AMSTERDAM—Marshall Electronics will debut two new compact cameras and a high-speed for slo-mo at IBC 2018 at the RAI Amsterdam, Sept. 14-18.  

Built around a 12.4-Megapixel, 1/1.7-inch sensor, the Marshall CV420-CS is a new, compact true 4K camera that delivers crisp, clear 4096x2160p video with vibrant colors and fast frame rates in outputs including 12G/6G/3G/HD-SDI and HDMI 2.0. It has a Varifocal or Fixed CS/C lens mount capability with DC Auto-Iris plug-in for custom lens adaptions.

The CV420-CS offers the following resolution modes and frame rate settings:

• True 4K (4096x2160p) at 50, 59.94, 60, 25, 29.97, 30, and 24 fps

• UHD (3840x2160p) at 50, 59.94, 60, 25, 29.97, 30, and 24 fps

• Interlaced HD (1920x1080i) at 50, 59.94, and 60 fps

• Progressive HD (1080p and 720p) at 50, 59.94, 25, 29.97, and 24 fps

Remote control for the CV420-CS is operated by RS485 (Visca) or OSD menu joystick, and a wide range of picture adjustment settings are available such as Paint (Red/Blue), White Balance, Gain, Pedestal (blacks), Gamma, Shutter and more. The CV420-CS can capture detailed shots while maintaining a discrete presence and can be used as a fixed "e-PTZ" camera, where select windows of the image can be zoomed and panned within the frame.

Marshall will also highlight its CV380-CS POV camera, which uses an 8.5-Megapixel, 1/2.5-inch sensor to capture detailed video images, with outputs in 6G/3G/HD-SDI and HDMI 1.4.  The CV380-CS has a Varifocal or fixed CS/C lens mount with DC Auto-Iris capability and can accept a range of interchangeable lenses for enhanced customization. 

The CV380-CS offers three resolution modes with the following frame rate settings:

• UHD (3840x2160p) at 25, 29.97, and 24 fps
• Progressive HD (1080p and 720p) at 50, 59.94, 25, 29.97, and 24 fps
• Interlaced HD (1080i) at 50, 59.94, and 60 fps

Also on hand will be the new ultra-high-speed Marshall CV506-H12, built for capturing high-speed action for detailed, high-definition slow-motion video.

The CV506-H12 offers the following resolution and frame rates settings:

• Progressive HD (1080p and 720p) at 120 fps
• Interlaced HD (1080i) at 50, 59.94, and 60 fps

The CV506-H12 can be controlled through RS485 (Visca) and has a range of adjustable image settings including Paint (Red/Blue), White Balance, Gain, Pedestal (black), Gamma, Shutter and more. It has a 2-Megapixel, 1/2.8-inch sensor with single HDMI 2.0 output.

The M12 lens mount can be used with fixed prime or varifocal lens options, and the lightweight, small footprint build enables it to be placed easily into tight, hard-to-reach locations for unique angles and viewpoints. The CV506-H12 is designed for use in broadcast, live sports, machine vision, process analysis and any other slow-motion application.

The CV380-CS and CV506-H12 are among the first additions to Marshall’s latest generation of compact and miniature cameras utilizing a fully redesigned body style and form factor. Special attention has been given to enhance durability in the field with the addition of new structural ‘wings,’ designed to give greater protection to rear connectors during use.

Marshall will be in Stand 12.D20.

WESTMORE, VT.—Millions of Major League Baseball fans who vicariously live through their favorite players for at least a few moments each game had the chance to rachet up that experience during Fox Sports’ presentation of the MLB All-Star Game last month.

For the rest of us, who simply want a fresh, new perspective on the game, the broadcaster delivered as well with the help of a new POV camera system from ActionStreamer.

“Our company’s founder, [former NFL middle linebacker] Dhani Jones, saw that something was missing from sports coverage,” says Max Eisenberg, CEO and one of ActionStreamer’s three founders. “He had a big passion towards the end of his playing career for giving fans the first-person perspective he was having on the field.”

