JP2005079965A - Representative point information coding method and representative point information decoding method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a representative point information coding method for enhancing a coding efficiency in the case of coding representative point information in an image. <P>SOLUTION: A representative point information coder 100 for coding positional information of a representative point of an image is provided with: an image division section 101; a representative point position coding section 102, and a control section 103, the image division section 101 divides the image into a plurality of regions, and the representative point position coding section 102 uses a parameter or a variable length table optimum to each divided image to code a representative point information. Information of an optimum parameter (including information of a reference value of the parameter and a division method of the image) by each division image or the variable length table is described in a code sequence. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a representative point information encoding method and a representative point information decoding method used for representing representative points of digital image data.

  In a conventional image coding system represented by the JPEG system and the MPEG video system, a screen is divided into predetermined units, and encoding is performed in the divided units. For example, in the MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 systems, motion compensation is performed in units of 16 horizontal pixels and 16 vertical pixels called macroblocks, and in units of 8 horizontal and 8 vertical pixels called blocks included in the macroblock. Encoding is performed by performing discrete cosine transform. In such a method, since the screen dividing method is completely defined, information indicating how the screen is divided is not described in the code string.

In recent years, there has been proposed an encoding method for encoding a representative point of a shape when the screen is divided into an arbitrary shape and encoded.
Conventional method 1 (Non-Patent Document 1) proposes a method of dividing a pixel set in a screen based on a Voronoi diagram and performing motion compensation in the divided unit. In the conventional method 1, the division shape is described by encoding the mother point information (pixel position) of the Voronoi diagram and describing it in the code string. Here, as a method of encoding the generating point information, the screen is scanned by setting the pixel where the generating point is 1 and the others to 0 to obtain a series of 0 and 1, and a continuous length of 0 in the series is set. There has been proposed a method of dividing by 2 to the power of m, encoding the remainder with an m-bit isometric code, and encoding the quotient with a comma code. In this case, the optimum value of m is encoded one by one for each frame.

Conventional method 2 (Non-Patent Document 2) uses a plurality of predetermined transform bases when encoding a motion-compensated residual signal, and assigns one at an arbitrary position (representative point pixel position). This is a method of encoding by repeating the process of setting the conversion base. Here, the representative point where the conversion base is placed and the type of the conversion base are described in the code string. In conventional method 2, when encoding the representative points, the screen is scanned in line order, the distance from the left end of the representative point that exists first, and the distance from the representative point immediately before the representative point that exists second or later Then, classification is made into three parameters, that is, a vertical distance to a line where a representative point exists, and encoding is performed by using different variable-length code tables. These variable length code tables are adaptively created using the encoding results of the previous 10 frames.
Ito et al., "Motion compensation method based on Voronoi diagram" IEICE, IEICE IEEJ 95-115, pp. 21-26, 1996.2. R. Neff et. Al., "Very Low Bit-Rate Video Coding Based on Matching Persuits", IEEE Trans. On Circuits and Systems for Video Technology, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 158-171, Feb. 1997 .

  However, in the conventional method, since a constant parameter (m value in the conventional method 1 and variable length code table in the conventional method 2) is used in the screen, it is possible to optimize on a screen basis. There is, however, no optimization within the screen.

  The present invention solves the above-described conventional problem, and, when encoding representative point information, a representative point information encoding method capable of improving the encoding efficiency in the screen, and the representative point information code It is an object of the present invention to provide a representative point information decoding method for decoding a code string generated by a conversion method.

To solve this challenge,
1st invention is the representative point information encoding method which encodes the positional information on the representative point of an image, Comprising: The screen division | segmentation step which divides | segments the said image into several division | segmentation screens, and the division | segmentation divided | segmented by the said division | segmentation step A representative point information encoding method comprising: a representative point position encoding step of encoding a position of representative point in a screen using a parameter that can be changed for each divided screen to generate a code string.

  A second invention is a representative point information encoding method for encoding position information of a representative point of an image, the screen dividing step for dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens, and the division divided by the dividing step A representative point information encoding method comprising: a representative point position encoding step that encodes position information of a representative point in a screen using a variable length code table that can be changed for each divided screen and generates a code string. It is.

  A third invention is a representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, wherein the input code string uses different parameters for each divided screen, and the position information of the representative point in the divided screen A representative point position decoding step of obtaining a representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step, and generating a representative point position information of the entire screen This is a representative point information decoding method.

  A fourth invention is a representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, wherein an input code string is represented by a variable length coding table that is different for each divided screen, and a representative in the divided screen is displayed. A screen for generating representative point position information for all screens by combining representative point position decoding step for obtaining point position information and representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step. It is a representative point information decoding method characterized by comprising a synthesis step.

