Content Splicing via Random-Access Point Timing Signals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current content splicing systems face challenges in accurately determining and implementing splice points for encoded video streams, particularly in real-time scenarios, which affects the seamless integration and rendering of content, such as advertisements, in digital television receivers.
Innovation Solution
A content splicing system that includes a broadcasting Headend with an encoder, signal generator, and multiplexer, which determines and prepares splice points by analyzing encoded video packets and creating timing signals to identify random-access points, enabling precise splicing and synchronization of video streams for end-user rendering devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If real-time splicing is implemented in encoded video streams, then content integration speed is improved, but splicing accuracy deteriorates due to difficulty in identifying random-access points
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis during the encoding process to identify and mark random-access points (I-frames) in the video stream. By preparing this information in advance during encoding rather than searching for it during real-time splicing operations, the system achieves both real-time splicing capability and accurate identification of splice points.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (random-access indicator) that bridges the encoder and the splicing system. This indicator serves as a pre-prepared marker that enables the splicing system to quickly and accurately locate random-access points without complex real-time analysis, thus resolving the contradiction between speed and accuracy.
2Measurement precision
If complex analysis is performed to identify random-access points, then splicing accuracy is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The encoder performs the complex analysis of identifying random-access points during the encoding process itself, storing this information in the video stream metadata. This preliminary action transfers the computational burden from the real-time splicing system to the encoding phase, enabling fast and accurate splicing without complex real-time processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the random-access point information as metadata within the video stream. Instead of performing complex analysis during splicing, the system simply reads this pre-copied information from the stream, dramatically reducing processing time while maintaining identification accuracy.
3Device complexity
If splicing operations are performed on encoded streams, then system complexity is reduced, but splicing reliability deteriorates due to encoding dependencies
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces random-access indicators as intermediary markers within the encoded stream that enable reliable splicing operations. These indicators serve as trusted reference points that guarantee valid splice locations, allowing the system to perform splicing on encoded streams with the same reliability as uncompressed streams.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces complex mechanical analysis of video frame dependencies with a simpler information-based approach using pre-marked random-access indicators. This substitution maintains splicing reliability while significantly reducing system complexity by eliminating the need for real-time dependency analysis.
Data Source
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AI summary
A Headend system including a video codec to encode a video sequence yielding an encoded video sequence having video packets, a multiplexer, a signal generator to receive a notification of a splice point, analyze at least some of the encoded video packets based on the notification in order to find a random- access-point-packet, the random-access-point being a point from which to start decoding the encoded video sequence by the rendering device so that the video sequence may be rendered for output from the splice point, create a timing signal estimating a location of the random-access-point-packet in the encoded video sequence, and output the timing signal to the multiplexer or transmission equipment. Related apparatus and methods are also described.