Abstract: A method for motion estimation includes steps for comparing image signals of image blocks within a previous frame corresponding to a motion vector detected among error values used for detecting the motion vector of a pixel unit and surrounding image blocks which are generated by moving the reference image block in every direction by one pixel, respectively, with the image signal of image blocks within a present frame for which the motion estimation is performed, and then generating error values according to the comparison results. By vertically comparing the generated error values, a vertical component of the motion vector in half-pixel units is detected. By horizontally comparing the generated error values, a horizontal component of the motion vector in half-pixel units is detected. It will be appreciated that the method leads to greater efficiency in motion estimation by reducing the amount of data required to be processed during detection of the motion vector in half-pixel units.

Abstract: A decoding method and apparatus having an optimum decoding path includes a Viterbi decoder having an overlapping function in which the input signal is moved in units of the window movement distance of at least one symbol and the code sequence is decoded in units representing a decoding depth, so that overlap in the decoded data occurs. Then, the output of the Viterbi decoder with the overlap function is stored in a memory. A control signal generator controls the positions of the data to be output from the memory according to the output of a counter receiving the decoded data. The most frequent data out of all data supplied to a comparator is selected as an optimum decoding path. Thus, the error associated with wrong path selection, e.g., when the data is wrongly decoded due to the error generated by the noise added during transmission, can be reduced.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for coding and decoding video data including a still image or active image on an intraframe basis. The coding system defines a search area composed of reconstructed data blocks and determines which one of the blocks within the search area has a pattern similar to a present data block that is in the process of being coded. The system then computes the amount of displacement between the present data block and the reconstructed data block from the search area that has a pattern very similar to that of the present data block. The coded data is then stored in memory or transmitted. The decoding system implements a reverse process of the coding system to decode the coded data based on the displacement vector.

Abstract: An encoding and decoding system in which video data is partitioned into blocks, each of which has a predetermined dimension, and the partitioned block is encoded and decoded. To suppress blocking artifacts which occur at the boundary portions of the blocks, the positions of the partitioned blocks are slightly altered for every frame and then encoded. Then the encoded video data is variably partitioned and decoded in a similar manner to the encoding procedure. To variably partition a picture, the encoding and decoding systems include an address generator for variably partitioning the blocks in a horizontal direction of the picture, another address generator for variably partitioning the blocks in a vertical direction of the picture, and a sync generator for synchronizing the partitioning of every frame of video data in the encoding and decoding procedures, respectively.

Abstract: A system including method and apparatus for determining the energy content in a signal to be analyzed employs, in an apparatus aspect thereof, a sampling element for producing samples of the electrical signal to be analyzed, a local correlator for producing a plurality of signals corresponding to the samples delayed and multiplicatively combined with their complex conjugates, a bank of delay and adder systems for correlating the outputs of the multipliers in accordance with a binomial kernel, and a Fourier transformer for producing the distribution as a function of time and frequency. Local correlation is effected using a multi-element delay system, such as a shift register. Binomial correlation in the delay and adder systems is achieved by combining additively given samples with samples which are in other states of delay. Moreover, the banks have respectively different numbers of such delay and adder systems. The resulting analytic signal corresponds to a binomial kernel.