Rutgers University Stadium, located on the Busch campus of Rutgers University in Piscataway, NJ, has installed five new Hitachi SK-HD1000 HD studio/field cameras to produce game-day entertainment, including live HD video of game action and spectators, for the stadium’s big-screen HD display.
The cameras, which are outfitted with Fujinon HD lenses and operated by freelance cameramen, were first used at the Rutgers versus the University of Cincinnati 2009 season opener Sept. 7. Two of the cameras are used as handhelds while the other three are fixed on tripods. All five cameras capture images in 1080i for display on a new Daktronics video scoreboard, which measures 38ft by 112ft.
Jim Signorini was contracted by Rutgers University to design and install the new HD video infrastructure at the stadium. The HD video infrastructure upgrade is part of a $102 million capital investment made during 2008 and 2009 by Rutgers University to expand the stadium in support of its Scarlet Knights football program. Besides expanding stadium seating and amenities, the capital investment enabled Rutgers Stadium to convert from analog to digital HDTV, including the cameras, Hitachi camera control units, a fiber-optic network and the Daktronics video scoreboard.
The contract also includes the design and integration of a native 1080i HD video control room in the stadium press box that houses an Echolab HD switcher, Click Effects CrossFire and Flashback for graphics and instant replays, and two Avitech multiviewer systems, which are used to display eight video sources on each of two 52in LCD monitors.
