Abstract: An editing apparatus and the like are provided for splicing two data streams of compressed picture data at an arbitrary splice point without breaking down the VBV buffer. The editing apparatus inserts between a main stream and a sub-stream compressed by the MPEG-2/Video Method an inserted stream of which a first picture is a black I picture and succeeding pictures are repeat P pictures of which all macro blocks are skipped macro blocks. In this inserted stream, a VBV delay of a picture to be transmitted next, after a last picture in the main stream, is written as a VBV delay of a first picture in the main stream into the picture header. Further, a stuffing byte of which the data amount is calculated based on the bit occupancy in the VBV buffer by the sub-stream at an arbitrary splice point is transmitted along with the last picture in the inserted stream.

Abstract: A user interface system comprises a server having a scene description decoding device for decoding input scene description and an equipment control signal generating device for generating equipment control signals, a remote terminal having a scene description decoding device for decoding scene description sent form the server into decoded scenes and a display device for displaying the decoded scenes and a user input device for receiving user input according to this display, a display terminal for displaying decoded scenes from the server, and controlled equipment which is controlled by equipment control signals from the server. Thus, easy operation of the remote terminal is facilitated.

Abstract: A multiplexing apparatus and method, a transmitting apparatus and method, and a recording medium arranged to prevent a delay of one of multiplexing scheduling processing and multiplexing processing in accordance with a schedule obtained by the multiplexing scheduling processing from influencing the other of these processings. A scheduler calculates schedule information on the basis of access unit information from an encoder and stores the calculated schedule information by supplying it to an intermediate buffer. If some additional data is to be multiplexed, the scheduler also calculates the additional data and stores the calculated additional data by supplying it to an intermediate buffer. A bit stream multiplexer reads out schedule information from the schedule information intermediate buffer, selects data designated by the schedule information from an elementary stream from the encoder and from additional data stored in the additional data intermediate buffer, and outputs the data as a multiplexed stream.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for verifying a multiplexing schedule of digital signals and an apparatus for multiplexing the digital signals are provided. The verifying method includes the processes of extracting access unit information about each decoding unit from each elementary stream of the digital signal, determining schedule information about time division of each elementary stream, based on the access unit information, and verifying whether or not the multiplexing schedule for generating the multiplexed stream is valid, based on the access unit information and the schedule information.

Abstract: A multiplexed stream MBa is formed by multiplexing at step S1. In switching to given ones of N multiplexed streams MBb, buffer occupation information in an end portion of MBa is detected at step S2. At step S3, buffer quasi-amounts in a head portion of the given ones of MBb are detected and the given ones of MBb are formed by multiplexing such that the buffer quasi-amounts are not exceeded. At step S4, a locus of the maximum value of the buffer occupation amounts by the N streams MBb in their end portion is detected. At step S5, a multiplexed stream MBc is formed by multiplexing such that the locus of the maximum value of the occupation amounts is not exceeded.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for encoding a digital signal in the form of a stream, which will be decoded later via a predetermined number of buffers, in which the digital signal is encoded by dividing each access unit defined for each bit stream into pseudo access units each having a predetermined size, calculating the time when the inputting of each pseudo access unit to the buffer is completed on the basis of the decoding time of the access unit and the data transfer rate of the buffer, and converting the pseudo access units into a packet so that the pseudo access units will be input to the buffer by the time determined by the calculation. If each access unit for each bit stream has a small size and if the decoding interval between adjacent access units is short, a plurality of the access units are combined into a single pseudo access unit depending on the size of the buffer and the data transfer rate of the buffer. The invention also provides a method and apparatus for transmitting similarly obtained data.

Abstract: A method for encoding a digital signal which is free from overflow and/or underflow of decoder buffer when video and audio data are reproduced while switching a plurality of bit streams from one to another, is disclosed.

Abstract: A digital signal multiplexing method in which plural bitstreams can be multiplexed without buffer rupture at the time of decoding. At a step S1, the time of extracting each accessing unit AU, which is a processing unit prescribed from one bitstream to another, from a buffer to an associated decoder, from input plural bitstreams, is computed. At the next step S2, the constraint time concerning the delivery start time to the buffer of each accessing unit, is back-computed by processing proceeding in a temporally retrogressive direction, using the data of the extraction time of the accessing units AU, and by reading charging of the accessing units to the decoder buffers for the extraction of the accessing units from the decoder buffers. At the next step S3, the schedule of packetizing the accessing units is determined on the basis of the constraint time as found at step S2, by way of performing the scheduling. The plural bitstreams are multiplexed in accordance with the schedule.