Abstract: When two or more different video streams a e compressed for concurrent transmission of multiple compressed video bitstreams over a single shared communication channel, control over both (1) the transmission of data over the shared channel and (2) the compression processing that generates the bitstreams is exercised taking into account the differing levels of latency required for the corresponding video applications. For example, interactive video games typically require lower latency than other video applications such as video streaming, web browsing, and electronic mail. A multiplexer and traffic controller takes these differing latency requirements, along with bandwidth and image fidelity requirements, into account when controlling both traffic flow and compression processing.

Abstract: Systems are provided for converting high definition pictures or data to lower definition images using wavelet transforms. In the preferred embodiments, the wavelet transforms are be used in either the transmission/coding or reception/decoding phase for enabling a more efficient conversion of the signal and providing a more robust and accurate output. The wavelet transforms may be applied to conventional systems to enhance performance or entire transmission and reception systems may be designed where the wavelet transforms are applied to the data for coding, decoding and decimation operations.

Abstract: Shootings for automatic following are previously registered in a memory of a pan head controller. When the automatic following is started, a CPU of the pan head controller chooses a shooting among the shootings registered in the memory according to a center position of a subject inputted from an image processing device so that the subject is in a frame of a camera, and transmits a control signal to a pan head for the shooting.

Abstract: Any type of media data can be played back on a receiving side regardless of quality conditions of a data transmission line. Therefore, in a differential motion vector limiting unit 10, the number of cases of the inputting of “1” as quality conditions 9 of a data transmission line is counted and held for each unit time by using an internal timer. In simultaneous with the holding of the counted number, a differential motion vector limiting unit 10 refers to the counted number according to input position information 22 of a to-be-coded macro-block for each picture, and differential motion vector limiting information 11 is determined according to the referred counted number. In a motion compensation predicting unit 12, a differential motion vector is calculated, and the differential motion vector is compared with the differential motion vector limiting information 11.

Abstract: A controller reads a header information, which is input from a picture information acquisition unit, stores the header information in a storage unit, and reads a frame rate code corresponding to picture data to be displayed from the storage unit according to displayed time information contained in the header information. Furthermore, the controller sets the dot clock frequency in response to the read frame frequency in a dot clock output unit, outputs a display control signal to an output unit in order to compare the currently set frame frequency and the frame frequency just prior to the currently set frame frequency. If both flags are not in agreement, then the controller outputs a display control signal to the output unit wherein the display control signal indicates a picture set by the frame rate which differs from the just prior frame rate, and commands the dot clock output unit to switch a dot clock.

Abstract: A surveillance and control system includes a feature extraction unit to dynamically extract low-level features from a compressed digital video signal, a description encoder, coupled to the feature extraction unit, to encode the low-level features as content descriptors. An event detector is coupled to the description encoder to detect security events from the content descriptors, and a control signal processor, coupled to the event detector, to generate control signals in response to detecting the security events.

Abstract: Video signal processing apparatus in which at least two input video signals are combined in proportions determined by a pixel key signal to generate an output video signal for compression, at least one of the input video signals each having respective associated compression parameters from a data compression process applied to that video signal. The apparatus functions to estimate the quantity of data which will be produced by compression of a current image of the output video signal, compares the detected quantify of data with a target quantity of data, to determine whether a data overflow is expected, and in the event that a data overflow is expected, determine which blocks of the output video signal can be compressed by re-using compression parameters from corresponding block of one of the input video signals.

Abstract: An MPEG-2 or other compressed video stream (CP) can be manipulated as separate information bus (IB) and coefficient (CP*) streams. The information bus stream (IB) contains motion vector information but also information derived from a previous decoding operation (14, 18) for use in a subsequent coding operation (22). Processing in the coefficient domain enables bit rate conversion without decoding to the pixel level and also simplifies the combination of MPEG layers.

Abstract: A pixel padding procedure is disclosed. The padding procedure provides a method for filling pixels in a block in accordance with intensities of pixels in preceding and succeeding pixels of the same row or column. This padding procedure may include filling pixels with simultaneous logic operations; transposing blocks before and after horizontal padding; case detecting for simple or complex padding; simple pixel filling, where no pixels need to be averaged; and complex pixel filling, which contains pixels to be averaged. In one embodiment, this procedure may be performed in an MMX™ implementation for MPEG-4 repetitive padding.

Abstract: A system for securing image data of an environment including a camera having a panoramic lens mounted on a cart. In one embodiment, the motor mounted on the cart is battery operated so that the cart is self contained. In one embodiment, the cart is mounted on a pair of caterpillar treads, each tread having its own motor controlled to drive the motor forward, backward or to turn. For inline inspection, such as the inside of a pipe, the camera is mounted on the cart by cantilevered legs that permit adjusting the height of the camera above the surface supporting the cart (the interior surface of the pipe and maintains the axis of the panoramic lens parallel with the pipe. In other versions, the cart is equipped to form images of pipe whose interior surface has been penetrated by phospohescent laced water that weeps from outside the pipe into the pipe interior.

