Long-Term Palette Video Decoding for Non-Neighboring Block Efficiency

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current video coding systems face inefficiencies in representing color palettes across coding units, particularly in exploiting statistical correlations between non-neighboring blocks, which limits coding efficiency and requires additional memory resources for buffering.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of a long-term palette system that signals color information at a higher level, allowing for dynamic construction and updating of palettes using information from neighboring or long-term palettes, and enabling adaptive size management to include new colors, thereby improving coding efficiency and reducing memory usage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If a stored color palette is used to encode a coding unit, then decoding can be performed using existing color information, but the ability to represent new colors is limited and coding efficiency is reduced when non-neighboring blocks share colors

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecoding efficiencyVSAvoidcolor representation capability
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines the stored color palette from neighboring blocks with a newly identified color to form an enhanced palette. This merged palette is then stored for future use, allowing both existing and new colors to be represented efficiently across multiple coding units, thereby resolving the contradiction between using stored palettes and representing new colors.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent performs preliminary identification and storage of new colors when they are first encountered in a coding unit. By proactively adding these new colors to the stored palette during the encoding process, the system prepares for future coding units that may share these colors, improving coding efficiency without limiting color representation capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Productivity

If color palettes are shared across non-neighboring blocks, then coding efficiency improves, but additional memory resources are required for buffering color information

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecoding efficiencyVSAvoidmemory resources
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The stored color palette serves multiple functions: it acts as a reference for decoding neighboring blocks, stores newly identified colors for future use, and enables color sharing across non-neighboring blocks. This multi-functionality allows the system to improve coding efficiency across the entire video sequence without proportionally increasing memory resources, as the same palette structure serves multiple purposes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Productivity

If a long-term palette is updated dynamically to include new colors, then color correlations across non-neighboring blocks are exploited, but the complexity of palette management increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecoding efficiencyVSAvoidpalette management complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs self-service by automatically identifying new colors during the encoding process and adding them to the stored palette without requiring external intervention or complex management procedures. This automated approach exploits color correlations across non-neighboring blocks while keeping palette management complexity manageable through straightforward conditional logic.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP3120548B1Decoding of video using a long-term palette
Publication Date: 2019.12.11 NOKIA TECHNOLOGIES OY
  • EP3120548B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3120548B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP3120548B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

There are disclosed various methods, apparatuses and computer program products for video encoding/decoding. In some embodiments the method comprises signalling a long-term palette information, where the long-term palette information comprises at least information on the color values for each entry in the long-term palette; generating a palette that is used for coding a coding unit by either selecting at least one color value from a long-term palette or by separately signaling at least one color value, or performing both. Alternatively the method comprises constructing a long-term palette during an encoding process or a decoding process; and updating the long-term palette dynamically after coding a coding unit, and constructing a palette used for encoding or decoding a coding unit using information from the long-term palette.