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IETF RFC 2431
RTP Payload Format for BT.656 Video Encoding
Last modified on Saturday, October 10th, 1998
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Network Working Group D. Tynan
Request for Comments: 2431 Claddagh Films
Category: Standards Track October 1998
RTP Payload Format for BT.656 Video Encoding
 Status of this Memo
This document specifies an Internet standards track protocol for the
Internet community, and requests discussion and suggestions for
improvements. Please refer to the current edition of the "Internet
Official Protocol Standards" (STD 1) for the standardization state
and status of this protocol. Distribution of this memo is unlimited.
Copyright Notice
Copyright © The Internet Society (1998). All Rights Reserved.
Abstract
This document specifies the RTP payload format for encapsulating ITU
Recommendation BT.656-3 video streams in the Real-Time Transport
Protocol (RTP). Each RTP packet contains all or a portion of one
scan line as defined by ITU Recommendation BT.601-5, and includes
fragmentation, decoding and positioning information.
1. Introduction
This document describes a scheme to packetize uncompressed, studio-
quality video streams as defined by BT.656 for transport using RTP
[1]. A BT.656 video stream is defined by ITU-R Recommendation
BT.656-3 [2], as a means of interconnecting digital television
equipment operating on the 525-line or 625-line standards, and
complying with the 4:2:2 encoding parameters as defined in ITU-R
Recommendation BT.601-5 (formerly CCIR-601) [3], Part A.
RTP is defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to
provide end-to-end network transport functions suitable for
applications transmitting real-time data over multicast or unicast
network services. The complete specification of RTP for a particular
application requires the RTP protocol document [1], a profile
specification document [4], and a payload format specification. This
document is intended to serve as the payload format specification for
studio-quality video streams.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 1 
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
"SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this
document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [5].
2. Definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following definitions apply:
Y: An 8-bit or 10-bit coded "luminance" sample. Luminance in this
context refers to the BT.601-5 [3] definition which is not the same
as a true CIE luminance value. The value of "luminance" refers
specifically to video luma. However, in order to avoid confusion with
the BT.656 and BT.601 standards, the video luma value is referenced
in this document as luminance. Each value has 220 quantization
levels with the black level corresponding to level 16 and the peak
white level corresponding to 235.
Cb, Cr: An 8-bit or 10-bit coded color-difference sample (as per
BT.601-5). Each color-difference value has 225 quantization levels
in the centre part of the quantization scale with a color-difference
of zero having an encoded value of 128.
True Black: BT.601-5 defines a true black level as the quad-sample
sequence 0x80, 0x10, 0x80, 0x10, representing color-difference values
of 128 (0x80) and a luminance value of 16 (0x10).
SAV, EAV: Video timing reference codes which appear at the start and
end of a BT.656 scan line.
3. Payload Design
ITU Recommendation BT.656-3 defines a schema for the digital
interconnection of television video signals in conjunction with
BT.601-5 which defines the digital representation of the original
analog signal. While BT.601-5 refers to images with or without color
subsampling, the interconnection standard (BT.656-3) specifically
requires 4:2:2 subsampling. This specification also requires 4:2:2
subsampling such that the luminance stream occupies twice the
bandwidth of each of the two color-difference streams. For normal
4:3 aspect ratio images, this results in 720 luminance samples per
scan line, and 360 samples of each of the two chrominance channels.
The total number of samples per scan line in this case is 1440.
While this payload format specification can accomodate various image
sizes and frame rates, only those in accordance with BT.601-5 are
currently supported.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 2
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
Due to the lack of any form of video compression within the payload
and sampling-rate compliance with BT.601-5, the resultant video
stream can be considered "studio quality". However, such a stream
can require approximately 20 megabytes per second of network
bandwidth. In order to maximize packet size within a given MTU, and
to optimize scan line decoding, each video scan line is encoded
within one or more RTP packets.
To allow for scan line synchronization, each packet includes certain
flag bits (as defined in BT.656-3) and a unique scan line number.
