Automatic playing field detection and dominant color extraction in sports video shots of different view types

Abstract

Sports videos are the most popular videos searched in the Web. To retrieve efficiently and effectively sports videos we need to use very sophisticated techniques of content-based analysis. Many strategies of content-based indexing have been already proposed, tested, and applied to categorize video shots in sports news videos. One of the techniques is based on player scene analyses leading to the detection of playing fields. The characteristic of a playing field strongly depends on the sports category. Some sports videos are characterized by a very dynamic background, others by a static background, close-up view of players, in-field medium view, wide view, or out of field view of the audience, small or great objects of foreground, homogeneous type of playing field with one dominant color or very diversified field. The recognition of such sports video features as dominant color of playing field and type of shot view can significantly help to categorize sports news videos. The paper discusses some aspects of the processes of automatic dominant color extraction and playing field detection basing on the experiences achieved during the experiments performed in the Automatic Video Indexer AVI.