Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for compressing a video image

US7006698B2 · kind B2 · utility

22Cited by
53References
4Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateNov 25, 2003
Grant dateFeb 28, 2006
Priority date
Expiry dateJan 13, 2024

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04N19/93
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An apparatus and method for performing two-pass real time video compression is provided. Tactical decisions such as encoding and quantification values are determined in software, whereas functional execution steps are performed in hardware. By appropriately apportioning the tasks between software and hardware, the benefits of each type of processing are exploited, while minimizing both hardware complexity and data transfer requirements. One key concept that allows the compression unit to operate in real time is that the architecture and pipe lining both allow for B frames to be executed out of order. By buffering B frames, two-pass motion estimation techniques can be performed to tailor bit usage to the requirements of the frame, and therefore provide a more appealing output image.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.