The SAV and EAV timing reference codes are removed. Furthermore, no
line blanking samples are included, so no ancillary data can be
included in the line blanking period. It is the responsibility of
the receiver to generate the timing reference codes, and to insert
the correct number of line blanking samples.
Similarly, there is no requirement that the frame blanking samples be
provided. However, it is possible to include frame blanking samples
if such samples contain relevant information, such as a vertical-
interlace time code (VITC), or teletext data. In the absence of
frame blanking samples, the receiver MUST generate true black levels
as defined above, to complete the correct number of scan lines per
field. If frame blanking samples are provided, they MUST be copied
without modification into the resultant BT.656-3 stream.
Scan lines MUST be sent in sequential order. Error concealment for
missing scan lines or fragments of scan lines is at the discretion of
the receiver.
Both 8-bit and 10-bit quantization types as defined by BT.601-5 are
supported. 10-bit samples are considered to have two extra bits of
fixed-point precision such that a binary value of 10111110.11
represents a sample value of 190.75. Using 8-bit quantization, this
would give a sample value of 190. An application receiving 8-bit
samples for a 10-bit device MUST consider the sample as reflecting
the most-significant 8 bits. The two least-significant bits SHOULD
be set to zero. Similarly, an application sending 8-bit samples from
a 10-bit device MUST drop the two least-significant bits. For a 10-
bit quantization payload, each pair of samples MUST be encoded into a
40-bit word (five octets) prior to transmission, as specified in
Section 6.
To allow for scan lines with octet lengths larger than the path
maximum transmission unit (MTU), a scan offset field is included in
the packet header. Applications SHOULD attempt path MTU discovery
[6] and fragment scan lines into multiple packets no larger than the
MTU.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 3
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
Fragmentation MUST occur on a sample-pair boundary, such that the
chrominance and luminance values are not split across packets. For
8-bit quantization this gives a four-octet alignment, and a five-
octet alignment for 10-bit quantization. As a result, the scan
offset refers not to the byte offset within the payload, but the
sample-pair offset.
4. Usage of RTP
Due to the unreliable nature of the RTP protocol, and the lack of an
orderly delivery mechanism, each packet contains enough information
to form a single scan line without reference to prior scan lines or
prior frames. In addition to the RTP header, a fixed length payload
header is included in each packet. This header is four octets in
length.
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| RTP Header |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Payload Header |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Payload Data |
| . |
| . |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
4.1. RTP Header usage
Each RTP packet starts with a fixed RTP header. The following fields
of the RTP fixed header are used for BT.656-3 encapsulation:
Marker bit (M): The Marker bit of the RTP header is set to 1 for the
last packet of a frame (or the last fragment of the last scan line if
fragmented), and set to 0 on all other packets.
Payload Type (PT): The Payload Type indicates the use of the payload
format defined in this document. A profile MAY assign a payload type
value for this format either statically or dynamically as described
in RFC 1890 [4].
Timestamp: The RTP Timestamp encodes the sampling instant of the
video frame currently being rendered. All scan line packets within
the same frame will have the same timestamp. The timestamp SHOULD
refer to the 'Ov' field synchronization point of the first field.
For the payload format defined by this document, the RTP timestamp is
based on a 90kHz clock.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 4
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
5. Payload Header
The payload header is a fixed four-octet header broken down as
follows:
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
|F|V| Type |P| Z | Scan Line (SL) | Scan Offset (SO) |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
F: 1 bit
When 0, indicates the first field of a frame (line 4 through 265
inclusive for Type=0 or 2, and line 1 through 312 inclusive for Type=1
or 3). Any other scan line is considered a component of the second
field, and the F bit will be set to 1. This bit is copied directly
from the BT.656-compliant stream by the transmitter, and inserted into
the stream by the receiver.
V: 1 bit
When 1, indicates that the scan line is part of the vertical interval.
