Method and apparatus for eliminating television commercial messages

In combination with a video cassette recorder for recording a television signal on a video tape, said television signal carrying a television program, and for replaying the television program from the recorded video tape, a device for eliminating commercial messages during replay of the television program comprising:

• means for detecting an event in the television signal as the television program is recorded;
• means for storing data representative of a tape location for said detected event;
• means for analyzing said detected event to classify a segment of the television signal adjacent to said detected event as one of commercial and non-commercial;
• means for automatically marking the video tape with a signal to identify segments of the television signal classified as commercial;
• means for rapidly advancing the video tape through the segments of the television signal classified as commercial when the television program is replayed.

A method of eliminating commercial messages during playback of a television program recorded on a recording medium comprising the steps of:

• (a) detecting an event in the television signal as the television program is recorded;
• (b) storing data representative of a tape location for said detected event;
• (c) analyzing said detected event to classify a segment of the television signal adjacent to said detected event as one of commercial and non-commercial;
• (d) marking the recording medium with a signal to identify said segment of the television signal if it is classified as commercial;
• (e) replaying the recorded television program such that said segment is replayed at a normal rate if it is classified as non-commercial and is replayed at a higher than normal rate if it is classified as commercial.

A device for recording a television signal on a recording medium, said television signal carrying a television program, and for replaying the television program from the recording medium, said device comprising:

• means for detecting events in the television signal as the television program is recorded;
• means for analyzing one of said detected events by looking for a neighboring detected event within a plurality of time windows;
• means for classifying a segment of the television signal adjacent to said one detected event as commercial if said neighboring detected event is found within any one of said plurality of time windows and for otherwise classifying said segment of the video signal as non-commercial;
• means for storing a classification result for said segment of the television signal together with data representative of a location of said segment of the television signal on the recording medium;
• means for replaying the recorded television program from the recording medium at a normal rate of play during segments of the television signal classified as non-commercial and for replaying the recorded television program at a higher than normal rate of play during segments of the television classified as commercial.