'NICE SOLID SHOTS'

For the MLB All-Star Game that meant outfitting several players and coaches with extremely lightweight (100 grams) POV hat and helmet camera/transmitting units to give fans a viewpoint on the game from behind the plate in the bullpen, from the first base coach’s box, inside the dugout and even of an entrance of Twins pitcher Jose Berrios from the bullpen to the mound. “That was the first-ever live in-game player perspective integrated into a telecast,” says Eisenberg.

Brad Cheney, vice president field operations at Fox Sports was particularly impressed with the HatCams worn by the first base coaches for both leagues.

“The HatCams showed us a lot of closeup action at first,” says Cheney. Taking wider shots than what Fox typically shoots, the HatCams captured whole plays developing as well as the first base coach walking up to a player and grabbing gear. “It gave us the opportunity for some nice solid shots,” he says.

Those following the game on Twitter weren’t left out of the POV action as Major League Baseball Tweeted out video highlights captured by the wearable ActionStreamer systems.

THE TECHNOLOGY

ActionStreamer systems consist of three major components: 

• wireless camera streaming system worn by players and coaches

• proprietary software and networking technology

• patented image stabilization algorithm

The wearable system consists of a camera sensor, lens, battery, digital gyroscope, computer processor and radio, he explains. “Some of this is custom; some is off-the-shelf,” says Eisenberg. “The real value we provide is the software and networking.”

The company has six patents on its approach to making efficient use of bandwidth, which taken together, enable 10 or more camera-transmitter units to operate at once, says Eisenberg.

ActionStreamer radios operate in the 3.5GHz and 5GHz band –typically less congested spectrum, he says. The amount of available spectrum is treated as a networkwide resource and allocated to each ActionStreamer unit, he says.

Every unit typically operates within its own set of assigned parameters. However, if a unit experiences bandwidth challenges, parameters such as bit rate, bit depth and frame rate can be adjusted automatically to overcome the problem.

If doing so fails to allow the camera to transmit its shot, additional bandwidth can be dedicated to the unit, shifting some of the bandwidth allocated to other cameras on the network till the feed is streamed successfully, says Eisenberg.

“It’s a very managed approach. We are able to make the most efficient use of air time and bandwidth to bring more perspectives to life,” he explains.

Another important piece of ActionStreamer intellectual property relates to image stabilization. “Using a digital gyroscope, we pull the angular velocities with each frame of video,” says Eisenberg. “That helps our system to know how much head movement there is in the shot.”

The company is at work developing a system to leverage this data to apply in real time the right amount of offset to make shots steadier and more enjoyable to watch, he adds.

SETTING UP

At the moment, ActionStreamer arrives at the game venue a day or so before the telecast to survey the stadium or arena, identify fiber drops where its receive antennas can be located so shots transmitted by its cameras can be relayed to the production compound and set up its equipment rack.

For the All-Star Game, three receive antennas were deployed: one at about the 300 level above home plate; one in the first-base-side dugout; and one in the National League bullpen, Eisenberg said.

Eventually, the company intends to do stadium installs and season installs, giving its crew more time to do testing and tuning, he adds.

Fox Sports has been looking for a technology to provide POV shots for at least the past four years, says Cheney.

The stars aligned for the broadcaster to be able to deploy the ActionStreamer system as part of its All-Star Game coverage. First, ActionStreamer isn’t “modifying actual pieces of equipment as much as it is adaption to equipment that exists,” says Cheney. That’s especially important to players, who don’t want to be hindered by some foreign apparatus, and to the league, which wants to maintain the safety and well-being of players.

Second, ActionStreamer began testing its equipment with the MLB Network and the league itself earlier in the season so both operations were quite familiar with the technology, says Cheney.

Finally, the All-Star Game is an exhibition game, not an official contest that, for example, determines home field advantage in the World Series as it has in the past, making the decision to deploy ActionStreamer easier, he says.

Cheney envisions using ActionStreamer POV shots in the Fox Sports post-season Major League Baseball coverage. “And with our regional networks, usually what we do here turns into what they do at the beginning of next season for a full season,” he says.

As for ActionStreamer, the company is looking to deploy its technology to cover other sports. “We have a deal with the Arena Football League,” says Eisenberg. “About a month ago in the AFL, we brought a livestreaming football helmet into a live game for the first time ever.

“We are now looking at a variety of other sports that can benefit from our technology.”

More information is available on the ActionStreamer website.