KR100781907B1 - Apparatus and method for presenting scenes - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus 100 for representing a multimedia scene represented in an electronic form. The device possibly has a search module 120 that retrieves the scene description 134 from the remote server 128. The scene description includes a component identification 140 that identifies a component 136 that contains content for the scene, and a conditional access identification 144 that determines access rights for that component. The conditional access module 122 of the device determines access rights for the component. If the determined access rights are granted, the device retrieves the content of that component to represent a scene that includes the content of the retrieved component.

Access rights, search module, content, scene description, client

Description

Apparatus for and method of presenting a scene}

The present invention relates to an apparatus for presenting a scene represented in an electronic form.

The invention also relates to a method for presenting a scene represented in electronic form.

The invention also relates to a computer program product for carrying out such a method and a storage medium for executing such a computer program product.

The invention also relates to an apparatus for generating a scene description.

The invention also relates to a method for generating a scene description.

The invention also relates to a storage medium that implements such scene description.

Playback of a multimedia presentation in a computer or the like may include several elements. The presentation may include videos and / or images, which may be combined with various possibly audio fragments. It is known to specify such multimedia presentations in so-called scene descriptions. Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL 1.0 specification, REC-smil-19980615), as defined by the World Wide Web Consortium, is an appropriate language for defining such scene descriptions. The scene description specifies a number of components that contribute to the content of the scene where the content is to be displayed on the screen, such as some images and an audio paragraph to be played. In addition, the scene description specifies the interrelationships between these components, such as where and where any images will be located on the screen, and when any audio paragraphs should be played. In an implementation using SMIL, the content description is a file in the SMIL format, the individual components of which are different respective files in the appropriate formats, such as images of GIF and JPEG and audio paragraphs of MP3. The presentation engine parses the scene description file during the presentation of the scene description and, if necessary, retrieves the component file. Typical examples of system configurations include a server computer to which the scene description file and component files belong and a client computer on which the presentation engine runs. The client computer can access the server computer via a network connection, such as the Internet. International patent application WO 99/39272 describes a system for presenting scenes based on such a client-sever architecture. Such a system is provided to allow the user to interact with the presented scene, which allows the user to select a particular sub-scene. The selection is sent from the client to the server as a command to start a new presentation.

The content is associated with a value and can be protected by a conditional access system. Such a system allows the user to use the content according to the rights for obtaining the content. This means that some component files are accessed by some users but not by any other users. When a file is requested, the conditional access system with control over the file verifies current user rights and supplies the file if those rights are granted. Alternatively, the component file can be encoded and a decryption key needs to properly play the content. The conditional access system will supply the key if the user rights allow this. In the case of encrypted files, the file itself may be freely available to everyone, since it is useless unless the decryption key is available.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for presenting a scene by effectively processing access rights. According to the invention, this object is a search means for retrieving a scene description, the scene description comprising a component identification and a conditional access identification determining access rights to the component, identifying a component comprising content for the scene. Is achieved in an apparatus comprising search means, conditional access determining means for determining access rights to a component and presentation means for presenting a scene comprising the content of that component in accordance with the access rights. Due to the fact that conditional access identification of a given component is included in the scene description, the user rights for the content of that component can be determined without accessing the component itself or its multiplex. It is also advantageous in that when the content of the component becomes unavailable, the presentation can be adapted immediately, so that user rights on the component can be established directly when parsing the scene description. Such an adaptation may replace the intended content of the component by a stub, repositioning the other components, scaling the other components to fill a larger portion of the screen, or distinguishing the missing of the content in some other way. Can be. An advantage of the apparatus according to the invention is that such adaptation can be done without obtaining conditional access identification of the component from outside the scene description.

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An embodiment of the device according to the invention is described in claim 2. By specifying an identification of a conditional access system within the scene description, the device can operate in conjunction with one or more conditional access systems. Different scene descriptions and components can be protected by different conditional access systems, and they can be presented on an apparatus according to the invention.

An embodiment of the device according to the invention is described in claim 3. In this embodiment, it is particularly advantageous to determine the access rights for the component from the scene description since it avoids searching for the component in the absence of access rights. When the component is on a remote computer connected to the device via the network, avoiding the retrieval of useless components saves valuable network bandwidth.

