TV Program Boundary Detection and Ad Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electronic program guides do not provide accurate start and end times for television programs, leading to recordings that include unwanted secondary content such as advertisements, which can be annoying for users who want to watch only the primary content.
Innovation Solution
A program content isolator module processes television content streams to detect program boundaries and isolate primary content by removing secondary content like advertisements, both before, after, and between program segments, using rule sets to identify characteristics and boundaries within the content stream.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If electronic program guides use scheduled start and end times for recording, then recording coverage is simplified, but recording precision deteriorates because actual program boundaries are not accurately captured
Solution Approach 1:
The content stream is segmented into multiple segments based on detected program boundaries. The system divides the continuous content stream into primary content segments and secondary content segments, allowing precise identification and separate handling of different content types within the scheduled recording window.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection of program boundaries and identification of primary versus secondary content before the actual recording process. By analyzing the content stream in advance and marking boundary points, the system prepares the data structure needed for precise recording extraction later.
2Reliability
If recordings include the full scheduled time window, then all potential program content is captured, but unwanted secondary content such as advertisements is included
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts and removes secondary content segments from the recorded content. After identifying program boundaries and distinguishing primary from secondary content, the system extracts only the primary content segments for recording, effectively taking out the unwanted advertisements and other secondary material.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the presence of secondary content as a detectable feature to identify program boundaries. The transitions between primary and secondary content create detectable patterns that help precisely locate program start and end points, converting the harmful secondary content into a useful boundary marker.
3Manufacturing precision
If program boundaries are precisely detected, then primary content can be accurately isolated, but system complexity increases due to content analysis requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the content's own characteristics to identify program boundaries. By analyzing transitions in content features (such as audio-visual patterns, metadata changes, or content type transitions), the system enables the content itself to mark its own boundaries without requiring complex external analysis infrastructure.
Data Source
AI summary
Various implementations process a television content stream to detect program boundaries such as the starting point and ending point of the program. In at least some implementations, program boundaries such as intermediate points between the starting point and ending point of the program are also detected. The intermediate points correspond to where a program pauses for secondary content such as an advertisement or advertisements, and then resumes once the secondary content has run. Once program boundaries are detected, primary content is isolated by removing secondary content that occurs before the starting point and after the ending point. In at least some implementations, secondary content that occurs between detected intermediate points is also removed. The primary content is then recorded without secondary content that originally comprised part of the original television content stream.