Bitrate Ladder Prediction Methods for Adaptive Video Streaming: A Review and Benchmark

HTTP adaptive streaming (HAS) has emerged as a widely adopted approach for over-the-top (OTT) video streaming services, due to its ability to deliver a seamless streaming experience. A key component of HAS is the bitrate ladder, which provides the encoding parameters (e.g., bitrate-resolution pairs) to encode the source video. The representations in the bitrate ladder allow the client's player to dynamically adjust the quality of the video stream based on network conditions by selecting the most appropriate representation from the bitrate ladder. The most straightforward and lowest complexity approach involves using a fixed bitrate ladder for all videos, consisting of pre-determined bitrate-resolution pairs known as one-size-fits-all. Conversely, the most reliable technique relies on intensively encoding all resolutions over a wide range of bitrates to build the convex hull, thereby optimizing the bitrate ladder for each specific video. Several techniques have been proposed to predict content-based ladders without performing a costly exhaustive search encoding. This paper provides a comprehensive review of various methods, including both conventional and learning-based approaches. Furthermore, we conduct a benchmark study focusing exclusively on various learning-based approaches for predicting content-optimized bitrate ladders across multiple codec settings. The considered methods are evaluated on our proposed large-scale dataset, which includes 300 UHD video shots encoded with software and hardware encoders using three state-of-the-art encoders, including AVC/H.264, HEVC/H.265, and VVC/H.266, at various bitrate points. Our analysis provides baseline methods and insights, which will be valuable for future research in the field of bitrate ladder prediction. The source code of the proposed benchmark and the dataset will be made publicly available upon acceptance of the paper

Unsupervised Machine Learning for Networking:Techniques, Applications and Research Challenges

While machine learning and artificial intelligence have long been applied in networking research, the bulk of such works has focused on supervised learning. Recently, there has been a rising trend of employing unsupervised machine learning using unstructured raw network data to improve network performance and provide services such as traffic engineering, anomaly detection, Internet traffic classification, and quality of service optimization. The interest in applying unsupervised learning techniques in networking emerges from their great success in other fields such as computer vision, natural language processing, speech recognition, and optimal control (e.g., for developing autonomous self-driving cars). Unsupervised learning is interesting since it can unconstrain us from the need of labeled data and manual handcrafted feature engineering thereby facilitating flexible, general, and automated methods of machine learning. The focus of this survey paper is to provide an overview of the applications of unsupervised learning in the domain of networking. We provide a comprehensive survey highlighting the recent advancements in unsupervised learning techniques and describe their applications in various learning tasks in the context of networking. We also provide a discussion on future directions and open research issues, while also identifying potential pitfalls. While a few survey papers focusing on the applications of machine learning in networking have previously been published, a survey of similar scope and breadth is missing in literature. Through this paper, we advance the state of knowledge by carefully synthesizing the insights from these survey papers while also providing contemporary coverage of recent advances

Unsupervised Machine Learning for Networking:Techniques, Applications and Research Challenges

While machine learning and artificial intelligence have long been applied in networking research, the bulk of such works has focused on supervised learning. Recently there has been a rising trend of employing unsupervised machine learning using unstructured raw network data to improve network performance and provide services such as traffic engineering, anomaly detection, Internet traffic classification, and quality of service optimization. The interest in applying unsupervised learning techniques in networking emerges from their great success in other fields such as computer vision, natural language processing, speech recognition, and optimal control (e.g., for developing autonomous self-driving cars). Unsupervised learning is interesting since it can unconstrain us from the need of labeled data and manual handcrafted feature engineering thereby facilitating flexible, general, and automated methods of machine learning. The focus of this survey paper is to provide an overview of the applications of unsupervised learning in the domain of networking. We provide a comprehensive survey highlighting the recent advancements in unsupervised learning techniques and describe their applications for various learning tasks in the context of networking. We also provide a discussion on future directions and open research issues, while also identifying potential pitfalls. While a few survey papers focusing on the applications of machine learning in networking have previously been published, a survey of similar scope and breadth is missing in literature. Through this paper, we advance the state of knowledge by carefully synthesizing the insights from these survey papers while also providing contemporary coverage of recent advances

