Video processing method, encoding device, decoding device, and data structure for facilitating layout of a restored image frame

An encoding device comprising:

• an encoding controller for receiving at least one source image frame and a reference signal, said encoding controller decreasing a resolution of the source image frame on the basis of the reference signal to thereby obtain reduced image frame content with a reduced resolution, and generating a relay image frame containing the reduced image frame content;
• a header packer generating a header including at least one element, packing the relay image frame and the header into a video signal, and transmitting the video signal to a decoding device, said at least one element containing information of the reduced image frame content in the relay image frame for use by the decoding device in obtaining a restored image frame from the reduced image frame content in the relay image frame;
• and
• a video encoder for compressing the relay image frame when receiving the same from said encoding controller;
• wherein said encoding controller pads the relay image from with simple macroblocks and outputs the resulting relay image frame to said video encoder when said video encoder does not support deactivation control, and said encoding controller outputs the relay image frame to said header packer when said video encoder does support deactivation control.

A decoding device communicating with an encoding device and receiving a video signal therefrom that has packed therein a relay image frame in a compressed state and a header, the header including at least one element which contains information of reduced image frame content in the relay image frame, said decoding device comprising:

• a header unpacker for unpacking the relay image frame and the header from the video signal;
• a video decoder for decompressing the relay image frame output by the header unpacker;
• and
• a decoding controller for receiving the header from one of said video decoder and said header unpacker, said decoding controller obtaining a restored image frame from the reduced image frame content in the relay image frame on the basis of said at least one element in the header;
• wherein said at least one element in the header based on which said decoding controller obtains the restored image frame includes:
• a bandwidth element containing information of a detected bandwidth of the network;
• a scale element containing information of a predetermined factor used to scale down the image frame content from the source image frame;
• a ratio element containing information of an exponent of the predetermined factor used to scale down the image frame content from the source image frame;
• a length element indicating a length of the reduced image frame content in number of pixels, and a width element indicating a width of the reduced image frame content in number of pixels;
• and
• an X-coordinate element indicating an X-coordinate of a predetermined location of the reduced image frame content in the relay image frame, and a Y-coordinate element indicating a Y-coordinate of the predetermined location of the reduced image frame content in the relay image frame.