  As described above, the representative point information encoding method of the present invention divides a screen into a plurality of regions, and encodes representative point information using an optimum parameter for each divided screen. Generally, the arrangement density of representative points is uneven in the screen. The present invention pays attention to such a deviation in the arrangement density of the representative points. By encoding the representative point information using the optimum parameters for each divided screen, one parameter is obtained on one screen. Compared with the case where encoding is performed using a fixed variable length code table, encoding efficiency can be improved. Also, the representative point information decoding method of the present invention divides a screen into a plurality of regions, and decodes a code string generated by encoding representative point position information for each divided screen. At this time, the representative point position information of the divided screen is decoded by using the parameters described in the code string and the variable length coding table, and the representative point position information of the obtained divided screen is synthesized to obtain the entire screen. By generating the representative point position information, the decoded representative point position information can be correctly decoded. Therefore, its practical value is high.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a representative point information encoding apparatus 100 using the representative point information encoding method of the present invention. The representative point information encoding apparatus 100 includes a screen dividing unit 101, a representative point position encoding unit 102, and a control unit 103. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the position of the representative point (x mark). Here, it is assumed that the representative point is placed in units of pixel positions, and the position information of the representative point is indicated by the horizontal and vertical positions (number of pixels from the origin) with the upper left corner of the screen as the origin. To do.

  The representative point information input to the representative point information encoding apparatus 100 is input to the screen dividing unit 101. The screen division unit 101 divides the screen into a plurality of areas by the division method determined by the control unit 103. Here, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, it is assumed that a total of 4 divisions of 2 vertical divisions and 2 horizontal divisions are performed. The screen dividing unit 101 outputs representative point information belonging to each divided screen to the representative point position encoding unit 102. Here, for example, position information of each representative point is output in the order of the divided screens 201, 202, 203, and 204.

  The representative point position encoding unit 102 encodes representative point position information. Hereinafter, two examples of the operation of the representative point position encoding unit 102 will be described.

  (1) A first operation example of the representative point position encoding unit 102 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in S301, initial setting is performed. Here, the minimum value m_min and the maximum value m_max of the parameter m are set, and the value of the variable B that stores the code amount is initialized with a predetermined value. Here, the predetermined value may be a value greater than the maximum possible code amount. Here, it is assumed that the minimum value m_min and the maximum value m_max of the parameter m are set from the control unit 103.

Thereafter, the processing from S302 to S304 is repeatedly executed by setting a value between m_min and m_max to the parameter m.
In S302, the representative point position is encoded using the parameter m, and the code amount B is obtained at that time. As the encoding method here, the same method as the conventional method 1 can be used. That is, the divided screen is scanned by setting the pixel where the representative point exists to 1 and the other to 0 to obtain a series of 0 and 1, dividing the continuous length of 0 in the series by 2 to the power of m, and dividing the remainder by m Encode the bit length code and quotient with a comma code. In this case, the number of representative points in the divided screen may be encoded first. This eliminates the need to encode the last 0 continuous length of the split screen.

In S303, it is determined whether the code amount B is smaller than B_min. If it is smaller, the process of S304 is performed.
In S304, B_min is replaced with B, and the value of the parameter m at this time is held in M.

  When the processing from S302 to S304 is completed for all values from m_min to m_max, the processing of S305 is performed. That is, at the stage of S305, M is set to a value of the parameter m that can encode the representative point position information in the current divided screen with the minimum code amount.

  In S305, the representative point position is encoded using the value of M as the parameter m, and a code string is generated. At this time, the value of M is described in the code string as the value of the parameter m used when generating the code string.

  When the generation of code sequences for all divided screens output by the screen dividing unit 101 is completed by the representative point position encoding unit 102, the generation of code sequences of representative point information for one screen is completed. An example of the format of the code string is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4A, the code sequence of the representative point information is described with the screen size information and the number of divided screens N, and the code sequence of each divided screen is described together with the value of the parameter m. The number of divided screens may be described separately for the number of vertical divisions and the number of horizontal divisions, or may be described by selecting from a predetermined number of divisions.

  (2) A second operation example of the representative point position encoding unit 102 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, in S701, initial setting is performed. Here, L types of variable length coding tables T1 to TL are set. An example of the variable length code table is shown in FIG. FIG. 8 shows three (L = 3) variable length code tables T1, T2, and T3. As shown in FIG. 8, these variable length code tables are configured such that the degree of change in the code length of the variable length code table with respect to the change in value is different. In the example of FIG. 8, the variable length code table T1 is configured such that the code length increases rapidly as the value increases, and the degree of change decreases as the variable length code tables T2 and T3 are obtained. Yes. Here, the variable length code table is set by the control unit 103.

