Patent Description:
The invention further relates to a method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content.

Synchronized lighting systems exist that dynamically create light effects based on the video content displayed on a TV in a home entertainment setup. This is also referred to as entertainment light syncing. An example of such a synchronized lighting system is Hue Sync. <CIT> also describes such a synchronized lighting system. Sometimes, e.g. in the case of Hue Sync, the lighting system defines a group of lights each with x,y,z location coordinates which receive and render these entertainment light effects. A controller analyzes the video content and subsequently generates the light effects that get sent to the applicable lighting devices. The controller's light effect algorithm is aware of each light's location within the room.

Sometimes, e.g. in the case of Hue Sync, a user specifies which lighting devices should be used to render the entertainment light effects, e.g. defines an entertainment area. When entertainment light syncing, all lights in the entertainment area are controlled to render the entertainment light effects. However, this produces a reduced experience when light syncing with certain content.

<CIT> discloses an immersive lighting system with coordinated control of light sources based on information from within received multimedia content.

It is a first object of the invention to provide a system, which is able to create an entertainment light experience optimized for the type of video content being displayed on the display device.

It is a second object of the invention to provide a method, which can be used to create an entertainment light experience optimized for the type of video content being displayed on the display device.

In a first aspect of the invention, a system for controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content comprises at least one output interface and at least one processor configured to obtain a level of dynamicity of said video content, select one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on said level of dynamicity, a first quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity does not exceed said threshold, said first quantity being higher than said second quantity, determine light effects for said one or more lighting devices based on said video content, and control, via said at least one output interface, said one or more lighting devices to render said light effects.

By using a larger number of lighting devices for dynamic content than for static content, the created light experience is optimized for the type of video content being displayed on the display device. As a result, less lighting devices are used for rendering entertainment light effects to accompany a talk show than for rendering entertainment light effects to accompany an action movie.

Using the maximum number of lighting devices for rendering entertainment light effects to accompany a talk show, as would normally be done, provides a reduced light experience, as light syncing with content that is generally static produces light syncing effects that are generally static, i.e. essentially no effect is created. It detracts from the light experience when the whole entertainment area is rendering the static colors of the talk show. On the other hand, when the user watches an action movie, all lighting devices should preferably render entertainment light effects to create the most immersive experience. The threshold may be pre-defined or dynamically determined.

Said at least one processor may be configured to select said one or more lighting devices from said plurality of lighting devices further based on distances between said display device and individual lighting devices of said plurality of lighting devices. For example, if the video content is generally dynamic, light syncing may be performed with all lights in entertainment area in order to focus on the entertainment light effects and if the video content is generally static, light syncing may be performed only with lights directly adjacent to the display device, e.g. while transitioning all other lights to a static ambiance color to create an ambiance. Lights directly adjacent to the display device often contribute the most to the entertainment light experience.

Said at least one processor may be configured to select one or more other lighting devices from said plurality of lighting devices, said one or more other lighting devices being different from said one or more lighting devices, and control, via said at least one output interface, each of said one or more other lighting devices to render another light effect which is static and/or not related to the video content or to render no light effect. If this other light effect is static, it may or may not be related to the video content. If this other light effect is dynamic, it must not be related to the video content.

Although all other lighting devices may be controlled to render no light effect, a better light experience may be achieved by creating an ambience. For example, talk shows are generally static and it detracts from experience when the whole entertainment area is rendering the static colors of the talk show. Instead, it may be better to limit light syncing to lights directly adjacent to the television while transitioning the other lights used for navigation (overhead, back of room) to a static ambiance color for a more relaxed and comfortable experience.

Said at least one processor may be configured to select a first subset and a second subset of said one or more other lighting devices based on distances between said display device and individual lighting devices of said one or more other lighting devices, said first subset being closer to said display device than said second subset, control said first subset of said one or more other lighting devices to render no light effect, and control said second subset of said one or more other lighting devices to render said other light effect. In this way a buffer between the spatial area where the entertainment light effects are rendered and the spatial area whether the other light effects are rendered may be created when the dynamicity level is neither very high nor very low. This results in a more pleasing light experience.