An embodiment of the device according to the invention is described in claim 4. If a particular user of the scene description no longer has access rights to the original component, there is an advantage of having another component available as an alternative. The apparatus determines this situation directly by verifying access rights based on conditional access identification within the scene description and subsequently determines to search for alternative components. An example of this is a high resolution image where the original component is protected by conditional access rights, while the other component is a freely available image at low resolution.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for presenting a scene with effective processing of access rights. This object is, in accordance with the present invention, retrieving a scene description, the scene description comprising a component identification identifying a component containing content for the scene and a conditional access identification determining access rights to the component. A technique search step, determining access rights for the component, and presenting a scene containing the content of the component in accordance with the access rights. Since conditional access identification of a given component is available from the scene description itself, any actions based on the presence or absence of access rights can be taken immediately. This possibly avoids considering the component at some remote location or avoiding considering multiplexing of the component.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a program for executing a program for executing a method for presenting a scene with effective processing of access rights. This object is achieved according to the invention in a computer program product which is loadable into the internal memory of a digital computer, comprising software code portions which, when executed on a digital computer, carry out the steps of the method according to the invention. Such a program can be obtained at the local computer by downloading the program via a network connection from a remote computer having an available program on the storage devices. This download process can be a step of storing the program on a local storage device that can be loaded for later execution, or a process of loading the program into memory of the local computer for immediate execution. Also, a program can be obtained by retrieving it from a storage medium that executes the program, where a storage medium is purchased for this purpose.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for generating a scene description that effectively processes access rights to present a scene. This object is, according to the present invention, a description means for preparing a scene description, the scene description comprising a first component identification and an access right to the first component that identifies a first component containing content for the scene. And technical means including conditional access identification for determining them, and output means for outputting the scene description in the form of a computer program product.

Yet another object of the present invention is a method for generating a scene description that effectively processes access rights to present a scene. This object is, in accordance with the present invention, preparing a scene description, wherein the scene description comprises a first component identification that identifies a first component that includes content for the scene and a conditional access that determines access rights to the first component. A scene description preparation step comprising identification, and outputting the scene description in the form of a computer program product.

The invention and additional advantages will also be described with reference to the illustrative embodiments and the accompanying schematic drawings.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an apparatus for representing a scene in accordance with the present invention.

2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an apparatus for generating a scene description in accordance with the present invention.

1 schematically shows an apparatus for representing a scene according to the invention. The device 100 is implemented in accordance with known computer architectures. The apparatus has a processor 102 that executes machine words of a program loaded into working memory 104. The system has an interface 106 for communicating with peripheral devices. There is a bus 108 for the exchange of commands and data between the various components of the device. Peripheral devices of the apparatus include a storage medium 110 containing a program to be executed. Storage medium 110 may be a hard disk or any other suitable medium similar to an optical disk, chip card or tape. As an alternative to loading the program from the storage medium 110, the program can be downloaded via the network connection 112. Peripheral devices of the apparatus further include, among other things, a display 114 for displaying an image of the scene and a speaker 116 for reproducing the audio of the scene. The apparatus also has an input device 118, such as a keyboard, for the user to input a command.

The apparatus may execute various functions realized by the respective software modules. These software modules are some program loaded into the working memory 104 when the device is operated by a user. The apparatus has a conditional access module 122 that determines access rights of various components of the scene description and a first search module 12 that retrieves the scene description of the scene to display. The apparatus also has a second search module 124 that searches for necessary components in accordance with the scene description. The apparatus also has a presentation module 126 that actually presents the retrieved components and the content of the scene description. There are many ways of distributing functions through many software modules, and the distribution described above is just one example. For example, it is possible to combine the first search module and the second search module into one module that can search for the scene description and many components.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the scene description and components reside on a remote server computer 128 to which the device is connected via a network connection 130. This server has a storage description 132 that includes a scene description file, such as the scene description file 134 and a component file, such as the component file 136 and the component file 138. For example, the scene description includes a first component identification 140 where content is retrieved to identify a first component included in the scene and a second component identification 142 that identifies a second component whose content is retrieved and included in the scene. . The scene description also includes a conditional access identification 144 for the first component that identifies the first component for the conditional access system.

The operation of the device 100 is as follows. Software modules 120-126 are loaded into memory 104, not all modules need to be initially loaded, and the load may be deferred until some of them are needed. Thereafter, typically, based on some user input, the first search module 120 retrieves the scene description 134 from the server 128. During processing of the scene description, it is determined that the content of component 'CMP1' is part of the content of the scene. It is also determined that the content of 'CMP1' is protected and has conditional access identification 144. Therefore, it appears that access to that component is under the control of conditional access system 'CA1' and that component is identified in the system by the number '123'. Conditional access module 122 determines the access rights for the first component 136 based on this information. If access rights are granted, the second search module 124 retrieves the first component 136 from the server 128. If the access right does not allow access, then the first component is not retrieved and the device can take appropriate action to cope with this situation, for example, relocating or replacing it with an alternative component in the scene. The fact that access rights can be established based on the information of the scene description itself makes it possible to determine such adjustment operations without delay and without considering other sources of finding conditional access identification. In a system where conditional access identification is available at the server's level, e. The present invention saves time and network bandwidth by avoiding such unnecessary component searches. Since the component files typically have a fairly large size, these savings can be quite large.

Scene descriptions in embodiments of the present invention are prepared according to the SMIL 1.0 specification. This multimedia language is defined by the World Wide Web Consortium (SMIL 1.0 specification, REC-smil-19980615). In that language, the conditional access identification of the component can be easily presented by a dedicated test attribute that causes the SMIL to be added to the component. SMIL also has a <switch> element that allows the selection between the two components based on the evaluation of the test attributes. Part 4.3 of the SMIL 1.0 specification shows the <switch> element and 4.4 of the SMIL 1.0 specification. If the current user does not have rights to the original audio component, an example of some lines showing the alternate audio component and the audio component protected by the conditional access system are shown below.

