Adaptive Streaming Metadata for Accessibility and Bit Depth

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current adaptive streaming technologies do not effectively provide media content that is accessible to disabled users or optimized for different display bit depths, limiting the accessibility and compatibility of multimedia content across various terminals.

Innovation Solution

The method involves receiving metadata that includes periods with multiple representations, each enhanced for accessibility and bit depth compatibility, allowing terminals to decode and render media content that supports disabled users and adapts to different display capabilities by adjusting contrast, color, and bit depth.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If adaptive streaming provides multiple representations with enhanced accessibility information and bit depth attributes, then accessibility for disabled users and compatibility with different terminals is improved, but device complexity and data processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccessibility compatibilityVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The media content is divided into multiple representations with different accessibility features and bit depths. Each representation is segmented into periods and segments, allowing the system to provide targeted accessibility enhancements (such as contrast adjustment, color adjustment, sign language, subtitles) without requiring complete re-encoding of the entire content. This segmentation enables selective processing and delivery of accessibility-enhanced content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The streaming system is designed to serve multiple functions simultaneously: it provides standard adaptive streaming for different quality requirements, accessibility enhancements for disabled users, and bit depth optimization for different display capabilities. The metadata structure universally describes all representations with their specific characteristics, allowing a single system to handle diverse accessibility needs and terminal capabilities through a unified protocol.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Reliability

If multiple representations with accessibility information are provided for different terminals, then user experience for disabled users is improved, but loss of information and increased data transmission requirements occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccessibility supportVSAvoiddata redundancy

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of enhancing the entire media content with all accessibility features, the system applies specific accessibility enhancements locally to each representation based on its intended use. For example, one representation may have enhanced contrast for visually impaired users, while another has sign language overlays. Each representation contains only the accessibility information relevant to its specific purpose, reducing redundant data transmission.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

Accessibility enhancements are pre-encoded into the representations during content preparation. The metadata is generated in advance to describe the accessibility features of each representation. This preliminary action allows the client to select the appropriate pre-prepared representation without requiring real-time processing or conversion, reducing both information loss and transmission requirements.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Manufacturing precision

If representations are enhanced with accessibility information and bit depth attributes, then manufacturing precision of accessible content is improved, but ease of manufacture and processing complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontent qualityVSAvoidcontent creation difficulty

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses dynamic metadata to describe representations with varying accessibility features and bit depth attributes. Rather than creating static, fixed-format content, the metadata structure allows flexible description of multiple representations with different characteristics. This dynamic approach enables precise control over content quality and accessibility features while simplifying the manufacturing process through automated metadata generation and representation selection.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS11082470B2Apparatus and method for providing streaming content using representations

Publication Date: 2021.08.03 HELIOS STREAMING LLC

AI summary

A method and apparatus for an adaptive Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) streaming service using metadata of media content are provided. The media content may include a sequence of one or more periods. Each of the periods may include one or more representations. The metadata may include information used to describe a relationship between the representations, and include information for terminals having different display bit depth.