This is the first comprehensive treatment of the theoretical aspects of the discrete cosine transform (DCT), which is being recommended by various standards organizations, such as the CCITT, ISO etc., as the primary compression tool in digital image coding. The main purpose of the book is to provide a complete source for the user of this signal processing tool, where both the basics and the applications are detailed. An extensive bibliography covers both the theory and applications of the DCT. The novice will find the book useful in its self-contained treatment of the theory of the DCT, the detailed description of various algorithms supported by computer programs and the range of possible applications, including codecs used for teleconferencing, videophone, progressive image transmission, and broadcast TV. The more advanced user will appreciate the extensive references. Tables describing ASIC VLSI chips for implementing DCT, and motion estimation and details on image compression boards are also provided.

This book has grown from notes used by the authors to instruct fast transform classes. One class was sponsored by the Training Department of Rockwell International, and another was sponsored by the Department of Electrical Engineering of The University of Texas at Arlington. Some of the material was also used in a short course sponsored by the University of Southern California. The authors are indebted to their students for motivating the writing of this book and for suggestions to improve it.