A Survey on Multimedia-Based Cross-Layer Optimization in Visual Sensor Networks

Visual sensor networks (VSNs) comprised of battery-operated electronic devices endowed with low-resolution cameras have expanded the applicability of a series of monitoring applications. Those types of sensors are interconnected by ad hoc error-prone wireless links, imposing stringent restrictions on available bandwidth, end-to-end delay and packet error rates. In such context, multimedia coding is required for data compression and error-resilience, also ensuring energy preservation over the path(s) toward the sink and improving the end-to-end perceptual quality of the received media. Cross-layer optimization may enhance the expected efficiency of VSNs applications, disrupting the conventional information flow of the protocol layers. When the inner characteristics of the multimedia coding techniques are exploited by cross-layer protocols and architectures, higher efficiency may be obtained in visual sensor networks. This paper surveys recent research on multimedia-based cross-layer optimization, presenting the proposed strategies and mechanisms for transmission rate adjustment, congestion control, multipath selection, energy preservation and error recovery. We note that many multimedia-based cross-layer optimization solutions have been proposed in recent years, each one bringing a wealth of contributions to visual sensor networks

Study and simulation of low rate video coding schemes

The semiannual report is included. Topics covered include communication, information science, data compression, remote sensing, color mapped images, robust coding scheme for packet video, recursively indexed differential pulse code modulation, image compression technique for use on token ring networks, and joint source/channel coder design

Emergency TeleOrthoPaedics m-health system for wireless communication links

For the first time, a complete wireless and mobile emergency TeleOrthoPaedics system with field trials and expert opinion is presented. The system enables doctors in a remote area to obtain a second opinion from doctors in the hospital using secured wireless telecommunication networks. Doctors can exchange securely medical images and video as well as other important data, and thus perform remote consultations, fast and accurately using a user friendly interface, via a reliable and secure telemedicine system of low cost. The quality of the transmitted compressed (JPEG2000) images was measured using different metrics and doctors opinions. The results have shown that all metrics were within acceptable limits. The performance of the system was evaluated successfully under different wireless communication links based on real data

Transform coding for space applications

Data compression coding requirements for aerospace applications differ somewhat from the compression requirements for entertainment systems. On the one hand, entertainment applications are bit rate driven with the goal of getting the best quality possible with a given bandwidth. Science applications are quality driven with the goal of getting the lowest bit rate for a given level of reconstruction quality. In the past, the required quality level has been nothing less than perfect allowing only the use of lossless compression methods (if that). With the advent of better, faster, cheaper missions, an opportunity has arisen for lossy data compression methods to find a use in science applications as requirements for perfect quality reconstruction runs into cost constraints. This paper presents a review of the data compression problem from the space application perspective. Transform coding techniques are described and some simple, integer transforms are presented. The application of these transforms to space-based data compression problems is discussed. Integer transforms have an advantage over conventional transforms in computational complexity. Space applications are different from broadcast or entertainment in that it is desirable to have a simple encoder (in space) and tolerate a more complicated decoder (on the ground) rather than vice versa. Energy compaction with new transforms are compared with the Walsh-Hadamard (WHT), Discrete Cosine (DCT), and Integer Cosine (ICT) transforms

Network streaming and compression for mixed reality tele-immersion

Bulterman, D.C.A. [Promotor]Cesar, P.S. [Copromotor

Progressively communicating rich telemetry from autonomous underwater vehicles via relays

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution June 2012As analysis of imagery and environmental data plays a greater role in mission construction and execution, there is an increasing need for autonomous marine vehicles to transmit this data to the surface. Without access to the data acquired by a vehicle, surface operators cannot fully understand the state of the mission. Communicating imagery and high-resolution sensor readings to surface observers remains a significant challenge – as a result, current telemetry from free-roaming autonomous marine vehicles remains limited to ‘heartbeat’ status messages, with minimal scientific data available until after recovery. Increasing the challenge, longdistance communication may require relaying data across multiple acoustic hops between vehicles, yet fixed infrastructure is not always appropriate or possible. In this thesis I present an analysis of the unique considerations facing telemetry systems for free-roaming Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) used in exploration. These considerations include high-cost vehicle nodes with persistent storage and significant computation capabilities, combined with human surface operators monitoring each node. I then propose mechanisms for interactive, progressive communication of data across multiple acoustic hops. These mechanisms include wavelet-based embedded coding methods, and a novel image compression scheme based on texture classification and synthesis. The specific characteristics of underwater communication channels, including high latency, intermittent communication, the lack of instantaneous end-to-end connectivity, and a broadcast medium, inform these proposals. Human feedback is incorporated by allowing operators to identify segments of data thatwarrant higher quality refinement, ensuring efficient use of limited throughput. I then analyze the performance of these mechanisms relative to current practices. Finally, I present CAPTURE, a telemetry architecture that builds on this analysis. CAPTURE draws on advances in compression and delay tolerant networking to enable progressive transmission of scientific data, including imagery, across multiple acoustic hops. In concert with a physical layer, CAPTURE provides an endto- end networking solution for communicating science data from autonomous marine vehicles. Automatically selected imagery, sonar, and time-series sensor data are progressively transmitted across multiple hops to surface operators. Human operators can request arbitrarily high-quality refinement of any resource, up to an error-free reconstruction. The components of this system are then demonstrated through three field trials in diverse environments on SeaBED, OceanServer and Bluefin AUVs, each in different software architectures.Thanks to the National Science Foundation, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for their funding of my education and this work