<smil>

<head>

...

...

...

</ head>

<body>

...

...

<switch>

<audio src = "audio1" system-access-id = "CA1: 123" />

<audio src = "audio-replacement" system-access-id = "free: 0" />

</ switch>

...

...

</ body>

</ smil>
If the first test attribute system-access-id evaluates to true, then the presentation engine knows that it has access rights to the Audio1 component and retrieves this component to play. If the first test attribute system-access-ID evaluates to false, then there is no access and the audio1-alternative component is retrieved.

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2 schematically illustrates an apparatus for generating a scene description in accordance with the present invention. Device 200 is implemented according to an architecture similar to device 100. Device 200 has a description module 202 that prepares a scene description 134. This scene description includes a first component identification 140 that identifies a first component where the content of the first component is part of the scene, and a second component identification that identifies a second component where the content of the second component is part of the scene. 142). The scene description also includes conditional access identification 144 for the first component that identifies the first component for the conditional access system. The device 200 further has an output module 204 for outputting the prepared scene description. The output scene description can be transmitted via a network connection to another computer that can be executed or stored. In addition, the output scene description may be stored on a local storage medium, such as storage medium 110.

The scene description includes the details of the scene. It shows what is presented and how it is presented. In that respect, it includes instructions for the presentation program regarding the presentation to be made. The presentation engine parses scene descriptions in a manner similar to a translator that parses files into program instructions. Therefore, it can be said that the scene description can be executed on the computer on which the appropriate presentation program is loaded.

There are several ways to transfer content from the server to the client. It can be done based on the request and transfer of individual files. In this case, the application of the present invention eliminates the need to access the component file on the server to determine access rights. Another way to send content to the client is to send it as a multiplexed signal. This may be a broadcast multiplex signal, and many clients may receive a direct multiplex signal or the same signal from which an individual client may request any information. In broadcasting, the application of the present invention does not require access to the multiplex of components in order to determine access rights. This saves resources because such multiplexes are not decoded and need not be evaluated. In direct practice, the application of the present invention does not need to request a multiplex of components to determine access rights. This can save bandwidth of resources and network connections in a similar way.

It should be noted that the foregoing embodiments are not limited to the present invention and that those skilled in the art can design many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs placed between insertion phrases shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word 'comprising' does not exclude the presence of elements and steps other than those described in a claim. Singular expression before an element does not exclude the presence of a number of such elements. The invention may be practiced by means of hardware comprising some distinct elements and by a suitably programmed computer. In the device claims enumerating some means, some of these means may be embodied in the same items and means of hardware.

Claims (13)

A device for presenting a scene represented in electronic form in a file, said file comprising a scene description, said scene description comprising a component identification identifying a component containing content for said scene, and A scene presentation device comprising conditional access identification for determining access rights: Search means for searching the file containing the scene description; Conditional access determining means for determining the access rights for the component from the file containing the scene description; And Presentation means for presenting the scene comprising the content of the component in accordance with the access rights. The method of claim 1, And said conditional access identification comprises a system identification identifying a conditional access system controlling said access rights of said component. The method of claim 1, And other retrieval means for retrieving the content of the component in accordance with the access rights. The method of claim 3, wherein The other retrieval means is configured to retrieve the content of the other component as an alternative if the conditional access determining means determines that there are no access rights for the component, and the scene description is adapted to retrieve the content for the scene. And other component identification identifying the other component to include. A method for presenting a scene in electronic form in a file on a user device, the file comprising a scene description, the scene description identifying a component that includes content for the scene, and 12. A scene presentation method comprising conditional access identification determining access rights: at the user device, Searching for the file containing the scene description; Determining the access rights for the component; And Presenting the scene comprising the content of the component in accordance with the access rights. A device-readable recording medium having a program recorded thereon, wherein when the program is executed on the device, the steps of claim 5 are executed. delete An apparatus for creating a file comprising a scene description, the scene description comprising a component identification identifying a component containing content for the scene and a conditional access identification determining access rights to the component. In the generating device: Description means for preparing the file containing the scene description; And Output means for outputting the file containing the scene description in the form of a computer program product. The method of claim 8, The description means is arranged to prepare the scene description in a SMIL language, wherein the conditional access identification is described by a test attribute of SMIL. The method of claim 9, The scene description includes, in addition to the component identification, another component identification that identifies another component that includes content for the scene, wherein the two component identifications are included as respective alternatives in a SMIL switch element. A method of creating a file comprising scene description, wherein the scene description comprises a component identification identifying a component containing content for the scene and a conditional access identification determining access rights to the component. In the production method: Preparing the file containing the scene description; And Outputting the file containing the scene description in the form of a computer program product. delete delete

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