Image sequence coding by split and merge

• Published in: IEEE transactions on communications Vol. 39; no. 12; pp. 1845 - 1855
• Main Authors: Willemin, P., Reed, T.R., Kunt, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01.12.1991; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Bandwidth; Exact sciences and technology; Helium; Humans; Image coding; Image processing; Image segmentation; Image sequences; Information, signal and communications theory; ISDN; Layout; Pixel; Polynomials; Signal processing; Telecommunications and information theory; Passband compression; Compression ratio; Binary tree; Segmentation; Image processing; Image sequence; Algorithm; Information compression
• ISSN: 0090-6778; 1558-0857
• DOI: 10.1109/26.120170

A method is described for reducing the information contained in an image sequence, while retaining the information necessary for the interpretation of the sequence by a human observer. The method consists of first locating the redundant information, reducing the degree of redundancy, and coding the result. The sequence is treated as a single 3D data volume, the voxels of which are grouped into several regions, obtained by a 3D split and merge algorithm. The information is coded by representing the borders of the regions using a pyramidal structure in the x, y, t space. The coefficients of the approximating polynomials are coded in a straightforward manner. For 256*256 pixel, 25 frame/s image sequences, compressions allowing transmission rates near 64 kbit/s are obtained.< >