CN1642093A - Choose the method of playing multimedia files online - Google Patents

Abstract

A method for playing a multimedia file on line selectively is used for playing the multimedia file stored in a server through a multimedia player, wherein the multimedia player and the server can be mutually connected under a peer-to-peer architecture, and the method for selecting the playing comprises the following steps: firstly, the multimedia player sends a request signal of an option window to a server; then, when the server receives the requirement of the option window, the option window of the multimedia file is transmitted to the multimedia player; formatting the option window and inserting the option window into an output image of the multimedia player end; when the user sees the output image from the display, the multimedia player end selects one of the multimedia files through the option window; transmitting the selected item to a server through an option window; then the server transmits the multimedia file corresponding to the click item to the multimedia player; and receiving and playing or storing the multimedia file by using the multimedia player.

Description

Choose the method of playing multimedia files online

technical field

The invention relates to a method for selecting and playing multimedia files, in particular to a method for online selecting, playing or storing multimedia files stored in a server.

Background technique

A multimedia file is a digital data file that combines sound, light and video. Generally speaking, the content of a multimedia file is relatively large, so compression technology must be used, such as MPEG2 or MPEG4, to compress the multimedia file and store it in a storage space with a small capacity. Among the large discs, such as DVD discs. Once the multimedia file is to be played, the DVD player is used to decompress and decode the DVD disc, and then output the decoded multimedia file to the display for playback.

At present, the DVD player is still limited to the function of regional (local) playback, and its playback method is to put a piece of DVD disc into the DVD player, and then broadcast the content of this piece of DVD disc through a monitor. However, most of the time, the listener does not carry DVD discs, or the DVD discs around him have already been seen. The entire process of purchasing or renting films is not only cumbersome, time-consuming, but also causes considerable inconvenience to the viewers.

With the popularization of the network, a player is directly used to receive multimedia files online through the network, and the technology for playing remote movies has been widely used. At present, the most commonly used architecture is browser/website (browser/website) host From the traditional architecture, under this architecture, the player must have a built-in browser software. The player can be a personal computer. Through the browser, you can enter the webpage on the server side and click the multimedia file you want to play, and then use the real-time transfer protocol. (real-time transport protocol, referred to as RTP), or HTTP, TCP, GUI and other communication protocols to download multimedia files, and finally use streaming technology to play real-time multimedia audio and video. However, since the above-mentioned communication protocol is only suitable for the transmission of text or web pages, it is not suitable for the transmission of audio-visual data, so the picture of the streaming media is often distorted during the transmission process. In addition, the insufficient network bandwidth and slow transmission speed will also cause affect the quality of appreciation.

Another architecture is the terminal/server master-slave architecture. Under this architecture, the player is set as a terminal, and logs in to the server through the network interface, and then uses communication protocols such as RDP or GUI to Download the multimedia files, and finally use streaming (streaming) technology to play real-time multimedia audio and video. Both this architecture and the aforementioned architecture have problems such as insufficient transmission rate and intermittent images, and the control right of data transmission is on the server side instead of the terminal side. Therefore, when the number of terminals connected to the server is increasing, the porting work of the real-time operating system (RTOS) embedded in the server will also increase. Therefore, in the process of data transmission, due to the RTOS The situation of online interruption or crash caused by excessive load will often occur.

Therefore, how to address the shortcomings of the known technology and propose a method for online selection and playback of multimedia files with both transmission rate and transmission quality, so as to provide readers with better viewing quality, is an urgent problem for relevant practitioners at this stage. where the subject is.

Contents of the invention

The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for selecting and playing multimedia files online.

The online selective play framework disclosed in the present invention includes a server and a multimedia player, and stores multiple multimedia files inside the server, and the multimedia player has the function of playing multimedia files, wherein the multimedia player and the server are connected to each other through a network , and set under the network architecture of peer to peer.

When the multimedia player intends to play the multimedia file in real time through the network, the playing steps include: at first, the multimedia player sends an option window request signal to the server; when the server receives the option window request signal, then Transmit the option window of multiple multimedia files to the multimedia player; the multimedia player formats the content of the option window and inserts it into the output image of the multimedia player; after the user sees the output image through the display, the multimedia player side Select a multimedia file to be played from the option window; transmit the selected item to the server through the option window; then the server will transmit the multimedia file corresponding to the selected item to the multimedia player; use multimedia playback The device receives and outputs the multimedia files to a display for playing or stores the multimedia files inside the multimedia player.

The above option window can be in HTML file format, which mainly numbers each multimedia file inside the server, and marks the identification characteristics of each multimedia file, including the name of the movie, the nature of the movie, the publisher, and the main actors etc. The options of the form are designated to the storage location of the corresponding multimedia file in the form of a hyperlink or added to the control function of the multimedia player. Therefore, when an item in the option form is clicked, all its The corresponding multimedia files will be transmitted to the multimedia player in the form of streaming, and then output to a display for online selective playback or storing the multimedia files in the multimedia player.

