Methods and apparatus for point cloud compression bitstream format

Abstract

To provide methods, apparatus, systems, architectures and interfaces for encoding and / or decoding point cloud bitstreams.SOLUTION: Included in methods, apparatuses, systems, architectures and interfaces for encoding and / or decoding point cloud bitstreams including a coded point cloud sequence is an apparatus that may include a processor and memory. A method may include: mapping components of a point cloud bitstream into tracks; generating information for identifying any of geometry streams and texture streams according to the mapping of the components; generating information associated with layers corresponding to respective geometry component streams; and generating information indicating operation points associated with the point cloud bitstream.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The following relates generally to communication networks, wireless and / or wired. For example, one or more embodiments disclosed herein relate to methods and apparatus for decoding information associated with three-dimensional (3D) point clouds that may be transmitted and / or received using wireless communication networks and / or wired communication networks. [Background technology]

[0002] A 3D point cloud can provide a representation of physical space, virtual space, and / or immersive media. For example, a point cloud can be a set of points representing a 3D space using coordinates indicating the position of each point along one or more attributes, such as color, transparency, time of acquisition, laser reflectivity or material properties, associated with one or more of the points. A point cloud can be captured in several ways. A point cloud can be captured using any of multiple cameras and depth sensors, such as a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) laser scanner. To represent a 3D space, the number of points for (e.g., realistically) reconstructing objects and scenes using a point cloud can be in the millions or billions of dimensions, and the number can increase further. Such a large number of point cloud points can require efficient representation and compression for storing and transmitting point cloud data, which can be applied in advance when capturing and rendering 3D points for use in areas such as telepresence, virtual reality, and large-scale dynamic 3D maps. Summary of the Invention

[0003] A more detailed understanding can be had from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, given by way of example. As such, the drawings and detailed description should not be considered limiting, as other equally effective embodiments are possible. Furthermore, like reference numerals in the various figures refer to like elements. [Effects of the Invention]

[0004] A method and apparatus for a point cloud compressed bitstream format is provided. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0005] [Figure 1A] 1 is a system diagram illustrating an example communication system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. [Figure 1B] 1B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communication system shown in FIG. 1A, according to an embodiment. [Figure 1C] 1B is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that can be used within the communication system shown in FIG. 1A, according to an embodiment. [Figure 1D] 1B is a system diagram illustrating a further exemplary RAN and a further exemplary CN that may be used within the communication system illustrated in FIG. 1A, according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example video encoding and decoding system in which one or more embodiments may be practiced and / or implemented. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 illustrates the structure of a bitstream for video based point cloud compression (V-PCC). [Figure 4] FIG. 1 illustrates the structure of a V-PCC bitstream as a series of V-PCC units. [Figure 5]A diagram showing the V-PCC unit data type, unit header syntax, and reference to an active sequence parameter set (SPS). [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating SPS and PSD parameter sets. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 illustrates a mapping of a GOF stream to video fragments. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 illustrates a V-PCC bitstream structure according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 illustrates a fragmented ISOBMFF container for a V-PCC bitstream according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 illustrates a PSD parameter set reference structure according to an embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 illustrates another PSD parameter set reference structure according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Exemplary Networks and Devices 1A illustrates an exemplary communication system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communication system 100 may be a multiple-access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communication system 100 may enable the multiple wireless users to access such content through sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communication system 100 may utilize one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tailed unique word discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-S-OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block filtered OFDM, and filter bank multicarrier (FBMC).

[0007] 1A, communications system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, RAN 104 / 113, CN 106, public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, Internet 110, and other networks 112, although it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a “station” and / or “STA,” may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include user equipment (UE), mobile stations, fixed or mobile subscriber units, subscription-based units, pagers, cellular phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), smartphones, laptops, netbooks, personal computers, wireless sensors, hotspot or Mi-Fi devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, watches or other wearables, head-mounted displays (HMDs), vehicles, drones, medical devices and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated processing chain situations), consumer electronics devices, and devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be referred to interchangeably as a UE.

[0008] The communications system 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or more communications networks, such as the CN 106, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a NodeB, an eNodeB, a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, a gNB, an NR NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, etc. Although the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it will be understood that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0009] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104 / 113, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and / or base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in the licensed spectrum, the unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of the licensed and unlicensed spectrum. A cell may provide coverage for wireless services in a particular geographic area, which may be relatively fixed or may change over time. A cell may be further divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may utilize multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0010] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over the air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0011] More specifically, as described above, the communication system 100 may be a multiple-access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, and SC-FDMA. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c in the RAN 104 / 113 may establish the air interface 116 using Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) or may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High Speed ​​Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High Speed ​​Uplink (UL) Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0012] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or LTE Advanced (LTE-A), and / or LTE Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0013] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR radio access, which may establish the air interface 116 using NR.

[0014] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement both LTE radio access and NR radio access, e.g., using a dual connectivity (DC) principle. Thus, the air interface utilized by the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g., eNBs and gNBs).

[0015] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a wireless technology such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi)), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), and GSM EDGE (GERAN).

[0016] 1A may be, for example, a wireless router, a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, or an access point and may utilize any suitable RAT to facilitate wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., used by drones), and a roadway. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR, etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Therefore, the base station 114b may not need to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0017] The RAN 104 / 113 may communicate with the CN 106 / 115, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, application, and / or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have various quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as different throughput, delay, error resilience, reliability, data throughput, and mobility requirements. The CN 106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, prepaid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A , it will be understood that the RAN 104 / 113 and / or the CN 106 / 115 may communicate directly or indirectly with other RANs that utilize the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104 / 113, which may utilize NR radio technology, the CN 106 / 115 may also communicate with another RAN (not shown) that utilizes GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0018] The CN 106 / 115 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include a circuit-switched telephone network providing plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and / or Internet Protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP Internet protocol suite. The network 112 may include wired and / or wireless communication networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the network 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs that may utilize the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT.

[0019] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in communication system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links.) For example, WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured to communicate with base station 114a, which may employ cellular-based wireless technology, and with base station 114b, which may utilize IEEE 802.11 wireless technology.

[0020] 1B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1B, the WTRU 102 may include, among other things, a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138. It will be understood that the WTRU 102 may include any subcombination of the above elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0021] The processor 118 may be a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, etc. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. While FIG. 1B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be understood that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0022] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to or receive signals from a base station (e.g., base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF and light signals. It will be understood that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0023] 1B, the transmit / receive element 122 is depicted as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may utilize MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0024] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate signals to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and demodulate signals received by the transmit / receive element 122. As mentioned above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers to enable the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as, for example, NR and IEEE 802.11.

[0025] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to and may receive user input data from a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, and / or a display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor 118 may output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. Additionally, the processor 118 may obtain information from and store data in any type of suitable memory, such as non-removable memory 130 and / or removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, etc. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as located on a server or home computer (not shown).

[0026] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134 and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to other components within the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or more dry batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel-metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, etc.

[0027] The processor 118 may also be coupled to a GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or instead of, information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from base stations (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and / or may determine its location based on the timing of signals received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may obtain location information using any suitable location determination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0028] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality, and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photos and / or videos), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands-free headset, a Bluetooth module, a frequency modulation (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an internet browser, a virtual reality and / or augmented reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The peripheral device 138 may include one or more sensors, which may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a Hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor, a geolocation sensor, an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or a humidity sensor.

[0029] The WTRU 102 may include a full-duplex radio where transmission and reception of some or all of the signals associated with a particular subframe (e.g., for both the UL (e.g., for transmission) and the downlink (e.g., for reception)) may be parallel and / or simultaneous. The full-duplex radio may include an interference management unit 139 to reduce and / or substantially eliminate self-interference via hardware (e.g., a choke) or via signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or the processor 118). In an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with a particular subframe for either the UL (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0030] 1C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106, according to an embodiment. As described above, the RAN 104 may employ E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also communicate with the CN 106.

[0031] The RAN 104 may include eNodeBs 160a, 160b, and 160c, although it will be understood that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNodeBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNodeBs 160a, 160b, and 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, and 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNodeB 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to and / or receive wireless signals from the WTRU 102a.

[0032] Each of the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, etc. As shown in FIG. 1C, the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with each other over an X2 interface.

[0033] 1C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (or PGW) 166. While each of the above elements is depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity different from the CN operator.

[0034] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may act as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, etc. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0035] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring the user plane during inter-eNodeB handover, triggering paging when DL data is available to the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and managing and storing the context of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0036] The SGW 164 may be connected to a PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0037] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional landline communication devices. For example, the CN 106 may include or communicate with an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0038] Although in Figures 1A-1D the WTRU is described as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments such a terminal may use a wired communication interface (e.g., temporary or permanent) with a communication network.

[0039] In some representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0040] A WLAN in infrastructure basic service set (BSS) mode may have an access point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have access to or interface with a distribution system (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic within and / or outside the BSS. Traffic originating from outside the BSS to a STA may arrive through the AP and be delivered to the STA. Traffic originating from a STA to a destination outside the BSS may be sent to the AP for delivery to the respective destination. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP; for example, a source STA may send traffic to the AP, and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to-peer traffic. Peer-to-peer traffic may be sent (e.g., directly) between a source STA and a destination STA using direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use 802.11e DLS or 802.11z Tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and STAs within or using an IBSS (e.g., all of the STAs) may communicate directly with each other. IBSS mode communication may sometimes be referred to herein as "ad hoc" mode communication.

[0041] When using the 802.11ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operation, an AP may transmit beacons on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., a 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a width dynamically set via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In one representative embodiment, for example, in an 802.11 system, carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented. With CSMA / CA, STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. Within a given BSS, one STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time.

[0042] A high-throughput (HT) STA may use a 40-megahertz-wide channel for communication, for example, by combining a primary 20-megahertz channel with an adjacent or non-adjacent 20-megahertz channel to form a 40-megahertz-wide channel.

[0043] A very high throughput (VHT) STA may support channels that are 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz wide. A 40 MHz and / or 80 MHz channel may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining eight contiguous 20 MHz channels or two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. In the 80+80 configuration, after channel encoding, the data may be passed through a segment parser that may split the data into two streams. Inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) processing and time-domain processing may be performed separately on each stream. The streams may be mapped onto two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by the transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the operations described above for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed and the combined data may be sent to the media access control (MAC).

