Architecture for Multiple Reference Frame Variable Block Size Motion Estimation

This paper proposes a high throughput variable block size motion estimation (VBSME) architecture supporting multiple reference frames (MRF). To enable best rate-distortion performance for different video contents, the architecture allows selection between high spatial resolution motion search over a single reference frame, or MRF search at a lower spatial resolution. Through synthesis of an ASIC implementation, the architecture is shown to be suitable for high definition video resolutions and frame rates. The architecture also provides a higher overall macroblock throughput than other VBSME architectures in the literature.