Should always be 0 unless frame blanking data is sent. In which case,
the V bit SHOULD be set to 1 for scan lines which do not form an
integral part of the image. This bit is copied directly from the
BT.656-compliant stream by the transmitter, and inserted into the
stream by the receiver. For receivers which do not receive scan lines
during the vertical interval, BT.656 vertical interval data MUST be
generated by repeating the quad-sample sequence 0x80, 0x10, 0x80,
0x10, representing a true black level.
Type: 4 bits
This field indicates the type of frame encoding within the payload.
It MUST remain unchanged for all scan lines within the same frame.
Currently only four types of encoding are defined. These are as
follows;
0 - NTSC (13.5MHz sample rate; 720 samples per line; 60 fields
per second; 525 lines per frame)
1 - PAL (13.5MHz sample rate; 720 samples per line; 50 fields
per second; 625 lines per frame)
2 - High Definition NTSC (18MHz sample rate; 1144 samples per
line; 60 fields per second; 525 lines per frame)
3 - High Definition PAL (18MHz sample rate; 1152 samples per
line; 50 fields per second; 625 lines per frame)
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 5
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
Further encodings can only be defined through the Internet Assigned
Numbers Authority (IANA). For more information refer to Section 8,
"IANA Considerations".
P: 1 bit
Indicates the required sample quantization size. When 0, the payload
is comprised of 8-bit samples. Otherwise, it carries 10-bit samples.
This bit MUST remain unchanged for all scan lines within the same
frame.
Z: 2 bits
Reserved for future use. Must be set to zero by the transmitter and
ignored by the receiver.
Scan Line (SL): 12 bits
Indicates the scan line encapsulated in the payload. Valid values
range from 1 through 625 inclusive. If no frame blanking data is
being transmitted, only scan lines 23 through 310 inclusive, and
lines 336 through 623 inclusive SHOULD be sent in the case of Type=1
or 3. For 525/60 encoding (Type=0 or 2), scan lines 10 through 263
inclusive and lines 273 through 525 SHOULD be transmitted.
If a receiver is generating a BT.656-3 data stream directly from this
packet, the F and V bits MUST be copied from the header rather than
being generated implicitly from the scan line number. In the event
of a conflict, the F and V bits have precedence.
Scan Offset (SO): 11 bits
Indicates the offset within the scan line for application-level
fragmentation. After doing PMTU discovery, if the path MTU is less
than the required size for one complete scan line, the data SHOULD be
fragmented such that a given RTP packet does not exceed the allowable
MTU. The offset for the first packet of a scan line MUST be set to
zero. The scan offset refers to the sample-pair offset within the
scan such that for a scan line width of 720, the maximum scan offset
is 359.
6. Payload Format
In keeping with the 4:2:2 color subsampling of BT.656 and BT.601,
each pair of color-difference samples will be intermixed with two
luminance samples. As per BT.656, the format for transmission SHALL
be Cb, Y, Cr, Y. The following is a representation of a 720 sample
packet with 8-bit quantization:
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 6
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
0 1 2 3
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Cb0 | Y0 | Cr0 | Y1 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Cb1 | Y2 | Cr1 | Y3 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
.
.
.
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
| Cb359 | Y718 | Cr359 | Y719 |
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
1144 and 1152 sample packets SHOULD increase the packet size
accordingly while maintaining the sample order.
For 10-bit quantization, each group of four samples MUST be encoded
into a 40-bit word (five octets) prior to transmission. The sample
order is identical to that for 8-bit quantization. The following is
a representation of a 720 sample packet with 10-bit quantization:
0 1 2 3
0 2 4 6 8 0 2 4 6 8 0 2 4 6 8 0 2 4 6 8
+---------+---------+---------+---------+
| Cb0 | Y0 | Cr0 | Y1 |
+---------+---------+---------+---------+
| Cb1 | Y2 | Cr1 | Y3 |
+---------+---------+---------+---------+
.
.
.