Said at least one processor may be configured to control at least one of said one or more other lighting devices to render a gradual transition from a current light setting of said at least one lighting device to said other light effect. This prevents sudden, distracting changes in light settings, e.g. when starting light syncing and/or when recalculating the dynamicity level for new video content.

Said at least one processor may be configured to determine said gradual transition based on said level of dynamicity before controlling said at least one lighting device to render said gradual transition. When the video content, and therefore the entertainment light effects rendered on the one or more lighting devices, is more dynamic, faster changes in light settings of another lighting device will typically be less distracting and may in that case be acceptable.

Said at least one processor may be configured to determine a static brightness level, said static brightness level being higher than a brightness level of said light effects rendered by said one or more lighting devices, and control at least one of said one or more other lighting devices to render said other light effect with said static brightness level. If another lighting device renders a static light effect, the created light ambiance is often most pleasing to the user if the brightness level of this static light effect is higher than the brightness level of the entertainment light effects. The static light effect may be a white light effect with a <NUM>% dim level, for example.

Said at least one processor may be configured to obtain a user-specified definition of an entertainment area, identify said plurality of lighting devices based on said user-specified definition of said entertainment area, and select said one or more lighting devices from said identified plurality of lighting devices. In certain lighting systems, e.g. Hue Sync, the user first defines which lighting devices should be included in the entertainment area. For example, a lighting device in the bathroom is normally not included in the entertainment area. Conventionally, all lighting devices in the entertainment area would be controlled to render entertainment light effects. However, with the above-described system, when the level of dynamicity does not exceed the threshold, a (strict) subset of the lighting devices included in the entertainment area may be selected for rendering the entertainment light effects.

Said at least one processor may be configured to obtain, via at least one input interface of said system, information indicative of said level of dynamicity of said video content from a further system. This is beneficial, for example, if the video content is streamed and cannot (completely) be analyzed by the system beforehand.

Said at least one processor may be configured to analyze said video content and determine said level of dynamicity based on said analysis. This reduces reliance on content providers or other service providers making information indicative of the level of dynamicity available. For example, said at least one processor may be configured to analyze said video content to determine a quantity of pixels which change more than a predefined amount from a videoframe to a succeeding videoframe and/or video compression motion vectors and determine said level of dynamicity based on said quantity of pixels and/or said motion vectors.

Said at least one processor may be configured to obtain information indicative of a mood of said video content, determine said threshold based on said mood, and select said one or more lighting devices from said plurality of lighting devices based on said level of dynamicity and said threshold. The mood may be "scary", "tense", "fun", or "sad", for example. For certain moods of video content, the light experience is less affected by the number of lighting devices rendering the entertainment light effects than for other moods of video content. The threshold may be lower for fun movies/programs than for sad movies/programs, for example. The mood may be indicated in information obtained from a further system, e.g. in the same information which indicates the level of dynamicity of the video content, as described above.

Said at least one processor may be configured to determine a brightness level of said light effects for said one or more lighting devices based on a user-configured brightness level, and control said one or more lighting devices to render said light effects with said brightness level. Although the brightness level of the entertainment light effects could be determined (entirely) based on the video content, users often want to specify a preferred brightness value or range of brightness values.

In a second aspect of the invention, a method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content comprises obtaining a level of dynamicity of said video content, selecting one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on said level of dynamicity, a first quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity does not exceed said threshold, said first quantity being higher than said second quantity, determining light effects for said one or more lighting devices based on said video content, and controlling said one or more lighting devices to render said light effects. Said method may be performed by software running on a programmable device. This software may be provided as a computer program product.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores at least one software code portion, the software code portion, when executed or processed by a computer, being configured to perform executable operations for controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content.

The executable operations comprise obtaining a level of dynamicity of said video content, selecting one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on said level of dynamicity, a first quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity does not exceed said threshold, said first quantity being higher than said second quantity, determining light effects for said one or more lighting devices based on said video content, and controlling said one or more lighting devices to render said light effects.

<FIG> shows a first embodiment of the system for controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device <NUM> displays video content. In the first embodiment, the system is an HDMI module <NUM>. The light effects relate to the video content. The HDMI module <NUM> may be a Hue Play HDMI Sync Box, for example.

