crgbyuvintel-ippnv12-nv21

How to convert RGB to NV12 color space using IPP


Video encoders like Intel® Media SDK require NV12 video input format.

NV12 format is YUV 4:2:0 format ordered in memory with a Y plane first, followed by packed chroma samples in interleaved UV plane.

Example:
YYYYYY
YYYYYY
UVUVUV

enter image description here

RGB color format, refers to Pixel-Order RGB (byte per pixel, lower byte is Red):
RGBRGBRGBRGBRGB
RGBRGBRGBRGBRGB

enter image description here

I did some Web research, and found out that regarding NV12, YUV is defined as YCbCr color space. There are currently at least 2 possible YCbCr formats apply NV12:

My question is: Is there as IPP function that converts RGB color space to NV12?


Solution

  • I found out that IPP function exists:

    ippiRGBToYCbCr420_8u_C3P2R

    It was hard to find, because the function name or description does not mention NV12.
    The function uses BT.601 standard.

    Here is a code sample for converting RGB to NV12 in BT.601 standard:

    void Rgb2NV12(const unsigned char I[], int image_width, int image_height, unsigned char J[])
    {
        IppStatus ipp_status;
        int srcStep = image_width*3;
        int dstYStep = image_width;
        int dstCbCrStep = image_width;
        IppiSize roiSize = {image_width, image_height};
    
        const Ipp8u* pSrc = (Ipp8u*)I;
    
        Ipp8u *pDstY    = (Ipp8u*)J;                            //Y color plane is the first image_width*image_height pixels of J.
        Ipp8u *pDstCbCr = (Ipp8u*)&J[image_width*image_height]; //In NV12 format, UV plane starts below Y.
    
        ipp_status = ippiRGBToYCbCr420_8u_C3P2R(pSrc, srcStep, pDstY, dstYStep, pDstCbCr, dstCbCrStep, roiSize);
    
        //if (ipp_status != ippStsNoErr), Handle errors...          
    }
    



    Converting RGB to NV12 with BT.709 standard:

    As for 2019, BT.709 (HDTV) standard is probably more relevant than BT.601 (SDTV).

    IPP lacks a function for direct conversion from RGB to NV12 in BT.709 standard.
    There is a function that converts BGR to NV12.
    The solution includes two stages:

    1. Convert from RGB to BGR (swap channels).
      Code sample uses ippiSwapChannels_8u_C3R for RGB to BGR conversion.
    2. Convert from BGR to NV12.
      Code sample uses ippiBGRToYCbCr420_709CSC_8u_C3P2R for BGR to NV12 conversion.

    The sample function requires some extra memory space for storing the intermediate BGR image.
    A pointer to the sketch memory is passed to the function (the memory should be allocated outside the function).

    Here is a code sample for converting RGB to NV12 in BT.709 standard:

    //sketch_buff - Temporary buffer for storing image in BGR format.
    //              Size of sketch_buff must be at least image_width*image_height*3 bytes.
    void Rgb2NV12_709(const unsigned char I[],
                      const int image_width, 
                      const int image_height,
                      unsigned char sketch_buff[],
                      unsigned char J[])
    {
        IppStatus ipp_status;    
        int srcStep = image_width*3;
        int dstBgrStep = image_width*3;
        int dstYStep = image_width;
        int dstCbCrStep = image_width;
        IppiSize roiSize = {image_width, image_height};
    
        const Ipp8u* pRGB = (Ipp8u*)I;
        Ipp8u* pBGR = (Ipp8u*)sketch_buff; //BGR image is stored in sketch_buff
        Ipp8u *pDstY    = (Ipp8u*)J;                            //Y color plane is the first image_width*image_height pixels of J.
        Ipp8u *pDstCbCr = (Ipp8u*)&J[image_width*image_height]; //In NV12 format, UV plane starts below Y.
    
        const int bgrOrder[3] = {2, 1, 0};
    
        //Swap Red and Blue color channels - convert from RGB to BGR
        //Store the result into sketch_buff (sketch buffer is allocated outside the function)
        ipp_status = ippiSwapChannels_8u_C3R(pRGB, srcStep, pBGR, dstBgrStep, roiSize, bgrOrder);
    
        //if (ipp_status != ippStsNoErr), Handle errors...
    
        //Convert BGR to NV12 in BT.709 standard
        ipp_status = ippiBGRToYCbCr420_709CSC_8u_C3P2R(pBGR, srcStep, pDstY, dstYStep, pDstCbCr, dstCbCrStep, roiSize);
    
        //if (ipp_status != ippStsNoErr), Handle errors...
    }