Interval Algebra for Maintaining Multimedia Spatio-Temporal Constraints

The relations among temporal intervals can be used to model time-dependent multimedia objects. We analyze the domains of interval temporal relations. A set of algorithms is proposed to derive reasonable relations between intervals. Possible conflicts in the user specification are firstly detected and eliminated. Composite objects can have arbitrary timing relationships. These might be specified to achieve some particular visual effect of sequence. We propose a fast mechanism for temporal relation compositions. We propagate the time constraints of arbitrary two objects across long distances n by linear time. The algorithms are extended for time-based media in an arbitrary n-dimensional space.