Thereafter, the processing from S702 to S704 is executed L times using the variable length code table Tl (l = 1 to L) in order.
In S702, the representative point position is encoded using the variable length code table Tl, and the code amount B is obtained at that time. As the encoding method here, a method similar to the conventional method 2 can be used. This encoding method will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 shows an example of the arrangement of representative points on the divided screen 701. A broken line in the horizontal direction indicates a scanning direction, and scanning from the upper left to the right walking is performed, and scanning is performed downward in order. A cross indicates a representative point. In this case, the representative points are scanned in the order of a1, a2, a3, a4. First, when the position of the representative point a1 is encoded, the distance (number of pixels) P1 from the left end is encoded. For the representative points a2 and a3, the distance from the immediately preceding representative point in the scanning order (representative point a1 for representative point a2 and representative point a2 for representative point a3) is encoded. That is, in this case, the distances P2 and P2 ′ are encoded. Then, since there is no representative point in the next row, it is skipped and the position of the representative point a4 in the next row is encoded. In this case, after encoding a code (EOL) indicating that the representative point a3 is the final representative point of the row, the number of rows between the lines (in this case, 2) is encoded. Then, the position information after the representative point a4 is encoded in the same manner as the position information of the representative points a1 to a3 is encoded. Then, all the representative points in the divided screen are encoded, and the generated code amount at that time is B.

In S703, it is determined whether the code amount B is smaller than B_min. If it is smaller, the process of S704 is performed.
In S704, B_min is replaced with B, and the value of the number 1 in the variable length code table at this time is held in L ′.

  When the processing from S702 to S704 is completed for all the variable length code tables, the processing of S705 is performed. That is, at the stage of S705, the variable length code table number that can encode the representative point position information in the current divided screen with the minimum code amount is set to L ′. become.

  In S705, the representative point position information is encoded using the variable-length code table TL ′ to generate a code string. At this time, the value L ′ of the variable length coding table is described in the code string.

  When the generation of code sequences for all divided screens output by the screen dividing unit 101 is completed by the representative point position encoding unit 102, the generation of code sequences of representative point information for one screen is completed. An example of the format of the code string is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 10A, the code sequence of the representative point information follows the screen size information and the number of divided screens N, and the code sequence of each divided screen is described together with the value of the number l in the variable length code table. . The number of divided screens may be described separately for the number of vertical divisions and the number of horizontal divisions, or may be described by selecting from a predetermined number of divisions.

  As described above, the representative point information encoding method of the present invention divides a screen into a plurality of regions, and encodes representative point information using an optimum parameter for each divided screen. Generally, the arrangement density of representative points is uneven in the screen. For example, in the case of the conventional method 1, the density of the representative points is high at a portion where the movement is complicated, and the density of the representative points is low at a portion where the movement is uniform. Further, in the case of the conventional method 2, the representative point density becomes high in a portion where the motion compensation residual is large. The present invention pays attention to such a deviation in the arrangement density of the representative points. By encoding the representative point information using the optimum parameters for each divided screen, one parameter is obtained on one screen. Compared with the case where encoding is performed using a fixed variable length code table, encoding efficiency can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the screen is divided into four as shown in FIG. 2 and encoded has been described, but the number of divisions may be another value. Further, it may be divided only in the horizontal direction or only in the vertical direction.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the screen size and the number of divisions N are described in the code string has been described. However, when encoding using a predetermined screen size or division method, the screen size or the division number is described. It is not necessary to describe the number. A configuration example of the code string in this case is shown in FIGS. 4B and 10B.

  In the first operation example of the present embodiment, the case where the value of the parameter m is described in the code string has been described. The variable length codebook used when encoding the parameter m is, for example, FIG. A codebook as shown in (a) can be used. Here, for example, when the minimum value of m is 4, the values of 1 to 3 do not occur, so the codebook is wasted. For this reason, encoding may be performed using a codebook as shown in FIG. 5B, and the minimum value of m may be described in the code string as the m reference value. A configuration example of the code string in this case is shown in FIG. In addition, codes may be assigned in descending order of the parameter value with reference to the maximum value of the parameter m.

  Further, in the first operation example of the present embodiment, the case has been described where the encoding is performed again using the value (M) of the parameter m that minimizes the code amount in S305. The code string generated for the value of m may be retained, and the retained code string corresponding to the value of M may be output as it is without generating the code string in S305.

  Further, in the second operation example of the present embodiment, the case has been described in which the encoding is performed again using the value (L ′) of the number 1 of the variable length code table that minimizes the code amount in S705. This holds the code string generated for each variable length code table in S702, and outputs the held code string corresponding to the value of L ′ without generating the code string in S705. May be.

