R-(lambda) Model Based Improved Rate Control for HEVC with Pre-Encoding

In this paper, we proposed a new rate control algorithm for High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), the latest video coding standard from the ITU/ISO [1]. We use the information of pre-encoded 16×16 coding units (CUs) to estimate the characteristics of the largest coding unit (LCU). Based on the estimates, the proposed R-λ model can be refined before the real encoding process. This is in contrast to rate control algorithms such as that in the HEVC reference software, where the model is updated based on a previously encoded picture. Experimental results show that the proposed rate control scheme can achieve accurate rate control with a BD-PSNR gain up to 5.37dB, compared to the state-of-the-art rate control algorithm in the HEVC test model (HM) 16.0. The largest PSNR improvement was over 6dB.