Abstract: An apparatus and method for enhancing the quality of reproduced images are provided. More specifically, provided are an apparatus and method for enhancing the quality of reproduced, progressive images, which are capable of obtaining more natural and smoother progressive images and preventing such problems as blurry colors and aliased images that could be brought about in the process of converting interlaced images into progressive images.

Abstract: A video encoding/decoding apparatus and method for color images include a first motion prediction unit that generates a first prediction residue image of an input image on a basis of a first motion prediction result of the input image. An image information detection unit sets a predetermined color component of an R-G-B image to a reference color component and determines whether the input image is a Y-Cb-Cr image or an R-G-B image and whether a color component is the reference color component. A second motion prediction unit performs motion prediction for the first prediction residue image and generates a second prediction residue image if the input image is the R-G-B image and the color component of the input image is not the reference color component.

Abstract: A video encoding/decoding apparatus and method for color images include a first motion prediction unit that generates a first prediction residue image of an input image on a basis of a first motion prediction result of the input image. An image information detection unit sets a predetermined color component of an R-G-B image to a reference color component and determines whether the input image is a Y-Cb-Cr image or an R-G-B image and whether a color component is the reference color component. A second motion prediction unit performs motion prediction for the first prediction residue image and generates a second prediction residue image if the input image is the R-G-B image and the color component of the input image is not the reference color component.

Abstract: A method performs inverse tone mapping of an image in a decoder. For each block of each color channel of the image the following steps are performed. A scaling factor is determined for a current block of the image by adding a predicted scaling factor for the current block to a difference between the predicted scaling factor and the scaling factor of an adjacent block. An offset value for the current block is determined by adding a predicted offset for the current block to a difference between the predicted offset value and the offset value of the adjacent block. The scaling factor and the offset value are applied to pixel intensity values of the current block to produce a mapped block in which a bit-depth of the mapped block is greater than the bit-depth of the current block.

Abstract: An encoding method may comprise obtaining a residue corresponding to a difference between the original image and a prediction image with respect to each component of the original image, encoding the residue of a predetermined component of the original image, restoring the encoded residue of the predetermined component and transforming the restored residue into a predetermined value including the restored residue value, and encoding prediction residues corresponding to differences between each of residues of components of the original image, which are not encoded, and the residue, which is restored and transformed into the predetermined value. Since prediction residues are encoded and decoded using correlations between residues of image components and image components, data amount is highly reduced. Also, since there is no quality loss in a picture generated by directly encoding an R-G-B image without transforming it into a Y-Cr-Cb image, high quality image information is obtained.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for redundant image encoding and decoding, in which using a slice structure used for image encoding part of an image is redundantly encoded and decoded are provided. The apparatus for redundant image encoding includes a slice modeling unit which determines the structures of slices to be used in encoding the image and regions to be redundantly encoded so that image data of a predetermined region of the image to be redundantly encoded is contained in a plurality of slices, a slice allocation unit which allocates image data of each region of an image to the plurality of slices, a picture header encoding unit which encodes information required to decode the plurality of encoded slices and generates picture information, and a slice encoding unit which encodes the image in units of slices according to the picture header information.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for encoding a video and a method and apparatus for decoding the encoded video are provided. The video encoding apparatus includes: an encoding unit encoding a main image and an auxiliary image and generating encoded main image data and encoded auxiliary image data; and a bitstream packing unit combining the encoded auxiliary image data to the encoded main image data and thus packing the data as one bitstream. The video decoding apparatus includes: a bitstream unpacking unit unpacking a bitstream packed by combining encoded auxiliary image data to encoded main image data, and separating the encoded main image data and the encoded auxiliary image data; and a decoding unit decoding the separated encoded main image data and auxiliary image data and generating a restored image.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for encoding and decoding an image are provided. The image decoding method includes (a) decoding luma blocks according to a predetermined decoding mode of each of the luma blocks, and (b) decoding chroma blocks according to the predetermined decoding mode of each of the luma blocks.

Abstract: A lossless image encoding/decoding method and apparatus. The lossless color image encoding apparatus includes a motion prediction image generator estimating a motion between a previous image and a current image and outputting a corresponding prediction image, a residue generator generating a temporal residue corresponding to a difference between a prediction image generated by the motion prediction image generator and the corresponding block of the current image with respect to different components of the color image, a prediction residue generator generating prediction residues by defining a linear-transformed value of one residue among the different components of the color image output from the residue generator as a predictor and using differences between each of the residues of the other components and the predictor, and an entropy encoder receiving the residue forming the predictor from the residue generator and the prediction residues from the prediction residue generator and generating a bitstream.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for coding a chrominance component of an intra-image using spatial predictive coding and a method and apparatus for decoding the coded chrominance component are provided.

