System for improving efficiency of video encoders

• US 6,091,767 A
• Filed: 02/03/1997
• Issued: 07/18/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Laboratories of America Incorporated (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Westerman, Larry Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Kelley, Chris S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): VO, TUNG T
• Application Number:
  US08/794,529
• Time in Patent Office: 1,261 Days
• Field of Search: 348/13, 348/15, 348/20, 348/42, 348/47, 348/48, 348/52, 348/53, 348/64, 348/77, 348/208, 348/384, 348/390, 348/414, 345/87, 345/88, 395/502, 395/575, 340/793, 358/133, 358/109, 375/240
• US Class Current: 375/240
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/103 Selection of coding mode or of prediction mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/105 Selection of the reference unit for prediction within a chosen coding or prediction mode, e.g. adaptive choice of position and number of pixels used for prediction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/126 Details of normalisation or weighting functions, e.g. normalisation matrices or variable uniform quantisers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/146 Data rate or code amount at the encoder output
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/152 by measuring the fullness of the transmission buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/172 the region being a picture, frame or field
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/176 the region being a block, e.g. a macroblock
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/30 using hierarchical techniques, e.g. scalability H04N19/63 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/46 Embedding additional information in the video signal during the compression process H04N19/517, H04N19/68, H04N19/70 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/61 in combination with predictive coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6377 directed to server one-way streaming services wherein the source is controlled by the destination H04L65/613
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/658 Transmission by the client directed to the server

Abstract

An encoder receives a video input that includes initial video data and encodes the initial video data as encoded video data, such that the encoded video data comprises fewer bytes than the initial video data. The encoded video data is transmitted through a computer network to a decoder that receives the encoded video data and reconstructs an image representative of the video input for viewing on a display. A sensor senses at least one of viewer information representative of at least one of a location and movement of a viewer, and display information identifying the display. Viewer data representative of the at least one of the viewer information and the display information is transmitted to the encoder to modify the method of encoding the initial video data.

Claims

1. A method of encoding video for transmission through a computer network comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving at an encoder a video input, comprising a plurality of frames of a video containing initial video data and encoding said initial video data as encoded video data, such that said encoded video data is comprised of fewer bytes than said initial video data;

(b) transmitting said encoded video data through said computer network to a decoder that receives said encoded video data and reconstructs a plurality of images representative of said video input for viewing on a display;

(c) sensing with a sensor display information identifying physical presentation characteristics of said display and viewer information representative of at least one of a location and movement of a viewer; and

(d) transmitting viewer data representative of said viewer information and said display information to said encoder so as to modify the method of said encoding of said initial video data wherein said method of encoding is modified in response to both said viewer information and said display information.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoding further includes the steps of:

(a) transforming said initial video data into spatial frequency components; and

(b) quantizing said spatial frequency coefficients.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said transforming said initial video data is a spatial Fourier transform.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoding includes encoding parameters.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said modifying of said encoding of said initial video data includes changing said encoding parameters.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of said transmitting of said encoded video data through said computer network to said decoder is through a forward channel, and said transmitting of said at least one of said viewer information and said display information to said encoder is through a back channel.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein said forward channel and said back channel are the same channel.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoder and said decoder are remotely located from one another.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoder and said decoder are proximate one another.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein said computer network is a wireless transmission and reception system.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein said computer network is the interconnection between different components within a desktop computer.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said sensor is located proximate a viewer who is proximate said display.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein said transmitting said at least one of said viewer information and said display information further comprises the steps of:

(a) transmitting said at least one of viewer information and display information to a processor which calculates encoding parameters for said encoder; and

(b) transmitting said encoding parameters to said encoder.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said viewer information includes data representative of at least one of, how far a viewer is from said display, the angle of said viewer in relation to said display, the portion of said display that said viewer is viewing, movement of said viewer in relation to said display, and changes in the portion of said display that said viewer is viewing.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein said display information includes data representative of at least one of the type of said display and size of said display.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein said sensing said display information is from a set of switches.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein said sensing said display information is based on analysis of an image displayed on said display.