Bandwidth renegotiation for VBR video over ATM networks

A scheme for delivery or variable bit-rate (VBR) video over asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) networks where bandwidth can be renegotiated during the duration of a call between the video source and the network is considered. Renegotiation can be initiated by either the video source or the network. The video bandwidth requirement is characterized by a usage parameter control (UPC) consisting, in general, of peak rate, burst length, and sustained rate. A baseline design is outlined where rate-control adjusts the source's rate while a new UPC is requested from the network. When granted, the new UPC allows the source to maintain its target quantization and delay requirements. Rate control epochs may be extended when the network blocks UPC requests or sets a lower UPC value to temporally deal with congestion. Simulation results are presented for VBR MPEG video. The results show that with a moderate renegotiation rate the scheme tracks the bandwidth requirements of the source. As a result, the video quality and bandwidth efficiency can be maintained     

Quality-optimised MPEG2 video data rate control using fuzzy logictechniques

Fuzzy logic control has been employed to improve the rate control mechanism for a MPEG2 video encoder. The data rate of compressed video is controlled by video encoders for either variable bit rate (VBR) or constant bit rate (CBR) applications. In VBR video transmission, it is considered to be more efficient to regulate the video rate by the video coder than by network management in order to avoid network congestion and maintain stable video quality. This rationale can also be applied to CBR transmission. Two fuzzy-logic-based rate control techniques are proposed which maintain the buffer occupancy within a specified range. In the proposed technique for VBR applications, a video quality measure is taken as the crucial control parameter. In CBR rate control, the video data rate or the buffer occupancy is also considered as a fuzzy logic variable. Proposed techniques are designed to control either data rate or video quality, depending on the mode of transmission, i.e. CBR or VBR for the MPEG2 encoder. The performance is compared to a typical VBR MPEG video coder with fixed quantiser step sizes for VBR and also to the CBR video coder with MPEG2 TM5 at typical channel rates. Simulation results are presented with peak signal-to-noise ratio, data rate variation and buffer occupancy as the performance measures     

Connection admission control with picture-type dependent effectivebandwidths for VBR MPEG video traffic in ATM networks

The I-picture starting time distribution of variable bit rate (VBR) MPEG video sources may significantly affect the cell loss characteristics of ATM multiplexers. The authors propose a new connection admission control (CAC) method which can reflect this effect. For CAC, VBR MPEG video traffic is modelled as a composite sequence of three subsequences with different effective bandwidths according to their picture coding types. Experimental results show that the proposed method can fully reflect this effect due to the starting time distribution while also improving network utilisation significantly     

Quality control for VBR video over ATM networks

Uncontrolled variable-bit-rate (VBR) coded video yields consistent picture quality, but the traffic stream is very bursty. When sent over ATM networks, cell losses may be incurred due to limited buffer capacity at the switches; this could cause severe picture quality degradation. Source rate control can be implemented to generate a controlled VBR bit stream which conforms to specified bit rate bounds and buffer constraints. However, source rate control could result in picture quality degradation too. Hence, for real-time video services, an important issue to address is whether the picture quality degradation incurred by source rate control is within acceptable levels or how to choose the appropriate coding parameters to make it so. We establish quantitatively the relationship between picture quality and source rate control for the case of guaranteed service with different combinations of allocated bandwidth, buffer size, and other key video-coding parameters of MPEG-2. In addition, quality control in the context of two-layered scalable video service (basic and enhanced quality) is also considered. Our study reveals that, in order to maximize both the basic and the enhanced quality, source rate control should be implemented on both layers. The relationships between the two types of quality and different combinations of allocated bandwidths, buffer sizes, and some key coding parameters are also established quantitatively for MPEG-2 SNR scalability     

High performing multimedia transmission approach based on QoS support and admission control over IEEE 802.11e networks

