Optimal subband bit allocation procedure for verylow bit rate image coding

Abstract

The authors propose a new optimal subband bit allocation procedure which is well suited for low bit rate applications. Contrary to most bit allocation algorithms, this method does not use approximate distortion and rate models but finds the optimal solution among all possible combinations of quantisers. Associated with a ‘stack-run’ codec, it is shown to improve on the performance obtained by the well-known EZW algorithm.