Apple Inc.

Daniel W Wright

Ke-Chiang C Chu

Chia L Yeh

James O Normile

James O Normille

An apparatus and method for processing video data for compression/decompression in real-time. The apparatus comprises a plurality of compute modules, in a preferred embodiment, for a total of four compute modules coupled in parallel. Each of the compute modules has a processor, dual port memory, scratch-pad memory, and an arbitration mechanism. A first bus couples the compute modules and a host processor. Lastly, the device comprises a shared memory which is coupled to the host processor and to the compute modules with a second bus. The method handles assigning portions of the image for each of the processors to operate upon.

Method and apparatus for encoding/decoding image data

A method of removing frame redundancy in a computer system for a sequence of moving images. The method comprises detecting a first scene change in the sequence of moving images and generating a first keyframe containing complete scene information for a first image. The first keyframe is known, in a preferred embodiment, as a 'forward-facing' keyframe or intra frame, and it is normally present in CCITT compressed video data. The process then comprises generating at least one intermediate compressed frame, the at least one intermediate compressed frame containing difference information from the first image for at least one image following the first image in time in the sequence of moving images. In a preferred embodiment, this at least one frame is known as an inter frame. Finally, detecting a second scene change in the sequence of moving images and generating a second keyframe containing complete scene information for an image displayed at the time just prior to the second scene change. This is known, in the preferred embodiment, as a 'backward-facing' keyframe. The first keyframe and the at least one intermediate compressed frame are linked for forward play, and the second keyframe and the intermediate compressed frames are linked in reverse for reverse play. In a preferred embodiment, the intra frame is used for generation of complete scene information when the images are played in the forward direction. When this sequence is played in reverse, the backward-facing keyframe is used for the generation of complete scene information.

Encoding/decoding moving images with forward and backward keyframes for

A method and apparatus for decoding a variable length codeword (VLC) by reading a VLC, the VLC having a maximum length of X bits. The VLC is used as an index into a first table, wherein the first table contains decoded values for all possible VLC's with Y bits not equal to any value in a first set of values. Y is typically less than X and comprises, in the preferred embodiment, the most significant bits of the VLC. If the first Y bits of the VLC are not equal to any value in a first set of values then a second value is returned from the first table. If the first Y bits of the VLC are equal to any value in a first set of values, then a pointer to a second table is returned from the first table. The VLC is used as an index into the second table, and a third value is returned from the second table.

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Daniel W Wright