US7302162B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Modulation of a video signal with an impairment signal to increase the video signal masked threshold
Assignee: QDESIGN U Inc SA
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Filing: 2002-08-14
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Granted: 2007-11-27
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Expires: 2022-08-14
Abstract
Abstract An impairment signal is introduced into an original visual signal, either electronically or optically, that is not noticeable in a display of the original visual signal but is noticeable in a copy made of the display by a camcorder or other camera, thereby discouraging the unauthorized recording of such displays. One application is to protect commercial movies against being copied in a theatre by a camcorder and distributed. In one form, the added impairment signal includes alternate transparent and dark regions moving across the screen or other display device. The degree of opacity of the dark regions and their speed of movement across the display are selected to make them unnoticeable in the theatre but highly noticeable in a camcorder copy of the movie that is made at a lower frame rate than that at which the movie is displayed.
Inventors
- 👤 Richard J. Beaton
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 10:46
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04N; H04N5/00; H04N5/76; H04N5/91; H04N5/913; H04N2005/91357; H04N2005/91392
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 34
Claim 1
Independent Claim
94 words
A method of discouraging the recording of a display of a motion picture of image frames at a first frame rate by use of a video recording device that captures image frames at a second frame rate lower than the first frame rate comprising: adding an impairment image that moves across the display of the motion picture at a first speed sufficient to be unnoticeable at the first frame rate but which moves across a replay of the recording at the second frame rate that is noticeable by being slower than the first speed.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
94 words
A method of discouraging the recording of a display of a motion picture of image frames at a first frame rate by use of a video recording device that captures image frames at a second frame rate lower than the first frame rate comprising: adding an impairment image that moves across the display of the motion picture at a first speed sufficient to be unnoticeable at the first frame rate but which moves across a replay of the recording at the second frame rate that is noticeable by being slower than the first speed.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the addition of the impairment image includes combining an electronic signal of the impairment image with an electronic signal of the motion picture display, thereby to display a combined signal.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 2 , wherein the combining the electronic signals of the impairment image and the motion picture display includes doing so prior to a time of the display of the motion picture.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
34 words
The method of claim 2 , wherein the combining the electronic signals of the impairment image and the motion picture display includes doing so at a time of the display of the motion picture.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
36 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the addition of the impairment image includes optically combining the impairment image with the motion picture display, thereby to display the motion picture with the impairment image superimposed thereover.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the optical combining of the impairment image with the motion picture display includes combining the impairment image and the motion picture into a single beam that is projected onto a display device.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
33 words
The method of claim 5 , wherein the optical combining of the impairment image with the motion picture display includes separately projecting the impairment image and the motion picture onto a display device.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the impairment image includes alternate transparent and dark regions that are moved across the display.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein the alternate transparent and dark regions of the impairment image are moved horizontally across the display.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein the alternate transparent and dark regions include spatially sharp intensity changes between them.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein the dark regions of the impairment image are opaque.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
40 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein the dark regions of the impairment image are semi-transparent to a degree that causes the dark regions to be unnoticeable when moving across the display of the motion picture at the first speed.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
139 words
A method of introducing a signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. generating a time-varying impairment signal designed to produce rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, b. scaling the time-varying signal according to a psychovisual model such that a resulting scaled time-varying signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, and c. adding the scaled impairment signal to the original visual image signal to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
139 words
A method of introducing a signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. generating a time-varying impairment signal designed to produce rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, b. scaling the time-varying signal according to a psychovisual model such that a resulting scaled time-varying signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, and c. adding the scaled impairment signal to the original visual image signal to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 13 wherein the impairment signal is applied to one or more color planes in the color space domain of the original visual image signal.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 13 wherein the impairment signal is applied to the luminance component of the original visual image signal.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 13 wherein the impairment signal is applied to one or more chrominance or color-difference components of the original visual image signal.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
56 words
The method of claim 13 where the impairment signal is applied at a higher frame rate than the original visual image signal, such that the time-varing nature of the impairment signal results in an elevated masked threshold of the impairment signal with respect to a non-time-varying version or reduced frame rate version of the impairment signal.
Claim 20
Independent Claim
37 words
The method of any one of claims 13 through 17 wherein the impairment signal is shaped in the spatial domain so that the impairment signal is masked by the spatial characteristics of the original visual image signal.
