Multimedia Annotation System for Collaborative Content Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional multimedia content delivery systems do not support asynchronous viewing and collaborative annotation of multimedia content, limiting user interaction and navigation based on annotations.
Innovation Solution
A multimedia content delivery network and method that enables users to create, store, and share annotations during multimedia content playback, allowing users to navigate the content based on chronological annotations, including text, images, and ratings, and providing features for collaborative annotation and enhanced navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional multimedia content delivery systems are used, then content can be delivered to users, but users cannot create or share annotations and cannot navigate content based on annotations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the annotation system into separate functional modules: annotation creation module, annotation storage module, and annotation navigation module. This allows the system to add annotation capabilities without completely redesigning the existing content delivery system, thus improving adaptability while managing complexity through modular architecture
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary annotation data structure that bridges users and content. Annotations serve as intermediaries that carry metadata about user reactions, timestamps, and navigation cues, enabling enhanced interaction without directly complicating the core content delivery mechanism
2Adaptability or versatility
If asynchronous viewing is enabled, then users can view content at different times, but collaborative annotation and synchronized viewing experiences are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where annotations created by users are immediately stored and made available to other users. This feedback loop allows asynchronous viewers to access annotations from other viewers, preserving collaborative context even when viewing at different times. The system provides continuous feedback about what other users have annotated, maintaining the sense of shared experience
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses preliminary action by pre-storing annotations with timestamp and synchronization data. When users view content asynchronously, the system has already prepared the annotation data in advance, allowing users to access and view annotations without waiting for other users to create them, thus preserving collaborative context while enabling flexible viewing schedules
3Ease of operation
If annotation data is stored and shared among users, then navigation and collaboration are enhanced, but data storage and management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts annotation data from the main content delivery stream and stores it in a separate, dedicated annotation database. This separation allows the content delivery system to remain simple while the annotation system handles all the complexity of data storage, retrieval, and management independently. Users can navigate content using annotations without the annotation complexity affecting the core content delivery mechanism
Data Source
AI summary
A method for collaborative annotating of a program of multimedia content includes enabling a first user to create a program annotation, enabling the first user to store annotation data, and enabling a second user to access the annotation data. The second user may navigate the program using the annotation and/or view the annotation while viewing the program. The first user may create the annotation while viewing the program, for example, by asserting an annotation button on a remote control device. The annotation may include the frame that was displayed when the user created the annotation, text, audio, an image, or video selected by the viewer. The annotations include chronological information indicative of a chronological location of the annotation within the program. The annotations may include “rating annotations” indicating the author's subjective rating of a portion of the program that is in chronological proximity to the annotation's chronological location.