Video synopsis combines a visual summary of stored video together with an indexing mechanism. When a summary is required, all objects from the target period are collected and shifted in time to create a much shorter synopsis video showing maximum activity. A synopsis
video clip is generated, in real time, in which objects and activities that originally occurred in different times are displayed simultaneously. The process begins by
detecting and
tracking objects of interest. Each object is represented as a tube in space-time of all video frames. Objects are detected and stored in a database in approximately real time. Following a request to summarize a time period, all objects from the desired time are extracted from the database, and indexed to create a much shorter summary video containing maximum activity. Real time rendering is used to generate the summary video after object re-timing. This allows
end-user control over object/event density. Video synopsis technology was invented by Prof. Shmuel Peleg of the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and is being developed under commercial license by Milestone Systems. Originally, BriefCam Ltd. received a license to use the technology from
Yissum, the owner of the patents registered for the technology. In May 2018, BriefCam was acquired by Japanese
digital imaging giant,
Canon Inc., for an estimated $90 million. Investors in the company include
Motorola Solutions Venture Capital, Aviv Venture Capital, and
OurCrowd. Subsequently, BriefCam and the video synopsis technology was acquired by Milestone Systems (another standalone company owned by Canon) in 2024. == Recent advances ==