In addition, the multimedia player of the present invention and the server can also be set in an ad-hoc mode, and perform wireless data transmission through a wireless local area network (WLAN) IEEE 802.11. The option window downloaded to the multimedia player is inserted into the video signal output by the multimedia player in the on-screen display control (OSD) mode, and thus displayed on the display, so for the user, it will be possible to use the remote control in hand device, select the option menu displayed on the OSD on the screen, and directly play or store the multimedia files to be played online.

Among them, the above-mentioned multimedia player and the server can be connected to each other through an Ethernet high-speed network, or use an IP dedicated network (VPN) to connect to each other, or even to connect to each other through an internal private line network, so whether it is transmission speed or image quality will be able to greatly improved. In addition, because the present invention sets between the multimedia player and the server under a peer-to-peer shared network architecture, and the control right is set on the multimedia player side, so for the real-time operating system (RTOS) embedded in the server side In other words, even if multiple multimedia players download data at the same time, it will not increase the porting work on the server side. Relatively, in the process of data transmission, the connection interruption or crash will occur. will also be minimized.

In order to enable those skilled in the art to truly understand the purpose, features and functions of the present invention, the embodiments of the present invention will be described as follows in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is the architecture diagram of the first embodiment of online selection and playback of multimedia files of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a flow chart of utilizing a multimedia player to select and play a multimedia file online in the first embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a structural diagram of the multimedia player of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an option window of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is the architecture diagram of the second embodiment of the online selection and playback of multimedia files of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of using a multimedia player to select and play multimedia files online in the second embodiment of the present invention.

Description of reference symbols

10-Multimedia player 12-Network

100-response unit 102, 104-storage unit

110-data separation unit 106-formatting unit

108-playback unit 112-remote control interface

14-Server 15-First Server

16-Monitor 17-Second server

31-Option Form 41-First End

42 - second end

Detailed ways

Please refer to shown in Fig. 1, it is the structure diagram of the first embodiment of online selection and playback of multimedia files of the present invention, the present embodiment includes a multimedia player 10, a network 12 and a server 14, wherein the multimedia player 10 can be Image player, such as a DVD player, has the function of reading multimedia files, wherein the multimedia files can be compressed video files such as MPEG4 or MPEG2, and the read multimedia files are played by a display 16 (such as a TV) , In addition, this image player can be built in or connected with a video recorder, and can record the image transmitted from the server 12 through the video recorder or burn multimedia files into a CD. The inside of server 14 is to store multiple multimedia files. The multimedia files can be in formats such as MPEG4 or MPEG2. The multimedia player 10 and the server 14 are connected to each other by network 12. This network 12 can be an Ethernet high-speed network, an IP dedicated network ( VPN) or an internal dedicated line network, wherein the multimedia player 10 and the server 14 are set under a peer-to-peer shared network architecture.

Please refer to shown in Fig. 2, it is the first embodiment of the present invention utilizes the flow chart of the first embodiment of the present invention to select and play the multimedia file online, and its steps include: at first send an option window request signal to the server end by the multimedia player (21); when the server receives the option form request signal, then the option form of multiple multimedia files is transmitted to the multimedia player (22); the multimedia player formats the option form and inserts the output video item Signal (23); the selected item is sent to the server (24) through the option window; the multimedia file corresponding to the selected item is sent to the multimedia player (25) by the server; the multimedia player is used to receive and send the multimedia The file is output to the display for playback or stored in storage (26).

As shown in Figure 3, it is a structural diagram of the multimedia player 10, and its exterior includes a first end 41 and a second end 42, the first end 41 is connected to the server through the network 12, and the second end 42 is connected to a display 16. Its interior includes a controller 30, a data processing unit 20 and a response unit 100. The controller 30 is connected to the first terminal 41, which controls the input/output data of the multimedia player 10, and is used to distinguish the form of the input data as an option window. body or multimedia files, the controller 30 can also transmit the selection command of the response unit 100 to the server 14 through the network 12; the data processing unit 20 includes a formatting unit 106 and a playback unit 108, when the controller 30 determines that the received data is an option form, the data of the option form and the control data of the multimedia player 10 will be sent to the formatting unit 106, and when the controller 30 determines that the received data is a multimedia file and is determined to be output by the output terminal, the formatting unit 106 will The option form is formatted, and can be selected to be inserted into the image data of the playback unit 108, and the multimedia file is displayed in a similar OSD (On Screen Display) mode and the selection form is displayed on the display 16 through the output of the second terminal 42 at the same time, for The user refers to the selection; the response unit 100 includes a receiver 112, the receiver 112 can be a wireless receiver controlled by a wireless remote controller (not shown in the figure), and the receiver 112 is used to receive the user's instruction, That is to say, after the user sees the selection window of the display unit 16, he sends an instruction to the receiver 112 to select the multimedia file, and the instruction is transmitted to the controller 30 through the response unit 100, and the controller 30 forwards the selection instruction to the server 14, The server 14 transmits the multimedia files to the multimedia player 10 according to its selection.

