Systematic Lossy Error Protection for Video Transmission over Wireless Ad Hoc Networks

Wireless ad hoc networks present a challenge for error-resilient video transmission, since node mobility and multipath fading result in time-varying link qualities in terms of packet loss ratio and available bandwidth. In this paper, we propose to use a systematic lossy error protection (SLEP) scheme for video transmission over wireless ad hoc networks. The transmitted video signal has two parts a systematic portion consisting of a video sequence transmitted without channel coding over an error-prone channel, and error protection information consisting of a bitstream generated by Wyner-Ziv encoding of the video sequence. Using an endto-end video distortion model in conjunction with online estimates of packet loss ratio and available bandwidth, the optimal Wyner-Ziv description can be selected dynamically according to current channel conditions. The scheme can also be applied to choose one path for transmission from amongst multiple candidate routes with varying available bandwidths and packet loss ratios, so that the expected end-to-end video distortion is maximized. Experimental results of video transmission over a simulated ad hoc wireless network shows that the proposed SLEP scheme outperforms the conventional application layer FEC approach in that it provides graceful degradation of received video quality over a wider range of packet loss ratios and is less susceptible to inaccuracy in the packet loss ratio estimation.