  Further, in the first operation example of the present embodiment, when the position information of the representative point is encoded, the divided screen is scanned by setting the pixel where the representative point exists to 1 and the others to 0, and 0, 1 The sequence of 0 is obtained, the continuous length of 0 in the sequence is divided by 2 to the power of m, the remainder is encoded with an m-bit equal length code, and the quotient is encoded with a comma code. Other encoding methods may be used as long as the code sequences generated by m are different. Further, when there are a plurality of parameters, the plurality of parameters may be changed to obtain a combination of parameters that reduce the code amount, and the plurality of parameters may be described in the code string.

  In the second operation example of the present embodiment, when encoding the representative points, the screen is scanned in line order, the distance from the left end of the representative point that exists first, and the second and subsequent ones. The parameters are classified into three parameters (P1, P2 or P2 ′, P3 in FIG. 9) of the distance from the representative point immediately before the representative point, and then the vertical distance to the line where the representative point exists, and each of them is the same variable. Although the case where encoding is performed by using a long code table has been described, a variable length code table that is different for each parameter may be used. In this case, the number of a predetermined variable-length code table set (a set of variable-length code tables set for each of the three parameters) may be described in the code string. The number of the variable length table used in the above may be described in the code string.

  Further, in the second operation example of the present embodiment, the case where the representative point information is encoded using the variable length code table shown in FIG. 8 has been described. However, variable length encoding having different characteristics has been described. If a table is used, another variable length table may be used. In the variable length table of FIG. 8, a code is assigned to “0”, but this field is unnecessary if there is no overlap of representative points.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a representative point information decoding apparatus 600 using the representative point information decoding method of the present invention. The representative point information decoding apparatus 600 includes a code string analysis unit 601, a representative point position decoding unit 602, and a screen synthesis unit 603. It is assumed that the representative point information decoding apparatus 600 receives a code string in the format of FIG.

  The code string analysis unit 601 analyzes the input code string, and first acquires information on the screen size and the number of divided screens. Here, it is assumed that a code string in which representative point information is encoded by being divided into two parts in the vertical direction and two parts in the horizontal direction is input. The code string analysis unit 601 outputs information on the screen size and the number of divided screens to the representative point position decoding unit 602 and the screen synthesis unit 603. In addition, the code string corresponding to each divided screen is sequentially output to the representative point position decoding unit 602.

Two operation examples of the representative point position decoding unit 602 will be described.
(1) In the first operation example, the representative point position decoding unit 602 first decodes the value of the parameter m from the input code string. Then, the subsequent representative point code string is decoded using the obtained parameter m. Assuming that the representative point information is encoded by the method described in the first embodiment, a comma code is decoded as a quotient, and m bits are decoded as a remainder. From this quotient and the remainder, a continuous length of 0 is obtained. The size of the divided screen is determined from the screen size obtained from the code string analysis unit 601 and the number of screen divisions, and a series of 0 and 1 is generated by scanning using the obtained continuous length of 0. When this process is performed in order and a sequence is generated up to the last pixel in the divided screen, the decoding process in the divided screen is terminated. When the number of representative points in the divided screen is encoded first, when the number of representative points is decoded, the decoding process in the divided screen is terminated. At this time, the representative point position information of the divided screen 201 in FIG. 2 is obtained. The decoded representative point position information of the divided screen is output to the screen composition unit 603.

  Subsequently, the representative point position decoding unit 602 sequentially decodes the representative point position information of the remaining divided screens, and displays the representative point position information of the divided screens (representative point positions of the divided screens 202, 203, and 204 in FIG. 2). Information) is output to the screen composition unit 603.

  (2) In the second operation example, the representative point position decoding unit 602 first decodes the value of the variable length coding table number l from the input code string. Then, the subsequent representative point code string is decoded using the value of the obtained variable length coding table number l, that is, using the variable length code table Tl. Assuming that the representative point information is encoded by the method described in the first embodiment, first, the distance to the representative point at the head (leftmost) on the scanning line (corresponding to P1 in FIG. 9) is obtained. After decoding, the distance between the representative points (corresponding to P2 and P2 ′ in FIG. 9) is decoded until the code (EOL) indicating the final representative point on the line is reached. If there is EOL, the distance between lines (corresponding to P3 in FIG. 9) is then decoded. Thereafter, the same processing is repeated, and the position information of all representative points in the divided screen is decoded. The decoded representative point position information of the divided screen is output to the screen composition unit 603.

  Subsequently, the representative point position decoding unit 602 sequentially decodes the representative point position information of the remaining divided screens, and displays the representative point position information of the divided screens (representative point positions of the divided screens 202, 203, and 204 in FIG. 2). Information) is output to the screen composition unit 603.

