Optimized Memory System Architecture for VESA VDC-M Decoder with Multi-Slice Support

TL;DR

This paper introduces an optimized memory architecture for VESA VDC-M decoders that significantly reduces buffer sizes and hardware complexity while supporting real-time 4K UHD video decoding.

Contribution

It presents a novel memory system design with optimized scheduling and segmentation, achieving substantial buffer size reductions and hardware efficiency improvements.

Findings

33.3% reduction in line buffer size

77.3% reduction in reconstruction buffer size

Supports 4K UHD real-time decoding at 96.45 fps

Abstract

Video compression plays a pivotal role in managing and transmitting large-scale display data, particularly given the growing demand for higher resolutions and improved video quality. This paper proposes an optimized memory system architecture for Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) Display Compression-M (VDC-M) decoder, characterized by its substantial on-chip buffer requirements. We design and analyze three architectures categorized by optimization levels and management complexity. Our strategy focuses on enhancing line buffer access scheduling and minimizing reconstruction buffer, targeting prediction and multi-slice operation that are the major resource consumers in the decoder. By adjusting line delay and segmenting SRAM bank alongside reconstructed block forwarding, we achieve a 33.3% size reduction in the line buffer and 77.3% in the reconstruction buffer compared to Baseline VDC-M decoder. Synthesized using a 28 nm CMOS process, the proposed architecture achieves a 31.5% reduction in gate count of the decoder backend hardware, supporting real-time performance with up to 96.45 fps for 4K UHD resolution at 200 MHz operating frequency and a throughput of 4 pixels per cycle.