Patent ID: 8553770

Claim:
An image decoding method for generating a predictive pixel value of a current picture to be decoded, using pixel values of two reference pictures, and decoding the current picture using the predictive pixel value, said method comprising: a first parameter calculation step of calculating a first parameter corresponding to a distance between the current picture and a first reference picture; a second parameter calculation step of calculating a second parameter corresponding to a distance between the first reference picture and a second reference picture; a judgment step of judging whether or not a value of a third parameter calculated using a value obtained by dividing the first parameter by the second parameter is a value which is represented by a plurality of bits, the number of the plurality of bits being equal to or less than a predetermined number; a predictive pixel value generation step of generating a predictive pixel value of the current picture; and a decoding step of decoding the current picture using the predictive pixel value calculated in said predictive pixel value generation step, wherein the predictive pixel value generation step includes (i) generating the predictive pixel value of the current picture by scaling a pixel value of the first reference picture and a pixel value of the second reference picture using a weighting coefficient calculated by the third parameter, in the case where it is judged, in said judgment step, that the value of the third parameter is the value which is represented by the plurality of bits, the number of the plurality of bits being equal to or less than the predetermined number; and (ii) generating the predictive pixel value of the current picture by scaling a pixel value of the first reference picture and a pixel value of the second reference picture using a weighting coefficient of a predetermined value, in the case where it is judged, in said judgment step, that the value of the third parameter is not the value which is represented by the plurality of bits, the number of the plurality of bits being equal to or less than the predetermined number.