General Instrument Corporation

Arris Enterprises LLC

Motorola Corporation

Arris Technology, Inc.

Motorola Mobility LLC

General Instrument Corporation of Delaware

Google Technology Holdings LLC

Robert S Nemiroff

Siu-Wai Wu

Jing Yang Chen

Vincent C Liu

Brenda Van Veldhuisen

Vincent Hok Liu

Ajay K Luthra

Yong He

Michael A Casteloes

Vicky B Kaku

Limin Wang

John Shumate

Rebecca Lam

Yendo Hu

Robert Stone

Guofei Wu

Jingyang Chen

Ken-Ho Chang

Hanson On

Jay R Patel

Shanhua Xue

A method for transcoding a digital video stream that includes transcoding using a transcoder a video stream that includes presentation time stamps for the video stream together with an audio stream that includes presentation time stamps for the audio stream in a manner that modifies the presentation time stamps for the video stream in a manner such that a plurality of first values for presentation time stamps for a first set of video frames of the video stream are modified to a plurality of second values for presentation time stamps for the second set of video frames. The audio stream includes embedded first values for presentation time stamps in a first location. The method includes determining an offset of the second values of the second set of presentation time stamps of the transcoded video stream based upon the first values of the set of presentation time stamps embedded in the audio stream from the transcoder. The method includes combining the transcoded video stream and an associated audio stream based upon the offset. Preferably, the transcoder also modifies the audio time stamps. Preferably, the audio stream includes the embedded first values. Preferably, the offset is determined by taking the diff between the audio PTS in the PES and the embedded PTS in the audio packet (private data or embedded in the audio frame).

System for presentation time stamp recovery from a transcoder

A system and method are provided for encoding and decoding multiplexed video signals to de-jitter the content. A first de-jitter operation is performed on incoming signals and a second de-jitter operation is performed on PCR modified outbound packetized signals after sequencing of the packetized signals has been determined. In one case the second de-jitter operation can be performed using a PLL that is based, at least in part, on the output hardware limitations.

Two-stage IP de-jitter algorithm in a multiplexer for a group of statistically multiplexed single program transport streams

A statistical multiplexer is provided with a series of encoders that encode media streams at different bitrates to reduce jitter. The encoded media streams are transmitted to a multiplexer over a network and experience jitter that is reduced by a de-jitter arrangement. The multiplexer rearranges a transmit time of select packets in select ones of the media streams received over the network when a total group bandwidth available on the transmission channel over which the multiplexed media stream is to be transmitted is less than a sum of the bandwidths of the media streams because of the jitter and de-jitter process experienced by the media streams. The rearranging causes the bandwidth of the multiplexed media stream to be no greater than the total group bandwidth of the transmission channel without exceeding a maximum bit rate at which each individual encoded media stream is configured.

Jitter management in a statistical multiplexer employing an IP network

A system for transcoding a digital video stream using a transcoder includes receiving a digital video stream that includes an input video stream and extracting a first set of presentation time stamps from the input video stream which are stored in a table. The system transcodes the input video stream including the first set of presentation time stamps from an initial set of characteristics to a modified set of characteristics including a second set of presentation time stamps that are different from the first set of presentation time stamps. The system processes the second set of presentation time stamps of the transcoded video stream to determine if the second presentation time stamps include jitter, and based upon determining the second set of presentation time stamps include jitter modifying the second set of presentation time stamps based upon the first set of presentation time stamps in the table.

System for jitter recovery from a transcoder

A system and method are provided for reducing burden on real-time processing when combining overlay or crawl text with a primary video image. Based on a crawl rate of the crawl text, the method includes determining fractional pixel values associated with the crawl rate and pre-filtering the overlay or crawl text based on the established fractional pixel values, and combining windows of the various and appropriate pre-filtered overlay or crawl text with the primary image for encoding and delivery.

System and method for pre-filtering crawling overlay elements for display with reduced real-time processing demands

Techniques for synchronizing streams in an adaptive streaming environment include cross-chassis and intra-chassis synchronization of video and/or audio. In an adaptive streaming system that streams content in segments or chunks at varying levels of quality corresponding to different coding rates, implementations enable seamless switching between output streams. For example, synchronizing multiple output streams for switching between coded adaptive bit rate streams across multiple chassis involve calculating an NTP/UTC offset.

