Abstract: It is intended to allow an asphalt pavement to be peeled off efficiently with a relatively small amount of electric power without generating large vibration and noise, and handled in the form of a block. An electromagnetic induction coil 36 is positioned above an asphalt pavement 22 provided on a copper plate (12) to melt a lower surface of the asphalt pavement 22. Then, a wedge-shaped thermally-conductive peeling member 60 having a peeling layer formed on an upper surface thereof is inserted into a melted layer (74) of the lower surface of the asphalt pavement 22 to peel off the asphalt pavement 22 from the steel plate 12. This makes it possible to peel off the asphalt pavement 22 with a relatively small amount of electric power and handle the peeled asphalt pavement 22 in the form of a block.

Abstract: It is intended to allow an asphalt pavement to be peeled off efficiently with a relatively small amount of electric power without generating large vibration and noise, and handled in the form of a block. An electromagnetic induction coil 36 is positioned above an asphalt pavement 22 provided on a copper plate (12) to melt a lower surface of the asphalt pavement 22. Then, a wedge-shaped thermally-conductive peeling member 60 having a peeling layer formed on an upper surface thereof is inserted into a melted layer (74) of the lower surface of the asphalt pavement 22 to peel off the asphalt pavement 22 from the steel plate 12. This makes it possible to peel off the asphalt pavement 22 with a relatively small amount of electric power and handle the peeled asphalt pavement 22 in the form of a block.

Abstract: A video signal recording/playback apparatus displays a current playback position as a time difference from a current recording position in a simple form. The video signal recording/playback apparatus displays the playback position together with an entire scheduled recording time as a frame, thus allowing a user to acknowledge the current playback position with the current recording time.

Abstract: A video signal shuffling device forms a segment with blocks having a given offset value in horizontal and vertical directions from a given starting point uniquely determined on the screen, the offset value being identical in every region. The segment is formed in a unit of one frame or two frames. The shuffling device divides one frame comprising blocks into a plurality of regions. A coding device determines a final priority as well as a final quantizer thereby quantizing a segment and providing the segment with a variable-length-coding based on a first priority, coding-quantity obtained from a plurality of quantizers, second priority and a quantizer. A coding device and its decoder, the coding device carries out a hierarchical coding by only a motion vector in a compressed stream at a lower resolution side and by agreeing a motion detected and a DCT block size with a size on the screen.

Abstract: A video signal layering-encoding system has at least either a frequency distribution unit to judge a frequency distribution in an input video signal or a motion judgment unit to judge the motion of an input video signal. With this, encoding quantity control according to the characteristics of the input video signal can be performed between layers. Also, with selection of encode modes and sharing of a motion vector, the encoded data of a bidirectionally predicted frame can be reduced and the encoding efficiency of a high resolution signal can be increased.

Abstract: A video signal recording/playback apparatus includes a switch and a capture unit. The switch selects and outputs one of a first video signal recorded and played back in a recording medium and a distributed second video signal. The capture unit temporarily storing the video signal output from the switch. Simultaneously to a pause operation requested or after a predetermined period of time from the pause operation, the capture unit stores one image of the video signal and outputs the image as a pause image, and does not store a remaining of the video signal. Then, soon after the switch starts to output the first video signal recording/playbackced by a player, the capture unit starts storing the first video signal and outputs the first video signal as its is. The video signal recording/playback apparatus can smoothly shift from the pause image to an image of the recording/playbackced video signal when shifting from a time keep mode to a playback mode.

Abstract: A video signal recording/playback apparatus displays a current playback position as a time difference from a current recording position in a simple form. The video signal recording/playback apparatus displays the playback position together with an entire scheduled recording time as a frame, thus allowing a user to acknowledge the current playback position with the current recording time.

Abstract: The present invention includes a motion vector detector for detecting motion vectors using a first image signal of high resolution; a resolution reducer for creating a second image signal of low resolution from the first image signal; an image signal interpolater for interpolating the second image signal so that it has the same number of pixels as the first image signal, thereby creating an interpolated signal; a differentiator for determining a differential between the first image signal and the interpolated signal; and an encoder for using the motion vectors to high-efficiency-encode the differential signal. Thus, by encoding two types of image signals of different resolutions, the present invention improves the accuracy of the motion vectors during the encoding of the high-resolution signal and reduces the rate after encoding due to the encoding of the differential signal.

Abstract: A video signal coding device is provided with unit dividing means (202) for dividing an input picture into units each of which is a coding quantity control unit consisting of one or a plurality of frames to be processed by any one of intra-frame coding, inter-frame forward coding, and inter-frame bidirectional coding; activity calculating means (203) for calculating a frame activity for every frame of the input picture, and calculating a unit activity for every unit from the frame activities of frames belonging to the same unit; target coding quantity deciding means (205) for deciding a target coding quantity of a coding frame on the basis of the frame activity of the coding frame which is a coding object, the unit activity of a coding unit to which the coding unit belongs, and the average unit activity of a unit prior to the coding unit; and coding means (206) for coding the coding frame by the target coding quantity so as to generate coded data.

Abstract: A video signal coding device is provided with unit dividing means (202) for dividing an input picture into units each of which is a coding quantity control unit consisting of one or a plurality of frames to be processed by any one of intra-frame coding, inter-frame forward coding, and inter-frame bi-directional coding; activity calculating means (203) for calculating a frame activity for every frame of the input picture, and calculating a unit activity for every unit from the frame activities of frames belonging to the same unit; target coding quantity deciding means (205) for deciding a target coding quantity of a coding frame on the basis of the fame activity of the coding frame which is a coding object, the unit activity of a coding unit to which the coding unit belongs, and the average unit activity of a unit prior to the coding unit; and coding means (206) for coding the coding frame by the target coding quantity so as to generate coded data.