In the example of <FIG>, The HDMI module <NUM> can control lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> via a bridge <NUM>. The lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> may comprise pixelated and/or single pixel lighting devices. The bridge <NUM> may be a Hue bridge, for example. The bridge <NUM> communicates with the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM>, e.g., using Zigbee technology. The HDMI module <NUM> is connected to a wireless LAN access point <NUM>, e.g., via Wi-Fi. The bridge <NUM> is also connected to the wireless LAN access point <NUM>, e.g., via Wi-Fi or Ethernet.

Alternatively or additionally, the HDMI module <NUM> may be able to communicate directly with the bridge <NUM>, e.g. using Zigbee technology, and/or may be able to communicate with the bridge <NUM> via the Internet/cloud. Alternatively or additionally, the HDMI module <NUM> may be able to control the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> without a bridge, e.g. directly via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or Zigbee or via the Internet/cloud.

The wireless LAN access point <NUM> is connected to the Internet <NUM>. A media server <NUM> is also connected to the Internet <NUM>. Media server <NUM> may be a server of a video-on-demand service such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney+ or Apple TV+, for example. The HDMI module <NUM> is connected to a display device <NUM> and local media receivers <NUM> and <NUM> via HDMI. The local media receivers <NUM> and <NUM> may comprise one or more streaming or content generation devices, e.g., an Apple TV, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV stick, Microsoft Xbox and/or Sony PlayStation, and/or one or more cable or satellite TV receivers.

In an alternative embodiment, the system for controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is the display device itself. In this alternative embodiment, HDMI module logic may be built-in in the display device. Media receivers <NUM> and <NUM> may then also be comprised in the display device, e.g., a smart TV.

The HDMI module <NUM> comprises a receiver <NUM>, a transmitter <NUM>, a processor <NUM>, and memory <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is configured to obtain a level of dynamicity of the video content and select one or more lighting devices from the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> based on the level of dynamicity. The level of dynamicity may be a value between <NUM> and <NUM>, for example. A first, higher quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second, lower quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity does not exceed the threshold. The processor <NUM> may be configured to analyze the video content and determine the level of dynamicity based on this analysis or may be configured to obtain information indicative of the level of dynamicity from a further system, e.g. from media server <NUM>.

The processor <NUM> is further configured to determine light effects for the selected one or more lighting devices based on the video content and control, via the transmitter <NUM>, the one or more selected lighting devices to render the light effects. The processor <NUM> may be configured to determine the light effects by analyzing the video content or from a light script which specifies light effects for this particular video content. Typically, at least the color of the light effects is extracted from the video content, e.g. by the processor <NUM>.

In the embodiment of the HDMI module <NUM> shown in <FIG>, the HDMI module <NUM> comprises one processor <NUM>. In an alternative embodiment, the HDMI module <NUM> comprises multiple processors. The processor <NUM> of the HDMI module <NUM> may be a general-purpose processor, e.g. ARM-based, or an application-specific processor. The processor <NUM> of the HDMI module <NUM> may run a Unix-based operating system for example. The memory <NUM> may comprise one or more memory units. The memory <NUM> may comprise solid-state memory, for example.

The receiver <NUM> and the transmitter <NUM> may use one or more wired or wireless communication technologies such as Zigbee to communicate with the bridge <NUM> and HDMI to communicate with the display device <NUM> and with local media receivers <NUM> and <NUM>, for example. In an alternative embodiment, multiple receivers and/or multiple transmitters are used instead of a single receiver and a single transmitter. In the embodiment shown in <FIG>, a separate receiver and a separate transmitter are used. In an alternative embodiment, the receiver <NUM> and the transmitter <NUM> are combined into a transceiver. The HDMI module <NUM> may comprise other components typical for a network device such as a power connector. The invention may be implemented using a computer program running on one or more processors.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the system of the invention is an HDMI module. In an alternative embodiment, the system may be another device, e.g., a mobile device, laptop, personal computer, a bridge, a media rendering device, a streaming device, or an Internet server. In the embodiment of <FIG>, the system of the invention comprises a single device. In an alternative embodiment, the system comprises multiple devices.

<FIG> shows a second embodiment of the system for controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device <NUM> displays video content. In the second embodiment, the system is a mobile device <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> may be a smart phone or a tablet, for example. The lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> can be controlled by the mobile device <NUM> via the bridge <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> is connected to the wireless LAN access point <NUM>, e.g., via Wi-Fi.

The mobile device <NUM> comprises a receiver <NUM> a transmitter <NUM>, a processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, and a display <NUM>. The video content is preferably displayed on the display device <NUM> but could also be displayed on display <NUM> of the mobile device <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is configured to obtain a level of dynamicity of the video content and select one or more lighting devices from the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> based on the level of dynamicity.

A first, higher quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second, lower quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity does not exceed the threshold. The processor <NUM> may be configured to analyze the video content and determine the level of dynamicity based on this analysis or may be configured to obtain information indicative of the level of dynamicity from a further system, e.g. from media server <NUM>.

In the embodiment of the mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>, the mobile device <NUM> comprises one processor <NUM>. In an alternative embodiment, the mobile device <NUM> comprises multiple processors. The processor <NUM> of the mobile device <NUM> may be a general-purpose processor, e.g. from ARM or Qualcomm or an application-specific processor. The processor <NUM> of the mobile device <NUM> may run an Android or iOS operating system for example. The display <NUM> may be a touchscreen display, for example. The display <NUM> may comprise an LCD or OLED display panel, for example. The memory <NUM> may comprise one or more memory units. The memory <NUM> may comprise solid state memory, for example.

The receiver <NUM> and the transmitter <NUM> may use one or more wireless communication technologies such as Wi-Fi (IEEE <NUM>) to communicate with the wireless LAN access point <NUM>, for example. In an alternative embodiment, multiple receivers and/or multiple transmitters are used instead of a single receiver and a single transmitter. In the embodiment shown in <FIG>, a separate receiver and a separate transmitter are used. In an alternative embodiment, the receiver <NUM> and the transmitter <NUM> are combined into a transceiver. The mobile device <NUM> may further comprise a camera (not shown). This camera may comprise a CMOS or CCD sensor, for example. The mobile device <NUM> may comprise other components typical for a mobile device such as a battery and a power connector. The invention may be implemented using a computer program running on one or more processors.

In the embodiment of <FIG>, the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> are controlled via the bridge <NUM>. In an alternative embodiment, one or more of the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> are controlled without a bridge, e.g., directly via Bluetooth. If the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> are controlled without a bridge, use of wireless LAN access point <NUM> may not be necessary. Mobile device may be connected to the Internet <NUM> via a mobile communication network, e.g., <NUM>, instead of via the wireless LAN access point <NUM>.

A first embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The method may be performed by the HDMI module <NUM> of <FIG> or the mobile device <NUM> of <FIG>, for example.

A step <NUM> comprises obtaining a level of dynamicity of the video content. A step <NUM> comprises selecting one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on the level of dynamicity obtained in step <NUM>. A first quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second quantity of lighting devices is selected when the level of dynamicity does not exceed the threshold. The first quantity is higher than the second quantity. Optionally, the one or more lighting devices may be selected from the plurality of lighting devices further based on distances between the display device and individual lighting devices of the plurality of lighting devices in step <NUM>.

A step <NUM> comprises determining light effects for the one or more lighting devices selected in step <NUM> based on the video content. A step <NUM> comprises controlling the one or more lighting devices selected in step <NUM> to render the light effects determined in step <NUM>.

A second embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The second embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the first embodiment of <FIG>.

Steps <NUM> and <NUM> are performed after step <NUM>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, steps are <NUM> and <NUM> are performed in parallel with steps <NUM> and <NUM>. In an alternative embodiment, these steps may be performed sequentially, e.g.: <NUM>,<NUM>,<NUM>,<NUM>.

Step <NUM> comprises selecting one or more other lighting devices from the plurality of lighting devices. The one or more other lighting devices selected in step <NUM> are different from the one or more lighting devices selected in step <NUM>. All of the lighting devices not selected from the plurality of lighting devices in step <NUM> may be selected in step <NUM> or only some of these lighting devices may be selected in step <NUM>. In an alternative embodiment, steps <NUM> and <NUM> are combined into a single step.

Step <NUM> comprises controlling each of the one or more other lighting devices selected in step <NUM> to render another light effect which is static and/or not related to the video content or to render no light effect. In an alternative embodiment, steps <NUM> and <NUM> are combined into a single step.

A third embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The third embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the second embodiment of <FIG>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, a step <NUM> is performed between steps <NUM> and <NUM>, step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM>, and step <NUM> is implemented by steps <NUM> and <NUM>.

Step <NUM> comprises determining distances between the display device and individual lighting devices of the plurality of lighting devices. Step <NUM> comprises selecting one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on the level of dynamicity obtained in step <NUM>. Optionally, in step <NUM>, the one or more lighting devices are selected from the plurality of lighting devices not only based on the level of dynamicity but further based on the distances determined in step <NUM>.

Step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM>, as described in relation to <FIG>. After the one or more other lighting devices have been selected in step <NUM>, step <NUM> is performed. Step <NUM> comprises selecting a first subset and/or a second subset of the one or more other lighting devices selected in step <NUM>. For certain levels of dynamicity, both a first subset and a second subset are selected. In this case, the first subset and the second subset are selected based on distances between the display device and individual lighting devices of the one or more other lighting devices, as determined in step <NUM>. In this case, the first and second subsets are selected such that the first subset is closer to the display device than the second subset, e.g. that each lighting device of the first subset is closer to the display device than any lighting device of the second subset.

Step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM> if a first subset was selected in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises controlling the first subset of the one or more other lighting devices, as selected in step <NUM>, to render no light effect. For example, commands may be transmitted to one or more lighting devices of the first subset to make them turn their light source(s) off. Such a command may be transmitted to a lighting device irrespective of whether it is currently rendering light or not or may be transmitted to a lighting device only if it has been established that this lighting device is currently rendering light.

Step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM> if a second subset was selected in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises controlling the second subset of the one or more other lighting devices, as selected in step <NUM>, to render another light effect which is static and/or not related to the video content. If both a first subset and a second subset were selected in step <NUM>, then both steps <NUM> and <NUM> are performed.

<FIG> shows examples of lighting devices selected with the method of <FIG>. A first floor <NUM> of a house is represented in <FIG>. The first floor <NUM> has a hallway <NUM>, a kitchen <NUM>, and a living room <NUM>. The lighting devices of <FIG> have been installed in the living room <NUM>. The HDMI module <NUM>, the bridge <NUM>, and the display device <NUM> of <FIG> have also been installed in the living room <NUM>. The wireless LAN access point <NUM> of <FIG> has been installed in the hallway <NUM>. The lighting devices <NUM> and <NUM> are located on respectively the left and right side of the display device <NUM>. The lighting device <NUM> is located right next to the couch on which a user <NUM> is sitting. The lighting device <NUM> is located above the dining table.

Table <NUM> shows how many lighting devices are selected to render entertainment light effects (i.e. dynamic light effects related to the video content) based on different levels of dynamicity. Table <NUM> further shows which of the lighting devices that have not been selected to render entertainment light effects show a static light effect. This static light effect may be related or unrelated to the video content. Alternatively, one or more of these other lighting devices may be controlled to render a dynamic light effect which is not related to the video content (not shown in <FIG>).

Column <NUM> of table <NUM> lists the different levels of dynamicity. Column <NUM> lists how many of the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> have been selected to render entertainment light effects based on the corresponding level of dynamicity in column <NUM>. Column <NUM> lists how many of the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> have not been selected to render entertainment light effects. Columns <NUM>-<NUM> indicate whether the respective lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> are selected to render entertainment light effects, a static light effect, or no light effect at all. Cell <NUM> indicates that four lighting devices are selected to render entertainment light effects when the dynamicity level is <NUM> and cell <NUM> indicates that two lighting devices are selected to render entertainment light effects when the dynamicity level is <NUM>. The threshold is in this case located between <NUM> and <NUM>. The threshold may be pre-defined or dynamically determined.

In the example of <FIG>, the lighting devices <NUM>-<NUM> are selected in step <NUM> of <FIG> if the level of dynamicity is <NUM>. In this example, no other lighting devices are selected in step <NUM> of <FIG> and steps <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> are skipped. Lighting devices <NUM> and <NUM> are selected in step <NUM> of <FIG> if the level of dynamicity is <NUM> or <NUM>. In these two examples, lighting devices <NUM> and <NUM> are selected as other lighting devices in step <NUM>. In these two examples, lighting devices <NUM> and <NUM> are selected to render entertainment light effects because they are closest to the display device <NUM>. Alternatively or additionally, other parameters may be taken into account in this selection.

When the dynamicity level is <NUM>, lighting device <NUM> is assigned to the first subset and lighting device <NUM> is assigned to the second subset in step <NUM> of <FIG>, because lighting device <NUM> is closer to the display device <NUM> than lighting device <NUM>. When the dynamicity level is <NUM>, lighting devices <NUM> and <NUM> are both assigned to the second subset in step <NUM> and no lighting devices are assigned to the first subset. Lighting device <NUM> is assigned to the first subset when the dynamicity level is neither very high nor very low in order to create a buffer between the spatial area where the entertainment light effects are rendered and the spatial area whether the other light effects are rendered. This creates a more pleasing light experience.

A fourth embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The fourth embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the second embodiment of <FIG>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, step <NUM> is implemented by a step <NUM> and steps <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> are performed between steps <NUM> and <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises determining a current light setting of at least one of the one or more other lighting devices selected in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises determining a static brightness level which is higher than a brightness level of the light effects rendered by the one or more lighting devices, as determined in step <NUM>.

Step <NUM> is performed after steps <NUM> and <NUM> have been performed. Step <NUM> comprises determining, based on the level of dynamicity obtained in step <NUM>, a gradual transition from the current light setting determined in step <NUM>, to another light effect, normally an ambiance light effect. This other light effect has the static brightness level determined in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises controlling the at least one lighting device to render the gradual transition determined in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> is performed after step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises controlling the one or more other lighting devices selected in step <NUM> to render the other light effect, which has the static brightness level.

A fifth embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The fifth embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the first embodiment of <FIG>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, step <NUM> is implemented by a step <NUM>, step <NUM> is implemented by a step <NUM>, and steps <NUM> and <NUM> are performed before step <NUM>.

Step <NUM> comprises obtaining information indicative of the level of dynamicity of the video content from a further system. Step <NUM> comprises obtaining a user-specified definition of an entertainment area. Step <NUM> comprises identifying a plurality of lighting devices based on the user-specified definition of the entertainment area obtained in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises selecting the one or more lighting devices, which are to be controlled to render the entertainment light effects, from the plurality of lighting devices identified in step <NUM>, based on the level of dynamicity obtained in step <NUM>.

A sixth embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The sixth embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the first embodiment of <FIG>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, step <NUM> is implemented by steps <NUM> and <NUM> and a step <NUM> is performed before step <NUM>.

Step <NUM> comprises obtaining video content. Step <NUM> comprises analyzing the video content obtained in step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises determining a level of dynamicity based on the analysis of step <NUM>. Step <NUM> comprises selecting one or more lighting devices from a plurality of lighting devices based on the level of dynamicity determined in step <NUM>.

For example, step <NUM> may comprise analyzing the video content to determine a quantity of pixels which change more than a predefined amount from a videoframe to a succeeding videoframe and step <NUM> may comprise determining the level of dynamicity based on the quantity of pixels. The predefined amount may be zero pixels, but is preferably larger than zero pixels, e.g. one pixel. Although it is possible to determine the level of dynamicity from a spatial region within the videoframe (i.e. smaller than the videoframe), it is preferable to determine the level of dynamicity from the whole videoframe. The level of dynamicity may first be determined per sample, e.g. a spatial region of less than 100x100 pixels, and then averaged.

Instead of or in addition to determining the level of dynamicity based on quantities of pixels which have changed, the level of dynamicity may be determined based on video compression motion vectors. It may be possible to analyze a piece of video content, e.g. a TV program or movie, in its entirety before the one or more lighting devices are controlled to render the entertainment light effects in step <NUM>. In this case, the level of dynamicity only needs to be determined once for the piece of video content and the results would normally be good.