[0044] Sub-1 GHz mode operation is supported by 802.11af and 802.11ah. Channel operating bandwidths and carriers are reduced in 802.11af and 802.11ah compared to those used in 802.11n and 802.11ac. 802.11af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz, and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, while 802.11ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non-TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11ah may support meter-type control / machine-type communication, such as MTC devices in macro coverage areas. MTC devices may have limited functionality, including, for example, support for certain bandwidths and / or limited bandwidths (e.g., only support for them). The MTC device may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (eg, to maintain a very long battery life).

[0045] WLAN systems capable of supporting multiple channels and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11af, and 802.11ah, include a channel that may be designated as a primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in a BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA that supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode among all STAs operating in the BSS. In the example of 802.11ah, for a STA (e.g., an MTC-type device) that supports (e.g., only supports) 1 MHz mode, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide, even if the AP and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or network allocation vector (NAV) setting may depend on the status of the primary channel. For example, if the primary channel is busy because a STA (that only supports a 1 MHz operating mode) is transmitting to the AP, the entire available frequency band may be considered busy, even though most of the frequency band may remain idle and available for use.

[0046] In the United States, the available frequency bands that may be used by 802.11ah are 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In South Korea, the available frequency bands are 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. In Japan, the available frequency bands are 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total available bandwidth for 802.11ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz, depending on country regulations.

[0047] 1D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 113 and the CN 115, according to an embodiment. As described above, the RAN 113 may communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 116 using NR radio technology. The RAN 113 may also communicate with the CN 115.

[0048] The RAN 113 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, and 180c, although it will be understood that the RAN 113 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, and 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, and 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, the gNB 180a, 180b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, and 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a may, for example, transmit wireless signals to and / or receive wireless signals from the WTRU 102a using multiple antennas. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on an unlicensed spectrum, while the remaining component carriers may be on a licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement coordinated multipoint (CoMP) technology. For example, the WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from the gNBs 180a and 180b (and / or 180c).

[0049] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, the OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframes or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of different or scalable lengths (e.g., including different numbers of OFDM symbols and / or lasting for different lengths of absolute time).

[0050] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without accessing another RAN (e.g., eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c). In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as mobility anchor points. In a standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in unlicensed bands. In a non-standalone configuration, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with / connect to a gNB 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with / connecting to another RAN, such as an eNodeB 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement the DC principle to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In a non-standalone configuration, the eNodeBs 160a, 160b, 160c may act as mobility anchors for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for serving the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0051] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, support for network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data to User Plane Functions (UPFs) 184a, 184b and routing of control plane information to Access and Mobility Management Functions (AMFs) 182a, 182b, etc. As shown in FIG. 1D , the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with each other over the Xn interface.

[0052] 1D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possibly a Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While each of the above elements is depicted as part of the CN 115, it will be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity different from the CN operator.

[0053] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N2 interface and may act as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, supporting network slicing (e.g., handling different PDU sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, managing registration areas, terminating NAS signaling, and mobility management. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b to customize CN support for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the type of service utilized by the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. Different network slices may be established for different use cases, such as services relying on Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency (URLLC) access, services relying on eMBB access, and / or services for Machine-Type Communication (MTC) access, etc. The AMF 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0054] The SMFs 183a and 183b may be connected to the AMFs 182a and 182b in the CN 115 via an N11 interface. The SMFs 183a and 183b may also be connected to the UPFs 184a and 184b in the CN 115 via an N4 interface. The SMFs 183a and 183b may select and control the UPFs 184a and 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPFs 184a and 184b. The SMFs 183a and 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and assigning UE IP addresses, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, and providing downlink data notification. PDU session types may be IP-based, non-IP-based, Ethernet-based, etc.

[0055] The UPFs 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPFs 184a, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multihoming PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, and providing mobility anchoring.

[0056] The CN 115 may facilitate communication with other networks. For example, the CN 115 may include or communicate with an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 115 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 115 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to local data networks (DNs) 185a, 185b through the UPFs 184a, 184b via an N3 interface to the UPFs 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPFs 184a, 184b and the DNs 185a, 185b.

[0057] 1A-1D and the corresponding description thereof, one or more or all of the functions described herein with respect to one or more of the WTRUs 102a-d, base stations 114a-b, eNodeBs 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNBs 180a-c, AMFs 182a-b, UPFs 184a-b, SMFs 183a-b, DNs 185a-b, and / or any other devices described herein may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more or all of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and / or to simulate network and / or WTRU functionality.

[0058] The emulation device may be designed to perform one or more tests of other devices in a laboratory environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, one or more emulation devices may perform one or more or all functions while fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network to test other devices in the communication network. One or more emulation devices may perform one or more or all functions while temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for testing purposes and / or may perform tests using over-the-air wireless communication.

[0059] The one or more emulation devices may perform one or more functions, including all functions, without being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example, the emulation devices may be utilized in a test lab and / or in a test scenario in an undeployed (e.g., test) wired and / or wireless communication network to perform tests of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communication via RF circuitry (which may include, for example, one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and / or receive data.

[0060] Digital video capabilities may be incorporated into a wide range of devices, including digital televisions, digital direct broadcast systems, wireless broadcast systems, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptop or desktop computers, digital cameras, digital recording devices, video gaming devices, video game consoles, and cellular, satellite, or other wireless telephones. Many digital video devices implement video compression techniques, such as those described in standards defined by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)-2, MPEG-4, such as International Telecommunications Union (ITU)-T H.263 or ITU-T H.264 / MPEG-4, Part 10, Advanced Video Coding (AVC), and extensions to such standards, to more efficiently transmit and receive digital video information, including information associated with three-dimensional (3D) point clouds.

[0061] 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example video decoding and decoding system 10 in which one or more embodiments may be practiced and / or implemented. System 10 may include a source device 12 that transmits encoded video information to a destination device 14 over a communication channel 16.

[0062] Source device 12 and destination device 14 may be any of a wide range of devices. In some embodiments, source device 12 and destination device 14 may include wireless transmit and / or receive units (WTRUs), such as wireless handsets or any wireless devices capable of communicating video information over a communication channel 16, in that case including a wireless link. However, the methods, apparatuses, and systems explicitly, implicitly, and / or essentially described, disclosed, or otherwise provided herein (collectively "provided") are not necessarily limited to wireless applications or settings. For example, the techniques may apply to over-the-air television broadcasts, cable television transmissions, satellite television transmissions, Internet video transmissions, coded digital video encoded on a storage medium, or other scenarios. Thus, communication channel 16 may include and / or be any combination of wireless or wired media suitable for the transmission of coded video data.

[0063] Source device 12 may include a video encoder unit 18, a transmit and / or receive (Tx / Rx) unit 20, and a Tx / Rx element 22. As shown, the source device may optionally include a video source 24. Destination device 14 may include a Tx / RX element 26, a Tx / Rx unit 28, and a video decoder unit 30. As shown, the destination device 14 may optionally include a display device 32. Each of Tx / Rx units 20 and 28 may be or include a transmitter, a receiver, or a combination of a transmitter and a receiver (e.g., a transceiver or a transmitter-receiver). Each of Tx / Rx elements 22 and 26 may be, for example, an antenna. In accordance with this disclosure, video encoder unit 18 of source device 12 and / or video decoder unit 30 of the destination device may be configured and / or adapted (collectively "adapted") to apply the coding techniques provided herein.

[0064] Source device 12 and destination device 14 may include other elements / components or arrangements. For example, source device 12 may be adapted to receive video data from an external video source. Also, destination device 14 may interface with an external display device (not shown) rather than including and / or using (e.g., integrated) display device 32. In some embodiments, the data stream generated by video encoder unit 18 may be conveyed to other devices without the need to modulate the data onto a carrier signal, such as by direct digital transfer, and the other devices may or may not modulate the data for transmission.

[0065] The illustrated system 10 of FIG. 2 is just one example. The techniques provided herein may be performed by any digital video encoding and / or decoding devices. While the techniques provided herein are generally performed by separate video encoding and / or video decoding devices, the techniques may also be performed by a combined video encoder / decoder, typically referred to as a “CODEC.” Moreover, the techniques provided herein may also be performed by a video preprocessor, etc. Source device 12 and destination device 14 are just examples of such coding devices from which source device 12 generates encoded video information (and receives and generates video data) for transmission to destination device 14. In some embodiments, devices 12 and 14 may operate in a substantially symmetrical manner, such that each of devices 12 and 14 includes both video encoding components and / or elements (collectively “elements”) and video decoding components and / or elements. Thus, system 10 may support either one-way or two-way video between devices 12 and 14, e.g., for any of video streaming, video playback, video broadcasting, video telephony, and video conferencing. In some embodiments, source device 12 may be, e.g., a video streaming server adapted to generate encoded video information (and / or receive and generate video data) for one or more destination devices, which may be in communication with source device 12 through a wired and / or wireless communication system.

[0066] External video source and / or video source 24 may be and / or include video capture devices such as video cameras, video archives containing previously captured video, and / or video feeds from video content providers. Alternatively, external video source and / or video source 24 may generate computer-graphics-based data as source video or a combination of live video, archived video, and computer-generated video. In some embodiments, if video source 24 is a video camera, source device 12 and destination device 14 may be or embody a camera phone or video phone. However, as mentioned above, the techniques provided herein may be applicable to video coding overall and may apply to wireless and / or wired applications. In either case, captured video, pre-captured video, computer-generated video, video feeds, or other types of video data (collectively “unencoded video”) may be encoded by video encoder unit 18 to form encoded video information.

[0067] Tx / Rx unit 20 may modulate the encoded video information, for example, in accordance with a communications standard, to form one or more modulated signals carrying the encoded video information. Tx / Rx unit 20 may also pass the modulated signals to its transmitter for transmission. The transmitter may transmit the modulated signals to destination device 14 via Tx / Rx element 22.

[0068] At destination device 14, Tx / Rx unit 28 may receive the modulated signal via Tx / Rx element 26 over channel 16. Tx / Rx unit 28 may demodulate the modulated signal to obtain the encoded video information. Tx / RX unit 28 may pass the encoded video information to video decoder unit 30.

[0069] Video decoder unit 30 may decode the coded video information to obtain decoded video data. The coded video information may include syntax information defined by video encoder unit 18. This syntax information may include one or more elements (“syntax elements”), some or all of which may be useful for decoding the coded video information. The syntax elements may include, for example, characteristics of the coded video information. The syntax elements may also include characteristics of uncoded video used to form the coded video information and / or describe processing of the uncoded video.

[0070] Video decoder unit 30 may output the decoded video data for later storage and / or display on an external display (not shown). Alternatively, video decoder unit 30 may output the decoded video data to display device 32. Display device 32 may be and / or include any individual, multiple, or combination of various display devices adapted to display the decoded video data to a user. Examples of such display devices include liquid crystal displays (LCDs), plasma displays, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, cathode ray tubes (CRTs), etc.

[0071] Communication channel 16 may be any wireless communication medium or wired communication medium, such as the radio frequency (RF) spectrum or one or more physical transmission lines, or any combination of wireless and wired media. Communication channel 16 may form part of a packet-based network, such as a local area network, a wide area network, or a global network such as the Internet. Communication channel 16 generally represents any suitable communication medium or collection of different communication media for transmitting video data from source device 12 to destination device 14, including any appropriate combination of wired or wireless media. Communication channel 16 may include routers, switches, base stations, or any other equipment that may be useful in facilitating communication from source device 12 to destination device 14. Details of exemplary communication systems that can facilitate such communication between devices 12 and 14 are provided below with reference to Figures 8, 9A-9E. Details of devices that may represent devices 12 and 14 are also provided below.

[0072] Video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may operate according to one or more standards and / or specifications, such as, for example, MPEG-2, H.261, H.263, H.264, H.264 / AVC, H.264 as extended according to SVC extensions (“H.264 / SVC”), etc. However, it will be understood that the methods, apparatus, and systems provided herein are applicable to other video encoders, decoders, and / or CODECs implemented according to (and / or conforming to) different standards or proprietary video encoders, decoders, and / or CODECs, including later video encoders, decoders, and / or CODECs that have not yet been developed. Furthermore, however, the techniques provided herein are not limited to any particular coding standard.

[0073] The relevant portions of H.264 / AVC discussed above are available from the International Telecommunications Union as ITU-T Recommendation H.264, or more specifically, "ITU-T Rec. H.264 and ISO / IEC 14496-10 (MPEG4-AVC), Advanced Video Coding for Generic Audiovisual Services, v5, March 2010," which are incorporated herein by reference and may be referred to herein as the H.264 standard and H.264 specification, or the H.264 / AVC standard or specification. The H.264 / AVC standard has been developed by the ITU-T Video Coding Experts Group (VCEG) together with ISO / IEC MPEG as the product of a collective partnership known as the Joint Video Team (JVT). In some aspects, the techniques provided herein may be applicable to devices generally compliant with the H.264 standard. The JVT continues to consider extensions to the H.264 / AVC standard.

[0074] Work to advance the H.264 / AVC standard has been undertaken in various forums of the ITU-T, such as the Key Techniques Area (KTA) forum. At least some of the forums are, in part, seeking to advance coding techniques that exhibit greater coding efficiency than that exhibited by the H.264 / AVC standard. For example, ISO / IEC MPEG and ITU-T VCEG established the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding (JCT-VC), which has begun developing a next-generation video coding and / or compression standard, namely, the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard. In some aspects, the techniques provided herein may result in coding improvements to and / or in accordance with the H.264 / AVC and / or HEVC (currently being drafted) standards.

[0075] 2, video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may each include and / or be integrated with an audio encoder and / or decoder (if necessary). Video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may include appropriate MUX-DEMUX units or other hardware and / or software to accommodate the encoding of both audio and video in a common data stream or alternatively, separate data streams. Where applicable, the MUX-DEMUX units may conform to, for example, the ITU-T Recommendation H.223 multiplexer protocol or other protocols such as the User Datagram Protocol (UDP).

[0076] Multiple video encoder units 18 and / or video decoder units 30 may be included in one or more encoders or decoders, or any of the one or more encoders or decoders may be integrated as part of a CODEC, integrated with, or otherwise combined with, a respective camera, computer, mobile device, subscriber device, broadcast device, set-top box, server, etc. Furthermore, video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may be implemented as any of a variety of suitable encoder and decoder circuits, respectively, such as one or more microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), discrete logic, software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. Alternatively, either or both video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may be substantially implemented in software, such that the operations of the elements of video encoder unit 18 and / or video decoder unit 30 are carried out by appropriate software instructions executed by one or more processors (not shown). Again, such embodiments may also include off-chip components in addition to the processor, such as external storage (in the form of non-volatile memory), input / output interfaces, etc.

[0077] In other embodiments, some of the elements of video encoder unit 18 and video decoder unit 30 may be implemented as hardware, while others may be implemented using appropriate software instructions executed by one or more processors (not shown). In any embodiment in which the operations of the elements of video encoder unit 18 and / or video decoder unit 30 may be performed by software instructions executed by one or more processors, such software instructions may be maintained on magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., random access memory (“RAM”)) or non-volatile (e.g., read-only memory (“ROM”)) mass storage system readable by a CPU. Computer-readable media may reside exclusively on a processing system or may include cooperating computer-readable media or interconnected computer-readable media distributed among multiple interconnected processing systems, which may be local or remote to a processing system.

[0078] The 3D Graphics Subgroup of the International Organization for Standardization / International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO / IEC) Joint Technical Committee 1 / SC29 / Working Group 11 (JTC1 / SC29 / WG11) Picture Experts Group (MPEG) has developed 3D point cloud compression (PCC) standards, including (1) a geometry-based compression standard for static point clouds and (2) a video-based compression standard for dynamic point clouds. These standards can provide for the storage and transmission of 3D point clouds. They can also support lossy and lossless coding of point cloud geometry coordinates and attributes.

[0079] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the structure of a bitstream for video-based point cloud compression (V-PCC).

[0080] 3, a bitstream, e.g., a generated video bitstream, and metadata may be multiplexed together to generate a V-PCC bitstream. The bitstream syntax, e.g., the bitstream syntax of the V-PCC standard associated with MPEG, may be defined as shown in Table 1.

[0081] [Table 1]

[0082] Table 1 V-PCC bitstream syntax

[0083] 3, a bitstream may begin with, for example, a global header that applies to the entire PCC bitstream, followed by a series of group-of-frame (GOF) units. A GOF, e.g., one GOF unit, may provide a representation (e.g., a concatenated representation) of any number of PCC frames that share characteristics that may be defined in a GOF header (e.g., a header at the beginning of the GOF unit and / or a header at the beginning of the GOF unit). That is, a GOF unit may include a GOF header followed by a series of component streams.

[0084] A component stream may include one or more video streams (e.g., a video stream for texture, one or two video streams for geometry), and a metadata stream. However, this disclosure is not limited thereto, and a component stream may include any number of metadata streams. The metadata stream may include substreams, such as a substream for an occupancy map and a substream for auxiliary information. Information in the metadata stream may be associated with a geometry frame and used to reconstruct a point cloud. The streams within a GOF unit may (1) be in order or (2) not be interleaved by frame.

[0085] FIG. 4 shows the structure of a V-PCC bitstream as a series of V-PCC units.

[0086] In a version of the V-PCC community draft, a bitstream may be composed of a set of V-PCC units, as shown in FIG. 4. For example, as defined in the V-PCC CD, the syntax of a V-PCC unit is shown in Table 2 below. In such a case, each V-PCC unit has a V-PCC unit header and a V-PCC unit payload. The V-PCC unit header describes the V-PCC unit type, as shown in Table 3 below. V-PCC units with unit types 2, 3, and 4 may be defined (e.g., in the V-PCC CD) as an occupancy data unit, a geometry data unit, and an attribute data unit, respectively. These data units represent (e.g., three (e.g., major) components required) for reconstructing a point cloud. In addition to the V-PCC unit type, the V-PCC attribute unit header also specifies the attribute type and its index, allowing multiple instances of the same attribute type to be supported.

[0087] The payloads of the dedicated V-PCC units, geometry V-PCC units, and attribute V-PCC units correspond to video data units (e.g., HEVC NAL units) that can be decoded by the video decoder specified in the corresponding dedicated V-PCC units, geometry V-PCC units, and attribute V-PCC units.

[0088] [Table 2]

[0089] Table 2 V-PCC unit syntax

[0090] [Table 3]

[0091] Table 3 V-PCC unit header syntax

[0092] [Table 4]

[0093] Table 4 V-PCC unit payload syntax

[0094] A V-PCC CD specifies a V-PCC bitstream as a set of V-PCC units, of which there are five types: VPCC_SPS, VPCC_PSD, VPCC_OVD, VPCC_GVD, and VPCC_AVD. VPCC_SPS is referenced by other unit types via the vpcc_sequence_parameter_set_id in the unit header.

[0095] Figure 5 illustrates the V-PCC unit data type, unit header syntax, and references to the active sequence parameter set (SPS). The SPS includes sequence-level syntax elements such as sps_frame_width, sps_frame_height, sps_layer_count_minus1, and configuration flags. The SPS also includes syntax structs such as profile_tier_level, occupancy_parameter_set, geometry_parameter_set, and one or more attribute_parameter_sets.

[0096] The VPCC_PSD also includes multiple PSD parameter set unit types, such as PSD_SPS, PSD_GFPS, PSD_GPPS, PSD_AFPS, PSD_APPS, PSD_FPS, and PSD_PFLU, etc. Each parameter set may refer to a different sequence-level parameter set or PSD-level parameter set, and each parameter set includes multiple override flags, enable flags, or present flags, for example, to reduce overhead.

[0097] Figure 6 is a diagram showing SPS parameter sets and PSD parameter sets. The parameter sets included in the SPS and PSD, as well as the reference links between the parameter sets and higher-level parameter sets, are shown in Figure 6. The dashed lines in Figure 6 indicate that parameters in higher-level parameter sets may be overwritten by lower-level parameter sets.

[0098] <ISOベースメディアファイルフォーマット> According to MPEG standards, such as the ISO / IEC 14496 (MPEG-4) standard, a file format for time-based media may include several parts, which may be based on, included in, and / or derived from the ISO Base Media File Format (ISOBMFF), a structural, media-independent definition.

[0099] A file format according to ISOBMFF can support (e.g., can include, etc.) structural information and / or media data information for timed presentations of media data, such as audio, video, virtual / augmented reality, etc. ISOBMFF can also support untimed data, such as metadata at different levels within the file structure. According to ISOBMFF, a file may have a logical structure for a video, such that a video may contain a set of temporally parallel tracks. According to ISOBMFF, a file may have a temporal structure, such that a track may contain, for example, a sequence of samples in time. The sequence of samples may be mapped to a timeline for the entire video. ISOBMFF is based on the concept of a box-structured file. A box-structured file may contain a series of boxes having a size and a type (e.g., a box may be referred to as an atom). According to ISOBMFF, a type may be identified according to a 32-bit value that can be represented by four printable characters, also known as a 4-character code (4CC). According to ISOBMFF, non-timed data may be included in metadata boxes, for example at the file level, or may be added to video boxes or streams of timed data, for example tracks within a video.

