Microsoft patents method to improve dark colors in standard video streams
Microsoft describes a system that adjusts how standard video content is processed to improve the quality of dark areas. It uses a specific mathematical curve to map color values, ensuring that shadows have more detail without increasing the file size or causing visual artifacts like banding.
In the filing’s own words
The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for transmitting Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) content. The systems and methods may use a modified Electro-Optical Transfer Function (EOTF) curve to convert nonlinear color values of SDR content into optical output values of modified SDR content. The systems and methods may encode the modified SDR content using eight bits while preventing banding. The systems and methods may transmit the encoded data to a client device for presentation on a display.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A computer system, implemented with memory and one or more processing units, configured to perform operations comprising: receiving given standard dynamic range (SDR) content; converting the given SDR content into modified SDR content according to a modified Electro-Optical Transfer Function (“EOTF”) curve that covers up to 100 nits and maps nonlinear color values into optical output values, wherein the converting includes mapping input pixel values with 8 bits of color depth in color channels of the given SDR content to output pixel values with 8 bits of color depth in color channels of the modified SDR content, and wherein the mapping increases a level of granularity of the output pixel values for dark portions of the modified SDR content compared to a level of granularity of the input pixel values for corresponding dark portions of the given SDR content; providing the modified SDR content to an encoder; generating encoded data for the modified SDR content by encoding, with the encoder, the modified SDR content using 8 bits of color depth; and outputting the encoded data.
Facts
- Company
- Microsoft (Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC)
- Official title
- EFFICIENT ELECTRO-OPTICAL TRANSFER FUNCTION (EOTF) CURVE FOR STANDARD DYNAMIC RANGE (SDR) CONTENT
- Publication number
- US20260270366A1
- Application number
- 19666061
- Filed
- May 1, 2026
- Published
- Sep 10, 2026
- Inventors
- 3
- Claims
- 20
Classified under
H04N 7/01 Electricity & electronicsH04N 9/646 Electricity & electronicsH04N 19/85 Electricity & electronicsMore from Microsoft in Cameras & imaging
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.