121 research outputs found
No-Reference Quality Assessment for 360-degree Images by Analysis of Multi-frequency Information and Local-global Naturalness
360-degree/omnidirectional images (OIs) have achieved remarkable attentions
due to the increasing applications of virtual reality (VR). Compared to
conventional 2D images, OIs can provide more immersive experience to consumers,
benefitting from the higher resolution and plentiful field of views (FoVs).
Moreover, observing OIs is usually in the head mounted display (HMD) without
references. Therefore, an efficient blind quality assessment method, which is
specifically designed for 360-degree images, is urgently desired. In this
paper, motivated by the characteristics of the human visual system (HVS) and
the viewing process of VR visual contents, we propose a novel and effective
no-reference omnidirectional image quality assessment (NR OIQA) algorithm by
Multi-Frequency Information and Local-Global Naturalness (MFILGN).
Specifically, inspired by the frequency-dependent property of visual cortex, we
first decompose the projected equirectangular projection (ERP) maps into
wavelet subbands. Then, the entropy intensities of low and high frequency
subbands are exploited to measure the multi-frequency information of OIs.
Besides, except for considering the global naturalness of ERP maps, owing to
the browsed FoVs, we extract the natural scene statistics features from each
viewport image as the measure of local naturalness. With the proposed
multi-frequency information measurement and local-global naturalness
measurement, we utilize support vector regression as the final image quality
regressor to train the quality evaluation model from visual quality-related
features to human ratings. To our knowledge, the proposed model is the first
no-reference quality assessment method for 360-degreee images that combines
multi-frequency information and image naturalness. Experimental results on two
publicly available OIQA databases demonstrate that our proposed MFILGN
outperforms state-of-the-art approaches
Metrics for Stereoscopic Image Compression
Metrics for automatically predicting the compression settings for stereoscopic images, to minimize file size, while still maintaining an acceptable level of image quality are investigated. This research evaluates whether symmetric or asymmetric compression produces a better quality of stereoscopic image.
Initially, how Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) measures the quality of varyingly compressed stereoscopic image pairs was investigated. Two trials with human subjects, following the ITU-R BT.500-11 Double Stimulus Continuous Quality Scale (DSCQS) were undertaken to measure the quality of symmetric and asymmetric stereoscopic image compression. Computational models of the Human Visual System (HVS) were then investigated and a new stereoscopic image quality metric designed and implemented. The metric point matches regions of high spatial frequency between the left and right views of the stereo pair and accounts for HVS sensitivity to contrast and luminance changes in these regions.
The PSNR results show that symmetric, as opposed to asymmetric stereo image compression, produces significantly better results. The human factors trial suggested that in
general, symmetric compression of stereoscopic images should be used.
The new metric, Stereo Band Limited Contrast, has been demonstrated as a better predictor of human image quality preference than PSNR and can be used to predict
a perceptual threshold level for stereoscopic image compression. The threshold is the maximum compression that can be applied without the perceived image quality being
altered.
Overall, it is concluded that, symmetric, as opposed to asymmetric stereo image encoding, should be used for stereoscopic image compression. As PSNR measures of image
quality are correctly criticized for correlating poorly with perceived visual quality, the new HVS based metric was developed. This metric produces a useful threshold to provide a practical starting point to decide the level of compression to use
Subjective Assessment of Image Compression Artefacts on Stereoscopic Display
Image and video quality are important to depict any pictorial information vividly and correctly. With the advancement of technology, we can produce high-quality images and can display those in advanced high-resolution displays. But as high-quality images continue to increase in size, transmitting these exceeds the limited bandwidth of display links. To cope, we need to compress the images but desire that the user cannot perceive any difference between the compressed and uncompressed images. In my thesis, psychophysical experiments with a flicker paradigm were undertaken to do a subjective assessment of the visibility of compression artefacts of two sets of images with two codecs viewed on a stereoscopic display. For one set of images the result shows that artefacts can be silenced in some stereo images relative to 2D while testing with the other set of images was inconclusive. This thesis documented evidence for silencing of artefacts in 3D displays. Other differences between stereoscopic and 2D presentation can be predicted but were not observed here (perhaps due to floor effects). Further large-scale subjective assessment with challenging images may help to get a concrete conclusion
A family of stereoscopic image compression algorithms using wavelet transforms
With the standardization of JPEG-2000, wavelet-based image and video
compression technologies are gradually replacing the popular DCT-based methods. In
parallel to this, recent developments in autostereoscopic display technology is now
threatening to revolutionize the way in which consumers are used to enjoying the
traditional 2-D display based electronic media such as television, computer and
movies. However, due to the two-fold bandwidth/storage space requirement of
stereoscopic imaging, an essential requirement of a stereo imaging system is efficient
data compression.
In this thesis, seven wavelet-based stereo image compression algorithms are
proposed, to take advantage of the higher data compaction capability and better
flexibility of wavelets. [Continues.
A family of stereoscopic image compression algorithms using wavelet transforms
With the standardization of JPEG-2000, wavelet-based image and video
compression technologies are gradually replacing the popular DCT-based methods. In
parallel to this, recent developments in autostereoscopic display technology is now
threatening to revolutionize the way in which consumers are used to enjoying the
traditional 2D display based electronic media such as television, computer and
movies. However, due to the two-fold bandwidth/storage space requirement of
stereoscopic imaging, an essential requirement of a stereo imaging system is efficient
data compression.