Improving next-generation wireless network performance and reliability with deep learning

A rudimentary question whether machine learning in general, or deep learning in particular, could add to the well-established field of wireless communications, which has been evolving for close to a century, is often raised. While the use of deep learning based methods is likely to help build intelligent wireless solutions, this use becomes particularly challenging for the lower layers in the wireless communication stack. The introduction of the fifth generation of wireless communications (5G) has triggered the demand for “network intelligence” to support its promises for very high data rates and extremely low latency. Consequently, 5G wireless operators are faced with the challenges of network complexity, diversification of services, and personalized user experience. Industry standards have created enablers (such as the network data analytics function), but these enablers focus on post-mortem analysis at higher stack layers and have a periodicity in the time scale of seconds (or larger). The goal of this dissertation is to show a solution for these challenges and how a data-driven approach using deep learning could add to the field of wireless communications. In particular, I propose intelligent predictive and prescriptive abilities to boost reliability and eliminate performance bottlenecks in 5G cellular networks and beyond, show contributions that justify the value of deep learning in wireless communications across several different layers, and offer in-depth analysis and comparisons with baselines and industry standards. First, to improve multi-antenna network reliability against wireless impairments with power control and interference coordination for both packetized voice and beamformed data bearers, I propose the use of a joint beamforming, power control, and interference coordination algorithm based on deep reinforcement learning. This algorithm uses a string of bits and logic operations to enable simultaneous actions to be performed by the reinforcement learning agent. Consequently, a joint reward function is also proposed. I compare the performance of my proposed algorithm with the brute force approach and show that similar performance is achievable but with faster run-time as the number of transmit antennas increases. Second, in enhancing the performance of coordinated multipoint, I propose the use of deep learning binary classification to learn a surrogate function to trigger a second transmission stream instead of depending on the popular signal to interference plus noise measurement quantity. This surrogate function improves the users' sum-rate through focusing on pre-logarithmic terms in the sum-rate formula, which have larger impact on this rate. Third, performance of band switching can be improved without the need for a full channel estimation. My proposal of using deep learning to classify the quality of two frequency bands prior to granting the band switching leads to a significant improvement in users' throughput. This is due to the elimination of the industry standard measurement gap requirement—a period of silence where no data is sent to the users so they could measure the frequency bands before switching. In this dissertation, a group of algorithms for wireless network performance and reliability for downlink are proposed. My results show that the introduction of user coordinates enhance the accuracy of the predictions made with deep learning. Also, the choice of signal to interference plus noise ratio as the optimization objective may not always be the best choice to improve user throughput rates. Further, exploiting the spatial correlation of channels in different frequency bands can improve certain network procedures without the need for perfect knowledge of the per-band channel state information. Hence, an understanding of these results help develop novel solutions to enhancing these wireless networks at a much smaller time scale compared to the industry standards todayElectrical and Computer Engineerin

Local and deep texture features for classification of natural and biomedical images

Developing efficient feature descriptors is very important in many computer vision applications including biomedical image analysis. In the past two decades and before the popularity of deep learning approaches in image classification, texture features proved to be very effective to capture the gradient variation in the image. Following the success of the Local Binary Pattern (LBP) descriptor, many variations of this descriptor were introduced to further improve the ability of obtaining good classification results. However, the problem of image classification gets more complicated when the number of images increases as well as the number of classes. In this case, more robust approaches must be used to address this problem. In this thesis, we address the problem of analyzing biomedical images by using a combination of local and deep features. First, we propose a novel descriptor that is based on the motif Peano scan concept called Joint Motif Labels (JML). After that, we combine the features extracted from the JML descriptor with two other descriptors called Rotation Invariant Co-occurrence among Local Binary Patterns (RIC-LBP) and Joint Adaptive Medina Binary Patterns (JAMBP). In addition, we construct another descriptor called Motif Patterns encoded by RIC-LBP and use it in our classification framework. We enrich the performance of our framework by combining these local descriptors with features extracted from a pre-trained deep network called VGG-19. Hence, the 4096 features of the Fully Connected 'fc7' layer are extracted and combined with the proposed local descriptors. Finally, we show that Random Forests (RF) classifier can be used to obtain superior performance in the field of biomedical image analysis. Testing was performed on two standard biomedical datasets and another three standard texture datasets. Results show that our framework can beat state-of-the-art accuracy on the biomedical image analysis and the combination of local features produce promising results on the standard texture datasets.Includes bibliographical reference

