Storage medium having interactive graphic stream and apparatus for reproducing the same

Abstract

A storage medium including an interactive graphic stream providing menus using various transition effects regardless of reproducing modes of multimedia data and an apparatus for reproducing the same. The storage medium in which multimedia information is recorded includes: video data; and graphic data to provide a menu screen overlaid on an image based on the video data, wherein the graphic data provides a plurality of menu pages. Accordingly, a plurality of menu pages may be provided regardless of application types of a main stream, and various transition effects may be applied when transitions between menu pages are performed.

1 . A storage medium in which multimedia information is recorded, comprising: 
 video data; and    graphic data to provide a menu screen overlaid on an image based on the video data,    wherein the graphic data provides a plurality of menu pages.    
   
   
       2 . The storage medium of  claim 1 , wherein the graphic data comprises composition information and object information of menus.  
   
   
       3 . The storage medium of  claim 2 , wherein the graphic data further comprises color information of the menu screen.  
   
   
       4 . The storage medium of  claim 2 , wherein the composition information of the menus comprises information of the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       5 . The storage medium of  claim 4 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages is identified by a unique identification (ID) for each page.  
   
   
       6 . The storage medium of  claim 5 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages further comprises information of transition effects applied when transitions between the plurality of menu pages are performed.  
   
   
       7 . The storage medium of  claim 6 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each button included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       8 . The storage medium of  claim 6 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each menu page included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       9 . The storage medium of  claim 6 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each group for some buttons included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       10 . The storage medium of  claim 6 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages further comprises duration information to designate a predetermined one of the menu pages to automatically disappear from a display screen when a user operation does not take place during a predetermined duration after the predetermined menu page is displayed.  
   
   
       11 . The storage medium of  claim 6 , wherein the information of transition effects comprises at least one of a menu page transition effect, a button transition effect, or a button animation effect.  
   
   
       12 . The storage medium of  claim 2 , wherein the composition information of the menus is a composition segment of a display set of an MPEG-2 transport stream.  
   
   
       13 . A multimedia reproducing apparatus comprising: 
 a decoder decoding video data; and    a graphic decoder decoding graphic data to provide a menu screen overlaid on an image based on the video data,    wherein the graphic decoder provides a plurality of menu pages.    
   
   
       14 . The apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein the graphic decoder decodes composition information and object information of menus.  
   
   
       15 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the graphic decoder further decodes color information of the menu screen.  
   
   
       16 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the composition information of the menus comprises information of the plurality of menu pages, and the graphic decoder provides a plurality of menu pages by decoding the information of the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       17 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages is identified by a unique identification (ID) for each page.  
   
   
       18 . The apparatus of  claim 17 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages further comprises information of transition effects applied when transitions between the plurality of menu pages are performed.  
   
   
       19 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each button included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       20 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each menu page included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       21 . The apparatus of  claim 20 , further comprising: 
 a memory storing a unique ID of a currently reproduced menu page, wherein    the graphic decoder provides a page transition effect by setting the memory as a unique ID of a menu page to be changed.    
   
   
       22 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the information of the transition effects is designated for each group for some buttons included in the plurality of menu pages.  
   
   
       23 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the information of the plurality of menu pages further comprises duration information to designate a predetermined one of the menu pages to automatically disappear from a display screen when a user operation does not take place during a predetermined duration after the predetermined menu page is displayed.  
   
   
       24 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the information of transition effects comprises at least one of a menu page transition effect, a button transition effect, and a button animation effect.  
   
   
       25 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the composition information of the menus is a composition segment of a display set of an MPEG-2 transport stream.  
   
   
       26 . A configuration of an Interactive Composition Segment (ICS) to provide a plurality of menu pages comprising: 
 a plurality of menu pages each including a plurality of buttons constructing one menu screen and each being identified by a page identification;    transition effect information, to be applied when another page is transited to a relative page, included in at least one of the menu pages.    
   
   
       27 . A multimedia reproducing apparatus including a storage medium storing multiplexed AV data of an Interactive Composition Segment (ICS) to reproduce the multiplexed AV data, comprising: 
 a read unit to read the multiplexed AV data from the storage medium;    a demultiplexer to divide the AV data into at least a video stream, an audio stream, a presentation graphic stream, and an interactive graphic stream;    a plurality of decoders to decode the video stream, the audio stream, the presentation graphic stream, and the interactive graphic stream; and    a blender to overlay the video stream, the presentation graphic stream, and/or the interactive graphic stream into one image.    
   
   
       28 . The apparatus according to  claim 27 , wherein the plurality of decoders includes an interactive graphic decoder to receive the interactive graphic stream, to decode the received interactive graphic stream, and to output a menu screen including buttons at a designated time.  
   
