Quasar Ph.C delivers twice the resolution of any HDTV upconverter

Snell & Wilcox exhibited the Quasar Ph.C, its HDTV upconverter that implements motion estimation technology to produce HD outputs from a variety of SD inputs, at IBC2006.

Developed to deliver conversion to HD formats, Quasar Ph.C combines three Snell & Wilcox technologies in a single, compact 1RU package. These include Ph.C motion estimation, DEFT 3:2 cadence correction and Prefix compression pre-processing, in addition to FormatFusion HDTV conversion.

Quasar Ph.C uses video motion estimation to analyze incoming images and shift the pixels in each video field so that they line up perfectly, even for complex scenes where there is fast motion, fine graphics or mixed film and video material. The use of motion estimation technology enables Quasar Ph.C to combine all the information in each video field into a full-resolution frame, from which it produces its upconverted output.

Designed with easy-to-use, intuitive controls, Quasar Ph.C upconverts interlaced SD 525 and 625 material to 720p and 1080i HDTV formats. Captions, graphics, logos and branding are converted, while an integrated clipper and legalizer guarantees correct display. An on-board aspect ratio converter comes with a series of fixed presets for the most common conversions. Quasar Ph.C also supports wide-screen signaling to allow for easy integration into a transmission playout environment.

Quasar is "self-aware" and plug-and-play ready for centralized setup and monitoring through RollCall. It joins more than 300 IQ Modular products and dozens of stand-alone system components that integrate into Snell & Wilcox broadcast infrastructure products.

Visit www.snellwilcox.com for more information.