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US 5,517,583 AGranted
Image encoding method and apparatus
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsIzuru Horiuchi, Taku Yamagami, Shigeru Jinnai
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Abstract
This invention relates to an image encoding method and apparatus and, more particularly, to determination of an encoding parameter. According to this invention, a method of determining a parameter for encoding an image to be encoded in accordance with an encoding parameter of the already encoded image is disclosed.
Claims34
An image encoding method comprising the steps of:
- a) successively inputting image data relating to a plurality of different pictures, each of the pictures having a plurality of blocks and each of the blocks having a plurality of pixels;
- b) encoding the image data in units of blocks;
- and
- c) controlling an encoding parameter in units of pictures such that an amount of encoded image data of each different picture is within a predetermined value, wherein said parameter is determined by using a parameter which has been previously used for encoding a picture preceding a picture to be encoded as an initial parameter, and in the case the previously used encoding parameter does not yield encoded image data within a predetermined value, the image data is repeatedly encoded with a new encoding parameter until an encoding parameter is determined to encode the image data to be within the predetermined value.
1 more element
A still video camera comprising:
- a) input means for inputting image data corresponding to a plurality of different pictures at predetermined intervals;
- b) encoding means for sequentially encoding the plurality of different pictures input by said input means;
- and
- c) control means for determining an encoding parameter of said encoding means such that an amount of encoded image data of each different picture is within a predetermined value, wherein said parameter is determined in accordance with a parameter which has been previously used for encoding a picture that precedes a picture to be encoded, and in the case the previously used encoding parameter does not yield encoded image data within a predetermined value, the image data is repeatedly encoded with a new encoding parameter until an encoding parameter is determined to encode the image data to be within the predetermined value.
1 more element
An image encoding apparatus having a first mode for encoding image data and a second mode for encoding image data which is different from the first mode, comprising:
- a) encoding means for sequentially encoding image data corresponding to a plurality of different pictures;
- and
- b) selecting means for selecting the first mode for determining an encoding parameter such that an amount of encoded image data of each different picture is within a predetermined value by using a default value, and the second mode for determining an encoding parameter such that an amount of encoded image data of each different picture is within a predetermined value on the basis of a parameter which has been previously used for encoding a picture that precedes a picture to be encoded.
An image processing method comprising the steps of:
- a) encoding input image data in accordance with an encoding parameter;
- b) measuring an amount of encoded image data;
- c) judging whether the amount of encoded image data is within a predetermined amount;
- and
- d) repeating steps a) through c) for the same image data to determine the encoding parameter for said encoding step capable of obtaining said predetermined amount of encoded image data, wherein the encoding parameter is determined by using an encoding parameter which has been previously used for encoding a picture preceding a picture to be encoded as an initial encoding parameter.
2 more elements
An image encoding apparatus comprising:
- a) input means for inputting image data corresponding to a plurality of different pictures at predetermined intervals;
- b) encoding means for sequentially encoding the plurality of different pictures input by said input means;
- c) memory means for storing an encoding parameter which has been previously used for encoding a picture preceding a picture to be encoded;
- and
- d) control means for determining an encoding parameter for encoding the picture to be encoded by repeatedly encoding the image data with a different encoding parameter in each encoding until such time an encoding parameter is determined, wherein the encoding parameter stored in said memory means is used as an initial parameter.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.