Overview of the applicability of H.264/MVC for real-time light-field applications

Several methods for compressing light-fields (LF) and multiview 3D video content have been proposed in the literature. The most widely accepted and standardized method is the Multi View Coding (MVC) extension of H.264, which is considered appropriate for use with stereoscopic and multiview 3D displays. In this paper we will focus on light-field 3D displays, outline typical use cases for such displays, analyze processing requirements for display-specific and display-independent light-fields, and see how these map to MVC as the underlying 3D video compression method. We also provide an overview of available MVC implementations, and the support these provide for multiview 3D video. Directions for future research and additional features supporting LF video compression are presented.