   
       29 . The apparatus according to  claim 28 , wherein a user selection may be input by a user selecting a specific button in the output menu screen such that a user interactive operation may be provided.  
   
   
       30 . The apparatus according to  claim 28 , wherein the interactive graphic decoder comprises: 
 a coding buffer to temporarily store the interactive graphic stream;    a stream graphic processor, to which the temporarily stored graphic stream is later transmitted, to process the interactive graphic stream;    an object buffer to which object data to define button images is transmitted after the interactive graphic stream is decoded by the stream graphic processor;    a composition buffer to store composition information; and    a graphic controller to construct an output image by referring to the composition information corresponding to the object data and to transmit the constructed image to a graphic plane.    
   
   
       31 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the constructed image is transmitted at an output beginning time of the interactive graphic stream.  
   
   
       32 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the transmitted image is output by referring to a color lookup table (CLUP) according to color information included in the associated composition information thereof.  
   
   
       33 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the graphic controller changes a button state according to movement or selection of a button by receiving a user operation (UOP) and reflects the changing result.  
   
   
       34 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the ICS comprises: 
 a segment_type field to indicate the ICS;    a segment_length field to indicate a number of bytes of the ICS;    a composition_number field to indicate a unique value of the ICS in an interactive graphic stream such that when the ICS is changed or updated, the value sequentially increases;    a composition_state field to indicate types of a display set included in the ICS;    
   
   
       35 . The apparatus according to  claim 34 , wherein the interactive graphic stream is comprised of units, each unit being an epoch having interactive graphic objects therein to be decoded by the interactive graphic decoder and to be continuously stored in the object buffer.  
   
   
       36 . The apparatus according to  claim 35 , wherein, in one epoch, the interactive graphic objects, which have been decoded and stored in the object buffer, may be reused without decoding the interactive graphic objects, except that, when one epoch ends and a subsequent epoch starts, the buffer in the interactive graphic decoder are reset, and all of the stored data disappears.  
   
   
       37 . The apparatus according to  claim 36 , wherein when the interactive graphic objects are outputted, the interactive graphic objects define a display set, the display set to indicate a set of outputted interactive graphic objects.  
   
   
       38 . The apparatus according to  claim 37 , wherein one epoch may include at least one display set.  
   
   
       39 . The apparatus according to  claim 36 , wherein the display set in an epoch start (ES) state indicates the start of an epoch and includes all data required to construct the interactive graphics and object data to be used to construct button images.  
   
   
       40 . The apparatus according to  claim 39 , wherein the display set in an acquisition point (AP) state may exist after the ES display set, and the AP display set includes all information to construct the interactive graphics of a case in which a user randomly searches.  
   
   
       41 . The apparatus according to  claim 40 , wherein the display set in a normal case (NC) includes only data to be changed out of the interactive graphics constructed by a previous display set.  
   
   
       42 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the ICS comprises: 
 a composition_update_flag field to indicate a correlation of button commands between a previous ICS and a current ICS;    a composition_time_out_pts a field indicate an interactive display terminating time when the ICS is neither valid displayed;    an UO_mark_table field to indicate whether to allow user operations for all interactive display durations defined in the ICS;    an animation_frame_rate_code field to designate a frame rate applied to button transition effects and/or moving buttons; and    a default_selected_page_id field to indicate a page ID of a page basically displayed when reproduction of the ICS begins.    
   
   
       43 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the ICS comprises: 
 a page_id field to indicate a unique ID of each page in the plurality of page structures in the ICS;    a selection_time_out_duration field to designate a valid duration during which a button may be selected after an associated page thereof is displayed on the screen;    a default_selected_button_number field to designate a number of a button basically selected when associated menu page thereof is displayed on the screen; and    a default_activated_button_number field to designate a number of a button to be automatically activated in a case where the user does not select a button from when an associated menu page thereof is displayed on the screen to when the time designated by the selection_time_out_duration field expires.    
   
   
       44 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the ICS comprises: 
 a button_number field to indicate a unique ID of each button in the plurality of button structures in the menu page; and    a numerically_selectable_flag field to indicate whether a relative button may be directly selected using a button_number field of the button.    
   
