Streaming Media Flow Management via Composite Chunk Generation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current video streaming technologies face challenges in maintaining consistent video quality across multiple clients sharing the same bandwidth, as they rely on constant bit rate (CBR) encoding, which leads to varying visual quality and inefficiencies in bandwidth utilization due to lack of fine-grained bitrate control and the need for resource-intensive transcoding to adapt bitrates.
Innovation Solution
A method that allocates and adjusts bitrates for streaming media flows by generating new chunks that combine frames from different bit rate versions, allowing for bitrate adaptation and omission of redundant information to optimize streaming for clients, thereby ensuring consistent video quality and efficient bandwidth use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If constant bit rate (CBR) encoding is used for streaming, then the streaming process is simple and compatible with HTTP protocols, but the visual quality varies across different scenes and clients experience inconsistent video quality when sharing the same bandwidth
Solution Approach 1:
The video stream is divided into multiple segments or chunks, each encoded at different bit rates. This segmentation allows the system to select and combine appropriate segments to achieve variable bit rate output while maintaining the simplicity of HTTP-based streaming delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite streaming approach by combining multiple CBR-encoded segments at different bit rates into a single VBR stream. This composite structure allows flexible bit rate adaptation without requiring resource-intensive transcoding of the entire video.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple versions of the stream are maintained at different bit rates, then adaptive bit rate streaming becomes possible, but the device complexity increases due to the need for managing and selecting between multiple encoded versions
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple bit rate versions of the video stream are pre-encoded and stored before delivery. This preliminary preparation allows the streaming system to adapt to different network conditions and client capabilities without performing complex real-time transcoding operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary component that manages the selection and combination of segments from different bit rate versions. This intermediary handles the complexity of adaptive bit rate management, separating it from both the encoding process and the client playback.
3Manufacturing precision
If transcoding is performed to adapt bit rates for different clients, then consistent video quality can be achieved, but the processing time and computational resources required increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of performing transcoding in real-time, the system pre-encodes the video at multiple bit rates and stores these versions. This eliminates the need for time-consuming real-time transcoding operations while still providing adaptive bit rate capability for consistent video quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts only the necessary segments from pre-encoded versions rather than performing full transcoding. By selecting and combining specific segments from different bit rate versions, the system achieves bit rate adaptation without the computational overhead of complete transcoding processes.
4Productivity
If finer granularity in bit rate decisions is implemented, then bandwidth utilization improves and video quality consistency increases, but the complexity of the delivery mechanism and encoding processes increases
Solution Approach 1:
The video stream is divided into fine-grained segments that can be independently selected and combined at different bit rates. This segmentation enables precise control over bandwidth utilization while maintaining manageable complexity through the use of standardized segment structures compatible with HTTP delivery.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, system and a computer program product. The method may include: receiving a plurality of chunk requests from clients that are hosted on user devices; generating, in response to a first chunk request of the plurality of chunk requests, a first set of chunk requests for receiving different bit rate versions of the first chunk; sending to a media streamer the first set of chunk requests; receiving, from the media streamer, the different bit rate versions of the first chunk; generating a first new chunk, based on bit rate allocated for streaming of a media flow to the first client; wherein the first new chunk comprises a plurality of frames selected from at least two bit rate versions of the first chunk; and assisting in streaming to the first client, the first new chunk.