Abstract: The process is characterized in that, if: DTS_next_AUold−PCRold<DTS_first_AUnew−PCRnew, then, in a first step, the data of one or more last images of the old stream and/or one or more first images of the new stream are replaced by data of one or more new pre-encoded images of which the number is smaller so that the new value of PCRold and/or PCRnew thus obtained satisfies the relation: DTS_next_AUold−PCRold≧DTS_first_AUnew−PCRnew, in a second step, TS stuffing packets are inserted between the point of exit and the point of entry so as to make the decoding instants DTS_next_AUold and DTS_first_AUnew coincide. Applications relate to the transmission and storage of programs, as well as to the insertion of advertisements or to regional or local handover.

Abstract: A format to be used with the MPEG-4 standard alters the way video content is displayed on a screen based on whether the content is played in a normal playback mode or a fast playback mode by “watermarking” different or additional visual content onto the original video data stream. Metadata is included in the format to instruct a server to change the video display during fast playback by, for example, adding advertising information, closed captioning, scene summaries, help data, or station identification to the original image, either in a separate section of the screen or superimposed on the original image.

Abstract: A video compression method and system including object-oriented compression plus error correction using decoder feedback.

Abstract: Data elements, preferably representative of video data, are logically divided into blocks. In a bit-wise fashion, each block is inspected to determine whether the data elements for that block may be represented in a highly compact format. If a given block may not be represented in this manner, it is sub-divided into blocks having smaller dimensions. This process of identifying suitable blocks and sub-dividing is recursively repeated until minimum block dimensions are reached. The same result may be achieved through the use of a plurality of ascending tables that are constructed by repetitively forming tables of reduced data elements. The plurality of ascending tables is traversed and, based on the reduced data elements, blocks of data are identified that are susceptible to the highly compact format. Wavelet transforms are preferably used to provide video data to be compressed.

Abstract: An MPEG decoding device is designed to decode multiple packetized elementary streams (PES) representing video signals and/or audio signals, which are bit streams compressed by the MPEG system in satellite digital broadcasting, for example. Herein, the multiple packetized elementary streams are stored in plural code buffers respectively. A selector selects one of the packetized elementary streams by a time division system, so that a PES decoder separates the selected packetized elementary stream to a PES header and an elementary stream. A time information holder holds time information being extracted from the PES header. An MPEG decoder decodes the elementary stream with reference to the time information. Namely, the MPEG decoder decodes pictures of the elementary stream in a decode order in connection with the time information, then, decoded pictures are rearranged and output in a display order.

Abstract: A three-dimensional (3D) shape-adaptive discrete wavelet transform (SA-DWT) is provided for efficient object-based video coding. In a first stage, a one-dimensional SA-DWT is performed along the temporal direction among pixels that have temporal correspondence. The correspondence can be established by motion estimation or other matching approaches. SA-DWT in the temporal direction is used to treat emerging pixels, terminating pixels or pixels that have colliding correspondence pixels. After the temporal SA-DWT transform, the resulting temporal wavelet coefficients are placed in the spatial positions corresponding to the original pixels to maintain the spatial correlation within each frame. Then, in a second stage, a two-dimensional SA-DWT is applied to the temporal SA-DWT coefficients within each frame. The 3D SA-DWT can handle arbitrarily shaped video objects while providing flexible spatial and temporal scalability as in any wavelet-based coding scheme.

Abstract: Techniques for determining an output rate for a bit stream, the output rate being determined by applying information read from the bit stream to available bandwidths. A digital flywheel provides continuous feedback from an encoding system to a video compression engine in order to assure that the clock rates between the two remain appropriately synchronized.

Abstract: In a motion vector detection method for detection the motion vector of a field picture conforming to the interlaced scanning system, a motion vector of a second field picture is detected in a pre-set search range using a first field picture. A search range in detecting the motion vector for a third field picture is computed by comparing a field-to-field distance between a field picture to be referred to and the third field picture and the field-to-field distance between the first field picture and the second field picture. The motion vector of the third field picture is detected in a search range computed with a point indicated by the motion vector of the second field picture as a start point to reduce the processing volume in detecting the motion vector for the filed pictures of the interlaced scanning system.

Abstract: A method and apparatus that reduce the complexity of motion estimation while providing better quality for a particular level of reduced resolution than previously available are described. The method and apparatus involve motion estimation quantization dithering to avoid quantization error effects when reducing the resolution, for example, from eight-bit pixel intensity values to two-bit pixel intensity values. Consequently, an embodiment of the invention provides efficient motion estimation using statistically accurate reduced resolution representations.

Abstract: A scanning recording type printing method, in which sampled image of tone data is printed by controlling the scanning length and position of a dot which may include a plurality of different colors in the interior of a pixel such that the dots in two adjacent pixels are paired such that no interruptions exist between the dots.