Patent Publication Number: US-2004046801-A1

Title: System and method for constructing an interactive video menu

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] 1. Field of the Invention  
       [0002] This invention relates to an interactive video authoring system, and particularly to a system and a method capable of instructing and allowing a user to automatically construct an interactive video menu during the authoring of an interactive video.  
       [0003] 2. Description of the Related Art  
       [0004] For memory, record and other purposes, an increasing number of users nowadays use equipment, such as digital video cameras, to shoot digital video clips for storage in a computer system or for transfer via the Internet. Moreover, due to the advancements of digital multimedia industry, the users can also combine and reorganize the shot video clips into one, with the help of a video authoring system, and have the resulting video burned onto any storage means such as compact disc, with suitable modifications directly made on it.  
       [0005] In this case, there is a need to access or play a certain portion such as a video clip of the resulting video. As a result, an interactive video menu is proposed to enhance and the interactivity. An interactive video menu is a menu frame included in an interactive video, in which one or more items such as icons or texts are allocated and linked to the corresponding video clips. Conventionally, an interactive video menu is created by manually allocating one or more items in a menu frame included in an interactive video, then repeatedly linking the items to playback commands for the corresponding video clips. Therefore, any portion such as a video clip of the interactive video can be easily accessed or played in response to a user selection made directly on it. Thereafter, aesthetic and organizational modifications can be further made thereto for a more satisfying outlook.  
       [0006] However, this is cumbersome and time-consuming. Therefore, other improvements can further be made so that a user can easily construct an interactive video menu for easy access to any portion of the interactive video. Further, there is a need to integrate the construction of the interactive video menu into the authoring of the interactive video, so that the authoring of the interactive video can be made more instinctively.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a method for constructing an interactive video menu, which is usually applied to an interactive video authoring system and performed during the authoring of an interactive video, for easy access to any portion such as a video chapter of the interactive video. First, the invention is started with the establishment of an interactive video project. Thereafter, one or more video clips are added to the interactive video project, with each of the video clips represented with a video frame included therein. Thereafter, each of the video clips is parsed to identify one or more video chapters for the video clip, with each of the video chapters also represented with a video frame included therein. Next, a 2-level interactive video menu is constructed based on a menu template and the hierarchical relationship between the video clips and their corresponding video chapters, with the first-level menu including one or more first-level items respectively linked to a second-level menu for the corresponding video clip, and each of the second-level menus including one or more second-level items respectively linked to a playback command for the corresponding video chapter, so that each of the video chapters can be easily accessed or played in response to a user selection made on the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. Also, for a more professional design, the method also allows the user to preview the resulting 2-level interactive video menu, and making aesthetic or structural modifications thereto.  
       [0008] It is therefore another object of the invention to provide a system for constructing an interactive video menu, which is applied to an interactive video authoring system and performed during the authoring of an interactive video, for easy access to any portion such as a video chapter of the interactive video. The system comprises a video parsing module, a menu constructing module, and a hierarchy database. The video parsing module is provided to receive one or more video clips for the interactive video project, with each of the video clips represented by a video frame included therein, and to parse each of the video clips to identify one or more video chapters for the video clip, with each of the video chapters also represented with a video frame included therein. The hierarchy database that may be organized as a tree structure is coupled to the video parsing module and is provided to keep the hierarchical relationship between the video clips and their corresponding video chapters. The menu constructing module is coupled to the hierarchy database and is provided to construct a 2-level interactive video menu based on a menu template and the hierarchical relationship stored in the hierarchy database, in which the first-level menu includes one or more first-level items respectively linked to a second-level menu for the corresponding video clip, and each of the second-level menus includes one or more second-level items respectively linked to a playback command for the corresponding video chapter. Thus, each of the video chapters can be easily accessed or played in response to a user selection made on the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. 
