Spatial-temporal joint probability images for video segmentation

Effective annotation and content-based search for videos in a digital library require a preprocessing step of detecting, locating and classifying scene transitions, i.e., temporal video segmentation. This paper proposes a novel approach-spatial-temporal joint probability image (ST-JPI) analysis for temporal video segmentation. A joint probability image (JPI) is derived from the joint probabilities of intensity values of corresponding points in two images. The ST-JPT, which is a series of JPIs derived from consecutive video frames, presents the evolution of the intensity joint probabilities in a video. The evolution in a ST-JPI during various transitions falls into one of several well-defined linear patterns. Based on the patterns in a ST-JPI, our algorithm detects and classifies video transitions effectively. Our study shows that temporal video segmentation based on ST-JPIs is distinguished from previous methods in the following way: (1) It is effective and relatively robust not only for video cuts but also for gradual transitions; (2) It classifies transitions on the basis of predefined evolution patterns of ST-JPIs during transitions; (3) It is efficient, scalable and suitable for real-time video segmentation. Theoretical analysis and experimental results of our method are presented to illustrate its efficacy and efficiency. (C) 2002 Pattern Recognition Society. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.