Compression et transmission d'images avec énergie minimale application aux capteurs sans fil

Un réseau de capteurs d'images sans fil (RCISF) est un réseau ad hoc formé d'un ensemble de noeuds autonomes dotés chacun d'une petite caméra, communiquant entre eux sans liaison filaire et sans l'utilisation d'une infrastructure établie, ni d'une gestion de réseau centralisée. Leur utilité semble majeure dans plusieurs domaines, notamment en médecine et en environnement. La conception d'une chaîne de compression et de transmission sans fil pour un RCISF pose de véritables défis. L'origine de ces derniers est liée principalement à la limitation des ressources des capteurs (batterie faible , capacité de traitement et mémoire limitées). L'objectif de cette thèse consiste à explorer des stratégies permettant d'améliorer l'efficacité énergétique des RCISF, notamment lors de la compression et de la transmission des images. Inéluctablement, l'application des normes usuelles telles que JPEG ou JPEG2000 est éner- givore, et limite ainsi la longévité des RCISF. Cela nécessite leur adaptation aux contraintes imposées par les RCISF. Pour cela, nous avons analysé en premier lieu, la faisabilité d'adapter JPEG au contexte où les ressources énergétiques sont très limitées. Les travaux menés sur cet aspect nous permettent de proposer trois solutions. La première solution est basée sur la propriété de compactage de l'énergie de la Transformée en Cosinus Discrète (TCD). Cette propriété permet d'éliminer la redondance dans une image sans trop altérer sa qualité, tout en gagnant en énergie. La réduction de l'énergie par l'utilisation des régions d'intérêts représente la deuxième solution explorée dans cette thèse. Finalement, nous avons proposé un schéma basé sur la compression et la transmission progressive, permettant ainsi d'avoir une idée générale sur l'image cible sans envoyer son contenu entier. En outre, pour une transmission non énergivore, nous avons opté pour la solution suivante. N'envoyer fiablement que les basses fréquences et les régions d'intérêt d'une image. Les hautes fréquences et les régions de moindre intérêt sont envoyées""infiablement"", car leur pertes n'altèrent que légèrement la qualité de l'image. Pour cela, des modèles de priorisation ont été comparés puis adaptés à nos besoins. En second lieu, nous avons étudié l'approche par ondelettes (wavelets ). Plus précisément, nous avons analysé plusieurs filtres d'ondelettes et déterminé les ondelettes les plus adéquates pour assurer une faible consommation en énergie, tout en gardant une bonne qualité de l'image reconstruite à la station de base. Pour estimer l'énergie consommée par un capteur durant chaque étape de la 'compression, un modèle mathématique est développé pour chaque transformée (TCD ou ondelette). Ces modèles, qui ne tiennent pas compte de la complexité de l'implémentation, sont basés sur le nombre d'opérations de base exécutées à chaque étape de la compression

Forward Error Correction applied to JPEG-XS codestreams

JPEG-XS offers low complexity image compression for applications with constrained but reasonable bit-rate, and low latency. Our paper explores the deployment of JPEG-XS on lossy packet networks. To preserve low latency, Forward Error Correction (FEC) is envisioned as the protection mechanism of interest. Despite the JPEG-XS codestream is not scalable in essence, we observe that the loss of a codestream fraction impacts the decoded image quality differently, depending on whether this codestream fraction corresponds to codestream headers, to coefficients significance information, or to low/high frequency data, respectively. Hence, we propose a rate-distortion optimal unequal error protection scheme that adapts the redundancy level of Reed-Solomon codes according to the rate of channel losses and the type of information protected by the code. Our experiments demonstrate that, at 5% loss rates, it reduces the Mean Squared Error by up to 92% and 65%, compared to a transmission without and with optimal but equal protection, respectively

QUALITY-DRIVEN CROSS LAYER DESIGN FOR MULTIMEDIA SECURITY OVER RESOURCE CONSTRAINED WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS

The strong need for security guarantee, e.g., integrity and authenticity, as well as privacy and confidentiality in wireless multimedia services has driven the development of an emerging research area in low cost Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs). Unfortunately, those conventional encryption and authentication techniques cannot be applied directly to WMSNs due to inborn challenges such as extremely limited energy, computing and bandwidth resources. This dissertation provides a quality-driven security design and resource allocation framework for WMSNs. The contribution of this dissertation bridges the inter-disciplinary research gap between high layer multimedia signal processing and low layer computer networking. It formulates the generic problem of quality-driven multimedia resource allocation in WMSNs and proposes a cross layer solution. The fundamental methodologies of multimedia selective encryption and stream authentication, and their application to digital image or video compression standards are presented. New multimedia selective encryption and stream authentication schemes are proposed at application layer, which significantly reduces encryption/authentication complexity. In addition, network resource allocation methodologies at low layers are extensively studied. An unequal error protection-based network resource allocation scheme is proposed to achieve the best effort media quality with integrity and energy efficiency guarantee. Performance evaluation results show that this cross layer framework achieves considerable energy-quality-security gain by jointly designing multimedia selective encryption/multimedia stream authentication and communication resource allocation