At the MRC booth, I had a little fun ribbing Paul Furman, systems application engineer, about his badge which proclaimed him to be “The Greek God of Microwave.”
The tone went from jocular to serious when the conversation turned to the integration of IP technology into digital microwave links, however. MRC demonstrated a digital diversity receive package as part of an interesting, indoor mockup of the inside of an ENG van on the one hand and a ENG newsroom control system.
A critical part of the set up was the company’s new AMG1000 mobile networked server that satisfies the need for a reliable communications channel back to a remote newsgathering van for IP services. The AMG1000 can be populated with a variety of receive options to complete the link, including Sprint EvDO cards, a Wi-Fi receiver, on an 8-VSB modulation receiver.
While the back channel servers a critical role in supporting the forward error correction component of an ftp file transfer of a news file being sent over the microwave IP channel, it also can be used for a variety of other tasks.
According to Furman, return channel AMG1000-enabled communications can be used for everything but raising the mast on an ENG vehicle. Tasks include: controlling the ENG digital transmitter, aiming the antenna, controlling pan and tilt, power levels, IP switches, and video routers.
Listen to an audio clip from Paul Furman.
