Method and apparatus for controlling loop filtering or post filtering in block based motion compensationed video coding

Abstract

Adjacent blocks are identified in an image. Coding parameters for the adjacent blocks are identified. Deblock filtering between the identified adjacent blocks is skipped if the coding parameters for the identified adjacent blocks are similar and not skipped if the coding parameters for the identified adjacent blocks are substantially different.

1. A method for encoding an image, comprising:
 identifying spatially adjacent blocks in a same frame of the image; 
 identifying transform coefficients motion vectors used for motion compensation for the spatially adjacent blocks in the same frame of the image and associated reference frames for the motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks; 
 comparing the transform coefficients betweenjudging whether to perform deblock filtering for removing image residuals between the identified spatially adjacent block caused by encoding the image, by: determining whether the motion vectors for the spatially adjacent blocks in the same frame of the image are the same or similar to each other and determining whether the reference frames for motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks are identical; and  
 skipping deblock filtering for removing image residuals caused by encoding the image between the identified spatially adjacent blocks when the comparison indicates that the motion vectors for the spatially adjacent blocks in the same frame of the image have are determined to be the same or similar transform coefficients; and 
 deblock filtering to remove image residuals between the identified spatially adjacent blocks when the comparison between the transform coefficients for the identified spatially adjacent blocks in the same frame of the image indicate that the spatially adjacent blocks do not have the same or similar transform coefficients and the reference frames for the motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks are determined to be identical. 
 
     
     
       2. A method according to  claim 1  including:
 identifying D.C. components in the transform coefficients for the spatially adjacent blocks; 
 comparing the D.C. components for the spatially adjacent blocks with each other; and 
 skipping deblock filtering between the spatially adjacent blocks when the D.C. components for the compared spatially adjacent blocks have same or similar values relative to each other. 
 
     
     
       3. A method according to  claim 1  including:
 identifying both D.C. and A.C. components in the transform coefficients for the spatially adjacent blocks; 
 comparing the D.C. components for adjacent blocks and A.C. components for adjacent blocks; and 
 skipping deblock filtering between the adjacent blocks when both the D.C. components are the same or similar and the A.C. components are the same or similar. 
 
     
     
       4. A method according to  claim 1  including controlling deblock filtering for a loop filter in an image coder. 
     
     
       5. A method according to  claim 1  including controlling deblock filtering in one or both of a loop filter and a post filter in an image decoder. 
     
     
       6. A method according to  claim 1  including:
 identifying similarities between coding parameters in a luminance channel of the adjacent blocks; and 
 controlling deblock filtering for both the luminance channel and a chrominance channel in the image according to identified similarities in the luminance channel. 
 
     
     
       7. A method according to  claim 1  including selectively skipping deblock filtering in any one of a H.261, H.263, H263+, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, or H26L encoding standard according to encoding parameter similarities between adjacent image blocks. 
     
     
       8. An encoder for encoding an image, comprising:
 a processor adapted to: 
 compare blocks in a same image frame with reference frames; transform a result of the comparison between the reference frames and the blocks in the image frame into transformed blocks having transform coefficients;identify motion vectors and associated reference frames for the motion vectors of spatially adjacent blocks in a same frame of the image; 
 compare are the similarities between the transform coefficientsdetermine whether motion vectors for spatially adjacent transformed blocks within the same image frame are the same or similar to each other and determine whether reference frames for the motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks are identical; and 
 skippingskip deblock filtering between spatially adjacent transformed blocks in the image that have the same or similar transform coefficients motion vectors and that have identical reference frames for the motion vectors. 
 
     
     
       9. An encoder according to  claim 8  wherein the processor is adapted to
 identify motion vectors and associated reference frames for the adjacent blocks and skip deblock filtering between the spatially adjacent blocks according to the identified motion vectors and reference frames. 
 
     
     
       10. An encoder according to  claim 8  wherein the processor is adapted to identify residual coefficients for the spatially adjacent blocks and skip deblock filtering according to the identified residual coefficients. 
     
     
       11. An encoder according to  claim 8  wherein the processor is adapted to skip deblock filtering according to both D.C. and A.C. components in the residual coefficients. 
     
     
       12. A decoder for decoding an encoded image, comprising:
 a processor adapted to identify spatially adjacent blocks in the encoded image; 
 identify coding parameters including D.C. coefficients motion vectors and associated reference frames for the motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks within a same encoded image frame; 
 compare the motion vectors and associated references frames for the motion vectors of the identified D.C. coefficients between coding parameters of the identified spatially adjacent blocks; and 
 enable or disable filtering of blocking artifacts between the spatially adjacent blocks according to the comparison of the D.C. coefficients coding parameters between the spatially adjacent blocks within the same encoded image frame, wherein 
 the processor skips deblock filtering when the motion vectors for the spatially adjacent blocks are the same or similar and the reference frames for motion vectors of the spatially adjacent blocks are identical. 
 
     
     
       13. A decoder according to  claim 12  wherein the processor is adapted to
 identify both D.C. coefficients and A.C. coefficients for the spatially adjacent blocks within a same encoded image frame; 
 compare the identified D.C. coefficients between the identified spatially adjacent blocks and corn are compare the identified A.C. coefficients between the identified spatially adjacent blocks; and 
 enable or disable filtering of blocking artifacts between the spatially adjacent blocks according to the comparison of the D.C. coefficients between the adjacent blocks within the same encoded image frame and according to the comparison of the A.C. coefficients between the adjacent blocks within the same encoded image frame. 
 
     
     
       14. A decoder according to  claim 12  wherein the processor is adapted to identify residual coefficients for the spatially adjacent blocks and skip deblock filtering between the spatially adjacent blocks according to the identified residual coefficients. 
     
     
       15. A decoder according to  claim 12  wherein the processor is adapted to
 inverse transform the encoded image, 
 compare blocks in the inverse transformed encoded image with reference frames, 
 generate a reconstructed image from the comparison between the inverse transformed encoded image and the reference frame, and 
 skip deblock filtering between spatially adjacent blocks in the reconstructed image according to the coding parameters for the spatially adjacent blocks. 
 
     
     
       16. A decoder according to  claim 15  wherein the coding parameters include transform coefficients, motion vectors, and reference frame information and the processor skips deblock filtering when the transform coefficients, motion vectors, and reference frame information for the spatially adjacent blocks are the same or similar. 
     
     
       17. A decoder according to  claim 12  wherein the processor is adapted to skip deblock filtering in one or both of a loop filter and a post filter.