Video Thumbnail EPG System for Program Content Description
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electronic program guides (EPGs) inadequately describe program content, requiring users to spend time reading and interpreting textual information, and do not effectively convey the nature of available content.
Innovation Solution
A video thumbnail EPG system that generates and incorporates small-sized video clips, constructed from selected still image frames of media content streams, alongside channel identifiers and program descriptors, to provide a quicker understanding of available programming.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If conventional EPGs use only text and symbols to describe program content, then the information can be presented in a simple format, but the user understanding of program content is inadequate and requires more time to interpret
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from 2D static text/symbol representation to incorporating temporal dimension through video thumbnails. Video thumbnails provide dynamic visual information that evolves over time, allowing users to grasp program content progression quickly without reading extensive text descriptions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates visual copies (video thumbnails) of the actual program content that can be displayed in the EPG. These thumbnails are condensed representations that capture essential visual elements of the program, enabling users to understand content nature without viewing the full program or reading detailed descriptions.
2Loss of information
If video thumbnails are incorporated into the EPG to improve content understanding, then user comprehension increases, but the device complexity and processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only essential visual frames from the video content to create thumbnails, rather than processing and storing entire video sequences. This extraction approach reduces data volume and processing requirements while maintaining the ability to convey program content effectively.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms video content by changing temporal and spatial parameters - reducing video duration to short thumbnail sequences, reducing resolution to thumbnail quality, and selecting key frames that represent essential content moments. These parameter changes enable efficient storage and processing while preserving informational value.
Data Source
AI summary
Video thumbnail electronic program guide (EPG) systems and methods are operable to include a video thumbnail. An exemplary embodiment receives a media content stream at a media device; picks a plurality of still image video frames from the received media content stream, wherein each still image video frame has information that is sufficient to construct the still image video frame; generate a plurality of still image video frame thumbnails, wherein each of the still image video frame thumbnails correspond to one of the still image video frames; generate a video thumbnail from the plurality of still image video frame thumbnails; and incorporate the video thumbnail with at least one program descriptor and a channel identifier associated with the media content stream into the video thumbnail EPG.