Hybrid coordination function controlled channel access (HCCA) is a medium to enhance quality of service (QoS) via the IEEE 802.11e standard. The main limitation of HCAA is that it is only efficient for constant bit rate (CBR) applications. This is due to the nature of its scheduler that allocates transmission opportunities (TXOPs) based on traffic stream (TS) specifications (TSPECs) that are determined during the traffic setup time. Variable bit rate (VBR) traffics used in HCCA have nondeterministic profile, making it not optimally and efficiently supported by HCCA. The result of this inefficiency is a deterioration of the transmission performance of multimedia data as well as a drop in the number of served QoS video traffics. We propose a novel approach to deal with this issue, which is the feedback‐based admission control unit (FACU). FACU works by optimizing the usage of extra bandwidth to ensure optimal transmission performance of multimedia data. FACU achieves this by exploiting piggybacked information concerning sequential video frames in order to accurately assign the TXOP. The proposed approach is evaluated by utilizing various video sequences. It is demonstrated that FACU maximizes the overall number of video streams and optimizes the overall usage of the network without having any adverse effects on the QoS constraints determined.     

Efficient Transmission of MPEG-2 Coded Video Traffic over ATM Networks

Video traffic is expected to account for a significant share of the traffic volume in the future asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) networks. MPEG-2 proposed by Moving Picture Expert Group is one of the most promising compression techniques for such applications. One of the critical issues in MPEG-2 is to realize effective variable bit rate (VBR) video transfer thorough ATM networks. The Leaky Bucket (LB) scheme has been widely accepted as the usage parameter control (UPC) mechanism to police the VBR sources. We proposed a new Adaptive Dynamic Leaky Bucket (ADLB) congestion control mechanism, which is based on the LB scheme. Unlike the conventional LB, the leak rate of the ADLB is controlled using delayed feedback information of available bandwidth sent by the network. This scheme allows sources to get varying amounts of bandwidth over time, while reserving a minimum guaranteed bandwidth (MCR) for the entire duration of the connection. At the time of congestion, the leak rate of the ADLB is adjusted according to the feedback indicating the currently available bandwidth to the connection. The simulation results show that the end-to-end cell transfer delay and cell loss of each source has been improved significantly.     

Leaky-bucket based rate control algorithm for C VBR video encoding

A rate control algorithm is presented for constrained variable bit rate (C VBR) encoding to make the compressed video stream more friendly to the user network interface (UNI) than in free VBR coding. Experiments show that the algorithm would not only meet the delay constraint and traffic contract of VBR transfer so as to avoid the cell loss over UNI, but also benefit the statistical multiplexing by reducing the burstiness of the MPEG encoded stream     

考虑异种帧相关性的VBR MPEG视频源混合回归模型

ＭＰＥＧ作为一种国际动态图像压缩标准,其越来越广泛。为在通信网络上有效地传输和控制ＭＰＥＧ可变经特率（ＶＢＲ）数据流,第一个关键问题就是如何建立它的统计模型,目前已有的视频源模型都没有考虑不同类型帧之间的相关性,并不能很好地模拟ＶＢＲＭＰＥＧ视频源。本文首次提出了一咋处世划种帧相关性的ＶＢＲＭＰＥＧ视频源统计模型,混合回归（ＣＲ）模型,及其参数估计算法,实验结果表明,和传统的自回归（ＡＲ）模型相比     

Neuro-Fuzzy Control for MPEG Video Transmission Over Bluetooth

The application of a neuro-fuzzy (NF) controller to moving picture expert group (MPEG-2) video transmission over a Bluetooth asynchronous connectionless (ACL) is presented in this paper. MPEG variable bit rate (VBR) data sources experience unpredictability, long delay, and excessive loss, due to sudden variations in bit rate. Therefore, it is practically impossible to transmit MPEG-2 VBR video sources over a Bluetooth channel with a limited transmission speed and considerable wireless interferences without loss of data or image quality degradation. In this work, a traffic-shaping buffer is introduced before the host controller interface (HCI) of the Bluetooth protocol stack to obstruct excessive MPEG VBR data sources during the peak transmission periods. An integrated neuro-fuzzy controller monitors and reduces the burstiness of the traffic-shaper output rate to facilitate the MPEG VBR video sources to conform to the token-bucket contract before entering the Bluetooth channel. A conventional rule-based-fuzzy (RBF) controller oversees the arrival rate to the traffic-shaper to avoid saturation or starvation of the buffer. The computer simulation results demonstrate that applications of the NF and RBF schemes reduce excessive delay and data loss at the HCI as compared with conventional video transmission in Bluetooth ACL links     

