Fast Mode Decision Algorithm for SVC Based on Texture Region Segmentation

(Abstract )Mode decision algorithm in Scalable Video Coding(SVC) has high computational complexity. In this paper, a fast mode decision algorithm is proposed. In the proposed algorithm, INTRA mode rate-distortion cost and its interlayer correlation are utilized to segment the enhancement picture into different texture region, the early termination threshold is utilized to determine the SKIP and BLPRED mode in advance, then, the INTRA mode rate-distortion cost is utilized to calculate the texture region type for the macroblock in enhancement layer. According to the texture region type and motion activity of the macroblock, the INTER mode estimation is dynamically adjusted. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can reduce the total encoding time by up to 52.58 % with very low Peak Signal to Noise Ratio(PSNR) loss. (Key words )Scalable Video Coding(SVC); rate-distortion cost; texture region; motion activeness DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1000-3428.2011.22.082