Abstract: Image data identifying multiple pixels in an image is received, and a multi-resolution hierarchical structure is created from the image data. Further, output values are calculated for the pixels in the image using a wavelet-based retinex algorithm by propagating pixel values computed at lower resolution levels of the multi-resolution hierarchy to higher levels of the multi-resolution hierarchy and refining the propagated pixel values at the higher resolution levels.

Abstract: A system and method are disclosed for effectively utilizing universal feature detectors to generate closely-correlated universal feature information for use in various content-retrieval procedures. In certain embodiments, the universal feature detectors may generate a multi-scale gaussian pyramid based upon selected original image data by iteratively performing a series of summing transforms. The universal feature detectors may also calculate multi-scale histograms corresponding to the multi-scale gaussian pyramid, and may then perform Radon transforms upon the multi-scale histograms to produce and store corresponding Radon transform lines. The universal feature detectors may also generate a multi-scale laplacian pyramid from the multi-scale gaussian pyramid by iteratively performing a series of difference transforms. The resultant universal feature information may then advantageously provide various types of required feature information with optimal binding characteristics.

Abstract: An occurrence description scheme that describes an occurrence of a semantic entity in multimedia content is encoded into a content description for the content. The occurrence description scheme is extracted from the content description and used by an application to search, filter or browse the content when a full structural or semantic description of the content is not required.

Abstract: Transcoding between content data and description data. The transcoding may include transcoding content data to corresponding description data. Additional description information to complete the description data may be requested. The transcoding may include transcoding description data to content data, including seeking content data items that match the description data. Content data items that best match the description data may be selected and included in the content data. A user may be requested to select items from a group of matching content data items. The content data may be stored according to the Moving Pictures Expert Group-4 (MPEG-4) standard, and the description data may be stored according to the MPEG-7 standard. The transcoding may be achieved via rules stored in the Extensible Stylesheet Transformation (XSLT) format. The transcoding may be implemented on a computing device, such as a personal computer.

Abstract: A data document is constructed by attaching a set of child nodes, selected from nodes in an existing data document or a document fragment, at an update location, which is a node in the existing data document or the document fragment that is identified by a navigation path. When the update command is a merge, one or mode nodes (“merge nodes”) in the document fragment are identified as update locations, and the nodes in the existing data document are merged as child nodes of the merge nodes in the document fragment. When the update command is a join, a node (“join node”) in the existing data document is identified as the update location, and an ordered list specifies which nodes in the existing data document and which nodes in the document fragment are to be joined as the set of child nodes for the join node. The join and merge update commands, navigation paths, and document fragments may transmitted as a series of fragment update units to construct the data document.

Abstract: The content description of multimedia content contains a plurality of descriptor values that pertain to specific events within the media. A Transport Hint Table (THT) provides a set of synchronization events that indicate the relation between timed events in the media and their representation in the content's description data. The THT allows for synchronized delivery of presentation of content description data with the associated events in the media. The THT provides a set of sync events based on the existence of “time” related events obtained from the content description data, which are relevant to particular events in the media. The THT allows the transport layer encoder to use the time-related events to synchronize the scheduled delivery times of media content segments and their associated descriptions. The THT also provides information for fragmenting a description for delivery and for managing resources at the decoder.

Abstract: An occurrence description scheme that describes an occurrence of a semantic entity in multimedia content is encoded into a content description for the content. The occurrence description scheme is decoded from the content description and used by an application to search, filter or browse the content when a full structural or semantic description of the content is not required.

Abstract: Updates to a content description represented as a tree are contained in a series of fragment update units. Each fragment update unit includes an update command and a navigation path, and may include a fragment payload depending on the update command. The update command is applied to a set of nodes in the tree that are selected using the navigation path. The fragment payload may contain a fragment, a fragment reference, or an attribute. The update command may be an add, delete or replace command. More than one fragment payload may be present in the fragment update unit, with each fragment payload applied to a different one of the nodes from the set selected by the navigation path.

Abstract: Graphs representing multimedia content are validated and modified through graph matching and graph rewriting techniques using pre-defined model graphs. In one aspect, an input graph is validated against a model template graph. In another aspect, suggestions for modifying an input graph are provided based on model alphabet, rule and morphism graphs. The resulting graphs may represent queries against existing description schemes or new description schemes.

Abstract: The invention relates to encoding and decoding descriptions of multimedia content in two formats using access units. The invention further relates to dynamically updating multimedia description using access units and to supporting the delivery of distributed multimedia descriptions.

