Abstract: An apparatus including a transformation circuit and a scaling/quantization circuit. The transformation circuit may be configured to generate one or more transform coefficients in response to a video stream and one or more first control signals. The transformation circuit may be further configured to limit transform coefficients for residual 4×4 blocks to a 16-bit value when the video stream comprises 8-bit video data. The scaling/quantization circuit may be configured to generate one or more quantization coefficients in response to the one or more transform coefficients and one or more second control signals.

Abstract: A method for deinterlacing a picture is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a plurality of primary scores by searching along a plurality of primary angles for an edge in the picture proximate a location interlaced with a field of the picture, (B) generating a plurality of neighbor scores by searching for the edge along a plurality of neighbor angles proximate a particular angle of the primary angles corresponding to a particular score of the primary scores having a best value and (C) identifying a best score from a group of scores consisting of the particular score and the neighbor scores to generate an interpolated sample at the location.

Abstract: A method for transcoding from an H.264 format to a VC-1 format. The method generally comprises the steps of (A) decoding an input video stream in the H.264 format to generate a picture having a plurality of macroblock pairs that used an H.264 macroblock adaptive field/frame coding; (B) determining a mode indicator for each of the macroblock pairs; and (C) coding the macroblock pairs into an output video stream in the VC-1 format using one of (i) a VC-1 field motion compensation mode coding and (ii) a VC-1 frame motion compensation mode coding as determined from the mode indicator.

Abstract: A method for transcoding from a VC-1 format to an MPEG-2 format is disclosed. The method generally comprises the steps of (A) decoding an input video stream in the VC-1 format to generate a picture; (B) determining a first mode indicator for the picture; and (C) coding the picture into an output video stream in the MPEG-2 format using one of (i) an MPEG-2 field mode coding and (ii) an MPEG-2 frame mode coding as determined from the first mode indicator.

Abstract: A method for deinterlacing a picture is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a plurality of primary scores by searching along a plurality of primary angles for an edge in the picture proximate a location interlaced with a field of the picture, (B) generating a plurality of neighbor scores by searching for the edge along a plurality of neighbor angles proximate a particular angle of the primary angles corresponding to a particular score of the primary scores having a best value and (C) identifying a best score from a group of scores consisting of the particular score and the neighbor scores to generate an interpolated sample at the location.

Abstract: A method for transcoding from an H.264 format to an MPEG-2 format is disclosed. The method generally comprises the steps of (A) decoding an input video stream in the H.264 format to generate a picture having a plurality of macroblock pairs that used an H.264 macroblock adaptive field/frame coding; (B) determining a mode indicator for each of the macroblock pairs; and (C) coding the macroblock pairs into an output video stream in the MPEG-2 format using one of (i) an MPEG-2 field mode coding and (ii) an MPEG-2 frame mode coding as determined from the mode indicators.

Abstract: A method for transcoding from an H.264 format to an MPEG-2 format is disclosed. The method generally comprises the steps of (A) decoding an input video stream in the H.264 format to generate a picture having a plurality of macroblock pairs that used an H.264 macroblock adaptive field/frame coding; (B) determining a mode indicator for each of the macroblock pairs; and (C) coding the macroblock pairs into an output video stream in the MPEG-2 format using one of (i) an MPEG-2 field mode coding and (ii) an MPEG-2 frame mode coding as determined from the mode indicators.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for processing a video block extracted from an encoded bitstream. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a normal block by inverse transforming the video block, the normal block having a normal resolution, (B) generating an alternate block from the video block, the alternate block comprising image detail (i) present after the inverse transforming and (ii) absent from the normal block and (C) generating an output block based on the normal block and the alternate block, the output block having an output resolution greater than the normal resolution.

Abstract: A method for color tone correction is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a plurality of first intermediate components by scaling a plurality of first color components towards a first ideal color, wherein the first color components (i) are for a first plurality of pixels in an input video signal and (ii) fall inside a first region of a color space, (B) generating a plurality of first corrected components by adjusting the first intermediate components such that a first mapping of the first color components to the first corrected components is both (i) continuous in the color space and (ii) non-overlapping in the color space and (C) generating an output video signal by combining the first corrected components with a plurality of unaltered color components, wherein the unaltered color components (i) are for a second plurality of the pixels and (ii) fall outside the first region.

Abstract: An apparatus including a parsing circuit and a control circuit. The parsing circuit may be configured to generate a plurality of decoded syntax elements in response to (i) a serial bitstream and (ii) a control signal. The control circuit may be configured to generate the control signal in response to the plurality of decoded syntax elements. The parsing circuit may generate the plurality of decoded syntax elements by grouping syntax elements for atomic decoding such that each (i) one or more consecutive syntax elements without context information relevant to the decoding and (ii) a non-zero syntax element presented at the end of each group.