The multimedia player 10 can also have a built-in storage unit 102 or an external storage unit 104. The storage units 102, 104 can be hard disks, DVD burners or other media that can store multimedia files. When the multimedia file is stored in the storage unit, the control unit 30 does not send the multimedia file to the playback unit 108, but to the storage unit 102 or the storage unit 104. This function also provides the user with an optional function when viewing a program. , In addition, store other programs in the storage unit, and then achieve the function of watching and recording.

Please refer to shown in Fig. 4, above-mentioned option form 31 can be HTML file format, and it mainly is to number multiple multimedia files, and roughly marks the identification feature of each multimedia file, comprises film name, film property, published film Business, main actors, etc., or multimedia player control instructions for playing or storing multimedia files on the multimedia player end, such as playing and storing. And each option in the form is then specified to the storage location of its corresponding multimedia file in hyperlink mode, therefore, when a certain item in the option form 31 is after being clicked, its corresponding multimedia file will be It is transmitted to the multimedia player 10 in the form of streaming transmission, and is selected and played online on the display 16 or stored in the storage unit.

In addition, the multimedia player 10 of the present invention and the server 14 can also be set in an ad-hoc mode, and perform wireless data transmission through a wireless local area network (WLAN) IEEE 802.11. The option window 31 downloaded to the multimedia player 10 is displayed on the display 16 of the multimedia player 10 in an on-screen display control (OSD) mode. The options menu displayed by the OSD is used to remotely select the multimedia player 10, and the multimedia files to be played are directly played online or stored in the storage unit.

Among them, the above-mentioned multimedia player 10 and the server 14 can be connected to each other through an Ethernet high-speed network, or use an IP dedicated network to connect to each other, or even an internal private line network to connect to each other, so that both the transmission speed and the image quality can be greatly improved. In addition, because the present invention sets between the multimedia player 10 and the server 14 under the network architecture of peer-to-peer sharing, for the real-time operating system (RTOS) embedded in the server 14, even if multiple Downloading data by the multimedia player 10 at the same time will not increase the porting workload of the server 14, and relatively, the situation of online interruption or crash is less likely to occur.

Please refer to shown in Fig. 5, it is the structure diagram of the second embodiment of the online selection and playback of multimedia files of the present invention, the present embodiment includes a multimedia player 10, a network 12, a first server 15 and a second server 17 , wherein the multimedia player 10 may have the function of reading MPEG4 or MPEG2 multimedia files, and the read multimedia files are played through a display 16 (such as a TV) or stored through a storage unit. The first server 15 is a file server, which internally stores many multimedia files in DVD format, and the second server 17 is a management server, which can search for the network location and multimedia file content of the first server 15 (file server), and It is sorted into an option window (as shown in FIG. 4 ) that can recognize the characteristics of the multimedia file.

The multimedia player 10, the first server 15 and the second server 17 are connected to each other through a network 12, and the network 12 can be an Ethernet high-speed network, an IP dedicated network (VPN) or an internal private line network, wherein the multimedia player 10 and The second servers 17 are set under a peer-to-peer (peer topeer) shared network architecture. As can be seen from the above description, in this embodiment, the server for managing multimedia files is separated from the server for storing multimedia files. In this way, any file server on the network can become a data storage point for multimedia files as long as it is connected to this architecture. , not only can achieve the effect of distributed file sharing, but after these multimedia files are integrated, the number and types of multimedia files that can be provided will also be greatly increased.

Please refer to shown in Fig. 5, it is the flow chart of utilizing the multimedia player to select and play multimedia files online in the second embodiment of the present invention, and its steps include: first, the multimedia player sends a directory download signal to the second server end (51); when the second server receives the catalog download signal, then the option form of many multimedia files is downloaded to the multimedia player (52); and then one is selected in the option form of the multimedia player end Multimedia file (53) to be played; the selected item is sent to the first server (54) through the option window; then the multimedia file corresponding to the selected item is sent to the multimedia player (55) by the first server ; Utilize the multimedia player to receive and output the multimedia file to the display for playing (56).

The format of the option window and the streaming method of multimedia files in this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, so they will not be repeated here, but it is worth mentioning that whether it is the first embodiment or the second embodiment, the entire The architecture controls the selection and playback of multimedia files online on the multimedia player side, so it will be more convenient for readers to operate. In addition, under the peer-to-peer shared network architecture, and the control right In the case of the multimedia player, an appropriate communication protocol can also be set by itself to make the transmission of multimedia files smoother and thus obtain better playback quality.

