Automated DVE Selection for Broadcast Alert Overlay
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Solution Overview
Problem
In television-broadcasting systems, overlaying school-related alerts on video content can obstruct commercial disclaimer text, leading to contractual and regulatory issues, and existing methods may distort news program segments, which are undesirable.
Innovation Solution
An automation system determines the type of video source, selecting a Digital Video Effects (DVE) to overlay alerts either on news programs without distortion or on empty space below commercial content, ensuring alerts are visible without obstructing commercials or distorting video.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If alerts are overlaid on video content to ensure visibility, then alert visibility is improved, but commercial disclaimer text may be obstructed
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different overlay strategies to different types of video content. For news programs, alerts are overlaid on the video content itself. For commercials, alerts are placed in the lower-third area only when no important content (such as disclaimer text) is present. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by adapting the overlay behavior to the specific content type and importance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts alert placement and visibility based on real-time analysis of video content importance. The lower-third area is monitored for important content, and alert display is adjusted accordingly - sometimes overlaying, sometimes placing below, sometimes hiding alerts. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction between ensuring alert visibility and avoiding obstruction of important commercial content.
2Loss of information
If DVE is applied to overlay alerts on video content, then alert display is achieved, but video content may be distorted
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies DVE operations selectively based on content type. For news programs, full DVE overlay is applied to ensure alert visibility. For commercials, the system uses a gentler approach, placing alerts in the lower-third area without applying distortionary DVE operations to the entire video content. This selective application resolves the contradiction between achieving alert display and avoiding video distortion.
3Loss of information
If alerts are displayed during commercial breaks, then alert information is conveyed, but contractual and regulatory requirements may be violated
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of commercial content to identify important elements such as disclaimer text before displaying alerts. By pre-identifying these critical elements and their locations, the system can make informed decisions about alert placement that comply with contractual and regulatory requirements while still conveying alert information to viewers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the display area for important content and adjusts alert placement in real-time. When important content is detected in the lower-third area, the system provides feedback to hide or relocate alerts. This feedback mechanism ensures compliance with contractual and regulatory requirements while maintaining alert information conveyance.
Data Source
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AI summary
In one aspect, a method involves (i) accessing data representing a traffic schedule for a television broadcast; (ii) selecting a record from the traffic schedule, wherein the record identifies a video source; (iii) determining a type of the identified video source; (iv) using the determined type of the identified video source as a basis to select a DVE; and (v) causing a computing device to run the selected DVE, wherein running the selected DVE causes the computing device to generate a modified version of an input video stream received from the identified video source.