Patent ID: 7782957

Claim:
A motion estimation circuit, for searching a block in a search window is most similar to a current block, wherein the current block comprises at least a 4×4-pixel sub block, the motion estimation circuit comprising: a plurality of processing elements PE m , wherein each processing element has at least a first input end, at least a second input end and at least an output end and is used for receiving the current block and the corresponded block in the search window, doing a comparison operation between the two received blocks and outputting the comparison operation result, where PE m represents m-th processing element, m is an integer larger than or equal to −n but less than or equal to n, n represents a search range value of the current block in the search window and is an integer larger than 0; a plurality of data latches FF k having an input end and an output end, wherein the FF k output end is coupled to the FF k+1 input end and the first input end of PE k , where FF k represents k-th data latch, k is an integer larger than −n but less than or equal to n; and a plurality of selection circuits MUX h having a first input end, a second input end and an output end, used for selecting either the first input end of MUX h or the second input end of MUX h to be coupled to the output end of MUX h , wherein the output end of MUX h is coupled to the second input end of PE h , where MUX h represents h-th selection circuit and h is an integer larger than or equal to −i but less than or equal to i, wherein i is an integer less than n; wherein the 4×4-pixel sub blocks of the current block are pixel-by-pixel input into the first input end of PE −n and the input end of FF −(n−1) according to a first sequence, the data of partial pixel elements in the search window are input into the second input end of PE r and the first input end of MUX h according to a second sequence, where r is an integer larger than or equal to −n but less than −i, and the data of rest partial pixel elements in the search window are input into the second input end of PE s and the second input end of MUX h according to a third sequence, where s is an integer larger than i but less or equal to n.