The above is only a preferred embodiment of the method for online selection and playback of multimedia files of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, any modifications made should belong to the present invention without violating the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be based on the following claims.

Claims (23)

1. the method for an on-line selection play multimedia files, wherein above-mentioned multimedia file is stored in the server, and a multimedia player is in order to handling this multimedia file, interlinks by a network between itself and this server, and the method for its broadcast comprises:

A. send one by this network to this server end by this multimedia player and select forms requirement signal;

B. this server is after obtaining this option forms requirement signal, and option forms of above-mentioned multimedia file are transferred to this multimedia player;

C. this multimedia player inserts the image signal of this multimedia player end output with this option forms format back;

D. a project of selecting by these option forms is sent to this server;

E. by this server the pairing multimedia file of this project is sent to this multimedia player;

F. utilize this multimedia player to receive and handle this multimedia file.

2. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, this network are a wireless network, wherein carry out wireless data transmission between this multimedia player and this server under the ad-hoc pattern.

3. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein the stored multimedia file of this server is a mpeg format, and this multimedia player can be play the mpeg file form.

4. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing mode of this step f is for playing this multimedia file.

5. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing mode of this step f is for storing this multimedia file.

6. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein above-mentioned option forms are to be shown in this multimedia player end with the screen display steer mode.

7. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein above-mentioned option forms are html file, and each project in these option forms can correspond to the multimedia file of this server by the hyperlink mode.

8. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein this multimedia file is to be sent to this multimedia player end with the crossfire transmission means.

9. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 1, wherein these option forms comprise the numbering of this multimedia file in this server.

10. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 9, these option forms also comprise the control command of this multimedia player.

Play and store 11. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 10, the control command of this multimedia player comprise.

12. the method for an on-line selection play multimedia files, wherein above-mentioned multimedia file is stored in one first server, one second server is in order to manage the multimedia file of this first server, one multimedia player is in order to play this multimedia file, between itself and this first server is to be set under the point-to-point framework to interlink, and the method for its broadcast comprises:

A. send an option forms requirement signal by this multimedia player to this second server end;

B. this second server is after obtaining this option forms requirement signal, and option forms of above-mentioned multimedia file are transferred to this multimedia player;

C. this multimedia player inserts the image signal of this multimedia player end output with option forms format back;

D. the project that will select by these option forms is sent to this first server;

E. by this first server the pairing multimedia file of this project is sent to this multimedia player;

F. utilize this multimedia player to receive and handle this multimedia file.

13. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12 is wherein carried out wireless data transmission between this multimedia player and this first server under the ad-hoc pattern.

14. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein the stored multimedia file of this server is a mpeg format, and this multimedia player can be play mpeg format.

15. the method in line selection pool play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein the processing mode of this step f is for playing this multimedia file.

16. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein the processing mode of this step f is for storing this multimedia file.

17. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein above-mentioned option forms are to be shown in this multimedia player end with the screen display steer mode.

18. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein above-mentioned option forms are html file, and each project in these option forms can correspond to the multimedia file of this first server by the hyperlink mode.

19. the method for on-line selection play multimedia files as claimed in claim 12, wherein this multimedia file is to be sent to this multimedia player end and to play with the crossfire transmission means.

20. multimedia player, connect a server by a network, this server comprise a plurality of multimedia files with corresponding to option forms of these a plurality of multimedia files, this multimedia player is play this multimedia file by a display, this multimedia player comprises:

One first end, this first end connects this server by this network;

One controller connects this first end, and this controller transmits an option forms requirement signal gives this server, and these option forms of this Server Transport are given this controller;

One second end connects this display;

One data processing unit is connected in this controller, and the signal that server is sent here is exported a video signal by this second end, is shown on this display alternative these option forms that show of this video signal;

One response unit, connect this control unit, signal is selected in transmission one, and this selects signal to should the option forms, this control unit transmits this selection signal gives this server, and this server selects this corresponding multimedia file of signal transmission to give this multimedia player according to this.

21. multimedia player as claimed in claim 20, wherein this data processing unit also comprises:

One formatting unit;

One broadcast unit is exported this video signal;

Wherein, receive the data of coming when this controller and be these option forms by this Server Transport, these option forms are delivered to this formatting unit, this formatting unit is delivered to this broadcast unit after these option forms are formatd, and this broadcast unit inserts formative these option forms this video signal of broadcast unit.

Deliver to this formatting unit 22. multimedia player as claimed in claim 21, this controller also transmit a control command of this multimedia player, this formatting unit inserts this control command in these option forms, and this control command comprises to be play and store.

23. multimedia player as claimed in claim 20 also comprises a storage element, this storage element connects this controller, in order to store this multimedia file.

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