Fixed Foveated Compression for HMD Streaming
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current graphics processing architectures for head-mounted displays (HMDs) face challenges in efficiently streaming virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) content due to high data requirements, leading to image quality issues and reliance on expensive eye tracking hardware.
Innovation Solution
A fixed foveated compression method is employed, where visual content is compressed using a non-uniform compression map that takes into account lens characteristics of the HMD, partitioning the image into central and peripheral regions with varying levels of detail, allowing for efficient data transmission without the need for eye tracking hardware.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional compression solutions are used to reduce data transmission requirements, then data transmission efficiency is improved, but image quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing a non-uniform compression map that divides the image into central and peripheral regions, applying different compression levels to each region. The central region maintains high quality with minimal compression while the peripheral region accepts higher compression ratios, thus resolving the contradiction between overall data transmission efficiency and central image quality.
2Productivity
If eye tracking hardware is used to enable foveated compression, then compression efficiency is improved, but device cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-defining a fixed compression map based on lens characteristics before rendering or compression occurs. This eliminates the need for real-time eye tracking hardware to determine compression regions, as the peripheral compression areas are predetermined based on optical properties, thus achieving compression efficiency without increasing device cost.
3Manufacturing precision
If high data transmission rates are used to maintain image quality, then image quality is preserved, but wireless transmission difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reduces wireless transmission difficulty by applying local quality differentiation through non-uniform compression. The peripheral regions are compressed more aggressively while the central region maintains quality, significantly reducing overall data transmission requirements and easing wireless transmission constraints while preserving perceptual image quality.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems and apparatuses may include technology that compresses a central region of an image to a central level of detail and compresses one or more peripheral regions of the image to one or more peripheral levels of detail that are less than the central level of detail, wherein the central region and the peripheral region(s) are fixed. Additionally, the technology may send the compressed central region and the compressed peripheral region(s) to a remote display. In one example, the central region and the peripheral region(s) are independent of eye movement with respect to the remote display.