  Based on the representative point position information of each divided screen input from the representative point position decoding unit 602, the screen size and the number of divided screens input from the code string analysis unit 601, the screen synthesis unit 603 The representative point position information on the entire screen (representative point position information on the screen 200 in FIG. 2) is generated and output.

  As described above, the representative point information decoding method of the present invention divides a screen into a plurality of regions and decodes a code string generated by encoding representative point position information for each divided screen. At this time, the representative point position information of the split screen is decoded using the parameters described in the code string and the variable length code table information, and the representative point position information of the obtained split screen is combined to obtain the entire screen. By generating the representative point position information, the decoded representative point position information can be correctly decoded.

  In the present embodiment, a case has been described in which a code string obtained by decoding a screen divided into four as shown in FIG. 2 is decoded, but the number of divisions may be another value. .

  Further, in the present embodiment, the case where the screen size and the number of divisions N are described in the code string has been described, but in the case where encoding is performed using a predetermined screen size and division method, Decoding may be performed using the determined screen size and number of divisions.

(Embodiment 3)
Furthermore, by recording the program for realizing the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method shown in the above embodiments on a recording medium such as a flexible disk, The processing shown in the form can be easily performed in an independent computer system.

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram when the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method of each of the above embodiments are implemented by a computer system using a program recorded on a recording medium such as a flexible disk. is there.

  FIG. 11B shows an external appearance, a cross-sectional structure, and a flexible disk as viewed from the front of the flexible disk, and FIG. 11A shows an example of a physical format of the flexible disk that is a recording medium body. The flexible disk FD is built in the case F, and on the surface of the disk, a plurality of tracks Tr are formed concentrically from the outer periphery toward the inner periphery, and each track is divided into 16 sectors Se in the angular direction. ing. Therefore, in the flexible disk storing the program, the program is recorded in an area allocated on the flexible disk FD.

  FIG. 11C shows a configuration for recording and reproducing the program on the flexible disk FD. When the program for realizing the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method is recorded on the flexible disk FD, the program is written from the computer system Cs via the flexible disk drive. When the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method for realizing the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method by a program in the flexible disk are constructed in a computer system, the flexible disk The program is read from the flexible disk by the drive and transferred to the computer system.

  In the above description, a flexible disk is used as the recording medium, but the same can be done using an optical disk. Further, the recording medium is not limited to this, and any recording medium such as an IC card or a ROM cassette capable of recording a program can be similarly implemented.

(Embodiment 4)
Further, application examples of the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method shown in the above embodiment and a system using the same will be described.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a content supply system ex100 that implements a content distribution service. The communication service providing area is divided into desired sizes, and base stations ex107 to ex110, which are fixed radio stations, are installed in each cell.

  The content supply system ex100 includes, for example, a computer ex111, a PDA (personal digital assistant) ex112, a camera ex113, a mobile phone ex114, a camera via the Internet ex101, the Internet service provider ex102, the telephone network ex104, and the base stations ex107 to ex110. Each device such as the attached mobile phone ex115 is connected.

  However, the content supply system ex100 is not limited to the combination as shown in FIG. 12, and any of the combinations may be connected. Further, each device may be directly connected to the telephone network ex104 without going through the base stations ex107 to ex110 which are fixed wireless stations.

  The camera ex113 is a device capable of shooting a moving image such as a digital video camera. The mobile phone is a PDC (Personal Digital Communications) system, a CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) system, a W-CDMA (Wideband-Code Division Multiple Access) system, or a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) system mobile phone, Alternatively, PHS (Personal Handyphone System) or the like may be used.

  In addition, the streaming server ex103 is connected from the camera ex113 through the base station ex109 and the telephone network ex104, and live distribution or the like based on the encoded data transmitted by the user using the camera ex113 becomes possible. The encoded processing of the captured data may be performed by the camera ex113 or may be performed by a server or the like that performs data transmission processing. Further, the moving image data shot by the camera ex116 may be transmitted to the streaming server ex103 via the computer ex111. The camera ex116 is a device that can shoot still images and moving images, such as a digital camera. In this case, the encoding of the moving image data may be performed by the camera ex116 or the computer ex111. The encoding process is performed in the LSI ex117 included in the computer ex111 and the camera ex116. Note that image encoding / decoding software may be incorporated into any storage medium (CD-ROM, flexible disk, hard disk, etc.) that is a recording medium readable by the computer ex111 or the like. Furthermore, you may transmit moving image data with the mobile telephone ex115 with a camera. The moving image data at this time is data encoded by the LSI included in the mobile phone ex115.

