Abstract: A video encoder is disclosed. The video encoder comprises an integer level motion estimation hardware component configured to determine candidate integer level motion vectors for a video being encoded. The video encoder comprises a fractional motion estimation hardware component configured to receive the candidate integer level motion vectors from the integer level motion estimation hardware component and refine the candidate integer level motion vectors into candidate sub-pixel level motion vectors. The fractional motion estimation hardware component includes parallel pipelines configured to process coding units of a frame of the video in parallel across the parallel pipelines.

Abstract: A system for providing a unified architecture for performing bi-prediction in fractional motion estimation engines is disclosed. The system may receive one or more source pixels and reference pixels. The source pixels may be associated with one or more source image frames and the reference pixels may be associated with one or more reference image frames. The system may utilize motion vector information associated with the source pixels and the reference pixels to determine a plurality of fractional image samples associated with the one or more source image frames and the one or more reference image frames. The system may determine, based on the motion vector information, a unidirectional prediction relating to a motion estimation of at least one of the references image frames. The system may determine, based on the unidirectional prediction, a bi-prediction motion estimate associated with the at least one reference image frame.

Abstract: A system for storing and retrieving data for a multi-stage two-dimensional transform is disclosed. The system comprises a memory comprising storage elements arranged in a physical grid with physical rows and physical columns, wherein values stored in a same physical column are not simultaneously accessible. A processing unit is configured to receive data elements of a certain logical row of a dataset arranged in logical rows and logical columns for storage in a certain physical row of the physical grid of the memory. The processing unit is configured to circularly shift the data elements based on a shift offset associated with the certain physical row. The processing unit is configured to provide for storage in the certain physical row of the physical grid of the memory the circularly shifted data elements to enable a logical column of the dataset to be read together from different physical columns.

Abstract: A processor includes a block relevance determination hardware unit configured to determine a corresponding degree of relevance metric for each block of pixels included in blocks of pixels of a reference frame of a video being encoded. The processor also includes a hardware circular cache configured to store groups of cache entries. Each cache entry of each group of the groups of cache entries is configured to cache at least one corresponding one of the accumulated relevance amounts for the blocks of pixels of the reference frame. The processor further includes an encoder hardware unit configured to encode the reference frame using different quantization factors determined for a different block of pixels of the reference frame based on the corresponding degree of relevance metric.

Abstract: A system for storing and providing video pixel data for video encoding is disclosed. The system comprises a memory storage and a cache storage. The system further comprises a controller. The controller is configured to receive a request that causes transferring of a reference pixel block of a video, wherein the video is being encoded using the reference pixel block. The controller is configured to determine whether the reference pixel block has at least a portion that is outside a frame of the video.

Abstract: An example disclosed system may include a hardware video encoding pipeline (HVEP), the HVEP that includes a prediction module that generates, using a primary prediction mode, a primary encode of a portion of a video stream, and using a secondary prediction mode, a secondary encode of the portion of the video stream. The HVEP may also include (1) a rate-distortion optimization (RDO) module that determines a primary cost associated with the primary encode and a secondary cost associated with the secondary encode, (2) a quality metric (QM) module that determines a primary QM associated with the primary encode and a secondary QM associated with the secondary encode, and (3) a decision module that selects, for an encoding of the video stream, at least one of the primary prediction mode and the secondary prediction mode based on the primary cost, the secondary cost, the primary QM, and the secondary QM.

Abstract: A disclosed system may include a hardware distortion data pipeline that may include (1) a quantization module that generates a quantized data set, (2) an inverse quantization module that generates, from the quantized data set, an inverse quantized data set by executing an inverse quantization of the quantized data set, and (3) an inverse transformation module that generates an inversely transformed data set by executing an inverse transformation of the inverse quantized data set. The system may also include a hardware determination pipeline that determines a distortion metric based on the inversely transformed data set and the residual frame data set, and a hardware token rate pipeline that determines, based on the quantized data set, a token rate for an encoding of the residual frame data set via a video encoding pipeline. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Abstract: Techniques for detecting skipped prediction units in an encoder are disclosed. Control information associated with a prediction unit of a video frame is received at a node of a video encoding pipeline used to compress the video frame. A skip decision for the prediction unit is made by analyzing transform units comprising the prediction unit. The skip decision indicates whether or not the prediction unit comprises a skipped prediction unit during encoding. The skip decision for the prediction unit is provided to a downstream node of the video encoding pipeline.

Abstract: A count circuit for symbol statistics is disclosed that is configured to read from an address of a buffer memory a count value stored at the address in response to receiving a first of a plurality of input values comprising the address, serially increment the count value for each of the received plurality of input values comprising the address, and write an incremented count value at the address of the buffer memory after a last of the plurality of input values comprising the address has been counted. Reading from the buffer memory is disabled for all but the first of the plurality of input values comprising the address. Writing to the buffer memory is disabled for all but the last of the plurality of input values comprising the address.

Abstract: A system that includes a pixel processing stage decoupled from an entropy coding stage is disclosed. The pixel processing results comprise quantized transform coefficients that are divided into component blocks. The component blocks including non-zero data are identified. An optimized version of the pixel processing results for storage in a buffer storage is generated. The optimized version includes an identification of which of the component blocks include non-zero data, and the optimized version includes contents of one or more of the component blocks that include non-zero data, without including contents of one or more of the component blocks that only include zero data. The optimized version of the pixel processing results is provided for storage in the buffer storage. The optimized version of the pixel processing results from the buffer storage is received and processed to generate an unpacked version of the pixel processing results for use in entropy coding.

