Highlights of the 96th Meeting
MPEG finalizes CfP to standardize mobile visual search technologies
In its latest step toward creating a standard for efficient and interoperable designs of visual search applications, MPEG has issued a Call for Proposals at its 96th meeting. Like a barcode reader, but using regular images instead of barcodes, visual search enables the retrieval of related information from databases for tourists, simplified shopping, mobile augmented reality, and other applications by sending standardized descriptors.
Specifically, the call seeks technologies that deliver robust matching of images of objects, such as landmarks, artworks, and text-based documents, that may be partially occluded or captured from various vantage points, and with different camera parameters, or lighting conditions. The underlying component technologies that are expected to be addressed by the standard include the format of the visual descriptors, and parts of the descriptor extraction process needed to ensure interoperability. Other component technologies, such as indexing and matching algorithms, may also be incorporated into the new standard.
The text of the Call for Proposals is available
here. Responses are due shortly before and will be evaluated at the 98th MPEG meeting in Geneva.
MPEG plans April 18 CfP for 3D video coding
A Call for Proposals on 3D Video Coding Technology is planned to be issued by MPEG. This call invites technology submissions providing efficient compression of 3D video and high quality view reconstruction that goes beyond the capabilities of existing standards. MPEG has already delivered 3D compression formats to the market, including MVC and frame-compatible stereoscopic formats, which are being deployed by industry for packaged media and broadcast services. However, the market needs are expected to evolve and new types of 3D displays and services will be offered. With this call, MPEG embarks on a new phase of 3D standardization that anticipates these future needs. The next-generation of 3D standards will define the 3D data format and associated compression technology to facilitate the generation of multiview output to enable both advanced stereoscopic display processing and improved support for auto-stereoscopic displays. Further details are outlined in MPEG's Vision on 3D Video, which is available online at http://mpeg.chiariglione.org/visions/3dv/index.htm.
The text of the Call for Proposals will be available
here. Responses to this call are due in September 2011 and will be evaluated at the 98th MPEG meeting in Geneva.
MPEG continues with CfP for Type-1 Video Coding Standard
As announced in January, MPEG will develop a new video compression standard in line with the expected usage models of the Internet. The new standard is intended to achieve substantially better compression performance than that offered by MPEG-2 and possibly comparable to that offered by the AVC Baseline Profile. MPEG issued a Draft Call for Proposals (CfP) for Internet Video Coding Technologies that is expected to lead to a standard falling under ISO/IEC “Type-1 licensing”, i.e. intended to be “royalty free”. Proposals are due in October 2011 and will be evaluated at the 98th MPEG meeting in Geneva. It is expected that this standard will become the default video codec for internet applications.
The text of the Call for Proposals is available
here. Responses to this call are due in October 2011 and will be evaluated at the 98th MPEG meeting in Geneva.
MPEG augments its reconfigurable framework with graphics
At its 96th meeting, MPEG has decided to extend the set of tools available in ISO/IEC 23001-4 and ISO/IEC 23002-4 used to describe a RVC (Reconfigurable Video Coding) framework, to now include graphics specific elements. Therefore, what was previously envisioned as RVC is now RMC (Reconfigurable Multimedia Coding), the latter containing both the already standardized VTL (Video Tool Library) and the library currently being developed for graphics, GTL (Graphics Tool Library). The purpose of GTL is to specify the Functional Units for the compression of static and animated 3D graphic objects and to allow their configuration to build reconfigurable decoders.
Digging Deeper – How to Contact MPEG
Communicating the large and sometimes complex array of technology that the MPEG Committee has developed is not a simple task. Experts, past and present, have contributed a series of tutorials and vision documents that explain each of these standards individually. The repository is growing with each meeting, so if something you are interested is not there yet, it may appear there shortly – but you should also not hesitate to request it. You can start your MPEG adventure at:
http://mpeg.chiariglione.org/technologies.htm.
Further Information
Future MPEG meetings are planned as follows:
No. 97, Torino, IT, 18-22 July, 2011
No. 98, Geneva, CH 28 November – 2 December, 2011
No. 99, San Jose, USA 6-10 February, 2012
For further information about MPEG, please contact:
Dr. Leonardo Chiariglione (Convener of MPEG, Italy)
Via Borgionera, 103
10040 Villar Dora (TO), Italy
Tel: +39 011 935 04 61
leonardo@chiariglione.org
This press release and other MPEG-related information can be found on the MPEG homepage:
http://mpeg.chiariglione.org/
The text and details related current Calls are in the Hot News section,
http://mpeg.chiariglione.org/hot_news.htm. These documents include information on how to respond to Calls.
The MPEG homepage also has links to other MPEG pages which are maintained by the MPEG subgroups. It also contains links to public documents that are freely available for download by those who are not MPEG members. Journalists that wish to receive MPEG Press Releases by email should contact Dr. Arianne T. Hinds at arianne.hinds@infoprint.com.
