Abstract: A computer implemented method provides a representative frame (Rframe) for a group of frames in a video sequence. The method comprises selecting a reference frame from the group of frames and storing the reference frame in a computer memory. The method defines a peripheral motion tracking region along an edge of the reference frame and successively tracks movement of boundary pixels in the tracking region, symbolizing any of the length of the shot and the presence of any caption.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for use by a viewer for the management of video data in a stored video stream, the video stream including a plurality of video shots wherein each shot comprises a sequence of frames, the comprises defining and storing in memory on a frame-sequence axis a time-based model of the video stream; defining and storing in memory on the frame-sequence axis at least one of a space-based model of the video stream, an object-based model of the video stream, and an event-based model of the video stream. The method further comprises selectively scanning through such of the models as have been defined; identifying time, space, object, and/or event segments of interest in such of the models as have been defined; and selecting for viewing portions of the video stream associated with the segments of interest.

Abstract: A method for representing contents of a video sequence for allowing a user to rapidly view a video sequence in order to find a particular desired point within the sequence and/or to decide whether the contents of a video sequence are relevant to a user, the video sequence having been pre-processed to detect scene changes and to build Rframes, and for allowing a user to scroll through the Rframes and to stop at a selected Rframe for processing, comprises playing the video sequence from a point of the selected Rframe, detecting all Rframes having respective degrees of similarity to the Rframe selected by the user, and presenting the similar Rframes to the user in a size or scale representative of the degrees of similarity.