Patent Publication Number: US-2012030550-A1

Title: Method for editing multimedia

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/400,365,filed on Jul. 28, 2010, which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1.Field of Invention 
     The present invention relates to a method for editing multimedia, and more particularly to a method that enables users to edit audio, visual, and text files online. 
     2. Related Art 
     A conventional music album usually includes a booklet and a compact disc (CD). The CD contains audio files, and the booklet contains artwork, a track list, and lyrics. Most conventional music albums are made by music companies, such as Electric &amp; Musical Industries Ltd. (EMI) and Universal Music Group (UMG), and the conventional music albums are usually sold in record shops. However, the way that record shops sell the music albums makes it difficult for the music albums distribution channel to increase further. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a method for editing multimedia for increasing the music albums distribution channel. 
     The present invention provides a method for editing multimedia including the following steps. First, use a client-side device to establish communication with a serve-side device, wherein the client-side device includes a plug-in and shows a user interface with a plurality of layers and a timeline. Next, send a plurality of multimedia files from the client-side device to the serve-side device, wherein the serve-side device includes a database, a media framework, and at least a storefront unit. Next, use the media framework to split the multimedia files respectively into the layers. Next, use the media framework to make the multimedia files synchronized on the timeline to form a digital multimedia creation. Then, save the digital multimedia creation in the database. After saving the digital multimedia creation, use the storefront unit to publish the digital multimedia creation to the consumer-side device. 
     Based on the above description, the method for editing multimedia of the present invention can help a user create the digital multimedia creation and sell the digital multimedia creation, thereby increasing the music albums distribution channel. 
     In order to make the aforementioned features of the present invention more comprehensible, the following statement accompanied with figures are described in detail below. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below for illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system which a method for editing multimedia is applied to according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a flow chart of the method for editing multimedia in  FIG. 1 ; and 
         FIGS. 3-11  are drawings of a user interface shown by the serve-side device in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system which a method for editing multimedia is applied to according to the present invention, and  FIG. 2  is a flow chart of the method for editing multimedia in  FIG. 1 . Referring to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the method enables for a user such as a singer-songwriter or a musician, to edit multimedia files online and to make a digital multimedia creation containing synchronized audio, visual and text files, wherein the digital multimedia creation may be a multimedia music album. 
     The method of the present invention is applied to an editing system  100 . The editing system  100  allows real-time client-server interactive editing for the purpose of efficient creation or audio, visual and text files editing online by the cloud computing technology. Moreover, the editing system  100  uses media streaming technology with reduced quality of multimedia file, so that the bandwidth needed during playback is small. Therefore, the user can request playback from a remote side with limited internet bandwidth, or through a wireless device. 
     Specifically, the editing system  100  includes a client-side device  110 , a serve-side device  120 , and a consumer-side device  130 . The client-side device  110  is such as a desktop computer, a laptop, a mobile phone, or a personal digital assistant (PDA). The serve-side device  120  includes a database  122 , a media framework  124 , and at least a storefront unit  126 , wherein the media framework  124 , and the storefront unit  126  are both stored in the database  122 . In the embodiment as shown by  FIG. 1 , the serve-side device  120  includes two storefront units  126 , and each of the storefront units  126  may be a common storefront or a user storefront. 
     The method for editing multimedia of the present invention includes the following steps. First, use a client-side device  110  to establish communication with the serve-side device  120  (step S 200 ). In detail, the client-side device  110  includes a plug-in  112  and a web browser  114 . The web browser  114  may be a common web browser, such as Chrome, Internet Explorer (IE), or Mozilla Firefox, and combined with the plug-in  112 . When the communication has been established, the user can send files from the client-side device  110  to the serve-side device  120  and control the media framework  124  online. 
     Next, send a plurality of multimedia files from the client-side device  110  to the serve-side device  120  (step S 202 ). Specifically, the plug-in  112  and the web browser  114  both enable to establish the communication between the client-side device  110  and the serve-side device  120 , and thus, the user can operate the client-side device  110  for running the plug-in  112  and the web browser  114 , thereby sending the multimedia files to the serve-side device  120 . After the serve-side device  120  receives the multimedia files, the multimedia files are stored in the database  122 . Moreover, after the multimedia files are stored in the database  122 , the serve-side device  120  can use the media streaming technology to provide the preview of the file after edited for the user immediately while performing the editing in the client-side device  110 . 
     In addition, the multimedia files include a plurality of audio files, a plurality of visual files, and a plurality of text files, and the visual file may be an image file or a video file. Each of the audio files can be a computer file with a filename extension, such as “mp3”, “way”, “ra”, or “wma”. Each of the video files can be a computer file with a filename extension, such as “mp4”, “wmv”, or “avi”. Each of the image files can be a computer file with a filename extension, such as “jpg”, “bmp”, “gif”, “png” or “tif”. Each of the text files can be a computer file with a filename extension, such as “doc” or “txt”. 
       FIGS. 3-11  are drawings of a user interface shown by the serve-side device in  FIG. 1 . Referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 , and  FIG. 3 , after the client-side device  110  has communicated with the serve-side device  120 , the plug-in  112  and the web browser  114  enables the client-side device  110  to show a user interface  116  with a plurality of layers and a timeline  116   a.  The layers include a first layer L 1 , a second layer L 2 , and a third layer L 3 , as shown by  FIG. 3 . Moreover, the timeline  116   a  can serve as a visualized time indicator, and the user can move the multimedia files to any point of time on the timeline  116  within its own layer. 