Abstract: A video signal recording apparatus including a switching device for receiving a digital progressive scan TV signal having a frame cycle which is ½ of the frame cycle of an interlaced scan TV signal and switching the progressive scan TV signal frame by frame alternately; a coding device for performing high-rate coding of data corresponding to one frame of the progressive scan TV signal to the same code amount as obtained by high-rate coding of data corresponding to one frame including two successive fields of an interlaced scan standard-definition TV signal; and a recording device for recording the data processed with the high-rate coding in the same number of tracks as the data corresponding to one frame of the interlaced scan standard-definition TV signal.

Abstract: A video signal coding device is provided with unit dividing means (202) for dividing an input picture into units each of which is a coding quantity control unit consisting of one or a plurality of frames to be processed by any one of intra-frame coding, inter-frame forward coding, and inter-frame bidirectional coding; activity calculating means (203) for calculating a frame activity for every frame of the input picture, and calculating a unit activity for every unit from the frame activities of frames belonging to the same unit; target coding quantity deciding means (205) for deciding a target coding quantity of a coding frame on the basis of the frame activity of the coding frame which is a coding object, the unit activity of a coding unit to which the coding unit belongs, and the average unit activity of a unit prior to the coding unit; and coding means (206) for coding the coding frame by the target coding quantity so as to generate coded data.

Abstract: A video signal layering-encoding system according to the present invention has at least either a frequency distribution unit to judge a frequency distribution in an input video signal or a motion judgment unit to judge the motion of an input video signal. With this, encoding quantity control according to the characteristics of the input video signal can be performed between layers. Also, with selection of encode modes and sharing of a motion vector, the encoded data of a bidirectionally predicted frame can be reduced and the encoding efficiency of a high resolution signal can be increased. A digitial broadcast decoding system according to the present invention can readily display a plurality of broadcasting programs on different channels onto a small screen within a main screen when digital broadcasts are received, by a decoding method in which processing is easy, structurally simple circuitry, and software.

Abstract: A video signal coding apparatus comprises a divider 102 that divides an input digital video signal into an effective area and an additional area, an effective-area blocking device 103 for dividing the effective area into effective blocks, an effective-area encoder 104 that hight-efficiency-codes the effective blocks to create effective compressed blocks, an additional-area encoder 105 that hight-efficiency-codes the additional area to create additional compressed data, an additional-area blocking device 106 for dividing the additional compressed data into additional compressed blocks each a luminance signal for a plurality of pixels and at least one color difference signal for pixels arranged at the same position as the plurality of pixels, and a substitution device 107 that substitutes the additional compressed blocks for data in the same effective compressed blocks at predetermined positions.

Abstract: A video signal encoder 1 subjects an video signal 100 of high sampling rate to hierarchical encoding. An enhancement layer bitstream 105 is then recorded on a removable recording medium 51, while a base layer bitstream 102 in a storage 40. Prior to the base layer bitstream 102 being transmitted, the recording medium 51 is mounted to a video signal decoder 2 after billing management, for example. The video signal decoder 2 reproduces an enhancement layer bitstream 107 from the recording medium 51 in synchronization with the reception of the base layer bitstream 106. Then, the two bitstreams are subjected to hierarchical decoding, and the resulting decoded video signal 110 of high sampling rate is outputted. Without the recording medium 51 mounted, a decoded video signal 108 of low sampling rate is an only output. In this manner, the hierarchically-encoded video signal can be processed on a layer basis for billing and access management.

Abstract: Satisfying the standard regulation of the coded video system, the bit rate of the coded video bit stream is curtailed, by keeping the same display time, without decoding.

Abstract: The invention reduces a quantity of relevant codes without decoding coded data in a bitstream of an image signal, etc. to the image signal. Processing for the code quantity reducing method is performed according to such a simple rule that leaves as it is only one coefficient encountered first in scanning, that leaves only a DC coefficient, that transcodes all DCT coefficients to “0” while changing an MBT, or that transcodes all DCT coefficients to “0” while changing a CBP. Also, in principle, one coefficient is left as is or the MBT or CBP is changed, so that there is no need to update an address counter because of generation of an SMB. Even a low-throughput processing unit employed, it is possible to realize on a real-time basis the bitstream transcoding processing accompanied by reduction of the code quantity. The costs can also be reduced for the provision such as an image distribution system.

Abstract: A digital transmitter-receiver comprises a receiving unit for receiving digital data transmitted in accordance with a first transmission protocol, a transcoder for converting the received digital data to data in accordance with a second transmission protocol, and a transmitting unit for transmitting output data from the transcoder to a terminal apparatus. The transmitting unit monitors a transmission state and informs the transcoder of a monitoring result. Based on the monitoring result, the transcoder changes data rate.

Abstract: A video signal layering-encoding system according to the present invention has at least either a frequency distribution unit to judge a frequency distribution in an input video signal or a motion judgment unit to judge the motion of an input video signal. With this, encoding quantity control according to the characteristics of the input video signal can be performed between layers. Also, with selection of encode modes and sharing of a motion vector, the encoded data of a bidirectionally predicted frame can be reduced and the encoding efficiency of a high resolution signal can be increased.

Abstract: To a conventional video signal recording apparatus, there are added additional information generating means and data replacement means for replacing data at a specified position in compressed data with additional information generated by the additional information generating means. This enables to provide a video signal recording apparatus and a video signal regenerating apparatus which are able to increase transmissible information content, an image coding apparatus that executes high-efficiency non-linear quantization at a small circuit containing no quantization table and also prevents error propagation; and an image decoding apparatus for regenerating coded data obtained in the image coding apparatus.