Abstract: An image coding method and apparatus considering human visual characteristics are provided. The image coding method comprises (a) modeling image quality distribution of an input image in units of scenes such that the quality of an image input in units of scenes is gradually lowered from a region of interest to a background region, (b) determining a quantization parameter of each region constituting one scene according to the result of modeling of image quality distribution, (c) quantizing image data in accordance with the quantization parameter, and (d) coding entropy of the quantized image data.

Abstract: An encoding and/or decoding system, medium, and method with spatial prediction and spatial prediction compensation. The system may include a spatial prediction unit that spatially predicts pixel values of a current block of an image using neighboring blocks in a row immediately above the current block among neighboring blocks that are spatially adjacent to the current block. The spatial prediction unit performs spatial prediction using replaced pixel values of neighboring blocks in a row immediately above the current block every predetermined row unit, with the pixel values of neighboring blocks in a row immediately above the current block every predetermined row unit being replaced with a predetermined reference value.

Abstract: An encoding method, medium, and system encoding an image, with an image being encoded by generating a plurality of image slices as images of each color component of the image and encoding the image slices in parallel with each other and independently of each other. Accordingly, although an image to be encoded has a large number of color components, the image can be compressed promptly. In addition, a decoding method, medium, and system are also provided decoding an image, with a plurality of encoded image slices being included in a corresponding bitstream, which are images of each color component of the image to be restored, are decoded in parallel with each other and independently of each other so as to restore the image using the decoded image slices. Accordingly, although an image to be decoded has a large number of color components, the image can be restored promptly.

Abstract: An image coding method and apparatus considering human visual characteristics are provided. The image coding method comprises (a) modeling image quality distribution of an input image in units of scenes such that the quality of an image input in units of scenes is gradually lowered from a region of interest to a background region, (b) determining a quantization parameter of each region constituting one scene according to the result of modeling of image quality distribution, (c) quantizing image data in accordance with the quantization parameter, and (d) coding entropy of the quantized image data.

Abstract: A method, medium, and system encoding and/or decoding a moving picture. The moving picture encoding method may include selecting a prediction mode that is optimal for the macro blocks, which correspond to each other, of the color components of a current image based on the characteristics of a predetermined image, generating a predicted image for the current image according to the selected prediction mode, and encoding a moving picture using the predicted image. An optimal prediction mode can be adaptively applied to the macro blocks, which correspond to each other, of the color components, thereby increasing the moving picture's encoding and decoding efficiencies.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for coding a chrominance component of an intra-image using spatial predictive coding and a method and apparatus for decoding the coded chrominance component are provided.

Abstract: An image coding method and apparatus considering human visual characteristics are provided. The image coding method comprises (a) modeling image quality distribution of an input image in units of scenes such that the quality of an image input in units of scenes is gradually lowered from a region of interest to a background region, (b) determining a quantization parameter of each region constituting one scene according to the result of modeling of image quality distribution, (c) quantizing image data in accordance with the quantization parameter, and (d) coding entropy of the quantized image data.

Abstract: An image coding method and apparatus considering human visual characteristics are provided. The image coding method comprises (a) modeling image quality distribution of an input image in units of scenes such that the quality of an image input in units of scenes is gradually lowered from a region of interest to a background region, (b) determining a quantization parameter of each region constituting one scene according to the result of modeling of image quality distribution, (c) quantizing image data in accordance with the quantization parameter, and (d) coding entropy of the quantized image data.

Abstract: An image encoding/decoding system, medium, and method. The image encoding system includes a residue production unit arranged to produce first residues corresponding to differences between color components of a current image and color components of a predicted image, a unit arranged to perform spatial transform and quantization with respect to the first residue of a first color component and perform de-quantization and inverse spatial transform with respect to the quantized first residue of the first color component so as to reconstruct the first residue of the first color component, a residue prediction unit arranged to predict second residues with respect to the first residues of the other color components by using the reconstructed first residue of the first color component, and an encoding unit arranged to encode the first residue of the first color component and the second residues of the other color components.

Abstract: An image coding method and apparatus considering human visual characteristics are provided. The image coding method comprises (a) modeling image quality distribution of an input image in units of scenes such that the quality of an image input in units of scenes is gradually lowered from a region of interest to a background region, (b) determining a quantization parameter of each region constituting one scene according to the result of modeling of image quality distribution, (c) quantizing image data in accordance with the quantization parameter, and (d) coding entropy of the quantized image data.