  In this content supply system ex100, the content (for example, video shot of music live) captured by the user with the camera ex113, camera ex116, etc. is encoded and transmitted to the streaming server ex103 as in the above embodiment. On the other hand, the streaming server ex103 distributes the content data to the requested client. Examples of the client include a computer ex111, a PDA ex112, a camera ex113, a mobile phone ex114, and the like that can decode the encoded data. In this way, the content supply system ex100 can receive and reproduce the encoded data at the client, and also realize personal broadcasting by receiving, decoding, and reproducing in real time at the client. It is a system that becomes possible.

  The representative point information encoding method or the representative point information decoding method described in each of the above embodiments may be used for encoding and decoding of each device constituting this system.

A mobile phone will be described as an example.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the mobile phone ex115 using the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method described in the above embodiment. The cellular phone ex115 includes an antenna ex201 for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from the base station ex110, a camera such as a CCD camera, a camera unit ex203 capable of taking a still image, a video shot by the camera unit ex203, and an antenna ex201. A display unit ex202 such as a liquid crystal display that displays data obtained by decoding received video and the like, a main body unit composed of a group of operation keys ex204, an audio output unit ex208 such as a speaker for audio output, and audio input To store encoded data or decoded data such as a voice input unit ex205 such as a microphone, captured video or still image data, received mail data, video data or still image data, etc. Recording medium ex207, and slot portion ex20 for enabling recording medium ex207 to be attached to mobile phone ex115 The it has. The recording medium ex207 stores a flash memory element which is a kind of EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) which is a nonvolatile memory that can be electrically rewritten and erased in a plastic case such as an SD card.

  Further, the cellular phone ex115 will be described with reference to FIG. The cellular phone ex115 controls the power supply circuit ex310, the operation input control unit ex304, and the image coding for the main control unit ex311 which is configured to control the respective units of the main body unit including the display unit ex202 and the operation key ex204. Unit ex312, camera interface unit ex303, LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) control unit ex302, image decoding unit ex309, demultiplexing unit ex308, recording / reproducing unit ex307, modulation / demodulation circuit unit ex306, and audio processing unit ex305 via a synchronization bus ex313 Are connected to each other.

  When the end call and power key are turned on by a user operation, the power supply circuit ex310 activates the camera-equipped digital mobile phone ex115 by supplying power from the battery pack to each unit. .

  The mobile phone ex115 converts the voice signal collected by the voice input unit ex205 in the voice call mode into digital voice data by the voice processing unit ex305 based on the control of the main control unit ex311 including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The modulation / demodulation circuit unit ex306 performs spread spectrum processing, and the transmission / reception circuit unit ex301 performs digital analog conversion processing and frequency conversion processing, and then transmits the result via the antenna ex201. In addition, the cellular phone ex115 amplifies the received signal received by the antenna ex201 in the voice call mode, performs frequency conversion processing and analog-digital conversion processing, performs spectrum despreading processing by the modulation / demodulation circuit unit ex306, and analog audio by the voice processing unit ex305. After conversion into a signal, this is output via the audio output unit ex208.

  Further, when an e-mail is transmitted in the data communication mode, text data of the e-mail input by operating the operation key ex204 of the main body is sent to the main control unit ex311 via the operation input control unit ex304. The main control unit ex311 performs spread spectrum processing on the text data in the modulation / demodulation circuit unit ex306, performs digital analog conversion processing and frequency conversion processing in the transmission / reception circuit unit ex301, and then transmits the text data to the base station ex110 via the antenna ex201.

  When transmitting image data in the data communication mode, the image data captured by the camera unit ex203 is supplied to the image encoding unit ex312 via the camera interface unit ex303. When image data is not transmitted, the image data captured by the camera unit ex203 can be directly displayed on the display unit ex202 via the camera interface unit ex303 and the LCD control unit ex302.

  The image encoding unit ex312 has a configuration including the image encoding device described in the present invention, and an encoding method using the image data supplied from the camera unit ex203 in the image encoding device described in the above embodiment. The encoded image data is converted into encoded image data by compression encoding, and sent to the demultiplexing unit ex308. At the same time, the cellular phone ex115 sends the sound collected by the audio input unit ex205 during imaging by the camera unit ex203 to the demultiplexing unit ex308 as digital audio data via the audio processing unit ex305.

  The demultiplexing unit ex308 multiplexes the encoded image data supplied from the image encoding unit ex312 and the audio data supplied from the audio processing unit ex305 by a predetermined method, and the multiplexed data obtained as a result is a modulation / demodulation circuit unit A spectrum spread process is performed in ex306, a digital analog conversion process and a frequency conversion process are performed in the transmission / reception circuit unit ex301, and then the signal is transmitted through the antenna ex201.

