Optimal error protection for progressive image transmission over finite-state Markov channels

This paper presents a unified framework for addressing progressive image transmission over both memoryless and fading channels based on finite-state Markov channels (FSMC) models. The main advantage of using FSMC models is that they allow analytical derivation of optimal joint source-channel coding solutions in the form of unequal error protection without the burden of simulating wireless channels. Our analyses and experiments confirm that 1) FSMC models work for fading channels and 2) PSNR results obtained with FSMC models compare favorably with those published in the literature.