     
    
    
     [0009] The objects, features, and advantages of the invention can be more fully understood by reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, with reference made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
     [0010]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a system for constructing an interactive video menu according to the preferred embodiment of this invention,  
     [0011]FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing a method for constructing an interactive video menu according to the preferred embodiment of the invention,  
     [0012]FIG. 3 is a startup window illustrating the establishment of an interactive video project, as shown in Step  202  of FIG. 2;  
     [0013]FIG. 4 is a clip selection window illustrating the selection of one or more video clips in an interactive video project, as shown in Step  204  of FIG. 2;  
     [0014]FIG. 5 is a video chapter selection window illustrating the selection of one or more video chapters in a video clip, as shown in Step  206  of FIG. 2;  
     [0015]FIG. 6 is a tree structure showing the hierarchical relationship between the video clips and their corresponding video chapters according to the preferred embodiment of this invention;  
     [0016]FIG. 7A is a template selection window illustrating the selection of a menu template for the first-level menu of the resulting 2-level interactive video menu;  
     [0017]FIG. 7B is a template selection window illustrating the selection of a menu template for the second-level menu of the resulting 2-level interactive video menu;  
     [0018]FIG. 8A and 8B are menu preview windows respectively showing a partial first-level menu of the 2-level interactive video menu when the items of the first-level menu are split up into two menu frames; and  
     [0019]FIG. 9A, 9B and  9 C are project preview windows respectively showing a first-level menu, a second-level menu, and a selected video chapter in response to a user selection made on the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
     [0020] The invention discloses a method and system for constructing a  2- level interactive video menu for easy access to any portion such as a video chapter included in an interactive video, which is applied to an interactive video authoring system and performed during the authoring of the interactive video. Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a block diagram showing a system for constructing an interactive video menu according to the preferred embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the system  100  comprises a video parsing module  103 , a menu constructing module  105 , and a hierarchy database  107 . The video parsing module  103  is provided to receive one or more video clips  101   i  (where i is the index for the received video clips for an interactive video project) from any storage means, and to parse each of the video clips  101   ij  to identify one or more video chapters  103   i  included therein (where j is the index for the identified video chapters in the video clip  101   i ). The hierarchy database  107 , coupled to the video parsing module  103 , is provided to maintain the hierarchical relationship  109  between the received video clips  101   i  and the identified video chapters  103   ij  for use in the menu constructing module  105 . The menu constructing module  105 , coupled to the hierarchy database  107 , is provided to construct a 2-level interactive video menu  111  based on a menu template  113  and the hierarchical relationship  109  maintained in the hierarchy database  107 , with the first-level menu including one or more first-level items respectively linked to a second-level menu for the corresponding video clip, and each of the second-level menus including one or more second-level items respectively linked to a playback command for the corresponding video chapter.  
     [0021] Please refer to FIG. 2, which is a flow chart showing a method for constructing an interactive video menu according to the preferred embodiment of this invention.  
     [0022] In Step  202 , an interactive video project is first established. Please refer to FIG. 3, which is a startup window showing the establishment of an interactive video project, as illustrated in Step  202  of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the interactive video project can be a newly created interactive video project or an existing interactive video project that has been stored on any storage means. The user can, in the startup window  301 , create a new interactive video project by assigning a project name and setting its destination location, or open an existing interactive video project from any storage means with the help of a file browser. Since the operations performed for an existing interactive video project is possibly partial to those performed for a newly created interactive video project. This embodiment will be exemplified with a newly created interactive video project.  
     [0023] Next, in Step  204 , one or more video clips are added into the established interactive video project. Please refer to FIG. 4, which is a clip selection window showing the selection of one or more video clips for an interactive video project, as illustrated in Step  204  of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 4, the user can, in a clip selection window  401 , add one or more video clips  403   i  stored on any storage means into a video clip list  409 , with each video clip  403   i  represented by a video frame  405   i  such as the first video frame in the video clip (where i is the index for the video clip). Moreover, the video clips  403   i  in the video clip list  409  can be further modified such as deleted or reorganized with the help of various controls in the clip selection window  401 . In this example, the user adds three video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3  in the video clip list  409  with the help of a file browser. Each of the video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3  is respectively referred to file1.mpg, file2.mpg and file3.mpg stored in hard drive C, and is respectively represented with the first video frame  405   1 ,  405   2  and  405   3  included therein. In other examples, the user can draw-and-drop to reorganize the sequence of the added video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3 , or delete any of the video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3  with the help of a remove control (if necessary).  
     [0024] Next, in Step  206 , each of the video clips  403   i  is parsed to identify one or more video chapters  407   ij  included therein. As shown in FIG. 5, which is a chapter selection window showing the selection of one or more video chapters in a video clip, as illustrated in Step  206  of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 5, the user can, in a chapter selection window  501 , select one of the video clips  403   i  with the help of a selection combo  503 , into a video chapter list  509 , and parse the selected video clip with the help of a preview navigator  505  and a preview window  507  to identify one or more video chapters  407   ij  contained therein, with each of the video chapters  407   ij  also represented with a video frame  409   ij  such as the first video frame of the selected video chapter (where j is the index for the identified video chapter in the video clip  403   i ). In this embodiment, the parsing step can be performed by previewing one and all video frames of the selected video clip with the help of the selection combo  503 , the preview navigation  505  and the preview window  507 , and identifying one or more video chapters  407   ij  by picking certain video frames from the selected video clip to a video chapter list  509  with the help of an add control. Moreover, the user can also remove any selected video chapters from the video chapter list  509  with the help of a remove control (if necessary). As shown in FIG. 5, the user selects the video clip  403   2  with the help of the selection combo  503 , preview one and all video frames of the selected video clip  403   2  with the help of the navigation bar  505  and preview window  507 , and identify two video chapters  403   21  and  403   22  respectively starting at 00:00:10:15 and at 00:00:14:15 into the video chapter list  509  with the help of an add control  508 . This parsing step is repeated until each of video clips  403   1 ,  403   2 ,  403   3  is parsed.  
