Macroblock Bandwidth Map Adjustment for Wireless Video Error Resilience
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing video encoding methods face challenges in limiting error propagation while maintaining compression efficiency, particularly in wireless video communication systems, where inter-frame coding can lead to decoding issues and poor error resilience due to reliance on reference frames that may be lost.
Innovation Solution
A method that initializes a pixel-level reference counter and adjusts the macroblock bandwidth map to enhance error resilience by predicting frames and readjusting the macroblock bandwidth, allowing for improved error recovery and decoding quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If inter-frame coding is used to improve compression efficiency, then compression ratio is improved, but error propagation increases and decoding reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by proactively identifying macroblocks with high reference counts before transmission and pre-marking them for intra-refresh. The encoder performs a two-pass algorithm: first pass calculates prediction hierarchy and identifies frequently referenced macroblocks, second pass adjusts bandwidth allocation. This preliminary identification and marking ensures that critical macroblocks are protected against error propagation before the actual video encoding and transmission occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by applying different encoding strategies to different parts of the video data. Specifically, macroblocks with high reference counts are encoded with intra-coding (higher quality, error-resistant) while other macroblocks use inter-coding (lower quality, higher compression). The bandwidth map is locally adjusted to allocate more bits to high-reference-count macroblocks, creating non-uniform quality distribution that prioritizes error resilience where needed.
2Reliability
If intra-frames are increased to refresh video signal and limit error propagation, then error resilience is improved, but compression efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by applying different encoding strategies to different parts of the video data. Specifically, macroblocks with high reference counts are encoded with intra-coding (higher quality, error-resistant) while other macroblocks use inter-coding (lower quality, higher compression). The bandwidth map is locally adjusted to allocate more bits to high-reference-count macroblocks, creating non-uniform quality distribution that prioritizes error resilience where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by performing intra-refresh only on a subset of macroblocks (those with high reference counts) rather than refreshing the entire frame. The two-pass algorithm identifies specific macroblocks that require protection based on their reference count, and only these selected macroblocks receive intra-coded treatment. This partial application of intra-refresh maintains compression efficiency while providing targeted error protection.
3Loss of substance
If longer GOP is used to increase compression, then compression efficiency is improved, but acquisition and resynchronization time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by proactively identifying macroblocks with high reference counts before transmission and pre-marking them for intra-refresh. The encoder performs a two-pass algorithm: first pass calculates prediction hierarchy and identifies frequently referenced macroblocks, second pass adjusts bandwidth allocation. This preliminary identification and marking ensures that critical macroblocks are protected against error propagation before the actual video encoding and transmission occurs.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4A
AI summary
Methods and apparatuses to encode multimedia data enabling, among others, for example, improved decoded video quality, improved error recovery capabilities and/or improved decoding efficiency are described. A method according to the application includes one or more of the following: initializing a pixel-level reference counter for a current frame, performing a prediction of a next frame referring to the current frame, incrementing the pixel-level reference counter for each pixel of the current frame that is referenced during the prediction of the next frame, readjusting a macroblock bandwidth map of the current frame, repeating the steps of initializing, performing and readjusting for each next frame in a plurality of next frames referring to the current frame, and encoding the current frame based at least in part on the readjusted macroblock bandwidth map of the current frame.