+---------+---------+---------+---------+
| Cb359 | Y718 | Cr359 | Y719 |
+---------+---------+---------+---------+
(Note that the word width is 40 bits)
+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
Octets: | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
The octets shown in these diagrams are transmitted in network byte
order, that is, left-to-right as shown.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 7
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
7. Security Considerations
RTP packets using the payload format defined in this specification
are subject to the security considerations discussed in the RTP
specification [1]. This implies that confidentiality of the media
streams is achieved by encryption. Because the payload format is
arranged end-to-end, encryption MAY be performed after encapsulation
so there is no conflict between the two operations.
This payload type does not exhibit any significant non-uniformity in
the receiver side computational complexity for packet processing to
cause a potential denial-of-service threat.
8. IANA Considerations
The four encoding types defined by this document relate to specific
schema defined by ITU-R Recommendation BT.656-3. Future revisions of
the recommendation may create further encoding types which need to be
supported over RTP. The "Type" field is four bits wide allowing for a
total of up to sixteen possible encodings, with twelve currently
reserved for future use. Due to the small number of possible
encodings and given that it is very unlikely that future revisions of
BT.656 will introduce any new schema, requests to extend the Type
field MUST be vetted by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.
Furthermore, implementors SHOULD check the IANA repository for new
definitions of the Type field in order to comply with this document.
Applications for a new Type value MUST be submitted to the IANA and
include the requestors name and contact information, the reason for
requesting a new Type and references to appropriate standards, such
as an updated version of ITU-R Recommendation BT.656. Furthermore,
in the unlikely event that the new Type will lessen the security of a
compliant implementation, such security risk MUST be detailed in the
application. The application will be reviewed by a Designated Expert
and if appropriate, a new Type will be assigned. This type will be
listed in the IANA repository for future implementations.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 8
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
9. References
[1] Schulzrinne, H., Casner, S., Frederick, R., and V. Jacobson,
"RTP: A Transport Protocol for Real-Time Applications", RFC
1889, January 1996.
[2] Interfaces for Digital Component Video Signals in 525-Line and
625-Line Television Systems operating at the 4:2:2 Level of
Recommendation ITU-R BT.601 (Part A), ITU-R Recommendation
BT.656-3, 1995.
[3] Studio Encoding Parameters of Digital Television for Standard
4:3 and Wide-Screen 16:9 Aspect Ratios, ITU-R Recommendation
BT.601-5, 1995.
[4] Schulzrinne, H., "RTP Profile for Audio and Video Conference
with Minimal Control", RFC 1890, January 1996.
[5] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement
Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.
[6] Mogul, J., and S. Deering, "Path MTU Discovery", RFC 1191,
November 1990.
10. Author's Address
Dermot Tynan
Claddagh Films Limited
3 White Oaks
Clybaun Road
Galway
Ireland
EMail: dtynan@claddagh.ie
Phone: +353 91 529944
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 9
RFC 2431 RTP Payload Format for BT.656 October 1998
11. Full Copyright Statement
Copyright © The Internet Society (1998). All Rights Reserved.
This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to
others, and derivative works that comment on or otherwise explain it
or assist in its implementation may be prepared, copied, published
and distributed, in whole or in part, without restriction of any
kind, provided that the above copyright notice and this paragraph are
included on all such copies and derivative works. However, this
document itself may not be modified in any way, such as by removing
the copyright notice or references to the Internet Society or other
Internet organizations, except as needed for the purpose of
developing Internet standards in which case the procedures for
copyrights defined in the Internet Standards process must be
followed, or as required to translate it into languages other than
English.
The limited permissions granted above are perpetual and will not be
revoked by the Internet Society or its successors or assigns.
This document and the information contained herein is provided on an
"AS IS" basis and THE INTERNET SOCIETY AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING
TASK FORCE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING
BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION
HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Tynan Standards Track PAGE 10
RTP Payload Format for BT.656 Video Encoding
RFC TOTAL SIZE: 22323 bytes
PUBLICATION DATE: Saturday, October 10th, 1998
LEGAL RIGHTS: The IETF Trust (see BCP 78)
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