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| dtSearch Case Study — General
Dynamics Information Systems |
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Dynamics Information Systems using dtSearch Engine in
Multimedia Analysis and Archive System |
General
Dynamics Information Systems using dtSearch
Engine in Multimedia Analysis and Archive
System.
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The Multimedia Analysis and Archive
System (MAAS) provides the tactical analyst with
the capability to capture and exploit the wide variety
of multimedia data received in the tactical environment.
The original digitized data and the exploited results
are stored in a database. A query interface to the
database allows any user connected to MAAS to perform
keyword and content searches on the saved analysis
information to retrieve multimedia data.
MAAS supports the digitization and exploitation
of a wide variety of multimedia data types that
the tactical analyst may receive today:
• Video broadcasts, including UAV and television
• Hi-8, VHS and S-VHS analog tape
• Digital images from a wide range of sources
• Digital documents
• Scanned hardcopy reports and photographs |
“One
thing we like was that the dtSearch Engine
had an API we could work with,” said
Michael S. Allen, Project Manager for General
Dynamics Information Systems.
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For example, a video broadcast is digitized and
MPEG1 encoded in real time. The MPEG1 video is immediately
available to the analyst for exploitation even during
the continued digitization and encoding of the continuing
video broadcast. The video broadcast of a UAV mission
is an example of the need to digitize and encode
a video broadcast in real time and exploit the digital
data immediately. (The UAV ephemeris/telemetry data,
if available, is also correlated with the digital
UAV video and used to support the exploitation of
the UAV video.)
MAAS is scalable and configurable in many dimensions:
• Parallel data capture streams
• Types of multimedia data
• Number of analysts' workstations
• Exploitation applications
• Processing performance
• Standalone system to a networked system
• Depth of the on-line storage
• Depth of the near line storage archive
MAAS consists of four major capabilities: Capture,
Information Management, Analysis and WEB Interface,
Figure 1.
The Capture capability provides the ability to capture
the raw data either by digitizing and encoding an
analog signal or importing digital data already
digitized and encoded. In the near future, MPEG2
video will be supported and an interface to export
and import NITF files from and to MAAS will be available.
The Capture capability is designed to be adaptable
to support new data types and data sources.
The Information Management capability provides the
relational database, the content search engine,
the on-line storage and the archive. The on-line
storage is scalable from 9 GB to greater than 1
TB. The archive supports a variety of near-line
and off-line storage capabilities.
The Analysis capability of MAAS allows the tactical
analyst to enter mission information for the captured
data including comments, mission description and
latitude and longitude. MAAS allows the tactical
analyst to easily associate ancillary data files
of different data types with the video and image
data. Ancillary data, including other video data,
may be associated with a particular video clip or
a specific frame of the video. The analyst searches
the database using keyword and content queries.
The Analysis capability also allows the tactical
analyst to produce contemporary multimedia products
derived from the multimedia data contained within
the database. The analysis products are created
using formats such as MPEG1 video, JPEG and GIFF
images, and documents in html, MS Word® and MS PowerPoint® formats. The
analysis products may be distributed through Information
Management, the WEB Interface and/or on CD-R. Video
clips and images may also be exported from MAAS
into non-linear video editing software applications
to create analog videotapes.
The WEB Interface consists of the WEB server and
a WEB browser interface to allow local and remote
users access to the MAAS multimedia information
using a standard WEB browser -- Netscape® and Internet
Explorer® . The browser
interface allows a WEB user to query with keyword
and content searches for particular information.
If the accessed data contains video, the WEB interface
provides the user with a dynamic interface. This
dynamic interface allows the user to view subsets
of the video including thumbnails and short video
clips.
MAAS provides the tactical analyst with the ability
to capture, manage, exploit and disseminate contemporary
multimedia analysis information in a very scalable
architecture taking advantage of very contemporary
commercial hardware and software products.
For more information, please call or write:
General Dynamics
Information Systems
8800 Queen Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55431-1996
612/921-6160 or 612/921-6969
Fax: 612/921-6461
Website: www.gd-ais.com
Specifications
subject to change without notice. ©General Dynamics
Information Systems Windows® NT, Office® 97, Explorer® are all trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Netscape® is a registered trademark of Netscape Corporation. |
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