Novel intermode decision algorithm in H.264/AVC

H.264/AVC employs variable-size motion compensation with multiple reference frames that can significantly improve the coding performance compared with the previous video coding standards. However, the computational complexity of the H.264/AVC encoder increases dramatically due to the various size modes used. One of the most challenging problems in implementing this encoder is mode decision. We propose a novel intermode decision algorithm (NIMDA) to reduce the candidate mode set, which utilizes two basic elements, the sum absolute difference (SAD) of each block from the initial test of the and the texture characteristic. Simulation results show that our proposed algorithm can save about 46 in computational complexity, with negligible loss of coding efficiency.