Accurate Prediction of Real‐Time MPEG‐4 Variable Bit Rate Video Traffic

In this letter, we propose a novel algorithm to predict MPEG‐coded real‐time variable bit rate (VBR) video traffic. From the frame size measurement, the algorithm extracts the statistical property of video traffic and utilizes it for the prediction of the next frame for I‐, P‐, and B‐ frames. The simulation results conducted with real‐world MPEG‐4 VBR video traces show that the proposed algorithm is capable of providing more accurate prediction than those in the research literature.     

MPEG VBR视频流统计复用技术

ＭＰＥＧ的ＣＢＲ编码与ＶＢＲ编码各有优缺点,但经多路ＭＰＥＧ ＶＢＲ编码的视频流可通过统计复用获得较好的图像质量和较高的带宽增益。分析了一些典型的统计复用策略,指出了它们的缺欠,认为在数字视频广播中应采用联合码率控制技术代替统计复用技术。     

一种新的基于场景的VBR MPEG压缩视频源统计模型

由于VBRMPEG视频流可以获得统计复用增益和恒定的图像质量,它已经成为网络视频业务的主流,但是也给网络服务质量的控制带来了困难。因此,我们很有必要针对这些视频业务流对承载它们的网络带来的影响进行研究和评估。精确的MPEGVBR视频源统计模型不但有助于提高网络仿真的准确度,而且有助于研究网络其它方面的问题,如网络延时、分组丢失、延迟扰动等。本文提出了一种新的基于场景的VBRMPEG压缩视频源统计模型,该模型不仅计算简便,能快速产生符合要求的视频流样本,还能同时拟合原始视频业务数据的概率分布情况、自相关函数和自相似特性。     

Adaptive Rate Control and QoS Provisioning in Direct Broadcast Satellite Networks

Adaptive rate control, if properly employed, is an effective mechanism to sustain acceptable levels of Quality of Service (QoS) in wireless networks where channel and traffic conditions vary over time. In this paper we present an adaptive rate (source and channel) control mechanism, developed as part of an Adaptive Resource Allocation and Management (ARAM) algorithm, for use in Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) networks. The algorithm performs admission control and dynamically adjusts traffic source rate and Forward Error Correction (FEC) rate in a co-ordinated fashion to satisfy QoS requirements. To analyze its performance, we have simulated the adaptive algorithm with varying traffic flows and channel conditions. The traffic flow is based on a variable bit rate (VBR) source model that represents Motion Picture Expert Group (MPEG) traffic fluctuations while the DBS channel model is based on a two-state Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) channel. For measures of performance, the simulator quantifies throughput, frame loss due to congestion during transmission as well as QoS variations due to channel (FEC) and source (MPEG compression and data transmission) rate changes. To show the advantage of the adaptive FEC mechanism, we also present the performance results when fixed FEC rates are employed. The results indicate significant throughput and/or quality gains are possible when the FEC/source pairs are adjusted properly in co-ordination with source rate changes.     

Joint selection of source and channel rate for VBR videotransmission under ATM policing constraints

Variable bit-rate (VBR) transmission of video over ATM networks has long been said to provide substantial benefits, both in terms of network utilization and video quality, when compared with conventional constant bit-rate (CBR) approaches. However, realistic VBR transmission environments will certainly impose constraints on the rate that each source can submit to the network. We formalize the problem of optimizing the quality of the transmitted video by jointly selecting the source rate (number of bits used for a given frame) and the channel rate (number of bits transmitted during a given frame interval). This selection is subject to two sets of constraints, namely, (1) the end-to-end delay has to be constant to allow for real-time video display and (2) the transmission rate has to be consistent with the traffic parameters negotiated by user and network. For a general class of constraints, including such popular ones as the leaky bucket, we introduce an algorithm to find the optimal solution to this problem. This algorithm allows us to compare VBR and CBR under the same end-to-end delay constraints. Our results indicate that variable-rate transmission can increase the quality of the decoded sequences without increases in the end-to-end delay. Finally, we show that for the leaky-bucket channel, the channel constraints can be combined with the buffer constraints, such that the system is identical to CBR transmission with an additional, infrequently imposed constraint. Therefore, video quality with a leaky-bucket channel can achieve the same quality of a CBR channel with larger physical buffers, without adding to the physical delay in the system     