In this thesis, seven wavelet-based stereo image compression algorithms are
proposed, to take advantage of the higher data compaction capability and better
flexibility of wavelets. In the proposed CODEC I, block-based disparity
estimation/compensation (DE/DC) is performed in pixel domain. However, this
results in an inefficiency when DWT is applied on the whole predictive error image
that results from the DE process. This is because of the existence of artificial block
boundaries between error blocks in the predictive error image. To overcome this
problem, in the remaining proposed CODECs, DE/DC is performed in the wavelet
domain. Due to the multiresolution nature of the wavelet domain, two methods of
disparity estimation and compensation have been proposed. The first method is
performing DEJDC in each subband of the lowest/coarsest resolution level and then
propagating the disparity vectors obtained to the corresponding subbands of
higher/finer resolution. Note that DE is not performed in every subband due to the
high overhead bits that could be required for the coding of disparity vectors of all
subbands. This method is being used in CODEC II. In the second method, DEJDC is
performed m the wavelet-block domain. This enables disparity estimation to be
performed m all subbands simultaneously without increasing the overhead bits
required for the coding disparity vectors. This method is used by CODEC III.
However, performing disparity estimation/compensation in all subbands would result
in a significant improvement of CODEC III. To further improve the performance of
CODEC ill, pioneering wavelet-block search technique is implemented in CODEC
IV. The pioneering wavelet-block search technique enables the right/predicted image
to be reconstructed at the decoder end without the need of transmitting the disparity
vectors. In proposed CODEC V, pioneering block search is performed in all subbands
of DWT decomposition which results in an improvement of its performance. Further,
the CODEC IV and V are able to perform at very low bit rates(< 0.15 bpp). In
CODEC VI and CODEC VII, Overlapped Block Disparity Compensation (OBDC) is
used with & without the need of coding disparity vector. Our experiment results
showed that no significant coding gains could be obtained for these CODECs over
CODEC IV & V.
All proposed CODECs m this thesis are wavelet-based stereo image coding
algorithms that maximise the flexibility and benefits offered by wavelet transform
technology when applied to stereo imaging. In addition the use of a baseline-JPEG
coding architecture would enable the easy adaptation of the proposed algorithms
within systems originally built for DCT-based coding. This is an important feature
that would be useful during an era where DCT-based technology is only slowly being
phased out to give way for DWT based compression technology.
In addition, this thesis proposed a stereo image coding algorithm that uses JPEG-2000
technology as the basic compression engine. The proposed CODEC, named RASTER
is a rate scalable stereo image CODEC that has a unique ability to preserve the image
quality at binocular depth boundaries, which is an important requirement in the design
of stereo image CODEC. The experimental results have shown that the proposed
CODEC is able to achieve PSNR gains of up to 3.7 dB as compared to directly
transmitting the right frame using JPEG-2000
Une méthode pour l'évaluation de la qualité des images 3D stéréoscopiques.
Dans le contexte d'un intérêt grandissant pour les systèmes stéréoscopiques, mais sans méthodes reproductible pour estimer leur qualité, notre travail propose une contribution à la meilleure compréhension des mécanismes de perception et de jugement humains relatifs au concept multi-dimensionnel de qualité d'image stéréoscopique. Dans cette optique, notre démarche s'est basée sur un certain nombre d'outils : nous avons proposé un cadre adapté afin de structurer le processus d'analyse de la qualité des images stéréoscopiques, nous avons implémenté dans notre laboratoire un système expérimental afin de conduire plusieurs tests, nous avons crée trois bases de données d'images stéréoscopiques contenant des configurations précises et enfin nous avons conduit plusieurs expériences basées sur ces collections d'images. La grande quantité d'information obtenue par l'intermédiaire de ces expérimentations a été utilisée afin de construire un premier modèle mathématique permettant d'expliquer la perception globale de la qualité de la stéréoscopie en fonction des paramètres physiques des images étudiée.In a context of ever-growing interest in stereoscopic systems, but where no standardized algorithmic methods of stereoscopic quality assessment exist, our work stands as a step forward in the understanding of the human perception and judgment mechanisms related to the multidimensional concept of stereoscopic image quality. We used a series of tools in order to perform in-depth investigations in this direction: we proposed an adapted framework to structure the process of stereoscopic quality assessment, we implemented a stereoscopic system in our laboratory for performing various tests, we created three stereoscopic datasets with precise structures, and we performed several experimental studies using these datasets. The numerous experimental data obtained were used in order to propose a first mathematical framework for explaining the overall percept of stereoscopic quality in function of the physical parameters of the stereoscopic images under study.SAVOIE-SCD - Bib.électronique (730659901) / SudocGRENOBLE1/INP-Bib.électronique (384210012) / SudocGRENOBLE2/3-Bib.électronique (384219901) / SudocSudocFranceF
HEVC based Mixed-Resolution Stereo Video Codec
This paper presents a High Efficiency Video Codec (HEVC) based spatial mixed-resolution stereo video codec. The proposed codec applies a frame interleaving algorithm to reorder the stereo video frames into a monoscopic video. The challenge for mixed-resolution video coding is to enable the codec to encode frames with different frame resolutions. This issue is addressed by superimposing a low resolution replica of the decoded I-frame on its respective decoded picture, where remaining space of the frame is set to zero. This significantly reduces the computation cost for finding the best match. The proposed codec’s reference frames structure is designed to efficiently exploit both temporal and inter-view correlations. Performance of the proposed codec is assessed using five standard multiview video datasets and benchmarked against that of the anchor and the state-of-the-art techniques. Results show that the proposed codec yields significantly higher coding performance compared to the anchor and state-of-the-art techniques
- …