Patent ID: 7685305
Filing Date: 2010-03-23
Classification: G10L,H04L,H04N

Abstract:
1. In a computing device that implements a video encoder, the computing device including a processor and memory, a method of encoding video data streams in encoded form, the method comprising: with the computing device that implements the video encoder, determining a type value for a unit of video data in a video image, wherein the type value is one of plural possible type values including an intra type value, a first single-unit single-reference inter-prediction type value, and a second single-unit single-reference inter-prediction type value; when the type value for the unit is the intra type value, with the computing device that implements the video encoder, encoding at least some of the video data for the unit using an intra encoding mode including intra encoding; when the type value for the unit is the first single-unit single-reference inter-prediction type value, with the computing device that implements the video encoder, encoding at least some of the video data for the unit using a first inter encoding mode that favors quality at the expense of decoding flexibility for a given bitrate, wherein the encoder uses at most one motion vector and one reference identifier per block in the first inter encoding mode; when the type value for the unit is the second single-unit single-reference inter-prediction type value, with the computing device that implements the video encoder, encoding at least some of the video data for the unit using a second inter encoding mode different than the first inter encoding mode, wherein the second inter encoding mode favors decoding flexibility at the expense of quality for the given bitrate, and wherein the encoder also uses at most one motion vector and one reference identifier per block in the second inter encoding mode; with the computing device that implements the video encoder, entropy encoding the type value for the unit; and with the computing device that implements the video encoder, outputting part of a bitstream, the outputted part indicating the type value for the unit, wherein the type value for the unit is in encoded form in the bitstream.