Transcoding Digital Still Images to MPEG I-Frames
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current digital image sharing techniques over content-based networks face challenges in efficient bandwidth usage and memory requirements, particularly when handling high-resolution images, as they often require converting entire video files upon adding new photos, which is inefficient and burdensome.
Innovation Solution
A system that includes a head end application server and a photo-sharing server, capable of transcoding digital still images into MPEG I-frames for selective display over a video content network, reducing the need for local storage and bandwidth by uploading and displaying images as MPEG stills, allowing incremental addition of photos without regenerating the entire album.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If digital images are uploaded and stored in original format, then image quality is preserved, but bandwidth consumption and memory requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by converting digital images into MPEG I-frames, which are standardized video frame formats. This transformation changes the parameter representation of images from generic digital format to specific MPEG-compliant format, enabling efficient compression and transmission while maintaining acceptable quality for photo-sharing applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates MPEG I-frame representations as copies of the original digital images. These I-frame copies contain the essential visual information in a compressed format suitable for network transmission, allowing the system to work with lighter-weight representations while preserving the ability to reconstruct or display the image content.
2Stability of the object's composition
If entire video files are regenerated when adding new photos, then album consistency is maintained, but processing time and computational burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the photo album into individual MPEG I-frame units, where each photo is represented as a separate I-frame. This segmentation allows the system to add, remove, or modify individual photos by handling only their corresponding I-frames without affecting other photos in the album, eliminating the need to regenerate the entire album when making changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary conversion of each digital image to an MPEG I-frame and stores it in that format. This preliminary action ensures that when new photos are added, they are already in the correct format and can be integrated into the album without requiring format conversion or album regeneration at the time of addition.
3Measurement precision
If high-resolution images are transmitted, then image quality is maintained, but upstream bandwidth consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter representation of high-resolution images by encoding them as MPEG I-frames. This parameter transformation applies compression algorithms that reduce the data size while preserving essential visual details, allowing high-resolution images to be transmitted with significantly reduced bandwidth consumption compared to uncompressed formats.
Data Source
AI summary
A head end application server is coupled to a photo-sharing server having an Internet interface. A video content network is coupled to the head end application server, and a terminal is coupled to the video content network at a location remote from the head end application server and the photo-sharing server. The photo-sharing server is configured to accept upload of digital still images via the Internet interface, and the digital still images are in a format other than MPEG I-frames. The head end application server is configured to receive a request from the terminal and, responsive to the request, to fetch the digital still images from the photo-sharing server, transcode the digital still images into MPEG I-frames, and make the MPEG I-frames available, over the video content network, for selective display via the terminal. The system can advantageously function without use of a video-on-demand server.