Patent ID: 8761255

Claim:
A method for managing a reference picture with a decoding apparatus, comprising: receiving, with the decoding apparatus, a multi-view video data stream, the multi-view video data stream including video data for each of a plurality of views, each of the plurality of views corresponding to a different spatial angle, the multi-view video data stream including a random access picture, the random access picture including a random access slice, the random access slice referencing only a slice corresponding to a same time and a different view of the random access picture; initializing, with the decoding apparatus, a reference picture list of the random access slice for inter-view prediction, the initializing including ordering inter-view reference pictures for inter-view prediction in the reference picture list, the ordering including assigning an inter-view reference index to each of the inter-view reference pictures, the inter-view reference index identifying an inter-view reference picture in the reference picture list used for inter-view prediction of a block to be decoded in the random access picture, the assigning being performed using inter-view reference information, the block to be decoded having a same time with the inter-view reference pictures and a different view from the inter-view reference pictures, the inter-view reference information including view number information and view identification information, the view number information indicating a number of the inter-view reference pictures used for inter-view prediction of the random access picture, and the view identification information identifying to which of the plurality of views each of the inter-view reference pictures belongs; obtaining, with the decoding apparatus, modification information for the initialized reference picture list from the multi-view video data stream, the modification information indicating that the inter-view reference picture is reordered; obtaining, with the decoding apparatus, an assignment modification value for changing the inter-view reference index of the inter-view reference picture in the initialized reference picture list according to the modification information; and modifying, with the decoding apparatus, the initialized reference picture list of the random access slice, the modifying including reordering the inter-view reference picture by changing the inter-view reference index assigned to the inter-view reference picture based on the assignment modification value; and marking, with the decoding apparatus, the inter-view reference pictures in the modified reference picture list as a short-term reference picture or a long-term reference picture, for each view of the plurality of views, wherein the inter-view reference picture is identified based on picture identification information indicating a view identifier of the inter-view reference picture.