Deblocking Filter Level Selection for Video Coding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional deblocking filter schemes in video coding often use a single filter level for all color planes, which may not fully exploit the potential of deblocking filters, leading to suboptimal reduction of blocking artifacts and visual quality, especially given the different coding properties of luminance and chrominance planes.
Innovation Solution
The system and method allow for independent selection of deblocking filter levels for luminance and chrominance planes, as well as for horizontal and vertical directions within a plane, enabling better control over filtering strength to reduce blocking artifacts while preserving content texture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single filter level is used for all color planes, then the device complexity is reduced, but the visual quality and coding performance deteriorate due to suboptimal reduction of blocking artifacts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the filtering system into separate processing paths for different color planes (luminance and chrominance). Each color plane receives filtering with its own dedicated filter level, allowing independent optimization. This segmentation enables the system to achieve high visual quality through plane-specific filtering while keeping each individual filtering path relatively simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different filter levels to different color planes based on their specific characteristics. The luminance plane, which has higher visual importance, receives a first filter level optimized for luminance characteristics, while the chrominance plane receives a second filter level optimized for chrominance characteristics. This local quality approach ensures each plane is filtered according to its specific needs, improving overall visual quality without requiring a uniformly complex filtering system.
2Ease of operation
If a single filter level is used for all color planes, then the ease of operation is improved, but the coding performance deteriorates due to inability to exploit different coding properties of luminance and chrominance planes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the filtering operation into separate processing streams for luminance and chrominance planes. Each stream operates independently with its own filter level, allowing the system to exploit the different coding properties of each plane. The encoder can select filter levels independently for each plane based on their specific coding characteristics, improving coding performance while maintaining operational simplicity through modular processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the filtering parameter (filter level) based on the color plane being processed. The encoder selects a first filter level for the luminance plane and a second filter level for the chrominance plane, allowing optimization for each plane's coding properties. This parameter adaptation enables the system to achieve high coding performance by matching filter characteristics to the specific requirements of each color plane.
3Manufacturing precision
If different filter levels are selected for different color planes, then the visual quality improves through tailored filtering, but the device complexity increases due to multiple filter level management
Solution Approach 1:
The patent manages multiple filter levels by segmenting them into plane-specific groups. Each color plane has its own dedicated filter level, which simplifies the management complexity by organizing filter levels according to their application domain. The encoder and decoder each maintain separate filter level states for luminance and chrominance, making the complexity structured and manageable rather than scattered.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent achieves high visual quality by applying locally optimized filter levels to each color plane. The luminance plane receives filtering optimized for luminance characteristics, while the chrominance plane receives filtering optimized for chrominance characteristics. This local optimization approach ensures that each plane achieves the best possible visual quality for its specific properties without requiring a uniformly complex filtering system across all planes.
4Productivity
If different filter levels are selected for different color planes, then the coding performance improves through exploitation of different coding properties, but the loss of information increases due to encoding multiple filter levels in the bitstream
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adapts the filter level parameter based on the color plane being processed, allowing the system to exploit the different coding properties of luminance and chrominance planes. The encoder selects filter levels that are optimized for each plane's specific characteristics, improving coding performance by matching filtering strength to the actual coding requirements of each plane rather than using a conservative uniform filter level.
Data Source
AI summary
A bitstream that stores encoded image data is described. In addition to the compressed data for color planes of the image, signals identifying respective deblocking filters is identified for the different color planes of the image. The deblocking filters may include those having different lengths for a luma plane as compared to one or more chroma planes of the image. One or more of the color planes, such as the luma plane, may have different filters for filtering reconstructed pixels vertically as compared to filtering the reconstructed pixels horizontally.