[0100] An ISOBMFF container contains boxes, which may be referred to as MovieBoxes (moovs), that can contain metadata about (e.g., consecutive) media streams contained in a file (e.g., a container). Metadata may be signaled within a hierarchy of boxes within a MovieBox, e.g., a TrackBox (trak). A track may represent a consecutive media stream contained in a file. A media stream may be a sequence of samples, such as audio access units or video access units of an elementary media stream, and may be enclosed within a MediaDataBox (mdat) that resides at the top level of the file (e.g., a container). The metadata for each track may include, for example, a list of sample description entries, each of which provides (1) the coding and / or encapsulation format used in the track and (2) initialization data for processing the format. Each sample may be associated with the track's sample description entry. An explicit timeline map (e.g., for each track) may be defined using tools, e.g., an edit list. An edit list may be signaled using an EditListBox, where each entry may define a portion of the track timeline by either (1) mapping a portion of the composition timeline or (2) indicating empty time (e.g., an "empty" edit in the case where no portion of the representation timeline maps to media). An EditListBox may have the following syntax:

[0101]

number

[0102] Media files may be incrementally generated using tools such as fragmentation, progressively downloaded, and / or adaptively streamed. According to ISOBMFF, a fragmented container may include a MovieBox followed by a series of fragments, e.g., video fragments. Each video fragment may include (1) a MovieFragmentBox (moof), which may contain a subset of the sample table, and (2) a MediaDataBox (mdat), which may contain samples of the subset of the sample table. A MovieBox may contain only non-sample-specific information, e.g., track description information and / or sample description information. Within a video fragment, a set of track fragments may be represented by several TrackFragmentBox (traf) instances. A track fragment may have zero or more track runs, which may document (e.g., represent) a continuous run of samples for that track. The MovieFragmentBox may contain a MovieFragmentHeaderBox (mfhd) that may contain a sequence number (eg, a number that starts at 1 and increases in value sequentially for each video fragment in the file).

[0103] <3D point cloud> 3D point clouds may be used for VR and new media, such as immersive 3D graphics, to enable new forms of interaction and communication with VR and / or new media. MPEG, through its 3D workgroup, has developed a standard that defines a bitstream for compressed dynamic point clouds. The bitstream defined in the MPEG standard is organized into a series of group-of-frame (GOF) units, with each GOF unit containing a series of component streams for several frames. In the case of an MPEG standard bitstream, a PCC decoder may need to analyze the entire bitstream, e.g., starting from the first bit, to locate a particular GOF and / or synchronize GOF boundaries. In such cases, because PCC frames are not internally interleaved within a GOF unit, the entire GOF unit needs to be accessed (e.g., read, stored, etc.) for safe decoding and reconstruction. Furthermore, in such cases, playback timing information is inherent in the frame timing information of the video-coded component bitstream. Also, in such cases, the video codec used for the component stream may not be signaled at a higher level within the PCC bitstream, and the PCC bitstream does not provide support for media profiles, tiers, and / or levels that are PCC-specific.

[0104] According to an embodiment, a bitstream, such as, for example, a PCC bitstream, may be based on (e.g., compliant with, similar to, etc.) ISOBMFF. For example, a file format for a V-PCC bitstream may be based on ISOBMFF. According to an embodiment, a V-PCC bitstream may provide flexible storage and retrieval of components (e.g., different components, multiple components, sets of components, etc.) of a PCC stream. According to an embodiment, a V-PCC bitstream may be reconstructed as an ISOBMFF bitstream (e.g., in the manner of ISOBMFF, according to ISOBMFF, similar to ISOBMFF, compliant with ISOBMFF).

[0105] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the mapping of a GOF stream to video fragments.

[0106] Fragments, e.g., ISOBMFF fragments, may be used to define (e.g., for identifying, delineating, demarcating, etc.) a V-PCC bitstream. With reference to Figure 7, a fragment, e.g., each video fragment, may be defined by (1) mapping GOF header data to a MovieFragmentBox, and (2) mapping GOF video stream and / or GOF metadata (e.g., auxiliary information, occupancy map, etc.) to the video fragment's MediaDataBox. In the case of Figure 7, each GOF unit may be mapped to an ISOBMFF fragment, or in other words, a one-to-one mapping between GOF units and video fragments is shown.

[0107] In addition, the parameter set reference structure design for the VPCC patch sequence data unit (VPCC_PSD) may be problematic in certain cases, namely, when patch_frame_parameter_set points to an active patch sequence parameter set via pfps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id, an active patch parameter set via pfps_geometry_patch_frame_parameter_set_id, and an active attribute patch parameter set via pfps_attribute_patch_frame_parameter_set_id. Each active geometry patch parameter set points to an active geometry frame parameter set via gpps_geometry_frame_parameter_set_id, and each active geometry frame parameter set points to an active patch sequence parameter set via gfps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id. Additionally, each active attribute patch parameter set points to an active attribute frame parameter set via apps_attribute_frame_parameter_set_id, and each active attribute frame parameter set points to an active patch sequence parameter set via afps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id.

[0108] In the problematic case described above, when the values ​​of pfps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id, gfps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id, and afps_patch_sequence_parameter_set_id are different, a patch frame parameter set may end up referencing three different active patch sequence parameter sets, which is a problem when the different active patch sequence parameter sets contain different parameter values.

[0109] <ISOBMFF-based V-PCC bitstream> FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a V-PCC bitstream structure according to an embodiment.

[0110] According to an embodiment, the V-PCC bitstream structure may be based on an ISOBMFF bitstream structure. According to an embodiment, for example, the items and / or elements shown in FIG. 8 may be mapped to (e.g., corresponding) ISOBMFF boxes. According to an embodiment, the component stream may be mapped to, for example, individual tracks within a container file. According to an embodiment, the component stream for a V-PCC stream may include either (1) one or more (e.g., two or three) video streams for either geometry information or texture information, and (2) one or more temporal metadata streams for either an occupancy map or auxiliary information.

[0111] According to an embodiment, other component streams (e.g., other than the types of component streams discussed above) may be included in the V-PCC stream. For example, the other stream may include a stream for any number or type of attributes associated with points of a point cloud, e.g., a 3D point cloud. According to an embodiment, for example, a (e.g., additional) temporal metadata track may be included in the container file to provide GOF header information. According to an embodiment, metadata may be signaled. According to an embodiment, metadata such as information describing the characteristics of the component stream and / or the relationships between different tracks within the file may be signaled using, for example, tools provided according to the MPEG standard.

[0112] According to an embodiment, samples for the media and / or timed metadata tracks may be included in a MediaDataBox (mdat). According to an embodiment, samples of a stream may be stored sequentially in a MediaDataBox. For example, in the case of media storage, samples of each stream may be stored together in a MediaDataBox with consecutive streams, so that there can be a series containing all samples of a first stream followed by another series containing all samples of a second stream.

[0113] According to an embodiment, samples of a component (e.g., a component stream) may be divided into chunks. For example, samples of a component stream may be divided into chunks according to any of the GOF unit sizes. According to an embodiment, chunks may be interleaved. Chunks may be interleaved within a MediaDataBox, for example, to support progressive download of a V-PCC bitstream. According to an embodiment, chunks may be chunks of different sizes (i.e., may have different sizes), and samples within a chunk may be chunks of different sizes (i.e., may have different sizes).

[0114] A SampleToChunkBox (stsc) may be included in a track's SampleTableBox (stbl), which may contain a table. According to an embodiment, the SampleToChunkBox may be used to find (e.g., point to or be used to determine) any of the chunks containing samples, locations associated with a chunk (e.g., one or more samples), or information describing the samples associated with a chunk. According to an embodiment, a ChunkOffsetBox (stco or co64) may be included in a track's SampleTableBox (stbl), which may point to (e.g., give) the index of each chunk within the containing file (e.g., within a container).

[0115] Geometry and Texture Tracks According to an embodiment, component video streams of a PCC bitstream may be mapped to tracks in an ISOBMFF container file. For example, each component video stream (e.g., each texture stream and geometry stream) in a PCC bitstream may be mapped to a track in an ISOBMFF container file. In such a case, access units (AUs) of the component streams may be mapped to samples for the corresponding tracks. There may be cases where component streams, such as texture streams and geometry streams, are not rendered directly.

[0116] According to an embodiment, a constrained video scheme may be used to signal post-decoder requirements associated with tracks of a component stream. For example, a constrained video scheme such as defined according to ISOBMFF may be used to signal post-decoder requirements associated with tracks of a texture stream and a geometry stream. According to an embodiment, signaling post-decoder requirements associated with tracks of a component stream may enable a player / decoder to inspect a file (e.g., a container) and identify requirements for rendering the bitstream. According to an embodiment, signaling post-decoder requirements associated with tracks of a component stream may not enable a legacy player / decoder to decode and / or render the component stream. According to an embodiment, a constrained scheme (e.g., a constrained video scheme) may be applied to either the geometry track and the texture track of a PCC bitstream.

[0117] According to an embodiment, either the geometry track or the texture track may be (e.g., may be converted to, labeled as, or considered as) a constrained video scheme track. According to an embodiment, for either the geometry track or the texture track, the respective sample entry code may be set to the four-character code (4CC) "resv", and a RestrictedSchemeInfoBox may be added to the respective sample description, while, for example, leaving all other boxes unmodified. According to an embodiment, the original sample entry type, which may be based on the video codec used to encode the stream, may be stored in an OriginalFormatBox within the RestrictedSchemeInfoBox.

