A FFMPEG-Based Analysis of Video Codec Technology

This thesis offers a comprehensive analysis of video coding technology utilizing FFMPEG. It commences with an overview of the fundamental principles of video coding, encompassing key concepts, prevalent standards such as H.264/AVC and H.265/HEVC, and basic techniques for reducing spatial, temporal, and statistical redundancy. The central section of the thesis delves into FFMPEG, examining its development history, architecture, installation, configuration, and fundamental usage. It provides detailed discussions on the encoding process, supported codecs, quality and performance evaluation, and practical encoding examples. Additionally, it explores the underlying algorithms used in video coding, such as motion estimation algorithms (e.g., block matching algorithms like full search, three-step search, and hexagon-based search), discrete cosine transform (DCT) algorithms for spatial redundancy reduction, and entropy encoding algorithms (e.g., Huffman coding and arithmetic coding) for statistical redundancy reduction. The thesis also investigates various case studies and applications of FFMPEG in video coding, including video streaming, video editing, and video surveillance.