An algorithm for efficient segmentation and selection of representative frames in video sequences

We study the problem of temporal partitioning a video sequence by blobs - the segments consisting of similar frames, and the choice of frames within the blobs well representing their content. In general, blobs give a finer subdivision of video then the shots. This problem is relevant for various applications, e.g., indexing and retrieval in video databases, or compression of video at very low bitrates. We present an efficient algorithm for the considered problem based on the use of a suitable frame distance measure reflecting similarity among the frames. Experimental results are presented.