Virtual memory access bandwidth verification (VMBV) in video coding

1. A method, comprising:

determining, via a signal processor, a target picture virtual memory access (VMA) bandwidth rate, wherein the target picture VMA bandwidth rate indicates a maximum VMA bandwidth rate for motion compensation of a picture; and

verifying the target picture VMA bandwidth rate for a compressed video bit stream, wherein verifying the target picture VMA bandwidth rate comprises:

decoding the picture;

measuring a consumed VMA bandwidth for motion compensation of the picture using a VMA bandwidth measurement algorithm, wherein the consumed VMA bandwidth is indicative of an amount of reference data read from off-chip memory for motion compensation of the picture; and

verifying that the consumed VMA bandwidth does not exceed a maximum VMA bandwidth for the picture, the maximum VMA bandwidth being determined based on the target picture VMA bandwidth rate.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein measuring consumed VMA bandwidth comprises measuring consumed VMA bandwidth for each coding block of a plurality of coding blocks of the picture.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein a coding block is a largest coding unit (LCU).

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining a target picture VMA bandwidth rate comprises determining a coding level for the compressed video bit stream, wherein the target picture VMA bandwidth rate is defined for the coding level.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein verifying the target picture VMA bandwidth rate comprises:

determining a maximum VMA bandwidth for the picture based on the target picture VMA bandwidth rate, wherein VMA bandwidth is an amount of reference data read from off-chip memory for motion compensation;

determining a target VMA bandwidth for a coding block of the picture based on the maximum VMA bandwidth, wherein the picture is divided into a plurality of coding blocks for encoding;

encoding a coding block of the picture;

measuring consumed VMA bandwidth for motion compensation of the coding block using the VMA bandwidth measurement algorithm; and

adjusting VMA bandwidth control parameters for motion estimation to decrease VMA bandwidth consumption for a subsequent coding block when the measured consumed VMA bandwidth exceeds the target VMA bandwidth.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:

adjusting VMA bandwidth control parameters for motion estimation to increase VMA bandwidth consumption for a subsequent coding block when the measured consumed VMA bandwidth is less than the target VMA bandwidth.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein a coding block is an LCU.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

determine a target picture virtual memory access (VMA) bandwidth rate, wherein the target picture VMA bandwidth rate indicates a maximum VMA bandwidth rate for motion compensation of a picture; and

verify the target picture VMA bandwidth rate for a compressed video bit stream, wherein the instructions that cause the processor to verify the target picture VMA bandwidth rate include instructions that cause the processor to:

decode the picture;

measure a consumed VMA bandwidth for motion compensation of the picture using a VMA bandwidth measurement algorithm, wherein the consumed VMA bandwidth is indicative of an amount of reference data read from off-chip memory for motion compensation of the picture; and

verify that the consumed VMA bandwidth does not exceed a maximum VMA bandwidth for the picture, the maximum VMA bandwidth being determined based on the target picture VMA bandwidth rate.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the instructions that cause the processor to determine a target picture VMA bandwidth rate include instructions that cause the processor to determine a coding level for the compressed video bit stream, wherein the target picture VMA bandwidth rate is defined for the coding level.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8 , wherein the instructions that cause the processor to verify the target picture VMA bandwidth rate include instructions that cause the processor to:

determine a maximum VMA bandwidth for the picture based on the target picture VMA bandwidth rate, wherein VMA bandwidth is an amount of reference data read from off-chip memory for motion compensation;

determine a target VMA bandwidth for a coding block of the picture based on the maximum VMA bandwidth, wherein the picture is divided into a plurality of coding blocks for encoding;

encode a coding block of the picture;

measure consumed VMA bandwidth for motion compensation of the coding block using the VMA bandwidth measurement algorithm; and

adjust VMA bandwidth control parameters for motion estimation to decrease VMA bandwidth consumption for a subsequent coding block when the measured consumed VMA bandwidth exceeds the target VMA bandwidth.