[0118] The nature of the constraint (e.g., scheme type) may be defined in a SchemeTypeBox, and information associated with the scheme (e.g., data required for it) may be stored in a SchemeInformationBox, for example, as defined by ISOBMFF. The SchemeTypeBox and SchemeInformationBox may be stored within a RestrictedSchemeInfoBox. According to an embodiment, a scheme_type field (e.g., included in a SchemeTypeBox) may be used to indicate the constrained scheme of the point cloud geometry. For example, in the case of a geometry video stream track, the scheme_type field included in the SchemeTypeBox may be set to "pctx", indicating that the nature of the constraint is a constrained scheme of the point cloud geometry. As another example, in the case of a texture video stream track, the scheme_type field may be set to "pctx", indicating a constrained scheme of the point cloud texture. A PCCDepthPlaneInfoBox may be included in the SchemeInformationBox of each track. According to an embodiment, in a case where two or more geometry tracks exist in a file (e.g., a container), the PCCDepthPlaneInfoBox may indicate (e.g., identify and include information indicating) depth image plane information for each track. For example, in a case where two geometry tracks exist, the depth image plane information may indicate which track includes the video stream for depth image plane 0 and which track includes the video stream for depth image plane 1. According to an embodiment, the PCCDepthPlaneInfoBox may include depth_image_layer, which may be a field including depth image plane information. For example, depth_image_layer may be an index of (e.g., information indicating) a depth image plane, where a value of 0 indicates depth image plane 0, a value of 1 indicates depth image plane 1, and other values ​​are reserved for later use.According to the embodiment, a PCCDepthPlaneInfoBox containing the depth_image_layer is provided.

[0119]

number

[0120] According to an embodiment, in the case where (1) multiple layers are available for either geometry or texture components, and (2) any number of components are carried in a component track, those layers may be signaled in a PCCComponentLayerInfoBox within the track's SchemeInformationBox.

[0121]

number

[0122] According to an embodiment, the semantics for the PCCComponentLayerInfoBox may include: (1) min_layer may indicate the index of the minimum layer for the V-PCC component carried by the track; and (2) max_layer may indicate the index of the maximum layer for the V-PCC component carried by the track.

[0123] According to an embodiment, a V-PCC texture component may be a subtype of (e.g., may be considered as) a (e.g., more) general video coding component type, which may be referred to as a V-PCC attribute component. Furthermore, a set of attribute tracks may exist in the container, where a subset of those tracks may carry information about texture attributes. The attribute tracks may be constrained video scheme tracks, for example, with the scheme_type field of a SchemeTypeBox set to 4CC "pcat". A PCCAttributeInfoBox within a SchemeInformationBox may identify the type of the attribute, and the value of attribute_type may indicate the type of the attribute, for example, as defined in the V-PCC CD. The PCCAttributeInfoBox may include:

[0124]

number

[0125] The video coders for encoding the texture video stream and the geometry video stream are not restricted. Furthermore, the texture video stream and the geometry video stream may be encoded using different video codecs. According to an embodiment, a decoder (e.g., a PCC decoder / player) may identify the codec (e.g., the type of codec) used for a component video stream. For example, the PCC decoder / player may identify the type of codec used for a particular component video stream by checking the sample entry for that track in the ISOBMFF container file. The header of each GOF in a V-PCC stream may include a flag, such as absolute_d1_flag, that indicates how geometry layers other than the layer closest to the projection plane are coded. In the case where absolute_d1_flag is set, two geometry streams may be used to reconstruct a 3D point cloud; in the case where absolute_d1_flag is not set, only one geometry stream may be used to reconstruct a 3D point cloud.

[0126] According to an embodiment, the value of absolute_d1_flag may vary over GOF units. For example, there may be no samples in the second geometry track for one or more periods in the representation time. According to an embodiment, the value of absolute_d1_flag that varies over GOF units may be signaled using an EditListBox in the second geometry track. According to an embodiment, a parser (e.g., included in a PCC decoder / playback device) may determine whether it can reconstruct the second geometry track based on information in the edit list. For example, the PCC decoder / playback device may determine whether it can reconstruct the second geometry track by checking the edit list of the second geometry track for sample availability at a given timestamp.

[0127] <Occupancy Map and Supporting Information Track> According to an embodiment, a decoder may use any of the occupancy map and the auxiliary information to reconstruct a 3D point cloud. For example, at the decoder side, the point cloud may be reconstructed from the geometry stream using the occupancy map and the auxiliary information. The occupancy map and the auxiliary information may be part of a stream other than the geometry stream within each GOF unit. According to an embodiment, the occupancy map and the auxiliary information may be included in a (e.g., separate) timed metadata track, which may be referred to as an occupancy map track. According to an embodiment, a sample for an occupancy map track may include any of the occupancy map and the auxiliary information for a single frame. According to an embodiment, an occupancy map track may be identified by the following sample entry in the sample description of the track:

[0128]

number

[0129] According to an embodiment, two timed metadata tracks may be used to carry the occupancy map information and the auxiliary information separately. According to an embodiment, the occupancy map track may have sample entries as shown above for the case of a single combined occupancy map and auxiliary information track. According to an embodiment, the timed metadata track for the auxiliary information may have the following sample entries in its sample description:

[0130]

number

[0131] According to an embodiment, auxiliary information such as patch data may be carried in samples of the point cloud metadata track, e.g., a separate auxiliary information track may not be required.

[0132] According to an embodiment, the occupancy map may be coded using a video coder, and the generated video stream may be placed in a constrained video scheme track. According to an embodiment, the scheme_type field of the SchemeTypeBox of the constrained video scheme track may be set to "pomv", for example, to indicate a point cloud occupancy map constrained video scheme.

[0133] <Point Cloud Metadata Track> Metadata for a PCC bitstream may appear at different levels within the bitstream, for example, in the global header and in the headers of the GOF units. Furthermore, metadata may be applicable at either the frame level or the patch level for an occupancy map. According to an embodiment, a point cloud metadata track may include metadata associated with either the global header or the GOF header. According to an embodiment, a point cloud metadata track may be a timed metadata track (e.g., separate, single, etc.), and the metadata information may be organized as described below.

[0134] The global header information may apply to all GOF units in the stream. According to an embodiment, the global header information may be stored in the sample description of a timed metadata track, which is considered the entry point when parsing a PCC file. According to an embodiment, a PCC decoder / player decoding / playing a PCC stream may search for this timed metadata track in the container. According to an embodiment, this timed metadata track may be identified by a PointCloudSampleEntry in the sample description of the track. According to an embodiment, a PointCloudSampleEntry may include a PCCDecoderConfigurationRecord to provide, for example, any of: (1) information about the PCC profile of the bitstream; and (2) information about the video codec that the player may need to support to decode the component stream. According to an embodiment, a PointCloudSampleEntry may also include a PCCHeaderBox to include, for example, information signaled in the global bitstream header (e.g., of MPEGV-PCC).

[0135] According to an embodiment, the syntax of PointCloudSampleEntry may be as follows:

[0136]

number

[0137] According to an embodiment, the semantics for the fields of PCCHeaderStruct may be: (1) pcc_category2_container_version indicates the version of the PCC bitstream; (2) gof_metadata_enabled_flag indicates whether PCC metadata is enabled at the GOF-level; (3) gof_scale_enabled_flag indicates whether scaling is enabled at the GOF-level; (4) gof_offset_enabled_flag indicates whether offsetting is enabled at the GOF-level; (5) gof_rotation_enabled_flag indicates whether rotation is enabled at the GOF-level; (6) gof_point_size_enabled_flag indicates whether point size is enabled at the GOF-level; and (7) gof_point_shape_enabled_flag indicates whether point shape is enabled at the GOF-level. According to an embodiment, the semantics for the fields of PCCDecoderConfigurationRecord may be: (1) configurationVersion is a version field, and incompatible changes to the record are indicated by a change in the version number in the version field; (2) general_profile_space specifies the context for interpretation of general_profile_idc; (3) general_tier_flag specifies the tier context for interpretation of general_level_idc; (4) general_profile_idc indicates the profile to which the coded point cloud sequence conforms when general_profile_space is equal to 0; and (5) general_level_idc indicates the level to which the coded point cloud sequence conforms.

[0138] According to an embodiment, information that applies to a GOF unit (e.g., any information that applies to all GOF units) may be stored in the sample description of the timed metadata track. According to an embodiment, the fields of the PCCDecoderConfigurationRecord may be part of the PCCHeaderStruct. According to an embodiment, the PCCHeaderBox may be the top-level box within the MovieBox. According to an embodiment, a PCC decoder / player can (e.g., easily) identify whether it can decode and play a file, e.g., determine whether a listed profile is supported, without having to parse every track in the file to find the PCC metadata track. According to an embodiment, each sample in the point cloud metadata track may include GOF header information, e.g., as defined according to MPEG V-PCC. According to an embodiment, the syntax of the GOFHeaderSample and the GOFHeaderStruct, which is a data structure that includes all fields defined in the GOF header, is shown below:

[0139]

number

[0140] According to an embodiment, a parser (e.g., a PCC decoder / player) may identify how many frames are in a GOF unit by parsing the GOF metadata samples. For example, the parser may identify how many frames are in a GOF unit so that, for example, the correct number of samples can be read from the geometry video track and the texture video track. According to an embodiment, a point cloud metadata track may be linked to a component video track. For example, the track referencing tools of the ISOBMFF standard may be used to link the point cloud metadata track to the component video tracks.

[0141] According to an embodiment, the content description reference "cdsc" may be used to link a PCC metadata track to a component track. Or in other words, a content description reference "cdsc" may be generated from a PCC metadata track to a component track. According to an embodiment, the link may be formed by (1) adding a TrackReferenceBox to (e.g., within) a TrackBox, and (2) placing a TrackReferenceTypeBox of type "cdsc" within the TrackReferenceBox. According to an embodiment, the TrackReferenceTypeBox may contain any number of track_IDs specifying the component video tracks to which the PCC metadata refers. According to an embodiment, for example, instead of "cdsc", a new track reference type for the PCC bitstream may be defined. According to an embodiment, a chain of track references may be used by (1) adding a "cdsc" track reference from the PCC metadata track to the geometry video track(s), and (2) adding an "auxl" track reference from the geometry video track(s) to the occupancy map and texture tracks.

[0142] According to an embodiment, for example, a point cloud parameter set track may be used instead of a timed metadata track. According to an embodiment, the point cloud parameter set track may be similar to an AVC parameter set track, for example, as defined by ISO / IEC. According to an embodiment, a sample entry for this track may be defined as follows:

[0143]

number

[0144] According to an embodiment, the PCC parameter stream sample entry may include a PCC parameter stream configuration box, which may be defined as follows:

[0145]

number

[0146] According to an embodiment, a sample in a PCC parameter set track may have a decoding time equal to (e.g., at) the time / time when the parameter set(s) take effect at the time / time when the first frame of the corresponding GOF is decoded.