Online learning on the programmable dataplane

This thesis makes the case for managing computer networks with datadriven methods automated statistical inference and control based on measurement data and runtime observations—and argues for their tight integration with programmable dataplane hardware to make management decisions faster and from more precise data. Optimisation, defence, and measurement of networked infrastructure are each challenging tasks in their own right, which are currently dominated by the use of hand-crafted heuristic methods. These become harder to reason about and deploy as networks scale in rates and number of forwarding elements, but their design requires expert knowledge and care around unexpected protocol interactions. This makes tailored, per-deployment or -workload solutions infeasible to develop. Recent advances in machine learning offer capable function approximation and closed-loop control which suit many of these tasks. New, programmable dataplane hardware enables more agility in the network— runtime reprogrammability, precise traffic measurement, and low latency on-path processing. The synthesis of these two developments allows complex decisions to be made on previously unusable state, and made quicker by offloading inference to the network. To justify this argument, I advance the state of the art in data-driven defence of networks, novel dataplane-friendly online reinforcement learning algorithms, and in-network data reduction to allow classification of switchscale data. Each requires co-design aware of the network, and of the failure modes of systems and carried traffic. To make online learning possible in the dataplane, I use fixed-point arithmetic and modify classical (non-neural) approaches to take advantage of the SmartNIC compute model and make use of rich device local state. I show that data-driven solutions still require great care to correctly design, but with the right domain expertise they can improve on pathological cases in DDoS defence, such as protecting legitimate UDP traffic. In-network aggregation to histograms is shown to enable accurate classification from fine temporal effects, and allows hosts to scale such classification to far larger flow counts and traffic volume. Moving reinforcement learning to the dataplane is shown to offer substantial benefits to stateaction latency and online learning throughput versus host machines; allowing policies to react faster to fine-grained network events. The dataplane environment is key in making reactive online learning feasible—to port further algorithms and learnt functions, I collate and analyse the strengths of current and future hardware designs, as well as individual algorithms

Journal of Telecommunications and Information Technology

kwartalni

Handbook of Digital Face Manipulation and Detection

This open access book provides the first comprehensive collection of studies dealing with the hot topic of digital face manipulation such as DeepFakes, Face Morphing, or Reenactment. It combines the research fields of biometrics and media forensics including contributions from academia and industry. Appealing to a broad readership, introductory chapters provide a comprehensive overview of the topic, which address readers wishing to gain a brief overview of the state-of-the-art. Subsequent chapters, which delve deeper into various research challenges, are oriented towards advanced readers. Moreover, the book provides a good starting point for young researchers as well as a reference guide pointing at further literature. Hence, the primary readership is academic institutions and industry currently involved in digital face manipulation and detection. The book could easily be used as a recommended text for courses in image processing, machine learning, media forensics, biometrics, and the general security area

Handbook of Digital Face Manipulation and Detection

This open access book provides the first comprehensive collection of studies dealing with the hot topic of digital face manipulation such as DeepFakes, Face Morphing, or Reenactment. It combines the research fields of biometrics and media forensics including contributions from academia and industry. Appealing to a broad readership, introductory chapters provide a comprehensive overview of the topic, which address readers wishing to gain a brief overview of the state-of-the-art. Subsequent chapters, which delve deeper into various research challenges, are oriented towards advanced readers. Moreover, the book provides a good starting point for young researchers as well as a reference guide pointing at further literature. Hence, the primary readership is academic institutions and industry currently involved in digital face manipulation and detection. The book could easily be used as a recommended text for courses in image processing, machine learning, media forensics, biometrics, and the general security area