APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ENCODING MOVING PICTURE SIGNAL

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus for encoding a moving picture signal which controls a transfer rate by each prescribed time and encodes the moving picture signal so as to bring an entire code amount of the moving picture signal to a prescribed capacity thereby to enhance the image quality of a reproduced decoded image. SOLUTION: The moving picture signal encoder for encoding a moving picture signal to record/reproduce the signal, is provided with: an encoding means 120 for encoding a received moving picture signal; a tentatively produced code amount detection means 106 for obtaining the produced encoding amount by each prescribed unit in the process of encoding by the encoding means; a recording medium 108 for recording tentatively encoded data generated by the encoding means and the tentatively generated encoding amount by each prescribed unit time; an expansion decoding means 110 for reproducing the tentatively encoded data from the recording medium for reproducing, expanding and decoding the tentatively encoded data from the recording medium and restoring the moving picture signal; and a target transfer rate control means 107 for setting a target generated encoding amount in response to the properties of the moving picture signal received on the basis of the tentatively generated encoding amount by each prescribed unit time. COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO