Methods and apparatuses of encoding/decoding intra prediction mode using candidate intra prediction modes

1. A method for decoding an intra prediction mode of a current block, comprising:

determining whether a first intra prediction mode derived from a first neighboring block located at the left side of the current block is identical to a second intra prediction mode derived from a second neighboring block located at the upper side of the current block;

in response to a determination that the first intra prediction mode is not identical to the second intra prediction mode, deriving a first candidate intra prediction mode from the first intra prediction mode and deriving a second candidate intra prediction mode from the second intra prediction mode and, based on priority of order among a planar mode, a DC mode, and a vertical mode, deriving a third candidate intra prediction mode different from the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode; and

in response to a determination that the first intra prediction mode is identical to the second intra prediction mode, determining whether the first and second intra prediction modes are identical to the DC mode and, in response to determining that the first and second intra prediction modes are identical to the DC mode, setting the first candidate intra prediction mode equal to the planar mode, setting the second candidate intra prediction mode equal to the DC mode, and setting the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the vertical mode,

wherein three candidate intra prediction modes are arranged according to an order of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein deriving of the third candidate intra prediction mode comprises:

if none of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode, setting the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the planar mode;

if one of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode, and the other is not the DC mode, setting the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the DC mode; and

if one of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode, and the other is the DC mode, setting the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the vertical mode.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first neighboring block corresponds to a block including a pixel positioned at (x−1, y) when a position of an upper-left pixel of the current block is (x, y); and the second neighboring block corresponds to a block including a pixel positioned at (x, y−1) when the position of the upper-left pixel of the current block is (x, y), where the x and y are an integer value.

4. The method of claim 3 , further comprising:

decoding information indicating whether one of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block; and

if one of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block, deriving the intra prediction mode of the current block based on the identical one from among the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

decoding information indicating whether one of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block; and

if none of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block, deriving the intra prediction mode of the current block based on a remaining intra prediction mode different from the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein deriving of the intra prediction mode of the current block based on the remaining intra prediction mode different from the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode if none of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block comprises:

deriving the intra prediction mode of the current block by comparing the remaining intra prediction mode with the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode, respectively.

7. An image decoding apparatus, comprising:

an entropy decoding unit configured to decode information indicating whether one candidate intra prediction mode from among a first candidate intra prediction mode, a second candidate intra prediction mode, and a third candidate intra prediction mode is identical to an intra prediction mode of a current block, the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes being three candidate intra prediction modes for the current block; and

a predictor configured to derive the intra prediction mode of the current block based on the information, wherein,

if a first intra prediction mode derived from a first neighboring block located at the left side of the current block is not identical to a second intra prediction mode derived from a second neighboring block located at the upper side of the current block, the predictor is configured to derive the first candidate intra prediction mode from the first intra prediction mode, to derive the second candidate intra prediction mode from the second intra prediction mode, and to derive, based on priority of order of a planar mode, a DC mode, and a vertical mode, the third candidate intra prediction mode different from the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode,

wherein, if the first intra prediction mode derived from the first neighboring block located at the left side of the current block is identical to the second intra prediction mode derived from the second neighboring block located at the upper side of the current block, the predictor, in response to determining that the first and second intra prediction modes are identical to the DC mode, is configured to set the first candidate intra prediction mode equal to the planar mode, to set the second candidate intra prediction mode equal to the DC mode, and to set the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the vertical mode, and

wherein three candidate intra prediction modes are arranged according to an order of the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the predictor is configured to set the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the planar mode if none of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode; the predictor is configured to set the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the DC mode if one of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode, and the other is not the DC mode; and the predictor is configured to set the third candidate intra prediction mode equal to the vertical mode if one of the first candidate intra prediction mode and the second candidate intra prediction mode is the planar mode, and the other is the DC mode.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the first neighboring block corresponds to a block including a pixel positioned at (x−1, y) when a position of an upper-left pixel of the current block is (x, y); and the second neighboring block corresponds to a block including a pixel positioned at (x, y−1) when the position of the upper-left pixel of the current block is (x, y), where the x and y are an integer value.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the predictor, if one of the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block, is configured to derive the intra prediction mode of the current block based on the identical one from among the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes; and

if none of the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block, the predictor is configured to derive the intra prediction mode of the current block based on a remaining intra prediction mode different from the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the predictor, if none of the first, second, and third candidate intra prediction modes is identical to the intra prediction mode of the current block, is configured to derive the intra prediction mode of the current block by comparing the remaining intra prediction mode with the first candidate intra prediction mode, the second candidate intra prediction mode, and the third candidate intra prediction mode, respectively.