Robust significance-linked connected component analysis for low complexity progressive image transmission over noisy channels

A highly robust channel coding scheme to be seamlessly integrated into our previously developed high performance wavelet based significance-linked connected component analysis (SLCCA) image coding technique is proposed. The SLCCA source coding algorithm is slightly modified to enable synchronization after each bit-plane. Thus even after uncorrectable errors, the decoding can be continued at the next refinement level. An unequal error protection scheme is also developed by using Reed-Solomon codes. The proposed scheme outperforms P.G. Sherwood and K. Zeger´s technique (1997; 1998) by 0.66 dB on average for the “Lena” image in peak signal-to-noise ratio. Furthermore, the proposed codec has very low computational complexity, well applicable for the power constrained mobile scenario