Video coding device and video decoding device

• US 6,023,301 A
• Filed: 06/11/1996
• Issued: 02/08/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Katata, Hiroyuki, Nomura, Toshio, Ito, Norio, Kusao, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Britton, Howard
• Assistant Examiner(s): DIEP, NHON THANH
• Application Number:
  US08/661,651
• Time in Patent Office: 1,337 Days
• Field of Search: 348/169, 348/170, 348/171, 348/172, 348/584, 348/585, 348/586, 348/416, 348/390
• US Class Current: 348/586
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/107 between spatial and temporal predictive coding, e.g. picture refresh
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/17 the unit being an image region, e.g. an object
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/20 using video object coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/30 using hierarchical techniques, e.g. scalability H04N19/63 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/37 with arrangements for assigning different transmission priorities to video input data or to video coded data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/53 Multi-resolution motion estimation; Hierarchical motion estimation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/577 Motion compensation with bidirectional frame interpolation, i.e. using B-pictures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/61 in combination with predictive coding

Abstract

A video coding device capable of making coded data have a hierarchical structure, a specified area of each frame is selected. The position and the shape of the selected area are encoded, a pixel value of the selected area is encoded as slower-layer coded data, a pixel value of a whole image is encoded as first upper-layer coded data by using pixel values of already decoded images of the lower-layer and the first upper layer and a pixel value of the selected area is encoded as second upper-layer coded data by using pixel values of already decoded images of the lower-layer and the second upper layer.

Claims

1. A video codec device for use in a system for encoding and decoding a background video-sequence for forming a background video and a plurality of part-video-sequences for forming a foreground part-video to synthesize each part-video-sequence with the background video-sequence by using weighted mean at a decoding side of the device, comprising:

a first video-coding portion for encoding said background video-sequence;

a second video-coding portion for encoding said part-video-sequences;

an area-information coding portion for encoding bi-level information of area positions and shapes, wherein the area positions and shapes represent positions and shapes of said part-video sequences;

a coded-data integrating portion for transmitting the coded bi-level information, and the coded background and part-video sequences to the decoding side;

a first video-decoding portion for separating the coded background video-sequence transmitted from the coded-data integrating portion, and for decoding said background video-sequence;

a second video-decoding portion for separating the encoded part video-sequences transmitted from the coded-data integrating portion, and for decoding said part-video-sequences;

an area-information decoding portion for separating the encoded bi-level information transmitted from the coded-data integrating portion, and for decoding said bi-level information;

first and second weighting portions;

an adder; and

an alpha plane generating portion for generating a multi-level information of an alpha plane from the decoded bi-level information,

wherein any of the first weighting portion, second weighting portion or adder synthesizes the decoded background and part-video sequences by using weighted mean according to the generated multi-level information of the alpha plane.

2. A video decoding device for decoding a background video-sequence for forming a background video, a plurality of part-video-sequences for forming a foreground part-video, and bi-level information of area positions and shapes representing positions and shapes of said part-video-sequences, to synthesize each part-video-sequence with the background video-sequence by using weighted mean, comprising:

a first video-decoding portion for decoding said background sequence;

a second video-decoding portion for decoding said part-video-sequences;

an area-information decoding portion for decoding said bi-level information;

first and second weighting portions;

an adder; and

an alpha plane generating portion for generating a multi-level information of an alpha plane from the decoded bi-level information,

wherein the decoded background and part-video-sequences are synthesized by using weighted mean according to the generated multi-level information of the alpha plane.

3. A video codec device which generates an alpha plane on a decoding side to eliminate a need for encoding the alpha plane, comprising:

coding means for encoding a background video-sequence, a plurality of part-video-sequences, and bi-level information of area positions and shapes representing positions and shapes of said part-video-sequences;

integration means for accumulating the coded background video sequence, part-video-sequences, and bi-level information;

decoding means for separating and decoding the coded background video sequence, part-video-sequences, and bi-level information accumulated in the integration means;

generating means on the decoding side for generating a multi-level information alpha plane from the decoded bi-level information, thereby improving data coding efficiency of the video codec device; and

weighting/adding means for synthesizing at least the background video and part-video-sequences by using weighted mean values based on the generated multi-level information alpha plane.

4. A video codec device according to claim 3, wherein the coding means further includes:

a first video-coding portion for encoding said background video-sequence;

a second video-coding portion for encoding said part-video-sequences; and

an area-information coding portion for encoding the bi-level information.

5. A video codec device according to claim 3, wherein the decoding means further includes:

a first video-decoding portion for decoding the coded background video sequence;

a second video-decoding portion for decoding the coded part-video-sequences; and

an area-information decoding portion for decoding the coded bi-level information.

6. A video codec device according to claim 3, wherein the background video and part-video-sequences are encoded and decoded to form background video and foreground part video, respectively.

7. A video codec device according to claim 3, wherein the generating means is an alpha plane generating portion.

8. A video codec device according to claim 3, wherein the weighting/adding means further includes first and second weighting portions and an adder, wherein said first and second weighting portions generate weighted mean values based on the generated multi-level information alpha plane.

9. A video decoder which prepares an alpha plane from decoded bi-level information to prevent visual defects from occurring at a boundary of a part image in the background of a picture, comprising:

decoding means for decoding a coded background video sequence, coded part-video-sequences, and coded bi-level information;

generating means for preparing a multi-level information alpha plane from the decoded bi-level information; and

weighting/adding means for synthesizing at least the background video and part-video-sequences by using weighted mean based on the generated multi-level information alpha plane,

wherein the preparation of the alpha plane and synthesizing of video sequences in the video decoder thereby prevents toothed-line marks from appearing at the boundary of a part image in the background of a picture.

10. A video decoder according to claim 9, wherein the decoding means further includes:

a first video-decoding portion for decoding the coded background video sequence;

a second video-decoding portion for decoding the coded part-video-sequences; and

an area-information decoding portion for decoding the coded bi-level information.

11. A video decoder according to claim 9, wherein the background video and part-video-sequences are decoded to form background video and foreground part video, respectively.

12. A video decoder according to claim 9, wherein the generating means is an alpha plane generating portion.

13. A video decoder according to claim 9, wherein the weighting/adding means further includes first and second weighting portions and an adder, wherein said first and second weighting portions generate weighted mean values based on the generated multi-level information alpha plane.