication between additional peripheral devices, which may be coupled to the computer system800.

The computer system800may include a variety of system architectures, and various components of the computer system800may be rearranged. For example, the cache804may be on-chip with processor802. Alternatively, the cache804and the processor802may be packed together as a “processor module”, with processor802being referred to as the “processor core”. Furthermore, certain embodiments of the invention may neither require nor include all of the above components. For example, peripheral devices coupled to the standard I/O bus808may couple to the high performance I/O bus806. In addition, in some embodiments, only a single bus may exist, with the components of the computer system800being coupled to the single bus. Moreover, the computer system800may include additional components, such as additional processors, storage devices, or memories.

In one implementation, the processes and features described herein are implemented as a series of executable modules run by the computer system800, individually or collectively in a distributed computing environment. The foregoing modules may be realized by hardware, executable modules stored on a computer-readable medium (or machine-readable medium), or a combination of both. For example, the modules may comprise a plurality or series of instructions to be executed by a processor in a hardware system, such as the processor802. Initially, the series of instructions may be stored on a storage device, such as the mass storage818. However, the series of instructions can be stored on any suitable computer readable storage medium. Furthermore, the series of instructions need not be stored locally, and could be received from a remote storage device, such as a server on a network, via the network interface816. The instructions are copied from the storage device, such as the mass storage818, into the system memory814and then accessed and executed by the processor802. In various implementations, a module or modules can be executed by a processor or multiple processors in one or multiple locations, such as multiple servers in a parallel processing environment.