Distributed rate-distortion optimization for rateless coded scalable video

ABSTRACT Recent advances in forward error correction and scalable video coding enable new approaches for robust, distributed streaming in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs). This work presents an approach for distribution of real time video by different uncoordinated peerto-peer relay or source nodes in an overlay network on top of a MANET. The approach proposed here allows for distributed, ratedistortion optimized transmission-rate allocation for competing scalable video streams at relay nodes in the overlay network. Furthermore the approach has the desirable feature of path/source diversity for enhancing reliability in connectivity to serving nodes. Signaling overhead within the overlay network is kept at a minimum, since optimizations are done at relay nodes and clients rather than at servers

Distributed Rate Allocation for Video Streaming over Wireless Networks with Heterogeneous Link Speeds

When multiple video streaming sessions are simultaneously transported over a shared wireless network, careful rate allocation is needed for efficient utilization of the network resources, while avoiding network congestion. The problem becomes more challenging when the network comprises links with heterogeneous transmission speeds, and when each video stream has a different utility of its allocated rate. We propose a distributed scheme for congestion-distortion optimized rate allocation among multiple video streams sharing a network. Simulation results are presented for streaming multiple high-definition (HD) video sequences over both single-hop and multi-hop 802.11a networks with heterogeneous link speeds. In comparison with TCP-Friendly Rate Control (TFRC), the proposed cross-layer allocation scheme benefits from being both media-aware and network-aware, and achieves higher average video quality among all streams without incurring excessive network congestion