Single-Sample Robust Joint Source–Channel Coding: Achieving Asymptotically Optimum Scaling of SDR Versus SNR

In this paper, we consider the problem of zero-delay (encoding a single-source sample) robust joint source-channel coding over an additive white Gaussian noise channel. We propose a new scheme that, unlike previously known coding schemes, achieves the optimal scaling of the source signal-to-distortion ratio (SDR) versus channel signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Also, we propose a family of robust codes, which together maintain a bounded gap with the optimum SDR curve (in terms of decibel). To show the importance of this result, we derive some theoretical bounds on the asymptotic performance of a widely used class of delay-limited hybrid digital-analog (HDA) coding schemes based on superposition of analog and digital components. We show that, unlike the delay-unlimited case, for this class of delay-limited HDA codes, the asymptotic performance loss is unbounded (in terms of decibels). Although the main focus of this paper is on uniform sources, it is also shown that the results are also valid for a more general class of well-behaved distributions.