If the light effects are determined in real-time, it is typically not possible to analyze a piece of video content in its entirety before the one or more lighting devices are controlled to render the entertainment light effects in step <NUM>. In this case, the level of dynamicity may be determined multiple times, e.g. if it is not possible to obtain information indicative of the level of dynamicity from a further system. The level of dynamicity may be determined every X seconds, for example. X may have a value between <NUM> seconds and <NUM> seconds, for example.

To prevent frequent changes in the number of lighting devices which are used to render the light effects, the analyzed part of the video content is preferably longer than the X seconds. For instance, the level of dynamicity may be the weighted average of a level dynamicity determined for the most recent part of the video content having a duration of X seconds and previous levels of dynamicity.

A seventh embodiment of the method of controlling one or more lighting devices to render light effects while a display device displays video content is shown in <FIG>. The seventh embodiment of <FIG> is an extension of the first embodiment of <FIG>. In the embodiment of <FIG>, step <NUM> is implemented by a step <NUM> and steps <NUM> and <NUM> are performed before step <NUM>. Furthermore, in the embodiment of <FIG>, step <NUM> comprises sub steps <NUM> and <NUM>.

Step <NUM> comprises obtaining information indicative of a mood of the video content. The mood may be "scary", "tense", "fun", or "sad", for example. Step <NUM> comprises determining the threshold based on the mood, e.g. from a mapping from mood value to threshold value. For example, the threshold may be lower for fun movies/programs than for sad movies/programs. Step <NUM> comprises selecting one or more lighting devices from the plurality of lighting devices based on the level of dynamicity and the threshold. The embodiment of <FIG> is thus an example of an embodiment in which the threshold is not predefined but dynamically determined.

Step <NUM> comprises determining colors of the light effects for the one or more lighting devices, e.g. based on an analysis of the video content. Step <NUM> comprises determining a brightness level of the light effects for the one or more lighting devices based on a user-configured brightness level. Step <NUM> comprises controlling the one or more lighting devices to render the light effects with the colors determined in step <NUM> and the brightness level determined in step <NUM>.

The embodiments of <FIG> and <FIG> differ from each other in multiple aspects, i.e., multiple steps have been added or replaced. In variations on these embodiments, only a subset of these steps is added or replaced and/or one or more steps is omitted. As a first example, steps <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> may be omitted from the embodiment of <FIG> and/or added individually to the embodiment of <FIG> and/or the embodiment of <FIG>. As a second example, steps <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> may be omitted from the embodiment of <FIG> and/or added (e.g. without step <NUM>) to any of the other embodiments.

Multiple of the embodiments may be combined. As a first example, the embodiments of <FIG> and <FIG> may be combined. As a second example, the embodiment of <FIG> may be combined with any of the embodiments of <FIG> and <FIG>. As a third example, the embodiment of <FIG> or the embodiment of <FIG> may be combined with any of the embodiments of <FIG>, and <FIG>.

<FIG> depicts a block diagram illustrating an exemplary data processing system that may perform the method as described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

Examples of input devices may include, but are not limited to, a keyboard, a pointing device such as a mouse, a microphone (e.g., for voice and/or speech recognition), or the like.

Claim 1:
A system (<NUM>,<NUM>) for controlling one or more lighting devices (<NUM>-<NUM>) to render light effects while a display device (<NUM>) displays video content, said system (<NUM>,<NUM>) comprising:
at least one output interface (<NUM>,<NUM>); and
at least one processor (<NUM>,<NUM>) configured to:
- obtain a level of dynamicity of said video content,
- select one or more lighting devices (<NUM>-<NUM>) from a plurality of lighting devices (<NUM>-<NUM>) based on said level of dynamicity, a first quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity exceeds a threshold and a second quantity of lighting devices being selected when said level of dynamicity does not exceed said threshold, said first quantity being higher than said second quantity,
- determine light effects for said one or more lighting devices (<NUM>-<NUM>) based on said video content, and
- control, via said at least one output interface (<NUM>,<NUM>), said one or more lighting devices (<NUM>-<NUM>) to render said light effects.