METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SAMPLE ADAPTIVE OFFSET IN A VIDEO DECODER

摘要

A method and apparatus for SAO (sample adaptive offset) processing in a video decoder are disclosed. Embodiments according to the present invention reduce the required line buffer associated with the SAO processing. According to one embodiment, tri-level comparison results for one deblocked pixel row or column of the image unit are determined according to SAO type of the deblocked pixel row or column. The tri-level comparison results are stored in a buffer and the tri-level comparison results are read back from the buffer for SAO processing of the subsequent row or column from a subsequent image unit. The comparison results correspond to “larger”, “equal” and “smaller” states. The comparison results can be stored more efficiently.