Systems and methods for encoding and decoding

• US 8,995,534 B2
• Filed: 08/17/2011
• Issued: 03/31/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bevara Technologies, LLC
• Original Assignee: Bevara Technologies, LLC
• Inventors: Richardson, Iain E, Bystrom, Maja
• Primary Examiner(s): SENFI, BEHROOZ M
• Application Number:
  US13/212,127
• Publication Number:
  US 20120069910A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,322 Days
• Field of Search: 386/241, 386/326, 386/328, 348/726, 348/426, 348/429.1, 37524001-24029
• US Class Current: 375/240.25
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/12 Selection from among a plurality of transforms or standards, e.g. selection between discrete cosine transform [DCT] and sub-band transform or selection between H.263 and H.264
• 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 19/44 Decoders specially adapted therefor, e.g. video decoders which are asymmetric with respect to the encoder
• 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 19/70 characterised by syntax aspects related to video coding, e.g. related to compression standards

Abstract

Systems and methods for multimedia encoding and decoding are disclosed. The systems and methods include multimedia format detection systems, decoder functionality generation systems, decoder instantiation systems, and multimedia processing engines which are capable of selecting a decoder or playback mechanism for each input encoded multimedia stream. The functionality of the decoder or playback mechanism is represented as syntax elements which may be further encoded. The functionality for decoding or playback is then stored or transmitted with the multimedia bitstream. Alternatively, the functionality and multimedia bitstream can be embedded in or associated with a second digital bitstream. Further, the functionality associated with an encoded multimedia stream can be used to instantiate a decoder or playback mechanism and the encoded multimedia stream decoded with the instantiated decoder or mechanism.

Claims

1. A multimedia processing engine comprising:

a format analyzer configured to determine the format of encoded audio/video data;

a functionality generator in communication with the format analyzer, the functionality generator being configured to select or generate hardware and software platform independent functionality that decodes the audio/video data encoded in the determined format;

the functionality generator being further configured to generate or select hardware and software platform independent syntax elements that contain information to create and implement a new functionality that decodes the audio/video data encoded in the determined format in a receiver in which decoding of audio/video data encoded in the determined format is unsupported; and

a multiplexer configured to multiplex the encoded audio/video data with the syntax elements and send the multiplexed data and syntax elements to a non-transient storage medium as a single set of bits.

2. The multimedia processing engine of claim 1, wherein the functionality for decoding the audio/video data is stored in a library associated with the functionality generator.

3. The multimedia processing engine of claim 1, wherein the functionality for decoding the audio/video data is selected from functionality received from a user.

4. The multimedia processing engine of claim 1, wherein the syntax elements comprise codewords.

5. The multimedia processing engine of claim 1, further comprising a transmitter configured to transmit the syntax elements to a decoder.

6. A multimedia processing engine comprising:

a demultiplexer configured to demultiplex from a non-transient storage medium a single set of bits encoding audio/video data and hardware and software platform independent syntax elements sufficient for creating and implementing functionality that decodes the encoded audio/video data and that is unsupported by the multimedia processing engine prior to receiving the single set of bits;

a functionality interpreter configured to;

receive the syntax elements; and

create and implement the new functionality based on the syntax elements; and

a functionality instantiator configured to generate a decoder based on the created and implemented functionality, wherein the decoder is configured to decode the encoded audio/video data using the implemented functionality.