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Pre- and Post-Processing Techniques for Video Compression

Abstract

Digital video has become an integral part of everyday life. There are numerous applications where digital video is acquired, processed and used, ranging from scientific applications to consumer electronic products. Video compression is the enabling technology behind the revolution we are currently experiencing in multimedia communications. Video compression algorithms have found a large number of applications ranging from video telephony on the Public Switched Telephone Network to DVD and HDTV. Video compression standards (ITU-H.261 and H.263 and MPEG-1-2) have become very successful standards.  The soon to be finalized MPEG-4 is also expected to be a successful standard.

Most service providers and manufacturers prefer to work with and manufacture products which are standard compliant. The video compression standards are not bit exact, that is, they only specify the decoder.  The design of the encoder and the development of efficient rate control algorithms are factors that can distinguish one standard compliant product from another. Another critical factor that can make a specific product a winner is the pre- and post-processing applied to the video sequence. These last two topics are addressed in this project.

Most specifically, pre- and post-processing algorithms are developed which will increase the coding efficiency of a coder and the visual quality of the reconstructed video. The algorithms to be developed will not require any change of the standards, finding therefore wide applicability. We are primarily concerned with high bit-rate video compression applications (up to 10 Mbps) using the MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 standards and CCIR601 resolution video. We are also primarily concerned with real-time (video rate) implementation of such algorithms).

Students

  • Andrew Segall (Ph.D. June 2002)
  • Passant Karunaratne

Publications

  1. C. A. Segall and A. K. Katsaggelos, “Pre- and Post-Processing Algorithms for Compressed Video Enhancement,” Proc. of the Asilomar Conference on Systems, Signals and Computer, Pacific Grove, CA, Oct.29-Nov.1, 2000. View Document
  2. C.A. Segall and A. K. Katsaggelos, “Enhancement of Compressed Video using Visual Quality Measurements,” Proc. 2000 IEEE International Conference on Image Processing, Vancouver, BC, Canada, Sept. 10-13, 2000.
  3. C. A. Segall, P. Karunaratne and A. K. Katsaggelos, “Pre-Processing of Compressed Digital Video,” Proc. 2001 SPIE Conf. on Visual Communications and Image Processing, San Jose, CA, Jan. 21-26, 2001. View Document
  4. C. A. Segall and A. K. Katsaggelos, “Pre- and Post-processing Algorithms for Compressed Video: A Tutorial Introduction,” Proc. of the OSEE.
  5. C. A. Segall and A. K. Kataggleos, “Classical Digital Image Restoration,” in Encyclopedia of Optical Engineering, R.C. Hardie and M.M. Hayat, editors (forthcoming).
  6. C.A. Segall and A.K. Katsaggelos, “A New Constraint for the Regularized Enhancement of Compressed Video,” Salt Lake City, UT, May 7-11, 2001. View Document
  7. P.V. Karunaratne, C.A. Segall and A.K. Katsaggelos, "Rate Distortion Optimal Pre-Processing Algorithm," Proc. 2001 IEEE International Conference on Image Processing, Thessaloniki, Greece, October 7-11, 2001. View Document
  8. C.A. Segall and A.K. Katsaggelos, "Application of the Motion Vector Constraint to the Regularized Enhancement of Compressed Video," Proc. 2001 IEEE International Conference on Image Processing, Thessaloniki, Greece, October 7-11, 2001. View Document

Theses

  1. P. Karunaratne, "Compressed Video Enhancement using Regularized Iterative Restoration Algorithms," M.S. Thesis, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northwestern University, December 1999. View Document

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