Media Streaming Seek Operation Buffer Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current streaming media technologies face challenges in optimizing video playback quality over networks with inconsistent conditions, particularly during seek operations, where start-up latency and glitching are common issues due to varying bit rates and network conditions.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves encoding media streams at multiple bit rates, allowing playback devices to request a lower bit rate during seek operations to minimize start-up latency and quickly fill the playback buffer, and then switching to higher bit rates for improved quality once the buffer is filled, using a heuristics module to manage bit rate selection based on network conditions and playback device capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a higher bit rate is used for media streaming, then the quality of video reproduction is improved, but the start-up latency increases and the playback buffer fills more slowly
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the bit rate based on the playback state. During seek operations or initial playback, the system uses a lower bit rate to quickly fill the playback buffer and reduce start-up latency. Once the buffer is sufficiently filled, the system transitions to a higher bit rate to improve video reproduction quality. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by allowing the system to optimize for different operational phases.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the bit rate parameter based on playback conditions. A heuristics module monitors buffer fill status and network conditions to determine when to switch between low and high bit rates. This parameter change enables the system to achieve fast start-up with low bit rate while maintaining high quality playback with high bit rate, thus resolving the contradiction between quality and start-up time.
2Manufacturing precision
If a higher bit rate is used for media streaming, then the quality of video reproduction is improved, but the playback device may run out of data to display causing glitching
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-filling the playback buffer with data at an appropriate bit rate before switching to high quality playback. The heuristics module predicts when the buffer will be sufficient and proactively switches bit rates to maintain continuous playback without glitching. This preliminary buffer filling ensures that high quality playback can begin reliably without data exhaustion issues.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from the playback device's buffer status and network conditions to adjust the bit rate. The heuristics module continuously monitors buffer fill status and switches bit rates based on this feedback, ensuring that the playback device never runs out of data to display. This feedback mechanism maintains playback reliability while achieving high quality reproduction.
3Productivity
If the bit rate is optimized for fast start-up during seek operations, then the playback buffer fills quickly, but the video reproduction quality decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adapts the bit rate based on the operational phase. During seek operations or initial playback, a lower bit rate is used to maximize buffer fill speed and productivity. Once the buffer reaches a sufficient threshold, the system transitions to a higher bit rate to improve video reproduction quality. This dynamic switching resolves the contradiction by optimizing for different phases of playback.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs periodic monitoring of buffer status by the heuristics module to determine when to switch bit rates. This periodic action allows the system to maintain fast buffer filling during initial phases and then transition to quality optimization, resolving the contradiction between productivity and manufacturing precision through time-based segmentation of playback phases.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to playback of video/audio streaming media data. The media stream is available from the network at multiple bit rates. When a seek operation is performed, a playback device requests a lower bit rate media stream in order to quickly fill a playback buffer so that playback can commence more readily. After a seek start-up period is complete, the playback device can return to downloading the media stream associated with higher bit rates in order to increase the quality of the playback.