Wavelet packet transform basis selection method for set partitioning in hierarchical trees

Abstract

The dyadic wavelet-based set partitioning in hierarchical trees (SPIHT) is highly efficient in coding nontextured images while the wavelet packet transform (WPT) is able to provide an optimal representation for textured images. However, incorporating the WPT with SPIHT to improve the performance of SPIHT is not as straightforward as it would seem. Although previous solutions generally adapt the zero-tree structure to the WPT, we introduce a method for selecting an optimal WPT basis for SPIHT, which efficiently compacts the high-frequency subband energy into as few trees as possible and avoids parental conflicts. The proposed SPIHT-WPT coder achieves improved coding gains, especially for highly textured images. Furthermore, the selected WPT is compatible with the regionof-interest and error resilient SPIHT coding schemes. © 2008 SPIE and IS&T.