  When receiving data of a moving image file linked to a home page or the like in the data communication mode, the received signal received from the base station ex110 via the antenna ex201 is subjected to spectrum despreading processing by the modulation / demodulation circuit unit ex306, and the resulting multiplexing is obtained. Is sent to the demultiplexing unit ex308.

  In addition, in order to decode the multiplexed data received via the antenna ex201, the demultiplexing unit ex308 separates the multiplexed data to generate an encoded bitstream of image data and an encoded bitstream of audio data. The encoded image data is supplied to the image decoding unit ex309 via the synchronization bus ex313, and the audio data is supplied to the audio processing unit ex305.

  Next, the image decoding unit ex309 is configured to include the image decoding device described in the present invention, and a decoding method corresponding to the encoding method described in the above embodiment for an encoded bit stream of image data. To generate playback moving image data, which is supplied to the display unit ex202 via the LCD control unit ex302, thereby displaying, for example, moving image data included in the moving image file linked to the homepage . At the same time, the audio processing unit ex305 converts the audio data into an analog audio signal, and then supplies the analog audio signal to the audio output unit ex208. Thus, for example, the audio data included in the moving image file linked to the home page is reproduced. The

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described system, and recently, digital broadcasting using satellites and terrestrial waves has become a hot topic. As shown in FIG. 14, the digital broadcasting system also includes at least the image encoding device or the image according to the above embodiment. Any of the decoding devices can be incorporated. Specifically, in the broadcasting station ex409, the encoded bit stream of the video information is transmitted to the communication or broadcasting satellite ex410 via radio waves. Receiving this, the broadcasting satellite ex410 transmits a radio wave for broadcasting, and receives the radio wave with a home antenna ex406 having a satellite broadcasting receiving facility, such as a television (receiver) ex401 or a set top box (STB) ex407. The device decodes the encoded bit stream and reproduces it. In addition, the image decoding apparatus described in the above embodiment can also be implemented in a playback apparatus ex403 that reads and decodes an encoded bitstream recorded on a storage medium ex402 such as a CD or DVD that is a recording medium. is there. In this case, the reproduced video signal is displayed on the monitor ex404. Further, a configuration in which an image decoding device is mounted in a set-top box ex407 connected to a cable ex405 for cable television or an antenna ex406 for satellite / terrestrial broadcasting, and this is reproduced on the monitor ex408 of the television is also conceivable. At this time, the image decoding apparatus may be incorporated in the television instead of the set top box. It is also possible to receive a signal from the satellite ex410 or the base station ex107 by the car ex412 having the antenna ex411 and reproduce a moving image on a display device such as the car navigation ex413 that the car ex412 has.

  Further, the image signal can be encoded by the image encoding device shown in the above embodiment and recorded on a recording medium. As a specific example, there is a recorder ex420 such as a DVD recorder that records an image signal on a DVD disk ex421 or a disk recorder that records on a hard disk. Further, it can be recorded on the SD card ex422. If the recorder ex420 includes the image decoding device described in the above embodiment, the image signal recorded on the DVD disc ex421 or the SD card ex422 can be reproduced and displayed on the monitor ex408.

  For example, the configuration of the car navigation ex413 in the configuration shown in FIG. 15 excluding the camera unit ex203, the camera interface unit ex303, and the image encoding unit ex312 can be considered, and the same applies to the computer ex111 and the television (receiver). ) Ex401 can also be considered.

  In addition to the transmission / reception type terminal having both the encoder and the decoder, the terminal such as the mobile phone ex114 has three mounting formats: a transmitting terminal having only an encoder and a receiving terminal having only a decoder. Can be considered.

As described above, the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method shown in the above embodiment can be used in any of the above-described devices and systems. The described effect can be obtained.
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  The representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method according to the present invention have an effect that the encoding efficiency can be improved, and are useful as a data processing method in image encoding and image processing. is there

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a representative point information encoding apparatus using a representative point information encoding method of the present invention (Embodiment 1). FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing positions of representative points (Embodiment 1). 5 is a flowchart illustrating a processing method of a first operation example of the representative point position encoding unit 102 (first embodiment). It is a schematic diagram which shows one form of the code sequence produced | generated by the representative point information coding method of this invention (Embodiment 1). It is a figure which shows the example of the variable length codebook used with the representative point information encoding method of this invention (Embodiment 1). It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the representative point information decoding apparatus using the representative point information decoding method of this invention (Embodiment 2). 10 is a flowchart showing a processing method of a second operation example of representative point position encoding section 102 (Embodiment 1). It is a schematic diagram which shows one form of the variable-length encoding table used in the representative point information encoding method of this invention (Embodiment 1). FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of arrangement of representative points in a divided screen for explaining a second operation example of the representative point position encoding unit (first embodiment). It is a schematic diagram which shows one form of the code sequence produced | generated by the representative point information coding method of this invention (Embodiment 1). FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a recording medium for storing a program for realizing the representative point information encoding method and the representative point information decoding method of each of the above embodiments by a computer system (Embodiment 3). FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a content supply system (Embodiment 4). This is an example of a mobile phone using a representative point information encoding method and a representative point information decoding method (Embodiment 4). FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a mobile phone (Embodiment 4). This is an example of a digital broadcasting system (Embodiment 4).