Claim 21
Independent Claim
180 words
An apparatus for introducing an impairment signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image signal when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. a time-varying impairment signal generator designed to produce an impairment signal with rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, and which is scaled according to a psychovisual model such that the resulting scaled time-varying impairment signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, b. a modulator for combining said impairment signal with the original visual image signal at a high frame rate at the light-generating point of a display device, and c. a combiner of the output of said modulator to the light-generating portion of a cinema projector or display device to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 22
Independent Claim
180 words
An apparatus for introducing an impairment signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image signal when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. a time-varying impairment signal generator designed to produce an impairment signal with rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, and which is scaled according to a psychovisual model such that the resulting scaled time-varying impairment signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, b. a modulator for combining said impairment signal with the original visual image signal at a high frame rate at the light-generating point of a display device, and c. a combiner of the output of said modulator to the light-generating portion of a cinema projector or display device to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
31 words
The apparatus of claim 19 where the impairment signal generator applies the impairment signal to one or more color planes in the color space domain of the original visual image signal.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
24 words
The apparatus of claim 19 where the impairment signal generator applies the impairment signal to the luminance component of the original visual image signal.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
28 words
The apparatus of claim 19 where the impairment signal generator applies the impairment signal to one or more chrominance or color-difference components of the original visual image signal.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
59 words
The apparatus of claim 19 where the impairment signal generator applies the impairment signal at a higher frame rate than the original visual image signal, such that the time-varying nature of the impairment signal results in an elevated masked threshold of the impairment signal with respect to a non-time-varying version or reduced frame rate version of the impairment signal.
Claim 27
Independent Claim
40 words
The apparatus of any one of claims 19 through 23 wherein the impairment signal generator shapes the impairment signal in the spatial domain so that the impairment signal is masked by the spatial characteristics of the original visual image signal.
Claim 28
Independent Claim
188 words
An apparatus for introducing an impairment signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image signal when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. a time-varying impairment signal generator designed to produce an impairment signal with rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, including scaling of the time-varying impairment signal according to a psychovisual model such that the resulting scaled time-varying impairment signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, b. a modulator for combining said impairment signal with the original visual image signal at a high frame rate at the light-generating point of a display device, and c. a time-varying spatial filter which may be controlled by said modulator and applied to the light output of a cinema projector or display device to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 29
Independent Claim
188 words
An apparatus for introducing an impairment signal into an original visual image signal such that subsequent recording of the visual image by a camcorder or other visual recording device results in a visible impairment to the original visual image signal when played back or viewed after recording, comprising: a. a time-varying impairment signal generator designed to produce an impairment signal with rapid apparent motion when applied at a high frame rate and less rapid apparent motion when viewed at a lower frame rate, including scaling of the time-varying impairment signal according to a psychovisual model such that the resulting scaled time-varying impairment signal is not noticeable when added to or used to modulate the original visual image signal, b. a modulator for combining said impairment signal with the original visual image signal at a high frame rate at the light-generating point of a display device, and c. a time-varying spatial filter which may be controlled by said modulator and applied to the light output of a cinema projector or display device to produce a protected signal which has the same visual characteristics as the original visual image signal.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
30 words
The apparatus of claim 25 where the signal generator applies the impairment signal to one or more color planes in the color space domain of the original visual image signal.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
23 words
The apparatus of claim 25 where the signal generator applies the impairment signal to the luminance component of the original visual image signal.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
27 words
The apparatus of claim 25 where the signal generator applies the impairment signal to one or more chrominance or color-difference components of the original visual image signal.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
58 words
The apparatus of claim 25 where the signal generator applies the impairment signal at a higher frame rate than the original visual image signal, such that the time-varying nature of the impairment signal results in an elevated masked threshold of the impairment signal with respect to a non-time-varying version or reduced frame rate version of the impairment signal.
Claim 34
Independent Claim
39 words
The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 29 where the signal generator shapes the impairment signal in the spatial domain so that the impairment signal is masked by the spatial characteristics of the original visual image signal.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2010-11-26 | 2011-05-28 | 2011-11-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2014-11-26 | 2015-05-28 | 2015-11-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2018-11-26 | 2019-05-28 | 2019-11-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |