초록 ▼

Apparatus is disclosed for streaming pay-per-view digital content to a content display unit a viewing audience is watching in a viewing area. An audience detection controller controls the display of content as a function of whether or not payment has been received for the number of viewers present i

Apparatus is disclosed for streaming pay-per-view digital content to a content display unit a viewing audience is watching in a viewing area. An audience detection controller controls the display of content as a function of whether or not payment has been received for the number of viewers present in the viewing audience. The controller includes one or more light responsive cameras combined with a thermal camera to detect a presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area, and an operating system to analyze the captured images to detect the number of persons of the audience. The controller further includes a reverse camera to capture a watermark inserted in the streaming content to confirm the controller is in the same room as the display unit, IR lighting, and ambient light sensors to detect ambient light conditions.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A controller for controlling pay-per-view streaming of digital audio and video content to a content display unit having a video display screen and audio speakers and being watched and/or listened to by an audience in a viewing area, the controller comprising: a housing configured to be disposed p

1. A controller for controlling pay-per-view streaming of digital audio and video content to a content display unit having a video display screen and audio speakers and being watched and/or listened to by an audience in a viewing area, the controller comprising: a housing configured to be disposed proximate the display unit, said housing including a base and a camera module mounted on the base;a processor and memory located within the base; anda plurality of cameras housed within the module and having a system field of view including the viewing area and operatively connected to the processor to detect a presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area;wherein said housing is configured to be attachable to an upper edge of said display unit,wherein said base comprises a front portion extending forwardly and downwardly from said upper edge portion, the front portion includes a wall with an aperture extending therethough that faces the screen of the display unit, and wherein a reverse camera is housed within the front portion and oriented therein to view directly back through the aperture at the screen to capture a digital watermark inserted in the streamed digital video content on the screen to confirm that the controller is within the viewing area. 2. The controller of claim 1, wherein the reverse camera is oriented to view the screen of the display unit to capture at least a portion of a screen shot of the display unit. 3. The controller of claim 1, wherein the plurality of cameras includes two HD cameras spaced apart to provide stereoscopic imaging defining said system field of view, and a thermal camera mounted between the two HD cameras. 4. The controller of claim 3, wherein each HD camera includes IR light sources to illuminate the viewing area when ambient lighting conditions fall below a minimum level, and an ambient light sensor to detect the ambient lighting conditions within the viewing area. 5. The controller of claim 4, wherein the IR light sources and the ambient light sensor are built-in components of the HD cameras. 6. The controller of claim 3, wherein the HD cameras include facial recognition software to detect the presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area. 7. The controller of claim 6, wherein the stereoscopic imaging of the HD cameras detects the distance the one or more members of the audience are from the controller, andwherein detection of the distance in combination with detection of recognized faces determines whether one or more of the members of the audience are infants/toddlers/children. 8. The controller of claim 3, wherein the thermal camera detects a body heat pattern of persons in the audience to differentiate humans from statues or portraits in the viewing area. 9. The controller of claim 3, wherein the HD cameras include IR light sources which, during a detection cycle of the HD cameras to detect the presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area, emit IR light in a distinct pattern to detect any external cameras in the viewing area. 10. The controller of claim 9, wherein the emitted IR light reflected from lenses of detected external cameras is in the system field of view and present in captured images or video taken by the HD cameras during the detection cycle, andwherein the processor is configured to analyze the captured images or video to detect the IR light reflections. 11. The controller of claim 9, wherein the IR light sources during the detection cycle emit IR light in a distinct pattern to detect mirrors or transparent covers positioned in the system field of view, andwherein the processor is configured to analyze captured images or video taken by the HD cameras during the detection cycle to determine whether mirrors or transparent covers are positioned in the system field of view. 12. The controller of claim 1, wherein the housing further includes a vertically extending hollow post having one end secured to an upper wall surface of the base and another end secured to the module to pivotally support the module above the upper wall surface,wherein a first servo motor is mounted within the base to automatically rotate the module left and right about a vertical axis, and a second servo motor is mounted within the hollow post to automatically rotate the module up and down about a horizontal axis, andwherein rotation of the module about the vertical and horizontal axes enables the plurality of cameras housed within the module to capture video and/or still images of the viewing area from wall to wall and ceiling to floor to detect the presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area. 13. The controller of claim 1, wherein the module includes a front cover flap pivotally mounted on a forward edge of the module for rotation between an open position and a closed position, andwherein the flap, when in its closed position, covers the plurality of cameras housed within the module to secure the privacy of the viewing audience. 14. The controller of claim 1, further comprising a microphone mounted within the base, the microphone being configured to capture the audio from the speakers of the display unit for matching with a captured audio file previously downloaded by the controller from the digital content being streamed from a system server to confirm that the controller is in the viewing area. 15. The controller of claim 1, wherein a server-side watermarking system digitally inserts a watermark incorporating a username and IP address of an end user into the streamed digital video content, andwherein the processor is configured to extract the username and IP address of the user from the video content to provide identifying information which is traceable back to the user in the event content is illegally copied or stolen. 16. A system for controlling pay-per-view streaming of digital audio and video content being watched and/or listened to by an audience in a viewing area, the system comprising; a content display unit having a video display screen and audio speakers;a controller having a housing configured to be positionable proximate the display unit, said housing including a base and a camera module mounted on the base;a processor and memory located within the base; anda plurality of cameras housed within the module and having a system field of view including the viewing area and operatively connected to the processor to detect a presence of one or more members of the audience in the viewing area,wherein the cameras are configured to scan the viewing area during streaming of the content to capture video and/or still images of the viewing audience in the system field of view,wherein the processor is configured to analyze the captured video and/or still images to determine whether more audience members are present in the viewing area during streaming of the content than tickets purchased to view the pay-per-view digital content, andfurther comprising a reverse camera housed within the base at an orientation to view the screen of the display unit to capture at least a portion of a screen shot of the display unit;wherein said housing is attached to an upper edge of said display unit,wherein the base has a forwardly and downwardly extending front section which includes a reverse camera aperture extending through a wall of the front section and facing the screen of the display unit, andwherein the reverse camera is housed within the front section and oriented therein to view directly back through the reverse camera aperture at the screen to capture a digital watermark inserted in the streamed digital video content on the screen to confirm that the controller is within the system field of view. 17. The system of claim 16, wherein the plurality of cameras includes at least one HD camera to capture images of the audience members in the system field of view during streaming of the content, and a thermal camera to capture images of body heat patterns of humans present in the system field of view during streaming of the content to distinguish human audience members detected by the at least one HD camera from portraits and/or statues with faces. 18. A method for controlling pay-per-view streaming of digital audio and visual content being watched and/or listened to by an audience in a viewing area, the method comprising; displaying the streaming digital video content on a display unit having a screen;delivering sound representing the streaming audio to the viewing area from speakers in said display unit,with a control module having HD camera units, a thermal camera, a processor and a memory, the control module having a housing configured to be positionable proximate the display unit, said housing including a base and a camera module mounted on the base; a processor and memory located within the base and the HD camera units and the thermal camera are housed within the camera module;wherein said housing is attached to an upper edge of said display unit, wherein the base has a forwardly and downwardly extending front section which includes a reverse camera aperture extending through a wall of the front section and facing the screen of the display unit, andscanning the viewing area with the HD camera units and thermal camera during streaming of the content to capture video and/or still images of the viewing audience,analyzing the captured video and/or still images with the processor to determine whether more audience members are present in the viewing area during streaming of the content than tickets purchased to view the pay-per-view digital content,capturing a digital watermark inserted in the streamed digital content on the screen with a reverse camera housed within the front section and oriented therein to view directly back through the reverse camera aperture at the screen to confirm that the control module is within the viewing area, and pausing the streaming content when more audience members are detected than tickets purchased. 19. The method of claim 18, wherein said HD camera units include a visible light camera and an IR camera, the method further comprising scanning the viewing area with the visible light camera when the ambient light in the viewing area is above a predetermined light level, and scanning the viewing area with the IR camera when the ambient light level in the viewing are is below said predetermined light level. 20. The method of claim 18, further comprising enabling audience members to pay for the streamed content in units of time.