Metadata-Based Photo Sharing for Privacy and Bandwidth Control

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current methods for sharing photos and videos between users face challenges such as excessive manual effort, conservative automation leading to under-sharing or privacy violations, and resource inefficiencies, particularly in bandwidth and storage, especially when sharing high-resolution content.

Innovation Solution

A method and system utilizing machine learning to select and share photos and videos based on metadata such as capturing time, location, and content similarity, with options for automatic or user-controlled sharing, ensuring privacy and optimizing resource usage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual sharing is used, then sharing accuracy is improved, but sharing efficiency deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesharing accuracyVSAvoidsharing efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs automatic content selection and sharing without requiring manual user intervention. The machine learning model autonomously analyzes metadata, identifies relevant content, and executes sharing operations, allowing the system to serve itself rather than requiring continuous manual guidance from users.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces manual mechanical selection processes with automated machine learning-based content analysis. Instead of users manually browsing and selecting photos/videos, the system uses AI models to automatically identify and select relevant content based on metadata similarity and user behavior patterns.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Productivity

If conservative automation is used, then sharing efficiency is improved, but sharing completeness deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesharing efficiencyVSAvoidsharing completeness
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically adjusts its automation behavior based on learned user preferences and feedback patterns. Rather than using fixed conservative rules, the machine learning model adapts its content selection criteria over time, gradually expanding the scope of automatically shared content based on observed user engagement and preferences.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system incorporates feedback loops where user interactions with shared content are analyzed to refine future automation decisions. By monitoring which content users engage with and adjusting the selection algorithm accordingly, the system improves both efficiency and completeness of automated sharing over time.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Productivity

If automated sharing is used, then sharing efficiency is improved, but resource consumption deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesharing efficiencyVSAvoidresource consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts and processes only the necessary metadata from media files rather than analyzing the complete content. By working with extracted features such as timestamps, locations, and visual summaries, the machine learning model achieves efficient content selection with minimal computational resource consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs partial analysis of content by focusing on the most relevant metadata attributes and using approximate matching techniques. This partial action approach allows the system to make sufficient content selection decisions without exhaustively analyzing every detail, thereby reducing overall resource consumption while maintaining acceptable sharing quality.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

4Quantity of substance

If large amount of content is automatically shared, then sharing completeness is improved, but system load deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesharing completenessVSAvoidsystem load
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the content selection process into distinct stages: metadata extraction, similarity computation, relevance ranking, and final selection. This segmentation allows each stage to process information independently and efficiently, reducing the overall system load while maintaining comprehensive content analysis capabilities.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system applies different processing intensities to different content and users based on local characteristics. Rather than uniformly processing all content at maximum detail, the machine learning model adjusts analysis depth based on content type, user preferences, and historical patterns, reducing system load for low-priority items while maintaining high quality for important content.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS20250356651A1Selection of photos and videos for automatic sharing
Publication Date: 2025.11.20 FACEOUT INC
  • US20250356651A1 patent drawing
  • US20250356651A1 patent drawing
  • US20250356651A1 patent drawing

AI summary

Systems and methods for photo selection and sharing are described. One aspect includes a computing system obtaining metadata associated with one or more images made by the first user, the metadata including at least one from a group of an attribute associated with a capturing time, an attribute associated with a capturing location, and a compact representation of a content of one or more images. The computing system may use the metadata to identify one or more associated images that could be shared with the second user, and initiate a sharing of the metadata associated with the identified images without sharing of the one or more identified images. The computing system receive one or more requests initiated by a computing device associated with the second user to share one or more images associated with shared metadata, and initiate a sharing of the one or more requested images.