A new end-to-end image compression system based on convolutional neural networks

In this paper, two new end-to-end image compression architectures based on convolutional neural networks are presented. The proposed networks employ 2D wavelet decomposition as a preprocessing step before training and extract features for compression from wavelet coefficients. Training is performed end-to-end and multiple models operating at di↵erent rate points are generated by using a regularizer in the loss function. Results show that the proposed methods outperform JPEG compression, reduce blocking and blurring artifacts, and preserve more details in the images especially at low bitrates.