System and methods for preparing multimedia data using digital video data compression

Abstract

Systems and methods are described for preparing multimedia data using digital video data compression. Various embodiments of the invention use pre-rendering and encoding techniques that format the video image data into fat macroblocks. The fat macroblocks include header information that identifies the beginning locations of strips of macroblocks representing slices of the image, and of the macroblocks disposed within the strips. The header information enables macroblocks disposed in a strip of fat macroblocks to be individually addressed thereby providing transmission bandwidth, data processing, and data storage advantages for preparing and transmitting data for updating video images including less than full screen motion. The advantages are achieved in part because updates only require that the first macroblock of each strip of macroblocks be transmitted. Further efficiencies can be realized by using a zero displacement motion vector instead of the actual values of the first macroblock if the first macroblock is not changing. Methods using fat macroblock formatted data sets provide advantages for encoding and transmitting large bitmaps of static content, scrolling the static content, enabling animation of small areas of the display, supporting picture-in picture functionality, and allowing for overlay and combination of different image data from different sources on the display. The methods of preparing the multimedia data include pre-rendering a bitmap to create a compressed form of the bitmap, and determining a viewable area of the video images to be displayed. The viewable area of the video images can be smaller than the full-sized area of the video images.