Patent ID: 7884884

Claim:
A motion picture retrieval information generating apparatus ( 40 ) that generates retrieval information for retrieving motion picture data constituted of one or more scenes ( 140 , 142 , 144 , 146 , 160 ), each scene being composed of a plurality of frames in a direction of the time axis, said motion picture retrieval information generating apparatus comprising: a retrieval information generating section ( 102 , 103 , 104 , 105 ) that generates retrieval information corresponding to each of said one or more scenes ( 140 , 142 , 144 , 146 , 160 ) on the basis of said motion picture data, and wherein said retrieval information generating section ( 102 , 103 , 104 , 105 ) comprises: a first summary information generating means ( 103 ) for (a) forming plural spatially split blocks ( 182 - 1 . . . , 182 -M) for each of said one or more scenes which are obtained by spatially splitting said each scene of said one or more scenes into a prescribed number of parts in each of two directions spatially and said each of the spatially split blocks having a length of said each scene in a direction of the time axis and (b) generating summary information ( 188 ) in units of the spatially split blocks generated by calculating statistics of motion vectors or predictive modes within each of said plural spatially split blocks of said each scene, the retrieval information comprising said summary information; and wherein said first summary information generating means ( 103 ) spatially splits each of the plurality of frames of said each of said one or more scenes ( 140 , 142 , 144 , 146 , 160 ) into spilt blocks in a fashion corresponding to the spatial splitting of said each scene of said one or more scenes and combines the split blocks at corresponding parts on respective ones of the frames included in the scene to form said each of the spatially split blocks of the scene.