Codec-Based Low Latency Media Streaming System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current computing systems are not cost-effective or energy-efficient for providing basic media-processing capabilities, such as streaming, to all users due to the requirement of high computing power, which limits access to multimedia resources for many consumers.
Innovation Solution
A client-server system with a codec installed on both client and server, utilizing compression techniques like run-length encoding and lookup tables to reduce data transmission requirements, enabling low-latency media streaming without the need for powerful processors and eliminating buffering and negotiation headers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If compression techniques are used to reduce bit rate, then transmission cost and energy consumption are reduced, but latency increases due to encoding and decoding processing time
Solution Approach 1:
The codec is pre-installed on both client and server devices, enabling immediate compression and decompression operations without requiring initial setup or negotiation. This preliminary preparation eliminates setup latency while maintaining energy-efficient compression throughout the streaming session.
Solution Approach 2:
The same codec implementation is deployed on both server and client devices, creating identical encoding and decoding capabilities. This symmetry allows for optimized compression algorithms that achieve high compression ratios with minimal processing overhead, reducing both energy consumption and latency simultaneously.
2Productivity
If powerful processors are used to provide media-processing capabilities, then streaming quality and performance are improved, but device cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The codec is designed to leverage the existing processing capabilities of standard devices without requiring specialized hardware or powerful processors. The same codec runs on both server and client, utilizing their native processing power efficiently, thus making media processing accessible on low-cost devices while maintaining good streaming performance.
3Reliability
If buffering is implemented to smooth data transmission, then streaming stability is improved, but latency increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the traditional buffering mechanism from the streaming architecture. Instead of buffering data before transmission, the system uses real-time compression on the server and real-time decompression on the client, with data flowing continuously through the communication channel. This extraction of buffering eliminates the associated latency while maintaining streaming stability through the efficiency of the codec.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a system for providing a low-latency transmission between a client and a server. The client may be a thin client that leverages a codec to receive data transmissions from the server over a dedicated connection and need not require significant processing power. The client-server system has additional capabilities for reducing latency, including providing a view port for viewing portions of documents in a buffer cache and providing a method for blending image content by applying an alpha coefficient to separated red, blue, and green image components.