SIMULATION AND MODELLING OF VARIABLE BIT RATE MPEG VIDEO TRANSMISSION OVER ATM NETWORKS

This paper proposes an efficient transmission mechanism based on frame spreading, for variable bit rate (VBR) MPEG compressed video, through an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) multiplexer, such as a cable head-end. We implement a priority scheme in a software MPEG encoder which produces proportionate traffic in both (i.e. high and low) priority partitions for all three types of video frames used in MPEG, i.e. intraframe (I), predicted (P) and bidirectionally interpolated (B). Furthermore, we simulate an ATM multiplexing scheme with a pushout buffer mechanism providing priority scheduling at the multiplexer for the two video partitions. We load the multiplexer with VBR MPEG traffic and collect performance statistics such as the cell loss ratios for various frame spreading scenarios. In order to study the transmission mechanisms via simulation, we develop two statistical models, using the transform-expand-sample technique (TES) for VBR MPEG video with two levels of priority. The first model is matched with the empirical histogram and autocorrelation function of each frame type (I, P and B). The second model is created with the assumption of a gamma distribution for the number of bits in each frame type. We conduct experiments using both models and compare the results.     

Traffic shaping, bandwidth allocation, and quality assessment forMPEG video distribution over broadband networks

This article provides an overview of residential video delivery systems and presents the applications, benefits, and challenges of using VBR MPEG video encoding in broadband video distribution networks. The network resources required to transmit stored variable-rate MPEG can be reduced by properly analyzing and smoothing the video stream before transmission. A scheduling technique is presented which selects a traffic contract for a pre-encoded MPEG video stream with the criteria of minimizing network resources and maintaining video quality. Several effective bandwidth metrics are discussed and used to model the potential savings in network resources for the shaped streams     

智能集成VBR MPEG视频流量预测模型

作为数字媒体网络视频通信的主要方式,VBR MPEG视频流量的预测能力是直接关系缓冲区设计、动态带宽分配及拥塞控制等提高网络服务质量的关键因素.因此针对MPEG视频流的复杂特性,充分利用人工智能方法的优势,提出并建立了基于模糊神经网络的智能集成VBR MPEG 视频流量预测模型.采用模糊预测模型提高预测精度,利用神经网络解决预测的实时性问题.实验结果表明,与标准AR预测模型相比,该模型预测的准确度和可靠性显著提高,且算法简单易于推广到其他方法中使用.     

Design and evaluation of an efficient traffic control scheme for integrated voice,video, and data over asynchronous transfer mode networks: Explicit allowed rate algorithm

Asychronous transfer mode (ATM) networks are high‐speed networks with guaranteed quality of service. The main cause of congestion in ATM networks is over utilization of physical bandwidth. Unlike constant bit‐rate (CBR) traffic, the bandwidth reserved by variable bit‐rate (VBR) traffic is not fully utilized at all instances. Hence, this unused bandwidth is allocated to available bit‐rate (ABR) traffic. As the bandwidth used by VBR traffic changes, available bandwidth for ABR traffic varies; i.e., available bandwidth for ABR traffic is inversely proportional to the bandwidth used by the VBR traffic. Based on this fact, a rate‐based congestion control algorithm, Explicit Allowed Rate Algorithm (EARA), is presented in this paper. EARA is compared with Proportional Rate Control Algorithm (PRCA) and Explicit Rate Indication Congestion Avoidance Algorithm (ERICA), in both LAN and WAN environments. Simulations of all three algorithms are conducted under both congestion and fairness configurations with simultaneous generation of CBR, rt‐VBR, nrt‐VBR and ABR traffic. The results show that, with very small over‐head on the switch, EARA significantly decreases the required buffer space and improves the network throughput. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.