     The timeline  116   a  may contain the location on the database of the inserted multimedia file, the start-end position of each inserted multimedia file and the synchronization time code. The timeline  116   a,  the associated information, and the editing status are being saved to the database  122  during each editing session. When playback is requested by the user, the serve-side device  120  may locate the multimedia file as recorded in the timeline and play back only a chunk of the multimedia files from the serve-side device  120  each time using the multimedia file on demand protocol. 
     After sending the multimedia files to the serve-side device  120 , use the media framework  124  to split the multimedia files respectively into the layers L 1 , L 2 , and L 3  (step S 204 ). In detail, the user interface  116  can serve as a real-time control panel for controlling the media framework  124 , and the media framework  124  is used for editing the multimedia files. Thus, the user can operate the media framework  124  through the user interface  116  to split the multimedia files respectively. 
     After the step of splitting the multimedia files, the audio files are shown in the first layer L 1 , the visual files are shown in the second layer L 2 , and the text files are shown in the third layer L 3 . Specifically, the layers (i.e. the first layer L 1 , the second layer L 2 , and the third layer L 3 ) categorize the multimedia files according to format. Each of the layers is a visualized way to group multimedia files. In addition, each of the layers can show the location of the multimedia files on the timeline  116   a,  the start-end position of each multimedia files and the synchronization time code, as shown by  FIG. 3 . 
     Next, the user can use the media framework  124  to make the multimedia files synchronized on the timeline  116   a  to form a digital multimedia creation (step S 206 ), wherein the timeline  116   a  can show the total duration length of the digital multimedia creation from the beginning to the end, and sequences of the multimedia files. In one of the embodiments, the total duration length of the multimedia music album from the beginning of the first multimedia file to the end of the last multimedia file may be shown on the timeline in “Hour:Minute:Second.millisecond format”. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 5 , the step of making the multimedia files synchronized on the timeline can include the following steps for arranging the multimedia files. Specifically, the user can use the media framework  124  through the user interface  116  to arrange a sequence of the audio files on the timeline  116   a,  as shown by  FIG. 4 , to arrange a sequence of the visual files on the timeline  116   a,  as shown by  FIG. 5 , and to arrange a sequence of the text files on the timeline  116   a.  Therefore, the user can determine which of the multimedia files is played at first, and which of the multimedia files is played at the end. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , when the multimedia files are made synchronized on the timeline  116   a,  the user can use the media framework  124  to adjust a duration length of one of the multimedia files. In detail, taking  FIG. 6  for example, when one of the visual files is an image file, the user can use the media framework  124  to adjust a duration length of the image file, thereby extending or shortening the duration length of the image file. Similarly, referring to  FIG. 7  and taking  FIG. 7  for example, the user also can use the media framework  124  to adjust a duration length of the text file, thereby extending or shortening the duration length of the text file. 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , during making the multimedia files synchronized on the timeline  116   a,  the user also can use the media framework  124  to determine a primary layer from the first layer L 1  and the second layer L 2 . That is to say, the primary layer is defined by the user. The primary layer acts as the master when working on synchronization, and other layers act as the slave. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the layer on top shown by the user interface  116  is the primary layer, and the multimedia files in the primary layer are primary media. The user can use the media framework  124  through the user interface  116  to move one of the first layer L 1  and the second layer L 2  for determining the primary layer. Taking  FIG. 8  for example, the user chooses the second layer L 2  as the primary layer. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9  and  FIG. 10 , after determining the primary layer, the user can use the media framework  124  to fit the multimedia files of the primary layer to the text files in the third layer L 3  through the user interfaces  116  and  116 ′. Taking  FIG. 9  and  FIG. 10  for example, when the user fits the audio flies in the first layer L 1  to the text files in the third layer L 3 , the user interface  116  will change into the user interface  116 ′, wherein the user interface  116 ′ is used to help the user to synchronize the audio flies with the text files. 
     Referring to  FIG. 11 , in addition to synchronizing the audio flies with the text files, the user also can fit the visual flies to the text files through the user interface  116 ″. Specifically, the user interface  116  can change into the user interface  116 ″, and the user interface  116 ″ is used to help the user to synchronize the visual flies with the text files. It should be noted that the text files may serve as subtitles for a video such as a music video (MV) or a movie. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 , and  FIG. 3 , after forming the digital multimedia creation, the user can save the digital multimedia creation in the database  122  (step S 208 ). Specifically, the user can operate the user interface  116  to make the database  122  save the digital multimedia creation. Taking  FIG. 3  for example, the user can click the bottom  116   b,  which shows “Save”, for saving the digital multimedia creation. In addition, the editing status of the digital multimedia creation can be saved to the database  122  during making the multimedia files synchronized. That is to say, the editing status is saved to the database  122  during each editing session. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 , and  FIG. 3 , after saving the digital multimedia creation, the storefront unit  126  can publish the digital multimedia creation to the consumer-side device  130  (step S 210 ). Specifically, the user can operate the user interface  116  to make at least one of the storefront units  126  publish the digital multimedia creation. Taking  FIG. 3  for example, the user can click the bottom  116   c,  which shows “Save &amp; Publish”, for saving and publishing the digital multimedia creation. 
     Additionally, when saving the digital multimedia creation, the timeline  116   a  in the digital multimedia creation will be saved. When a consumer wants to buy a complete digital multimedia creation, the serve-side device  120  will find a according timeline and generate the digital multimedia creation according to the information of the timeline. 
     On the basis of the above description, the method for editing multimedia of the present invention can help a user such as a singer-songwriter or a musician, to edit or to create a digital multimedia creation including synchronized audio, visual and text files, and help the user to sell the digital multimedia creation through at least a storefront unit. Therefore, the present invention can increase the music albums distribution channel. 
     The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.