Abstract: The controller is configured to receive a request that causes transferring of a reference pixel block of a video, wherein the video is being encoded using the reference pixel block. The controller is configured to determine whether the reference pixel block has at least a portion that is outside a frame of the video. In response to the determination of the reference pixel block having at least a portion outside the frame of the video, the controller is configured to cause a portion of the reference pixel block of the video inside the frame of the video to be fetched from a memory storage and stored in a cache storage, pad a remaining missing portion of the reference pixel block of the video outside the frame of the video with padding pixel data to form the reference pixel block, and transfer the reference pixel block in response to the request.

Abstract: A video encoder comprises an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) video encoding unit configured to receive via an interface in a processing order, quantized transform coefficients for a transform unit of a frame of a video being encoded. The ASIC unit is configured to analyze at least a portion of the quantized transform coefficients in the processing order to identify one or more end-of-block candidate positions in the processing order. The ASIC unit is configured to translate the one or more end-of-block candidate positions for the at least a portion of the quantized transform coefficients to one or more scan order versions of the one or more end-of-block candidate positions. The ASIC unit is configured to determine a true end-of-block position for the quantized transform coefficients using the one or more scan order versions of the one or more end-of-block candidate positions.

Abstract: A disclosed system may include a hardware distortion data pipeline that may include (1) a quantization module that generates a quantized data set, (2) an inverse quantization module that generates, from the quantized data set, an inverse quantized data set by executing an inverse quantization of the quantized data set, and (3) an inverse transformation module that generates an inversely transformed data set by executing an inverse transformation of the inverse quantized data set. The system may also include a hardware determination pipeline that determines a distortion metric based on the inversely transformed data set and the residual frame data set, and a hardware token rate pipeline that determines, based on the quantized data set, a token rate for an encoding of the residual frame data set via a video encoding pipeline. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

Abstract: A disclosed method may include storing, within a hardware memory device included as part of a rate—distortion optimization (RDO) hardware pipeline, at least one transform unit table that (1) is pregenerated from a seed probability table for transformation of video data in accordance with a video encoding standard, (2) corresponds to a transform operation supported by the video encoding standard, and (3) corresponds to a transform unit included in the RDO hardware pipeline. The method may also include determining, by accessing the transform unit table, an RDO token rate for an encoding of the video data by a hardware video encoding pipeline that includes the RDO hardware pipeline, and selecting, based on the RDO token rate, a transform operation for the encoding of the video data.

Abstract: A mode decision component is configured to determine the costs of different modes for a selected partition of a frame of a video using an estimated compression coding data, which is calculated prior to a corresponding actual compression coding data being calculated based on another partition immediately prior to the selected partition in a partition processing order. The estimated compression coding data is determined based on a previously calculated compression coding data calculated based on a completed partition prior to the selected partition in the partition processing order. The mode decision component is configured to use the determined costs to select one of the modes. An encoder component is configured to use the selected mode to encode the selected partition by using the corresponding actual compression coding data calculated based on the another partition immediately prior to the selected partition in the partition processing order.

Abstract: A system for storing and providing video pixel data for video encoding is disclosed. The system comprises a memory storage and a cache storage. The system further comprises a controller. The controller is configured to receive a request that causes transferring of a reference pixel block of a video, wherein the video is being encoded using the reference pixel block. The controller is configured to determine whether the reference pixel block has at least a portion that is outside a frame of the video.

Abstract: A quantized transform coefficient matrix is partitioned into a sequence of partition portions. The coefficients of the matrix are grouped into the sequence of partition portions based on a hardware implemented scan order. Each partition portion is processed in an order of the sequence in a first pass. For each partition portion, a group of coefficients in the partition portion is determined. For each partition portion, a first data rate estimation for the quantized transform coefficient matrix is updated based on at least some coefficients of the group of coefficients in the partition portion and a maximum end-of-block. For each partition portion, an end-of-block estimation of the quantized transform coefficient matrix is updated based on at least some coefficients of the group of coefficients in the partition portion. A first resulting data rate estimation and a true end-of-block of the quantized transform coefficient matrix are determined after the first pass.

Abstract: The disclosed computer-implemented method may include receiving video data to be encoded, determining pixels for a first transform unit (TU) of a first prediction unit (PU) of a square shape of the video data, storing the pixels in a buffer, performing intra-prediction for a second PU by reusing the stored pixels for a second TU of the second PU, and encoding the video data based on the intra-prediction. A system may include a video encoder and/or a tape holder apparatus. The tape holder apparatus may include a cubical tape holder to hold multiple tape cartridges in a stack, wherein a tape cartridge may be inserted into a top of the cubical tape holder. The tape holder apparatus may include a handle and a horizontal slot enabling a single tape cartridge to be pushed out from a bottom of the stack. Various other methods, systems, and apparatuses are also disclosed.

Abstract: A system for calculating token rates for video encoding includes a plurality of different probability lookup tables implemented in hardware, wherein each of the probability lookup tables specifically corresponds to a different prediction mode of a video codec. The system includes an application-specific integrated circuit compute unit. For each candidate prediction mode among the different prediction modes, the application-specific integrated circuit is configured to determine a rate distortion cost (RD Cost) for a video. The application-specific integrated circuit is configured to select one of the plurality of different probability lookup tables that corresponds to the candidate prediction mode and use the selected one of the plurality of different probability lookup tables to calculate a corresponding token rate for the candidate prediction mode.

Abstract: A hardware video processor comprises a cost calculation unit. The cost calculation unit is configured to determine rate distortion costs of a plurality of different modes for a portion of a video. The hardware video processor further comprises an evaluation unit. The evaluation unit is configured to receive the rate distortion costs of the plurality of different modes. At least one component of at least one of the rate distortion costs is adjusted based on a condition to determine at least one modified rate distortion cost of at least one of the plurality of different modes. The at least one modified rate distortion cost is used to evaluate the plurality of different modes and select one of the modes for use in encoding the portion of the video.