Abstract: An encoding methodology encodes an instance document describing multimedia content by determining a context node in the content description and using a schema associated with the context node to determine the maximum number of children attributes and elements of the context node. Values for required attributes and elements are encoded into required attributes and required elements sections, respectively. Values for each optional attribute and optional element present in the content description are encoded into corresponding optional attributes and optional elements sections. In one aspect, a mask is encoded that indicates which of the optional attributes or optional elements are present in the content description. In another aspect, identifiers for the optional attributes or optional elements are also encoded and a count of the optional attributes or optional elements is used in place of the mask.

Abstract: The encoding and distribution of schema for multimedia content descriptions are described. Before the schema is sent to a system for use, it is encoded by assigning a first token for each component in the schema and a second token for each attribute of each component. In one aspect, a signifier is sent first to signal that the schema is to be sent in a particular format. In one aspect, the schema is sent as a whole entity first. In another aspect, some of the components of the schema are sent first, followed by the schema that refers to these components. In another aspect, the schema is sent first, followed by a set of component types. When the decoder receives the signifier and encoded schema, it looks up values for the first and second tokens in a look up table for all components and attributes to decode the schema.

Abstract: In communication system, a method of optimizing MPEG-7 transmissions between a server and an one or more clients, a first ADL (application descriptive language) which is a subset of MPEG-7 DDL (Description definition language) being translated into binary for communication to the first client, the method comprising: receiving, by the first client, the binary communication of the ADL; and translating, by the first client, the binary communication into the first ADL, the binary communication being translated using a frequency table, and an XSLT (XML style translation) document for translating MPEG-7 into the first ADL.

Abstract: Multimedia content descriptions are encoded for a specific application domain using an instance document that encodes the descriptions in a general application domain. The instance document is transformed from the general application domain to the specific application domain by mapping from a general application namespace to a specific application namespace, and a binary version is created from the transformed instance document. A frequency table derived from the specific application namespace may be used to create a more optimized binary version.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus of compressing data. The method and apparatus include constructing a neural network having a specific geometry using a finite and discrete Radon transform. The data is then fed through the neural network to produce a transformed data stream. The transformed data stream is thresholded. A fixed input signal is fed back through the neural network to generate a decoding calculation of an average value. The thresholded data stream is entropy encoded.

Abstract: A system and method for allowing synchronized execution of a set of commands is provided. A first system contains a content description tree that may be dynamically updated by a set of commands from a second system. In the set of commands, commands may be executed in parallel or in sequence. If the group of commands are tagged to be executed in parallel, parallel execution of commands implies that there are no dependencies between the execution of the commands. As the result, the decoder will have more flexibility to schedule the execution of these commands. If the group of commands are tagged to be executed sequentially, then the order of execution matters. Therefore, in order to synchronize the execution of the group of commands in a set, a parallel or sequential tag is included identifying whether this group of commands should be executed in parallel or in sequence.

Abstract: A method permitting compact ways to update relationships between entities in an audiovideo sequence, or serial set of sequences, the method comprising: writing a description between the entities, the description containing relations; determining the relations that may be represented by parameters, each parameter having a numerical value; and obtaining from the user, one or more of the following: (a) the numerical value for the parameter; (b) a description of the parameter containing the numerical value; and (c) a description capable of setting the parameter dynamically.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and system for dynamically updating descriptions of AV content, such as MPEG-7 content descriptions. One embodiment provides for a method in which first a server issues a command indicating the type of update to make to the description on a client computer. Specifically, the update may be to add, delete, or change a node in a tree or graph structure describing the AV content. For example, the command may specify an update to an instance document or its associated schema. The server also specifies the location in the description to perform the update, which may be at an absolute or relative address. Next, the server sends the data, if any, to be added or used for the change. Embodiments also provide for steps to check that the update is authorized.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for processing descriptions of audiovisual content are described. According to one embodiment, a description of audiovisual content is evaluated and a determination is made as to whether the description is an abstraction. If it is determined that the description is an abstraction, then a level of abstraction is calculated and an indicator of the level of abstraction is stored with the description of audiovisual content.

Abstract: A system and method for changing instances in a computing environment is provided. Computing devices communicate to change instances of a description structure located on one device. A second system sends a request for querying the existence of a node instance in the description structure located on the first system. The first system may then determine the appropriate node instances that fit the query and send IDs representing the appropriate node instances to the second system. Using these IDs, the second system may build a proxy address structure on its own system that mirrors the structure in the first system. Using the IDs the desired nodes may be selected and the changes for the selected nodes sent. The first system may then make the appropriate changes to the node instances using the transmitted IDs as addresses for where the changes should be made.