Abstract
As a crucial component of video compression, rate control regulates the encoding bitrates of compressed bitstreams to meet channel bandwidths while obtaining optimum encoding quality. In this research, we investigate rate control techniques for High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC/H.265) and propose a new Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) based direct rate control algorithm for HEVC/H.265. The objective is to achieve accurate bitrate control for real-time networked video applications. Based on the PID control theory, the proposed algorithm first performs target bit allocation, and then directly controls actual compression bitrates to get close to target encoding bitrates. Different from conventional rate control approaches, a buffer is not adopted in the proposed rate control algorithm which naturally reduces encoding delay and improves real-time response. When compared with the rate control scheme adopted by HEVC/H.265 reference software, our algorithm achieves superior performance according to the experimental results. Specifically, our proposed algorithm improves rate control accuracy up to 23.43%, and achieves higher encoding quality up to 3.47 dB.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ang KG, Chong G, Li Y (2005) PID control system analysis, design, and technology. IEEE Trans Control Syst Technol 13(4):559–576
Bossen F (2012) Common test conditions and software reference configurations. San Jose, JCT-VC of ITU-T SG16 WP3 and ISO/IEC JTC1/SC29/WG11, JCT-VC H1100.
Choi H, Nam J, Yoo J, Sim D, Bajiæ IV (2012) Rate control based on unified RQ model for HEVC, JCTVC-H0213, 8th JCTVC meeting. CA, USA, San Jose
Choi H, Nam J, Yoo J, Sim D, Bajiæ IV (2013) Pixel-Wise. Unified Rate-Quantization Model for Multi-Level Rate Control IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Signal Processing 7(6):1112–1123
Gao W, Kwong S, Yuan H, Wang X (2016) DCT coefficient distribution modeling and quality dependency analysis based frame-level bit allocation for HEVC. IEEE Trans Circuits Syst Video Tech 26(1):139–153
Gao W, Kwong S, Jia Y (2017) Joint machine learning and game theory for rate control in high efficiency video coding. IEEE Trans Image Proc 26(12):6074–6089
Gao W, Kwong S, Jiang Q, Fong CK, Wong PHW, Yuen WYF (2019) Data-driven rate control for rate-distortion optimization in HEVC based on simplified effective initial QP learning. IEEE Trans on Broadcasting 65(1):94–108
Hu J, Peng W, and Chung C (2018) Reinforcement learning for hevc/h.265 intra-frame rate control. Proceedings of 2018 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems (ISCAS).
Huang T, Zhang RX, Zhou C, Sun L (2018) QARC: video quality aware rate control for real-time video streaming via deep reinforcement learning. Proceedings of ACM Multimedia Conference. https://doi.org/10.1145/3240508.3240545
Kim IK, McCann K, et al. (2012) High efficiency video coding (HEVC) test model 8 encoder description. JCT-VC of ITU-T SG 16 and ISI/IEC JTC1/SC 29/WG 11, Stockholm, JCTVC-J1002.
Li B, Li H, Li L, Zhang J (2014) λ domain rate control algorithm for high efficiency video coding. IEEE trans. Image Process 23(9):3841–3854
Li S, Xu M, Deng X, Wang Z (2015) Weight-based R-λ rate control for perceptual HEVC coding on conversational videos. Signal Proc.: Image Communication 38:127–140
Li S, Xu M, Wang Z, Sun X (2017) Optimal bit allocation for CTU level rate control in HEVC. IEEE Trans on Circuits and Systems for Video Tech 27(11):2409–2424
Liu Z, Wang L, Li X, Ji X (2019) Optimize x265 rate control: an exploration of Lookahead in frame bit allocation and slice type decision. IEEE Trans Image Process 28(5):2558–2573
Sullivan GJ, Ohm J, Han WJ, Wiegand T (2012) Overview of the high efficiency video coding (HEVC) standard. IEEE Trans. on Circuits and Systems for Video Technology 22(12):1649–1668
Sun Y, Ahmad I (2004) A robust and adaptive rate control algorithm for objects based video. IEEE Trans Circuits Syst Video Technol 14(10):1167–1182
Sun Y, Feng Z, Ginnavaram RR (2015) A direct non-buffer rate control algorithm for real time video compression. Multimed Tools Appl 74(17):6623–6639
Wang M, Ngan K, Li H (2015) An efficient frame-content based intra frame rate control for high efficiency video coding. IEEE Signal Proc Letters 22(7):896–900
Wang M, Ngan K, Li H (2016) Low-delay rate control for consistent quality using distortion-based Lagrange multiplier. IEEE Trans Image Process 25(7):2943–2955
Zhou M, Wei X, Wang S, Kwong S, Fong CK, Wong PHW, Yuen WYF, Gao W (2019) SSIM-based global optimization for CTU-level rate control in HEVC. IEEE Trans on Multimedia 21(8):1921–1923
Zhou M, Wei X, Kwong S, Jia W, Fang B (2020) Rate control method based on deep reinforcement learning for dynamic video sequences in HEVC. IEEE Trans. on Multimedia 23:1106–1121. https://doi.org/10.1109/TMM.2020.2992968
Acknowledgements
This work was partially supported by NASA EPSCoR Award (No. NNX13AD32A) and faculty sabbatical leave fund from University of Central Arkansas.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sun, Y., Childers, R. & Hilton, J. New bufferless rate control for high efficiency video coding. Multimed Tools Appl 80, 28761–28776 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-021-11055-z
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-021-11055-z