Point cloud compression image padding

A device, comprising:

• a memory storing program instructions for compressing three-dimensional (3D) point cloud data using two-dimensional (2D) image frames;
• and
• one or more processors, wherein the program instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
• generate, for a point cloud, one or more projected patch images;
• pack the generated one or more projected patch images into one or more image frames;
• pad spaces in the one or more image frames that are not covered by the one or more projected patch images with a pad, wherein to determine pixel values for the pad the program instructions cause the one or more processors to:
• for respective pixels or blocks of pixels included in the pad:
• evaluate, a cost function that accounts for encoding costs of encoding pad pixel values to select a smoothing method to be used to smooth pixel values for the respective pixels or blocks of pixels, wherein at least two or more smoothing methods are evaluated;
• and
• perform a smoothing operation on pixels of the pad such that pixel values for respective ones of the pixels included in the pad are smoothed based on respective pixel values of a set of neighboring pixels in a neighborhood of a given padded pixel being smoothed according to a selected smoothing method for the pixels or blocks of pixels;
• and
• encode the one or more image frames including the packed patch images and smoothed padded spaces.

A system comprising:

• one or more computers configured to:
• generate a point cloud comprising a plurality of points in three-dimensional (3D) space, wherein respective ones of the points comprise spatial information for the point and attribute information for the point;
• and
• compress the generated point cloud into a plurality of video images comprising packed patch images, wherein to wherein to determine pixel values for a padded portion of the video images the one or more computers are configured to, for respective pixels or blocks of pixels included in the pad:
• evaluate, a cost function that accounts for encoding costs of encoding pad pixel values to select a smoothing method to be used to smooth pixel values for the respective pixels or blocks of pixels, wherein at least two or more smoothing methods are evaluated;
• and
• perform a smoothing operation on pixels of the pad such that pixel values for respective ones of the pixels included in the pad are smoothed based on respective pixel values of a set of neighboring pixels in a neighborhood of a given padded pixel being smoothed according to a selected smoothing method for the pixels or blocks of pixels.