Wireless video transmission system

• US 8,356,327 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2005
• Issued: 01/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• 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: van Beek, Petrus J. L.
• Primary Examiner(s): HOSSAIN, FARZANA E
• Application Number:
  US11/112,999
• Publication Number:
  US 20060095942A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,826 Days
• Field of Search: 725/105, 725/114, 725/116, 725/144, 725/146, 370231-235, 370412-417
• US Class Current: 725/105
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/149 by estimating the code amount by means of a model, e.g. mathematical model or statistical model
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/15 by monitoring actual compressed data size at the memory before deciding storage at the transmission buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/162 User input
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/164 Feedback from the receiver or from the transmission channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/166 concerning the amount of transmission errors, e.g. bit error rate [BER]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/172 the region being a picture, frame or field
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/177 the unit being a group of pictures [GOP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/188 the unit being a video data packet, e.g. a network abstraction layer [NAL] unit
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/40 using video transcoding, i.e. partial or full decoding of a coded input stream followed by re-encoding of the decoded output stream
• 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 19/89 involving methods or arrangements for detection of transmission errors at the decoder
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2343 involving reformatting operations of video signals for distribution or compliance with end-user requests or end-user device requirements video transcoding H04N19/40; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23655 Statistical multiplexing, e.g. by controlling the encoder to alter its bitrate to optimize the bandwidth utilization
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2402 Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2662 Controlling the complexity of the video stream, e.g. by scaling the resolution or bitrate of the video stream based on the client capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6377 directed to server one-way streaming services wherein the source is controlled by the destination H04L65/613

Abstract

A transmission system suitable for video where a sender encodes video for transmission to a receiver at an adjustable date rate. The data rate may be adjusted using a delay constraint that constrains the expected delay of transmitted packets. The expected delay may be measured from a time that a transmitter encodes a packet to a time that a receiver decodes a packet.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting video content comprising:

(a) encoding said video by a sender at a data rate;

(b) transmitting said encoded video across a network interconnection to a receiver;

(c) adjusting said data rate by selecting a size for respective packets of said video, said selected size based on;

(i) an estimate of packet error as a function of said selected size;

(ii) a delay constraint that constrains the maximum expected end-to-end delay between a time of encoding a given packet of said video data and decoding said given packet; and

(iii) an estimate of a total number of said packets buffered and awaiting transmission to said receiver.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said size is based on data retrieved from a look-up table.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said look-up table relates a selected size to an available bandwidth and a current size of packets of said video.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon data within a buffer at a MAC layer at a decoder.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon data within a buffer at an application layer at an encoder.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon data within a buffer at a MAC layer at an encoder.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an arrival time of data at said receiver.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an arrival time of data at said receiver relative to a desired arrival time of said data at said receiver.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a prediction of future conditions of said network interconnection.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon past data conditions of said network interconnection.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a prediction of future conditions of said network interconnection based upon a change in past conditions of said network interconnection.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon past change in data conditions of a wireless interconnection.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a packetization of previous data packets.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a number of bits used for previous data packets.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a data rate for previous data.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a coding type for said video.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon accumulative effects of conditions over a past period of time.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an amount of data in a channel between said sender and said receiver and upon data within a buffer at said receiver.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an amount of data in a channel between said sender and said receiver.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein said encoding involves transcoding.

21. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an amount of data within a buffer at said sender.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an amount of data within a buffer at said receiver.

23. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon an amount of data in the channel between an encoder at said sender and a decoder at said receiver.

24. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a tolerance to delay within the system.

25. The method of claim 1 wherein said data rate is based upon a relative importance of a portion of encoded video data.

26. A method for transmitting video content, said method comprising:

(a) encoding said video by a sender at a data rate;

(b) transmitting said encoded video across a network channel to a receiver; and

(c) automatically adjusting said data rate based upon a prediction of a future condition of said network channel, said condition comprising a delay being maintained below a threshold, and thereafter adjusting said data rate to an adjusted value, based on minimizing a calculated probability that said condition will not be satisfied at a time within a future interval, and where said calculated probability is based on a probabilistic model of said channel and observations of past channel performance.

27. A method for transmitting video content comprising:

(a) encoding said video by a sender at a data rate;

(b) transmitting said encoded video across a network interconnection to a receiver; and

(c) adjusting said data rate based upon the relation;

M(P_i/H)+MΣ

_j=k<sup>i−

1</sup>(P_j/H)=s_start+FΔ

T_E+iΔ

T−

s_i.