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Representative point information encoding apparatus 101 Screen dividing part 102 Representative point position encoding part 103 Control part 600 Representative point information decoding apparatus 601 Code sequence analysis part 602 Representative point position decoding part 603 Screen synthesizing part Cs Computer system FD Flexible Disk FDD Flexible disk drive

Claims (17)

A representative point information encoding method for encoding position information of a representative point of an image,
A screen dividing step of dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens;
A representative point position encoding step for generating a code string by encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen divided by the dividing step by using a parameter that can be changed for each divided screen. Point information encoding method. A representative point information encoding method according to claim 1, comprising:
In the representative point position encoding step, the parameter used when encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen is described in the code string. A representative point information encoding method according to claim 2, comprising:
In the representative point position encoding step, a reference value of the parameter used when encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen is described in the code string. Method. A representative point information encoding method according to claim 1, comprising:
In the representative point position encoding step, information indicating a screen dividing method in the screen dividing step is described in the code string. A representative point information encoding method for encoding position information of a representative point of an image,
A screen dividing step of dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens;
A representative point position encoding step of generating a code string by encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen divided by the dividing step using a variable length code table that can be changed for each divided screen. The representative point information encoding method. A representative point information encoding method according to claim 5,
In the representative point position encoding step, the variable point code table number used when encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen is described in the code string. Method. A representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, comprising:
A representative point position decoding step for obtaining position information of a representative point in the divided screen using different parameters for the input code string for each divided screen;
The representative point information decoding comprising: a screen combining step of combining the representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step and generating the representative point position information of the entire screen. Method. A representative point information decoding method according to claim 7,
In the representative point position decoding step, the parameter is obtained from the input code string. A representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, comprising:
A representative point position decoding step of obtaining position information of representative points in the divided screen by using a variable length coding table in which the input code string is different for each divided screen;
The representative point information decoding comprising: a screen combining step of combining the representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step and generating the representative point position information of the entire screen. Method. The representative point information decoding method according to claim 9, wherein
In the representative point position decoding step, information indicating the variable length coding table is obtained from the input code string. A representative point information decoding method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, comprising:
The representative point information decoding method, wherein in the screen synthesis step, information indicating a screen division method is obtained from a code string, thereby determining the division screen synthesis method. A program for causing a computer to perform a representative point information encoding method,
The representative point information encoding method includes:
A representative point information encoding method for encoding position information of a representative point of an image,
A screen dividing step of dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens;
A representative point position encoding step for generating a code string by encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen divided by the dividing step by using a parameter that can be changed for each divided screen. . A program for causing a computer to perform a representative point information encoding method,
The representative point information encoding method includes:
A representative point information encoding method for encoding position information of a representative point of an image,
A screen dividing step of dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens;
A representative point position encoding step of generating a code string by encoding the position information of the representative point in the divided screen divided by the dividing step using a variable length code table that can be changed for each divided screen. Program. A program for causing a computer to perform a representative point information decoding method,
The representative point information decoding method includes:
A representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, comprising:
A representative point position decoding step for obtaining position information of a representative point in the divided screen using different parameters for the input code string for each divided screen;
A program comprising: a screen synthesis step for synthesizing representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step to generate representative point position information for all screens. A program for causing a computer to perform a representative point information decoding method,
The representative point information decoding method includes:
A representative point information decoding method for decoding position information of a representative point of an image, comprising:
A representative point position decoding step of obtaining position information of representative points in the divided screen by using a variable length coding table in which the input code string is different for each divided screen;
A program comprising: a screen synthesis step for synthesizing representative point position information of each divided screen obtained from the representative point position decoding step to generate representative point position information for all screens. A recording medium storing data,
The data is data obtained by encoding position information of representative points of an image,
The code sequence is a code sequence obtained by dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens and encoding position information of representative points in the divided screens using parameters that can be changed for each divided screen. A recording medium. A recording medium storing data,
The data is data obtained by encoding position information of representative points of an image,
The code string is a code string obtained by dividing the image into a plurality of divided screens and encoding the position information of the representative points in the divided screens using a variable length coding table that can be changed for each divided screen. A recording medium characterized by being.

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