     [0025] In Step  208 , a 2-level interactive video menu is constructed based on the hierarchical relationship between the received video clips  403   i  and their corresponding video chapters  407   ij , which is stored in a hierarchy database  107  (as shown in FIG. 1). Please refer to FIG. 6, which is a tree structure illustrating the hierarchical relationship between the received video clips and their corresponding video chapters according the preferred embodiment of this invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the interactive video project includes three video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3 , with the first video clip  403   1  including six video chapter  407   11 ,  407   12 , . . . ,  407   16  contained therein, the second video clip  403   2  including three video chapters  407   21 ,  407   22  and  407   23  contained therein, and the third video clip  403   2  including three video chapters  407   31 ,  407   32  and  407   33  contained therein. Based on the tree structure in FIG. 6, a 2-level interactive video menu (not shown) can be determined with the first-level menu including three first-level items respectively linked to three second-level menus for the corresponding video clips  403   1 ,  403   2  and  403   3 , and each of the second-level menus including a number of second-level items respectively linked to playback commands for the corresponding video chapters  407   11 ˜ 407   16 ,  407   21 ˜ 407   23  and  407   31 ˜ 407   33 .  
     [0026] Next, in Step  210 , a menu template can be applied to the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. Please refer to FIG. 7A and 7B, which are template selection windows respectively illustrating the selection of a menu template for the first-level menu and the selection of a menu template for a second-level menu. As shown in FIG. 7A, which is a template selection window illustrating the selection of a menu template for the first-level menu of the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. In this example, the user can, in a template selection window  701 A, select a desired menu template  709 A from a menu template list  707 A, preview the resulting first-level menu with the help of a menu preview window  705 A to determine the desired menu template  709 A for the first-level menu. Moreover, the user can also modify the first-level menu by adding background music or image for the resulting first-level menu with the help of BG picture control  711 A and BG music control  713 A. As shown in FIG. 7B, which is a template selection window illustrating the selection of a menu template for the second-level menu of the resulting 2-level interactive video menu. In this example, the user can, in a template selection window  701 B, identify a desired menu template  709 B from a menu template list  707 B, preview the resulting second-level menu in a menu preview window  705 B to select the desired menu template  709 B for the second-level menu. Moreover, the user can also modify the second-level menu by adding background music or image for the resulting second-level menu with the help of BG picture control  711 B and BG music control  713 B. Since the behaviors for the menu template selection for the first-level menu and the second-level menus are similar, in the preferred embodiment, the menu template selection for the first-level menu and the second-level menu can be implemented in the same menu template window, with the first-level menu and the second-level menus selected with the help of a selection combo  703 A and  703 B, as shown in FIG. 7A and 7B.  
     [0027] Moreover, the first-level menu and the second-level menus of the 2-level menu can be split up into multiple menu frames when the items to be included exceed that supported by the selected menu template. FIG. 8A and 8B are menu preview windows respectively showing a partial second-level menu of the resulting 2-level interactive video menu when the items to be included exceed that supported by the selected menu template. In this example, the video clip  403   3  includes three video chapters  407   31 ,  407   32  and  407   33 . However, the selected menu template can support only two items in each menu frame, thus the resulting second-level menu for the video clip  403   3  is split up into two menu frames, with the first menu frame including two items respectively linked to playback commands for the first video chapter  407   31  and the second video chapter  407   32 , and the second menu frame including one item linked to playback command for the third video chapter  407   33 . Similar situations may occur for the first-level menu, therefore the related description thereof is omitted.  
     [0028] Next, in Step  212 , the resulting 2-level interactive video menu for this interactive video project is previewed. Please refer to FIG. 9A, 9B, and  9 C, which are project preview windows respectively showing the resulting first-level menu, the resulting second-level menu, and the resulting video chapters to be played, in which the video chapters  407   23  is played in response to a user selection that is sequentially made to the first-level item linked to a second-level menu for the video clip  403   2  and the second-level item linked to playback commands for the video chapter  407   23 , which is located in the second menu frame of the second-level menu.  
     [0029] The invention has been described using exemplary preferred embodiments. However, it is to be understood that the scope of the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements. The scope of the claims, therefore, should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.