Adaptive streaming transcoder synchronization

A statistical multiplexer (statmux) system for encoding and multiplexing multiple channels of digital television data is provided that limits dropped bits due to misalignment of bit rate allocations to the encoders. Without such a system, if for example an encoder is allotted 0 bits during a first time period and 20 kilobits during a second time period, if the encoder jumps ahead from the first period to the second time period allocation, the 20 kilobits could be output during the 0 bit output allocation time period. This can cause buffer overflow downstream if other encoders are outputting at their maximum rate. To limit such misalignment, a maximum percentage increase of an encoder's bitrate allocation is set from time period to time period based on a formula to prevent bits from being dropped when misalignment occurs.

Algorithms for determining bitrate for a statistical multiplexing system to ensure stream alignment from encoders to the multiplexer

A detector for determining an audio data bit rate of a pre-compressed audio elementary stream (AES), in which the pre-compressed AES includes a plurality of preamble length fields is provided. The detector includes an analyzer module configured to determine one or more candidate audio data bit rates of the AES from the plurality of preamble length fields, a detector module configured to determine whether one or more of the candidate audio data bit rates are correct, and a selector module configured to select one of the one or more candidate audio data bit rates determined to be correct as the audio data bit rate of the pre-compressed AES.

Audio data bit rate detector

Complexity for a video frame after a special event is estimated and used for encoding the frame. The complexity for a key frame of a special event is estimated based on its intra activity and a complexity of a previously encoded key frame in the video stream prior to the special event. The complexity for a dependent frame after a special event is estimated based on a motion estimation cost for the dependent frame and a complexity of a previously encoded dependent frame prior to the special event.

Estimating complexity of video frames for encoding

A method for editing spliced-together video comprising a cut-out sequence followed by a cut-in sequence, both being in 3:2 pull-down format. A bad edit is detected, and either a number of contiguous frames at the end of the cut-out sequence and/or a number of contiguous frames at the beginning of the cut-in sequence are deleted in order that the 3:2 pull-down sequence is preserved in the spliced-together video. Alternatively, a first number of frames at the end of the cut-out sequence and/or a second number of frames at the beginning of the cut-in sequence are copied/renamed and inserted from other fields in order that the pull-down format is preserved in the spliced-together video.

Maintaining continuous film mode with bad edits

Method and apparatus for processing transport stream packets received from a network for distribution to user terminals is described. In one embodiment, a pair of clock reference packets in the transport stream packets is identified. The pair of clock reference packets includes a first clock reference packet having an output time stamp and a second clock reference packet. A difference between a time value of the second clock reference packet and a time value of the first clock reference packet is computed. An output time stamp for the second clock reference packet is calculated in response to the output time stamp of the first clock reference packet and the difference.

Method and apparatus for processing transport stream packets to compensate for jitter

A system and method for audio splicing (insertion) of an Ad audio stream in the compressed domain, where variable early delivery of the Ad audio stream and variable bit rate are allowed, without creating audio distortion, glitches, or other digital artefacts or errors, in the resultant audio stream is disclosed. The present system and method provides for a splice delay buffer which delays the first five Ad audio frames until transmission of the last frame of the primary audio stream, but before the splice time. Subsequent Ad audio frames are delayed by a fixed amount, where the fixed amount is greater than the frame delay of the primary audio stream, to allow for ease of splice back to the primary audio stream.

Audio splice process for digital Ad insertion

A method and apparatus for processing a bitstream in a digital video transcoder is described. In one example, an adjustment factor is determined that relates a number of bits representing a selected frame defined by the bitstream to a target number of bits for the selected frame. An average spatial activity value among sets of video data is associated with the selected frame. A spatial activity value for a selected set of the sets of video data is determined. A normalized spatial, activity value for the selected set of frequency video data is then computed in response to the average spatial activity value, the spatial activity value, and a function of the adjustment factor. Target bit reduction for each of the sets of video data may be computed using a function of the normalized spatial activity value and the adjustment factor.

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Carlsbad, CA, United States of America

Robert S Nemiroff