Filtering strength determination method, moving picture coding method and moving picture decoding method

1. A coding and decoding system including a coding apparatus which codes a block in a B-picture and a decoding apparatus which decodes a coded block in the B-picture,

wherein the coding apparatus comprises:

a non-transitory memory storing a program; and

a hardware processor that executes the program and causes the coding apparatus to:

generate a predictive image for a current block to be coded by referring to one or two reference pictures;

code a difference image between the current block and the predictive image of the current block to generate coded data of the current block, the coded data being generated by orthogonal transforming and quantizing the difference image;

decode the coded data to obtain a decoded difference image of the current block;

obtain a reconstructed block by adding the decoded difference image and the predictive image;

determine, as a first filtering strength determining process, a filtering strength from among a plurality of filtering strengths including one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed; and

remove, as a first coding distortion removing process, a coding distortion between the current block and a neighboring block adjacent to the current block by performing a filtering on the current block and the neighboring block,

wherein, in the case where both of the current block and the neighboring block do not contain the coded data, the determining of the first filtering strength in the first filtering strength determining process:

selects, as the filtering strength, a weakest filtering strength among the plurality of the filtering strengths, excluding the one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, when the number of reference pictures referred to by the current block and the number of reference pictures referred to by the neighboring block are not the same; and

selects, as the filtering strength, one of (i) a weakest filtering strength among the plurality of the filtering strengths, excluding the one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, and (ii) the filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, when the number of reference pictures referred to by the current block and the number of reference pictures referred to by the neighboring block are the same, and

wherein the decoding apparatus comprises:

a non-transitory memory storing a program; and

a hardware processor that executes the program and causes the decoding apparatus to:

generate a predictive image for a current block to be decoded by referring to one or two reference pictures;

decode coded data of the current block in a bit stream to obtain a decoded difference image between the current block and the predictive image of the current block, the coded data in the bit stream being generated by coding a coefficient that indicates a spatial frequency component resulting from an orthogonal transformation and a quantization of the difference image;

generate a reconstructed block by adding the decoded difference image and the predictive image;

determine, as a second filtering strength determining process, a filtering strength from among a plurality of filtering strengths including one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed; and

remove, as a second coding distortion removing process, a coding distortion between the current block and a neighboring block adjacent to the current block by performing a filtering on the current block and the neighboring block; and

store the reconstructed block for which a coding distortion is removed into a memory,

wherein, in the case where both of the current block and the neighboring block do not contain the coded data in the bit stream, the determining of the filter strength in the second filtering strength determining process:

selects, as the filtering strength, a weakest filtering strength among the plurality of the filtering strengths, excluding the one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, when the number of reference pictures referred to by the current block and the number of reference pictures referred to by the neighboring block are not the same; and

selects, as the filtering strength, one of (i) a weakest filtering strength among the plurality of the filtering strengths, excluding the one filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, and (ii) the filtering strength corresponding to no filtering being performed, when the number of reference pictures referred to by the current block and the number of reference pictures referred to by the neighboring block are the same.