   
       45 . The apparatus according to  claim 30 , wherein the ICS comprises: 
 an auto_action_flag field to designate an operating mode of a relative button;    a button_horizontal_position field to designate a horizontal position of a top-left pixel of a relative button;    a button_vertical_position field to designate a vertical position of the top-left pixel of a relative button;    an upper (lower/left/right)_button_number a field to designate a button_number field of a button selected by a UOP using a move_up (down/left/right)_selected_button field when the button is selected by moving an arrow in a up/down/left/right direction;    a page_change_start_object_id_normal (selected) field to designate an ID object_id of a first button object to display a button of normal (selected)_state having a transition effect when a menu page is displayed on the screen at the first time or transited to another menu page;    a page_change_end_object_id_normal (selected) field to designate an ID object_id of a last button object to display a button of normal (selected)_state having a transition effect when a menu page is displayed on the screen at the first time or transited to another menu page;    a start_object_id_normal (selected) field to designate an ID object_id of a first button object, which should be displayed on the screen after displaying of a button object designated by the page_change_end_object_id_normal (selected) field is finished;    an end_object_id_normal (selected) field to designate an ID object_id of a last button object to display the button of the normal (selected)_state on the screen;    a repeat_normal (selected)_flag field to designate whether to continuously repeat an animation of the normal (selected)_state;    a start_object_id_activated field to designate an ID object_id of a first button object to display the button of the actioned_state on the screen;    an end_object_id_activated field to designate an ID object_id of a last button object to display the button of the actioned_state on the screen;    a number_of_button_command field to indicate the number of commands related to a relative button; and    a button_command field to store one navigation command corresponding to one button.    
   
   
       46 . The apparatus according to  claim 45 , wherein when a specific menu page is displayed on the screen, fields to give a screen transition effect of each button included in the menu page and fields to give an animation effect of each button after the screen transition effect are designated.  
   
   
       47 . The apparatus according to  claim 45 , wherein where the transition effect is applied to an entire page all buttons included in the page have the same number of button objects included between the page_change_start_object_id_normal (selected) field and the page_change_end_object_id_normal (selected) field.  
   
   
       48 . The apparatus according to  claim 46 , wherein the values of the page_change_start_object_id_normal (selected) field and the page_change_end_object_id_normal (selected) field designate the same object_id=1 as a value of the start_object_id_normal (selected) field, such that, if the first menu page is transited to the second menu page, the basic animation effect is repeatedly displayed.  
   
   
       49 . The apparatus according to  claim 46 , wherein, the page_change_start object_id_normal (selected) field and the page_change_end_object_id_normal (selected) field used to give the screen transition effect in button units in the example of the syntax structure of the ICS may be removed, and a field to apply the screen transition effect to an entire menu page may be added.  
   
   
       50 . The apparatus according to  claim 49 , wherein a predetermined screen transition effect may be represented by, after predetermined screen transition effects that may be supported by all reproducing apparatuses are pre-defined, allocating attribute values to the pre-defined screen transition effects and designating an attribute value of a screen transition effect.  
   
   
       51 . A configuration of an Interactive Composition Segment (ICS) to provide a plurality of menu pages comprising: 
 a plurality of menu pages each including a plurality of buttons constructing one menu screen and each being identified by a page identification id;    transition effect information, to be applied when another page is transited to a relative page, included in at least one of the menu pages, wherein transitions between menu pages may be smoothly performed in response to navigation commands allocated to specific buttons of the menu pages in a valid interactive display duration by defining a beginning time and an ending time of an entire interactive display duration.    
   
   
       52 . The configuration according to  claim 51 , wherein where the ICS is a pop-up menu such that, if a menu displayed on the screen is continuously displayed until the ending time, a field to designate a currently displayed menu page to disappear when a predetermined time elapses may be added.  
   
   
       53 . A method of displaying a proper page in an interactive composition segment (ICS) when a reproducing apparatus processes an interactive graphic stream, comprising: 
 providing general statuses to indicate a state of a reproduction of a valid and invalid epoch of a current interactive graphic stream and temporary statuses to indicate a reproduction stop state or a state in which a valid interactive graphic stream does not exist even if the status is in the reproducing state;    reproducing a state change, a user operation, or a navigation command to generate a transition; and    obtaining a proper interactive graphic stream and page information if the transition is generated.    
   
   
       54 . The method according to  claim 53 , wherein the transition comprises: 
 disc inserting;    going to the valid status;    page transiting; and    going to the invalid status.    
   
   
       55 . A storage medium in which multimedia information is recorded, comprising: 
 video data; and    streaming graphic data to provide a menu screen overlaid on an image based on the video data,    wherein the graphic data provides a plurality of menu pages.    
   
   
       56 . A multimedia reproducing apparatus comprising: 
 a decoder decoding video data; and    a graphic decoder decoding streaming graphic data to provide a menu screen overlaid on an image based on the video data,    wherein the graphic decoder provides a plurality of menu pages.    
   
   
       57 . A configuration of an Interactive Composition Segment (ICS) to provide a plurality of menu pages comprising: 
 a plurality of menu pages, each including a plurality of buttons to construct a menu screen and each being identified by a page identification, such that a proper menu page may be selected;    transition effect information, to be applied when another page is transited to a relative page, included in at least one of the menu pages, the transition effect information relating to various transition effects.