[0147] In the case where, according to an embodiment, the bitstream is structured as a series of V-PCC units, e.g., as described in a V-PCC CD, the parameter set V-PCC units may be carried in a (e.g., new type) track, identified by the media handler type 4CC "vpcc" and having a sample entry of type "vpc1". According to an embodiment, a (e.g., new type) track identified by the media handler type 4CC "vpcc" may

[0148]

number

[0149] According to an embodiment, the vpcc_unit_payload array may include (e.g., only) the payload of a sequence level parameter set. According to an embodiment, in a case where a sequence parameter set is defined to include any of an occupation parameter set, a geometry parameter set, or an attribute parameter set, e.g., as defined in a V-PCC CD, the vpcc_unit_payload array may include (e.g., only) a sequence parameter set V-PCC unit. According to an embodiment, in a case where multiple sequence level parameter sets are defined, the vpcc_unit_payload may be (e.g., must be) the payload of one of the sequence level parameter sets (e.g., any of a sequence parameter set, a geometry parameter set, an occupation parameter set, or an attribute parameter set), for example, by separating the sequence parameter set from the other component parameter sets (e.g., a geometry parameter set, an occupation parameter set, and an attribute parameter set). According to an embodiment, in cases where a patch unit sequence parameter set (e.g., PSD_SPS as defined in the V-PCC CD) contains information that applies to the entire sequence, the PSD_SPS payload (e.g., it too) may be stored in the vpcc_unit_payload array of the VPCCSampleEntry. According to an embodiment, for example, as an alternative to extending SampleEntry directly, the VPCCSampleEntry may be defined to extend the (e.g., newly defined) VolumentricSampleEntry, which can extend SampleEntry and provide a basic sample entry type for volumetric media. Samples in this track may correspond to point cloud frames. Each V-PCC sample may contain any number of vpcc_unit_payload instances, with the constraint, for example, of only including patch_sequence_data V-PCC unit payloads.Samples corresponding to the same frame across component tracks may have the same composition time as the corresponding sample for that frame in the V-PCC track.

[0150] According to an embodiment, a VPCCSampleEntry may be such that the vpcc_unit_payload array contains a payload (e.g., only) of a sequence level parameter set, e.g., a sequence parameter set, and, if separate, may contain payloads (e.g., only) of a geometry parameter set, an occupancy parameter set, and an attribute parameter set.

[0151]

number

[0152] <Component track with multiple layers> A component track can carry more than one layer of a component, and a player can (e.g., should) be able to identify and extract samples belonging to a particular layer. According to an embodiment, sample grouping functionality (e.g., of ISO / IEC 14496-12) may be utilized. According to an embodiment, for example, a new sample group description with grouping type set to 4CC "vpld" for grouping component layer samples may be

[0153]

number

[0154] According to an embodiment, the semantics for a VPCCLayerSampleGroupEntry may be: (1) layer_index can be the index of the layer to which the samples of the group belong; (2) absolute_coding_flag can indicate whether the samples of the layer associated with the sample group depend on samples from another layer sample group; in the case where absolute_coding_flag is set to 1, the samples may not depend on samples of another layer; and in the case where absolute_coding_flag is set to 0, the samples may depend on samples of another layer; and (3) predictor_layer_index can be the index of the layer on which the samples of the group depend.

[0155] According to an embodiment, the mapping of samples to corresponding layer groups may be done using SampleToGroupBox, for example, as defined in ISO / IEC 14496-12. The SampleToGroupBox may, for example, contain several entries, each of which associates several consecutive samples with one of the group entries in the SampleGroupDescriptionBox.

[0156] A single point of entry for point cloud data within a container file According to an embodiment, information about (e.g., all) tracks that make up a single V-PCC content may be signaled in a single location within the container file, allowing, for example, a player to identify those tracks and their types as quickly as possible without having to parse the sample descriptions of each track. According to an embodiment, such fast identification may be achieved by signaling the track information in one box, for example, at the top level of the container file or within a MetaBox ("meta") that is present at the top level of the file.

[0157] According to an embodiment, such a box may be, for example, a new box type, or a (e.g., newly defined) box having a box inheriting from and extending EntityToGroupBox, as defined in ISO / IEC 14496-12. According to an embodiment, the signaled information may include a list of trackIDs of (e.g., all) tracks belonging to the V-PCC content. For each signaled track, the track type (e.g., metadata, occupancy map, geometry, etc.) as well as, if applicable, the component layers carried by the track may be signaled in (e.g., only signaled) such a box. According to an embodiment, such a box may also include information about the profile and level of the content. According to an embodiment, such a box (e.g., newly defined box) for carrying the above-mentioned information may include:

[0158]

number

[0159] According to an embodiment, the semantics for the fields of VPCCContentBox may be: (1) content_id is a unique id for the V-PCC content among all V-PCC content stored in the container, and num_tracks indicates the total number of tracks that are part of the V-PCC content; (2) track_id is the track ID of one of the tracks stored in the container; (3) track_type indicates the type of component track (e.g., texture, geometry, metadata, etc.); (4) min_layer indicates the index of the minimum layer for the V-PCC component carried by the track; and (5) max_layer indicates the index of the maximum layer for the V-PCC component carried by the track.

[0160] According to an embodiment, another example for the definition of the V-PCC Content Information Box may be when extending the EntityToGroupBox, for example, as defined by ISO / IEC. That is, according to an embodiment, the V-PCC Content Information Box may be:

[0161]

number

[0162] Depending on the embodiment, the semantics of any of track_type, min_layer, and max_layer may be identical to the semantics of the corresponding fields for VPCCContentBox defined above.

[0163] <Signaling alternative versions of point cloud content and components> According to an embodiment, in cases where more than one version of the same point cloud is available in an ISOBMFF container (e.g., the same point cloud at different resolutions), each version may have a separate point cloud metadata track.

[0164] According to an embodiment, the alternative track mechanism defined in ISO / IEC 14496-12 may be used to signal that the tracks alternate with each other. According to an embodiment, point cloud metadata tracks that alternate with each other may (e.g., must) have the same value for the alternate_group field in their respective TrackHeaderBox(es) in the ISOBMFF container.

[0165] Similarly, when multiple versions (e.g., bitrates) of a point cloud component (e.g., any of the geometry component, occupancy component, or attribute component) are available, the alternate_group fields in the TrackHeaderBox(es) for the different versions of the component may (e.g., must) have identical values.

[0166] According to an embodiment, a single point cloud metadata track carrying metadata for different versions of the same point cloud may be available in an ISOBMFF container. According to an embodiment, the sequence parameter sets for each version may be signaled in separate sample entries in the SampleDescriptionBox for the track's sample table. The type of those sample entries may be VPCCSampleEntry. According to an embodiment, sample grouping functions (e.g., of ISO / IEC 14496-12) may be used to group samples in the point cloud metadata track belonging to each version.

[0167] <Fragmented ISOBMFF Container for V-PCC Bitstream> FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a fragmented ISOBMFF container for a V-PCC bitstream according to an embodiment.

[0168] According to an embodiment, a GOF unit may be mapped to an ISOBMFF video fragment. Referring to FIG. 9, each video fragment may correspond to one or more GOF units in a (e.g., elementary) V-PCC bitstream. According to an embodiment, a video fragment may include only samples for the corresponding GOF unit. According to an embodiment, the entire bitstream, such as a global stream header, and metadata regarding the number of tracks present in (e.g., included in) the container may be stored in a MovieBox. According to an embodiment, the MovieBox may include a (e.g., one) TrackBox for each component stream and an (e.g., additional) TrackBox for a GOF header timing metadata track.

[0169] According to an embodiment, a case of one-to-one mapping may exist, in which case each video fragment includes only one GOF unit. In such a case, there may be no need for a GOF header timing metadata track. According to an embodiment, the GOF header may be stored in a MovieFragmentHeaderBox. According to an embodiment, the MovieFragmentHeaderBox may include an optional box including a PCCGOFHeaderBox. According to an embodiment, the PCCGOFHeaderBox may be defined as follows.

[0170]

Number

[0171] According to an embodiment, in the case where a V-PCC elementary stream is composed of a set of V-PCC units, the V-PCC sequence parameter set information may be included in the VPCC SampleEntry for the point cloud metadata track in the MovieBox.

[0172] <Multiple point cloud streams> According to an embodiment, an ISOBMFF container may contain more than one V-PCC stream. According to an embodiment, each stream may be represented by a set of tracks. According to an embodiment, a track grouping (e.g., a track grouping tool) may be used to identify the stream to which a track belongs. According to an embodiment, for example, for one PCC stream, a TrackGroupBox ("trgr") may be added to (1) the TrackBoxes of all component streams and (2) the PCC metadata track. According to an embodiment, the syntax for the PCCGroupBox can define a (e.g., new) type of track grouping, and the TrackGroupTypeBox may be defined according to ISOBMFF and may include a single track_group_id field. According to an embodiment, the syntax for the PCCGroupBox may be as follows:

[0173]

number

[0174] According to an embodiment, tracks belonging to the same PCC stream may have the same track_group_id (e.g., the same value for) track_group_type "pccs", and tracks belonging to different PCC streams may have different / respective track_group_ids. According to an embodiment, PCC streams may be identified according to the track_group_id in a TrackGroupTypeBox with track_group_type equal to "pccs".

[0175] According to an embodiment, for example, in the case where multiple point cloud streams are included (e.g., allowed) in a single container, PCCHeaderBox may be used to indicate the operation point and global header of each PCC stream. According to an embodiment, the syntax of PCCHeaderBox may be as follows:

[0176]

number

[0177] According to an embodiment, the semantics of the above identified fields may be: (1) number_of_pcc_streams may indicate how many point cloud streams can be stored in the file, and (2) pcc_stream_id may be a unique identifier for each point cloud stream corresponding to the track_group_id for the track of the component stream.

[0178] <PCCプロファイルのシグナリング> To implement a media coding standard in an interoperable manner, for example, among various applications having similar functional requirements, profiles, tiers, and levels may be used as conformance points (e.g., may specify). A profile may define a set of coding tools and / or algorithms to be used in generating a (e.g., conforming) bitstream, and a level may define (e.g., impose) constraints on (e.g., specific, important, etc.) parameters of the bitstream, such as, for example, parameters corresponding to any of decoder processing load or memory capabilities, etc.

[0179] According to an embodiment, a brand may be used to indicate conformance to a V-PCC profile, for example, by indicating the brand in a track-specific manner. ISOBMFF includes the concept of a brand, which can be indicated using a compatible_brands list in a FileTypeBox. Each brand is an ISO-registered four-letter code that identifies a concise specification. The presence of a brand in the compatible_brands list of a FileTypeBox may be used to indicate that a file conforms to the brand's requirements. Similarly, a TrackTypeBox (e.g., inside a TrackBox) may be used to indicate conformance of an individual track to a particular brand. According to an embodiment, a brand may be used to indicate conformance to a V-PCC profile, for example, because a TrackTypeBox may have a syntax similar or identical to that of a FileTypeBox and can be used to indicate a brand in a track-specific manner. According to an embodiment, a V-PCC profile may also be signaled as part of a PCCHeaderBox. According to an embodiment, a V-PCC profile may also be signaled in a VPCCContentBox, for example, as defined above with reference to a single point of entry for point cloud data within a container file.

[0180] <VPCC Parameter Set Reference> As discussed above, the specific parameter set reference structure designed for VPCC_PSD can be problematic

[0181] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a PSD parameter set reference structure according to an embodiment.

[0182] According to an embodiment, for example, in contrast to the problematic structure, the parameters of the frame-level geometry parameter set and the attribute parameter set may be integrated into a single component parameter set. According to an embodiment, such a single component parameter set may refer to a single active patch sequence parameter set, and the parameters of the geometry patch parameter set and the attribute patch parameter set may be integrated into a single component patch parameter set, and the single component patch parameter set may refer to an active geometry attribute frame parameter set. According to an embodiment, the patch frame parameter set may refer to a single active geometry attribute patch parameter set. The processed PSD parameter set reference structure is shown in FIG. 10.

[0183] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another PSD parameter set reference structure according to an embodiment.

[0184] According to an embodiment, parameters of either the geometry frame parameter set or the attribute frame parameter set may be included in the patch sequence parameter set. That is, parameters of the geometry patch parameter set and the attribute patch parameter set may be combined to form the component_patch_parameter_set. According to an embodiment, the component_patch_parameter_set may point to the active patch sequence parameter set. According to an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the patch frame parameter set may point to the active component patch parameter set.

[0185] Support for spatial access and signaling of target areas

[0186] A region of interest (RoI) in a point cloud may be defined by a 3D bounding box. According to an embodiment, for example, patches resulting from the projection of points within the RoI may be packed into a set of tiles in a 2D frame of any of the geometry component, occupancy component, and attribute component. According to an embodiment, tiles (e.g., a set of tiles in a 2D frame) may be coded with a high quality / resolution, and the tiles may (e.g., subsequently) be coded independently. For example, tiles may be coded independently as HEVC MCTS tiles, and their respective samples may be stored in separate ISOBMFF tracks. This can enable (e.g., facilitate) spatial random access to the RoI without the need to decode the entire 2D frame.

[0187] According to an embodiment, for example, corresponding 2D tile tracks across (e.g., within) components of a point cloud may be grouped together, for example, using a track grouping tool (e.g., as discussed above). According to an embodiment, a TrackGroupBox ("trgr") may be added to the TrackBox associated with (e.g., all of) the component tracks. A new type of track grouping for 2D tile tracks of a V-PCC component track may have a TrackGroupTypeBox (as defined according to ISO / IEC) and may include a single track_group_id field according to an embodiment. The new type of track grouping may include:

[0188]

number

[0189] According to an embodiment, tracks belonging to the same point cloud 2D tile may have the same value of track_group_id for track_group_type "p2dt". According to an embodiment, the track_group_id of a track associated with a point cloud 2D tile may be different from the track_group_id of a track associated with another (e.g., any other) point cloud 2D tile. The track_group_id in a TrackGroupTypeBox with track_group_type equal to "p2dt" may be used as an identifier of the point cloud 2D tile.

[0190] According to an embodiment, a 3D RoI in a point cloud may be associated with any number of point cloud 2D tiles using, for example, a VPCCRegionsOfInterestBox. According to an embodiment, a VPCCRegionsOfInterestBox may be

[0191]

number

[0192] According to an embodiment, the semantics for the fields of 3DRegionBox and / or VPCCRegionsOfInterestBox may include any of the following: (1) region_x may be the x-coordinate of the reference point of the bounding box; (2) region_y may be the y-coordinate of the reference point of the bounding box; (3) region_z may be the z-coordinate of the reference point of the bounding box; (4) region_width may indicate the length of the bounding box along the x-axis; (5) region_height may indicate the length of the bounding box along the y-axis; (6) region_depth may indicate the length of the bounding box along the z-axis; (7) roi_count may indicate the number of RoIs in the point cloud; (8) 2d_tile_count may indicate the number of point cloud 2D tiles associated with the RoI; and (9) track_group_ids may be an array of track group identifiers for track groups of type “p2dt” (e.g., corresponding to point cloud 2D tiles).

[0193] According to an embodiment, in the case where the RoI in the point cloud sequence is static (e.g., does not change), the VPCCRegionsOfInterestBox may be included in either a VPCC SampleEntry in a PCC metadata track or a VPCCContentGroupingBox in a MetaBox. According to an embodiment, in the case where the RoI in the point cloud sequence is dynamic, the VPCCRegionsOfInterestBox may be signaled in a sample of a PCC metadata track.

[0194] <Conclusion> While features and elements are described above in particular combinations, those skilled in the art will recognize that each feature or element may be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. Additionally, the methods described herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware embodied in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electrical signals (transmitted over wired or wireless connections) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a TRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

[0195] Moreover, in the above-described embodiments, reference has been made to processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and other devices that include processors. These devices may include at least one central processing unit ("CPU") and memory. In accordance with the practices of those skilled in the art of computer programming, references to operations and symbolic representations of operations or instructions may be performed by various CPUs and memories. Such operations and operations or instructions may be referred to as being "executed," "executed by a computer," or "executed by a CPU."

[0196] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the operations and symbolically represented operations or instructions include the manipulation of electrical signals by a CPU. An electronic system represents data bits, where the resulting conversion or transformation of the electrical signals and the maintenance of the data bits in memory locations within a memory system can cause other processing of the signals, along with the operation of a CPU, to be reconfigured or altered. The memory locations where the data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties that correspond to or represent the data bits. It should be understood that exemplary embodiments are not limited to the above-mentioned platforms or CPUs, and that other platforms and CPUs can support the provided methods.

[0197] The data bits may also be maintained on computer-readable media, including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., random access memory ("RAM")) or non-volatile (e.g., read-only memory ("ROM")) mass storage systems readable by a CPU. The computer-readable media may reside exclusively on a processing system or distributed across multiple interconnected processing systems, which may be local or remote to the processing system. It may include cooperating or interconnected computer-readable media. It will be understood that exemplary embodiments are not limited to the above-mentioned memories, and that other platforms and memories may support the described methods.

[0198] In an exemplary embodiment, any of the operations, processes, etc. described herein may be implemented as computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable medium, which may be executed by a processor of a mobile unit, a network element, and / or any other computing device.

[0199] There is little distinction between hardware and software implementations of aspects of the system. The use of hardware or software is generally a design choice representing a cost-efficiency trade-off (e.g., in certain contexts, the choice between hardware and software may be significant, although not always). There may thereby be a variety of vehicles (e.g., hardware, software, and / or firmware) capable of operating on the processes, systems, and / or other technologies described herein, and the preferred vehicle may vary with the context in which the processes, systems, and / or other technologies are deployed. For example, if the implementer determines that speed and accuracy are highest, the implementer may choose a primarily hardware and / or firmware vehicle. If flexibility is highest, the implementer may choose some combination of hardware, software, and / or firmware.

[0200] The foregoing detailed description has illustrated various embodiments of devices and / or processes through the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and / or examples. To the extent that such block diagrams, flowcharts, and examples include one or more functions and / or operations, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that each function and / or operation in such block diagrams, flowcharts, or examples may be individually and / or collectively implemented by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or virtual combinations thereof. Suitable processors include, by way of example, general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, conventional processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, controllers, microcontrollers, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or state machines.

[0201] While features and elements are provided above in particular combinations, those skilled in the art will recognize that each feature or element may be used alone or in any combination with other features and elements. The present disclosure is not limited in terms of the specific embodiments described in this application, which are intended as illustrations of various aspects. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, many modifications and variations may be made without departing from its spirit and scope. No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the present application should be construed as critical or essential to the invention unless expressly provided as such. In addition to the methods and apparatus enumerated herein, functionally equivalent methods and apparatus within the scope of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only by such claims, according to the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to any particular method or system.

[0202] Additionally, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the terms “base station” and its abbreviation “STA,” “user equipment” and its abbreviation “UE,” when referred to herein, may mean (i) a wireless transmit and / or receive unit (WTRU) as described below, (ii) any of several embodiments of a WTRU as described below, (iii) a wireless-enabled device and / or a wired-enabled device (e.g., tetherable) configured with some or all of the structure and functionality of a WTRU as described below, among others, (iii) a wireless-enabled device and / or a wired-enabled device configured with less than all of the structure and functionality of a WTRU as described below, or (iv) the like. Details of an exemplary WTRU that may represent (or be interchangeable with) any UE or mobile device described herein are provided below with respect to FIGS. 1A-1D .

[0203] In certain exemplary embodiments, portions of the subject matter described herein may be implemented via application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and / or other integrated formats. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein may equivalently be implemented in whole or in part in an integrated circuit as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or virtually any combination thereof, and that designing circuitry and / or writing code for software and / or firmware will be well within the skill of those skilled in the art in light of this disclosure. Additionally, those skilled in the art will recognize that mechanisms of the subject matter described herein may be distributed as a program product in various forms, and that exemplary embodiments of the subject matter described herein apply regardless of the particular type of signal-bearing medium actually used to perform the distribution. Examples of signal-bearing media include, but are not limited to, readable-type media such as floppy disks, hard disk drives, CDs, DVDs, digital tape, computer memory, and transmission-type media such as digital and / or analog communications media (e.g., fiber optic cables, wave guides, wired communications links, wireless communications links, etc.).

[0204] The subject matter described herein may depict different components contained within or connected to different other components. It will be understood that such described architectures are merely examples, and that in fact, many other architectures may be implemented that achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality may be operatively associated such that the desired functionality can be achieved. Thus, any two components combined herein to achieve a particular functionality may be considered to be “associated” with each other to achieve the desired functionality, regardless of the architecture or intermediate components. Similarly, any two components so associated may also be considered to be “operably connected” or “operably coupled” to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated may also be considered to be “operably coupleable” to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably coupleable include, but are not limited to, physically engageable and / or physically interacting components, wirelessly interacting and / or wirelessly interacting components, and / or logically interacting and / or logically interacting components.

[0205] With respect to the use of substantially any plural and / or singular terms herein, those skilled in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and / or from the singular to the plural as appropriate to the context and / or application. Various singular / plural permutations may be expressly indicated herein for convenience.

[0206] In general, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the terms used herein, and particularly in the appended claims (e.g., the body of the claims), are to be interpreted as "open terms" (e.g., the term "comprising" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," etc.). Furthermore, where a specific number of introduced claim recitations are intended, such intention will be clearly set forth in the claim; in the absence of such a recitation, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that no such intention exists. For example, where only one item is intended, the term "single" or similar language may be used. As an aid to understanding, the following appended claims and / or description herein may include the use of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, even when the same claim uses the introductory phrase "one or more" or "at least one" and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and / or "an" should be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"), the use of such phrases should not be construed as suggesting that introducing a claim recitation with the indefinite article "a" or "an" limits any particular claim that includes a claim recitation so introduced to embodiments that include only one such recitation. The same also applies to the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. Additionally, even when a specific number of introduced claim recitations is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted as intending to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the mere recitation of "two" recitations without other modifiers means at least two recitations or more than two recitations).

[0207] Furthermore, in those instances where a similar convention such as "at least one of A, B, and C" is used, generally such structure is intended in the sense that one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that structure (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" includes, but is not limited to, A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a similar convention such as "at least one of A, B, or C" is used, generally such structure is intended in the sense that one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that structure (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" includes, but is not limited to, A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). Furthermore, any disjunctive words and / or phrases present in two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibility of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both of the terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibility of including "A" or "B" or "and B." Furthermore, as used herein, the term "any followed by a list of items and / or categories of items" is intended to include "any combination," "any combination of," or "any combination of" "items and / or items," together with individual and / or other items and / or categories of items. Moreover, as used herein, the term "set" or "group" is intended to include any number of items, including zero. Additionally, as used herein, the term "number" is intended to include any number, including zero.

[0208] Additionally, although features or aspects of the disclosure have been described in terms of Markush groups, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the disclosure may thereby be described in terms of any number of individual Markush groups or subgroups of any number of Markush groups.

[0209] As will be understood by those skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, including providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein encompass all possible subranges and combinations of such subranges. Any stated range will be readily recognized as fully descriptive and capable of being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etc., of that same range. As a non-limiting example, each range disclosed herein may be readily broken down into lower thirds, middle thirds, and upper thirds, etc. Also, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, all language such as "up to," "at least," "greater than or equal to," and "less than" refers to ranges that are inclusive of the recited number and can then be broken down into subranges as discussed above. Finally, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, a range includes each individual member. Thus, for example, a group having 1 to 3 cells refers to groups having 1, 2, or 3 cells. Similarly, a group having 1 to 5 cells refers to groups having 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 cells, etc.

[0210] Moreover, the claims should not be read as limited to the order or elements provided unless so indicated. In addition, the use of the term "means for" in any claim is intended to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112, paragraph 6, or means-plus-function claim format, and any claim without the term "means for" is not so intended.

[0211] A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), user equipment (UE), terminal, base station, mobility management entity (MME) or evolved packet core (EPC), or any host computer. The WTRU may be used with modules implemented in hardware and / or software, including software-defined radios (SDRs) and other components such as cameras, video camera modules, video phones, speaker phones, vibration devices, speakers, microphones, television transceivers, hands-free headsets, keyboards, Bluetooth modules, frequency modulation (FM) radio units, near field communications (NFC) modules, liquid crystal display (LCD) display units, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display units, digital music players, media players, video game player modules, internet browsers, and / or any wireless local area network (WLAN) or ultra-wideband (UWB) modules.

[0212] Although the invention has been described with respect to a communications system, it is contemplated that the system may be implemented in software on a microprocessor / general purpose computer (not shown). In particular embodiments, one or more of the functions of the various components may be implemented in software controlling a general purpose computer.

[0213] Additionally, while the invention has been illustrated and described above with reference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be made in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

[0214] Throughout the disclosure, those skilled in the art will understand that certain exemplary embodiments may be used in alternative embodiments or in combination with other exemplary embodiments.

[0215] Although features and elements have been described above in particular combinations, those skilled in the art will recognize that each feature or element may be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. Additionally, the methods described herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware embodied in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of non-transitory computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WRTU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

[0216] Moreover, in the above-described embodiments, reference has been made to processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and other devices that include processors. These devices may include at least one central processing unit ("CPU") and memory. In accordance with the practices of those skilled in the art of computer programming, references to operations and symbolic representations of operations or instructions may be performed by various CPUs and memories. Such operations and operations or instructions may be referred to as being "executed," "executed by a computer," or "executed by a CPU."

[0217] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the operations and symbolically represented operations or instructions include the manipulation of electrical signals by a CPU. An electronic system represents data bits where the resulting transformation or conversion of the electrical signals and the maintenance of the data bits in memory locations within a memory system can cause the operation of the CPU, along with other processing of the signals, to be reconfigured or altered. The memory locations where the data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties that correspond to or represent the data bits.

[0218] The data bits may also be maintained on computer-readable media, including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., random access memory ("RAM")) or non-volatile (e.g., read-only memory ("ROM")) mass storage systems readable by a CPU. The computer-readable media may reside exclusively on a processing system or distributed across multiple interconnected processing systems, which may be local or remote to the processing system. It may include cooperating or interconnected computer-readable media. It will be understood that exemplary embodiments are not limited to the above-mentioned memories, and that other platforms and memories may support the described methods.

[0219] Suitable processors include, by way of example, a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an application-specific standard processor (ASSP), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or a state machine.

[0220] Although the invention has been described with respect to a communications system, it is contemplated that the system may be implemented in software on a microprocessor / general purpose computer (not shown). In particular embodiments, one or more of the functions of the various components may be implemented in software controlling a general purpose computer.

[0221] Additionally, while the invention has been illustrated and described above with reference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be made in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

Claims

1. 1. A method for indicating a region of interest (ROI) via a point cloud bitstream (PC bitstream) of an encoded point cloud sequence, comprising: generating an International Organization for Standardization / International Electrotechnical Commission Base Media File Format Container (ISOBMFF Container), the ISOBMFF container includes a first track containing a metadata component bitstream of the PC bitstream; the metadata component bitstream includes information defining a three-dimensional region of interest (3D ROI); the 3D ROI is defined by at least a set of three Cartesian coordinates defining a point in 3D space, each of the three Cartesian coordinates being associated with a direction in the 3D space, each of the three directions being orthogonal to two other directions associated with the other two coordinates; the 3D ROI is further defined by a set of at least three parameters, each of the three parameters corresponding to a different one of the directions, and each of the three parameters defining an extension of the 3D ROI in the corresponding direction; sending the ISOBMFF container; A method for providing

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the three orthogonal coordinates include an x-coordinate, a y-coordinate, and a z-coordinate.

3. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the direction associated with the x-coordinate corresponds to the x-axis, the direction associated with the y-coordinate corresponds to the y-axis, and the direction associated with the z-coordinate corresponds to the z-axis.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the 3D ROI is a bounding box.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the information defining the 3D ROIs includes an indication of the number of 3D ROIs.

6. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a second track including a first video component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the first video component bitstream including a first set of tiles, the first set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a two-dimensional (2D) projection of a point within the 3D ROI.

7. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a third track including a second video component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the second video component bitstream including a second set of tiles, the second set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a 2D projection of a point outside the 3D ROI.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the first set of tiles is encoded at a higher quality or resolution than the second set of tiles.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a second track containing a geometry component bitstream of the PC bitstream, an occupancy component bitstream of the PC bitstream, or an attribute component bitstream of the PC bitstream.

10. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the geometry component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the occupancy component bitstream of the PC bitstream, or the attribute component bitstream of the PC bitstream includes a set of tiles, the set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a two-dimensional (2D) projection of a point within the 3D ROI.

11. Generate an International Organization for Standardization / International Electrotechnical Commission Base Media File Format Container (ISOBMFF Container); the ISOBMFF container includes a first track containing a metadata component bitstream of a point cloud bitstream (PC bitstream); the metadata component bitstream includes information defining a three-dimensional region of interest (3D ROI); the 3D ROI is defined by at least a set of three Cartesian coordinates defining a point in 3D space, each of the three Cartesian coordinates being associated with a direction in the 3D space, each of the three directions being orthogonal to two other directions associated with the other two coordinates; the 3D ROI is further defined by a set of at least three parameters, each of the three parameters corresponding to a different one of the directions, and each of the three parameters defining an extension of the 3D ROI in the corresponding direction; Send the ISOBMFF container Processor configured to An encoder comprising:

12. The encoder of claim 11, wherein the three orthogonal coordinates include an x-coordinate, a y-coordinate, and a z-coordinate.

13. 13. The encoder of claim 12, wherein the direction associated with the x-coordinate corresponds to the x-axis, the direction associated with the y-coordinate corresponds to the y-axis, and the direction associated with the z-coordinate corresponds to the z-axis.

14. The encoder of claim 11 , wherein the 3D ROI is a bounding box.

15. The encoder of claim 11 , wherein the information defining the 3D ROIs includes an indication of the number of 3D ROIs.

16. 12. The encoder of claim 11, wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a second track including a first video component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the first video component bitstream including a first set of tiles, the first set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a two-dimensional (2D) projection of a point within the 3D ROI.

17. 17. The encoder of claim 16, wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a third track including a second video component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the second video component bitstream including a second set of tiles, the second set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a 2D projection of a point outside the 3D ROI.

18. 18. The encoder of claim 17, wherein the first set of tiles is encoded at a higher quality or resolution than the second set of tiles.

19. The encoder of claim 11 , wherein the ISOBMFF container includes a second track containing a geometry component bitstream of the PC bitstream, an occupancy component bitstream of the PC bitstream, or an attribute component bitstream of the PC bitstream.

20. 20. The encoder of claim 19, wherein the geometry component bitstream of the PC bitstream, the occupancy component bitstream of the PC bitstream, or the attribute component bitstream of the PC bitstream includes a set of tiles, the set of tiles including at least one patch corresponding to a two-dimensional (2D) projection of a point within the 3D ROI.

Images