Abstract: A method for a color tone correction is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a plurality of first intermediate components by scaling a plurality of first color components towards a first ideal color, wherein the first color components (i) are for a first plurality of pixels in an input video signal and (ii) fall inside a first region of a color space, (B) generating a plurality of first corrected components by adjusting the first intermediate components such that a first mapping of the first color components to the first corrected components is both (i) continuous in the color space and (ii) non-overlapping in the color space and (C) generating an output video signal by combining the first corrected components with a plurality of unaltered color components, wherein the unaltered color components (i) are for a second plurality of the pixels and (ii) fall outside the first region.

Abstract: A method for processing a video stream is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) checking a respective first motion vector for each of a plurality of blocks in a group within an inter-coded picture of the video stream, (B) loading first motion compensation data for the group from a memory to a motion compensation process in a first bus transfer in response to all of the blocks in the group having both (i) a same first reference frame and (ii) a same first motion vector in at least one of a reference picture list 0 and a reference picture list 1 and (C) reconstructing the blocks from the first motion compensation data and the same first motion vector.

Abstract: A method for video decoding is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) decoding a first picture from a bitstream, the first picture having a first resolution, (B) storing the first picture at the first resolution in a memory and (C) storing the first picture at a second resolution in the memory, wherein the second resolution is lower than the first resolution.

Abstract: A method for composite noise filtering is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a selection value in response to a stationary check identifying one of a plurality of blendings for a current item of a current field, (B) generating a filtered item in response to one of (i) a first of the blendings between the current item and a first previous item co-located in a first previous field having an opposite phase of composite artifacts from the current field and (ii) a second of the blendings between the current item and a first motion compensated item from the first previous field and (C) switching between the first blending and the second blending in response to the selection value.

Abstract: A method for composite noise filtering is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) generating a selection value in response to a stationary check identifying one of a plurality of blendings for a current item of a current field, (B) generating a filtered item in response to one of (i) a first of the blendings between the current item and a first previous item co-located in a first previous field having an opposite phase of composite artifacts from the current field and (ii) a second of the blendings between the current item and a first motion compensated item from the first previous field and (C) switching between the first blending and the second blending in response to the selection value.

Abstract: A video decoder comprising a first comfort noise addition block and a second comfort noise addition block. The first comfort noise addition block may be configured to (i) add comfort noise to luminance data and (ii) adjust a distribution of the comfort noise added to the luminance data. The second comfort noise addition block may be configured to (i) add comfort noise to chrominance data and (ii) adjust a distribution of the comfort noise added to the chrominance data. The first and the second comfort noise addition blocks may be integrated into a video output path of the video decoder. The distribution of the comfort noise added to the luminance data and the distribution of the comfort noise added to the chrominance data may be adjusted independently.

Abstract: A method for film mode detection is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) detecting if a plurality of fields in a video signal are in a 3:2 pull-down pattern to control a plurality of first flags based on a plurality of statistics gathered from the fields, (B) detecting if the fields contain moving interlaced text to control a second flag based on both (i) the statistics and (ii) a repeat-field flag of the first flags that indicates repeating consecutive same polarity fields and (C) deciding among a plurality of inverse telecine processes to de-interlace the fields based on all of (i) a 3:2 mode flag of the first flags, (ii) a 3:2 direction flag of the first flags and (iii) the second flag.

Abstract: A method for decoding a bitstream is disclosed. The method generally comprises the steps of (A) generating a first signal and a second signal by parsing a common slice in the bitstream, (B) generating a third signal by entropy decoding the first signal, and (C) generating a video signal by combining the second signal and the third signal.

Abstract: A method for contour reduction in a digital picture is disclosed. The method generally includes the steps of (A) buffering a plurality of luma samples in a current line of the digital picture, each of the luma samples having a respective input value, (B) calculating a plurality of horizontal sum-of-signs along the current line, wherein each of the horizontal sum-of-signs comprises a sum of a plurality of amplitude differences between pairs the luma samples from the current line and (C) generating a plurality of output value based on the horizontal sum-of-signs, one of the output values for each one of the luma samples.

Abstract: A video encoder including an encoder circuit, a quantizer circuit and a control circuit. The encoder circuit may be configured to generate a plurality of coefficient values and motion vectors in response to a video stream, a first control signal, a second control signal, and a number of quantized values. The control circuit may be configured to (i) generate the first control signal, the second control signal, and a quantizer index signal and (ii) set two or more quantization dead zones and two or more offsets to different values, where the quantization dead zones and the offsets are independently programmable. The quantizer circuit may be configured to generate the number of quantized values in response to the coefficient values, the quantizer index signal, the two or more quantization dead zones and the two or more offsets. A first coefficient value may be quantized using a first quantization dead zone and a first offset.