Systems, methods, apparatus, and computer program products for providing forward error correction with low latency

• US 10,164,736 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2016
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: KenCast Inc.
• Original Assignee: KenCast Inc.
• Inventors: Wolfgang, H. Lewis, Fischer, Michael J., Fang, Weimin
• Primary Examiner(s): McMahon, Daniel F.
• Application Number:
  US15/189,250
• Publication Number:
  US 20160308642A1
• Time in Patent Office: 916 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0045 Arrangements at the receiver end
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/007 Unequal error protection for format H04L1/0078; for codes per se H03M13/35
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0829 Packet loss
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/522 Dynamic queue service slot or variable bandwidth allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44004 involving video buffer management, e.g. video decoder buffer or video display buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440281 by altering the temporal resolution, e.g. by frame skipping television signal recording using magnetic recording on tape for reproducing at a rate different from the recording rate H04N5/783

Abstract

Systems, methods, apparatus and computer program products for providing forward error correction with low latency to live streams in networks are provided. Source data is output at a rate less than the rate of a source stream, a buffer is built, and an FEC decoder FEC decodes the source data. Decoded packets are output at a rate equal to the rate of the source stream.

Claims

1. A method for providing forward error correction (FEC), comprising steps of:

receiving, by a packet receiver, source data at a first rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the source data at a rate less than the first rate;

collecting, in a buffer, the source data;

FEC decoding, using an FEC decoder, the source data, thereby generating decoded data; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the source data at the rate less than the first rate, outputting, using the output selector, the decoded data at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source data in the buffer.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting using the output selector the decoded data at the rate equal to the first rate, when the source data has been collected in the buffer for the predetermined time duration.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting using the output selector the decoded data at the rate equal to the first rate, when the predetermined amount of the source data has been collected in the buffer.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the source data is live stream source data.

4. A receiver for providing forward error correction (FEC), comprising:

a packet receiver configured to receive source data at a first rate;

an output selector configured to output the source data at a rate less than the first rate;

a buffer configured to collect the source data;

an FEC decoder configured to FEC decode the source data, thereby generating decoded data; and

said output selector further configured to, after completing the output of the source data at a rate less than first rate, output the decoded data at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source data in the buffer.

17. The receiver of claim 4, wherein the source data is live stream source data.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein a computer program that, when executed by a computer processor, causes the computer processor to perform a method for providing forward error correction (FEC), wherein the method comprises steps of:

receiving, by a packet receiver, source data at a first rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the source data at a rate less than the first rate;

collecting the source data in a buffer;

FEC decoding, using an FEC decoder, the source data thereby generating decoded data; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the source data at the rate less than the first rate, outputting, using the output selector, the decoded data at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source data in the buffer.

6. A method for providing forward error correction, comprising steps of:

receiving, by a packet receiver, source packets at a first rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the source packets at a rate less than the first rate;

collecting the source packets in a buffer;

correcting, using a correction unit, packet losses; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the source packets at the rate less than the first rate, outputting, using the output selector, reconstructed source packets at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source packets in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source packets in the buffer.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting, using the output selector, the reconstructed source packets at the rate equal to the first rate, when the source packets have been collected in the buffer for the predetermined time duration.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting, using the output selector, the reconstructed source packets at the rate equal to the first rate, when the predetermined amount of the source packets has been collected in the buffer.

18. The method of claim 6, wherein the source packets are live stream source packets.

9. A receiver for providing forward error correction, comprising:

a packet receiver configured to receive source packets at a first rate;

an output selector configured to output the source packets to a media player at a rate less than the first rate;

a buffer configured to collect the source packets;

a correction unit configured to correct packet losses while the buffer collects the source packets; and

said output selector further configured to, after completing the output of the source packets to the media player at the rate less than the first rate, output to the media player reconstructed source packets at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source packets in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source packets in the buffer.

19. The receiver of claim 9, wherein the source packets are live stream source packets.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein a computer program that, when executed by a computer processor, causes the computer processor to perform a method for providing forward error correction, wherein the method comprises steps of:

receiving, by a packet receiver, source packets at a first rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the source packets at a rate less than the first rate to a media player;

collecting the source packets in a buffer;

correcting, during the collecting and using a correction unit, packet losses; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the source packets at the rate less than the first rate to the media player, outputting, using the output selector, reconstructed source packets to a media player at a rate equal to the first rate, either after collecting the source packets in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the source packets in the buffer.

11. A method for providing forward error correction (FEC), comprising steps of:

receiving, by a packet receiver, video data at a first frame rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the video data at a frame rate less than the first frame rate to a media player;

collecting the video data in a buffer;

FEC decoding, using an FEC decoder and during the collecting, the video data, thereby generating decoded video data; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the source packets at the rate less than the first rate to the media player, outputting to the media player the decoded video data at a frame rate equal to the first frame rate, either after collecting the video data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the video data in the buffer.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting, using the output selector the decoded video data at the frame rate equal to the first frame rate, when the video data has been collected in the buffer for the predetermined time duration.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising a step of:

triggering the step of outputting, using the output selector, the decoded video data at the frame rate equal to the first frame rate, when the predetermined amount of the video data has been collected in the buffer.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the video data is live stream video data.

14. A receiver for providing forward error correction (FEC), comprising:

a packet receiver configured to receive video data at a first frame rate;

an output selector configured to output the video data to a media player at a frame rate less than the first frame rate;

a buffer configured to collect the video data;

an FEC decoder configured to FEC decode the video data while the buffer collects the video data, thereby generating decoded video data; and

said output selector further configured, after completing the output of the video data to the media player at the frame rate less than the first frame rate, to output the decoded video data to the media player at a frame rate equal to the first frame rate, either after collecting the video data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the video data in the buffer.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein a computer program that, when executed by a computer processor, causes the computer processor to perform a method for providing forward error correction (FEC), wherein the method comprises steps of:

receiving, by an output selector, video data at a first frame rate;

outputting, using an output selector, the video data to a media player at a frame rate less than the first frame rate;

collecting the video data in a buffer;

FEC decoding, using an FEC decoder and during the collecting, the video data, thereby generating decoded video data; and

after completing the outputting, using the output selector, the video data to the media player at the frame rate less than the first frame rate, outputting, using the output selector, the decoded video data at a frame rate equal to the first frame rate, either after collecting the video data in the buffer for a predetermined time duration or after collecting a predetermined amount of the video data in the buffer.