Heterogeneous Transcoding Station with GOP Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing multimedia streaming technologies face challenges in efficiently transcoding high-speed streams of diverse formations, requiring large storage capacity and high-capacity communication paths, and traditional transcoding servers struggle with concurrent processing of heterogeneous signal streams across different coding standards.
Innovation Solution
A high-capacity transcoding station is designed with a pool of heterogeneous processing units, an orchestrator, and a network interface, which organizes signal streams into groups of pictures (GOPs) and processes them concurrently across multiple transcoding stages, using a content-transfer mechanism to allocate tasks and resources dynamically among workers, ensuring efficient transcoding of multiple signal streams with different coding standards.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional transcoding servers are used to process multimedia streams, then transcoding can be performed, but the system requires large storage capacity and high-capacity communication paths, and cannot efficiently handle concurrent processing of heterogeneous signal streams
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the transcoding process into multiple independent stages (decoding stage, processing stage, encoding stage), with each stage handled by dedicated worker groups. This segmentation allows parallel processing of multiple signal streams simultaneously, increasing throughput without requiring proportional increases in storage capacity, as each stage processes data flow-through rather than storing complete files.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a temporal dimension to the transcoding process by implementing multi-stage processing where different stages operate concurrently on different portions of the data stream. This transforms the traditional single-server sequential processing into a multi-dimensional parallel architecture, achieving higher throughput without linearly increasing storage requirements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If traditional transcoding servers process heterogeneous signal streams, then transcoding can be performed, but the system complexity increases and efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements universal worker groups that can handle multiple coding standards through configurable processing pipelines. Each worker group is designed to be multi-functional, capable of processing different signal formats (H.264, H.265, MPEG-2, etc.) through standardized interfaces, thereby achieving high adaptability without proportionally increasing system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an orchestrator as an intermediary component that manages the complexity of handling heterogeneous signal streams. The orchestrator receives transcoding requests, determines the appropriate processing pipeline based on the signal format and target format, and routes tasks to suitable worker groups, thereby isolating the complexity management from the actual transcoding workers.
3Manufacturing precision
If traditional transcoding servers download and store complete multimedia files before transcoding, then transcoding can be performed, but the processing time and storage requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary decoding as a separate first stage that operates on the incoming data stream before complete file reception. By performing decoding preliminarily on chunks of the stream rather than waiting for the complete file, the system maintains high transcoding quality while significantly reducing processing time and eliminating the need to store complete source files.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent ensures continuous processing through its multi-stage architecture where the decoding stage, processing stage, and encoding stage operate continuously in parallel pipelines. Data flows continuously through each stage without interruption or complete file storage requirements, maintaining high quality transcoding while minimizing processing time and storage needs.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention provides a high-capacity transcoding station for concurrently transcoding multiple signal streams received from designated multimedia sources. The transcoding station employs a pool of heterogenous processing units of different types, referenced as “workers”, a pool of resources communicatively coupled to the pool of workers, and an orchestrator configured to communicate with the pool of workers and communicate with the multimedia sources through a network interface. The network interface receives transcoding requests and signal streams to be transcoded, directs control data components of the transcoding requests from different multimedia sources to the orchestrator and directs content data of the signal streams to the pool of workers. The content data is organized into groups of pictures (GOPs) and each worker is configured to process one GOP at a time. The GOPs are treated as independent entities, regardless of their stream affiliations. A worker may process a GOP belonging to any stream.