Non-enhancing media redundancy coding for mitigating transmission impairments

• US 8,804,845 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2007
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Interdigital Vc Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rodriguez, Arturo A., VerSteeg, William C., Kernen, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Paliwal, Yogesh
• Application Number:
  US11/831,906
• Publication Number:
  US 20090034627A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,569 Days
• Field of Search: 375/240, 375/26
• US Class Current: 375/240.26
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/107 between spatial and temporal predictive coding, e.g. picture refresh
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/132 Sampling, masking or truncation of coding units, e.g. adaptive resampling, frame skipping, frame interpolation or high-frequency transform coefficient masking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/164 Feedback from the receiver or from the transmission channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/172 the region being a picture, frame or field
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/30 using hierarchical techniques, e.g. scalability H04N19/63 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/58 Motion compensation with long-term prediction, i.e. the reference frame for a current frame not being the temporally closest one H04N19/23 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/587 involving temporal sub-sampling or interpolation, e.g. decimation or subsequent interpolation of pictures in a video sequence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/61 in combination with predictive coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/895 in combination with error concealment
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23608 Remultiplexing multiplex streams, e.g. involving modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2365 Multiplexing of several video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2383 Channel coding or modulation of digital bit-stream, e.g. QPSK modulation arrangements for detecting or preventing errors in the information received by adapting the channel coding H04L1/0009; analogue front ends or means for connecting modulators, demodulators or transceivers to a transmission line H04L27/0002
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26275 for distributing content or additional data in a staggered manner, e.g. repeating movies on different channels in a time-staggered manner in a near video on demand system
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4305 Synchronising client clock from received content stream, e.g. locking decoder clock with encoder clock, extraction of the PCR packets arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter by comparing receiver clock with transmitter clock H04L7/0012; arrangements for synchronising receiver with transmitter wherein the receiver takes measures against momentary loss of synchronisation H04L7/0083
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4347 Demultiplexing of several video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6375 for requesting retransmission , e.g. of data packets lost or corrupted during transmission from serverARQ protocols H04L1/18; implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP] H04L69/16
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method comprises identifying a plurality of frames of interest from a primary stream of encoded frames. The method further comprises selecting at least one of the frames of interest for inclusion in a separate redundant stream. The method further comprises producing another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame. The method further comprises associating the another encoded instance of the at least one selected frame in the separate redundant stream with the corresponding selected encoded frame in the primary stream. The method further comprises providing the primary stream, the separate redundant stream, and a common clock reference to a decoder.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

identifying a plurality of frames of interest from a primary stream of encoded frames;

selecting at least one of the frames of interest for inclusion in a separate redundant stream, wherein frame selection differentiates between IDR frames, I frames, and anchor frames based on respectively assigned levels, wherein the anchor frames may comprise an I frame, an IDR frame, or a forward predicted frame dependent only on a most recently decoded anchor frame;

assigning a first level to an anchor frame only if a video encoder uses relative lower quantization values resulting in a higher number of bits;

assigning a second level to a reference frame that is not an anchor frame, wherein the reference frame references one or more anchor frames;

assigning a third level to an anchor frame that is a forward predicted frame;

assigning a fourth level to a reference frame which only references anchor frames;

producing another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame;

associating the another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame in the separate redundant stream with the corresponding selected frame in the primary stream; and

providing the primary stream, the separate redundant stream, and a common clock reference to a decoder.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the at least one frame based on importance of the selected frame to decoding of the primary stream.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the least one frame based on frame type of the at least one frame.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the least one frame if the at least one frame is a non-discardable frame.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the least one frame if the at least one frame is a forward-predicted frame.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting the least one frame if the at least one frame is an anchor frame.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

specifying the common clock reference.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the primary stream at a first time and the redundant stream at a second time, the first time earlier than the second time.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the primary stream on a first channel and the redundant stream on a second channel different than the first channel.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the primary stream at a first bitrate and the redundant stream at a second bitrate lower than the first bitrate.

11. A system comprising:

means for processing a primary stream of encoded frames;

means for selecting from the primary stream of encoded frames at least one frame, wherein frame selection differentiates between IDR frames, I frames, and anchor frames based on respectively assigned levels, wherein the anchor frames may comprise an I frame, an IDR frame, or a forward predicted frame dependent only on a most recently decoded anchor frame;

assigning a first level to an anchor frame only if a video encoder uses relative lower quantization values resulting in a higher number of bits;

assigning a second level to a reference frame that is not an anchor frame, wherein the reference frame references one or more anchor frames;

assigning a third level to an anchor frame that is a forward predicted frame;

assigning a fourth level to a reference frame which only references anchor frames;

means for including another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame in a separate redundant stream;

means for specifying a common clock reference;

means for associating the another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame in the separate redundant stream with the corresponding selected frame in the primary stream; and

means for providing the primary stream, the separate redundant stream, and common clock reference to a decoder.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for selecting the least one frame based on importance of the selected frame to decoding of the encoded stream.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for selecting the least one frame based on frame type of the at least one frame.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for selecting the least one frame based on a number of frames which depend on the at least one frame.

15. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

means for selecting the least one frame if the at least one frame is a forward-predicted frame.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a redundant stream generator configured to process a primary stream of encoded frames to produce a redundant stream;

a multiplexer configured to combine the primary stream and the redundant stream into a combined stream; and

a network interface configured to transmit the combined stream to a decoder, the redundant stream generator further configured to;

select from the primary stream of encoded frames at least one frame;

include another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame in a separate redundant stream, wherein frame selection differentiates between IDR frames, I frames, and anchor frames based on respectively assigned levels, wherein the anchor frames may comprise an I frame, an IDR frame, or a forward predicted frame dependent only on a most recently decoded anchor frame;

assigning a first level to an anchor frame only if a video encoder uses relative lower quantization values resulting in a higher number of bits;

assigning a second level to a reference frame that is not an anchor frame, wherein the reference frame references one or more anchor frames;

assigning a third level to an anchor frame that is a forward predicted frame;

assigning a fourth level to a reference frame which only references anchor frames;

specify a common clock reference; and

associate the another encoded instance of the at least one selected encoded frame in the separate redundant stream with the corresponding selected frame in the primary stream.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the redundant stream generator is further configured to select the least one frame if the at least one frame is an anchor frame.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the redundant stream generator is further configured to select the least one frame based on a direction of a reference frame referred to by the at least one frame.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the redundant stream generator is further configured to select the least one frame based on a number of frames which depend on the at least one frame.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the redundant stream generator is further configured to select the least one frame based on size of the at least one frame.