AMSTERDAM—Visual Unity, a Prague, Czech Republic based broadcast and multiscreen systems integration company, will launch 4K Gateway, a portable device for real-time low-latency video streaming up to 3D 4K at IBC2012 in Amsterdam, Sept. 7-11.
4K digital video offers approximately four times the resolution of the most widely-used HD television format, and 24 times that of a standard broadcast TV signal. This cost-effective streaming device allows film, post production and visualization companies to harness the power of 4K over unlimited bandwidth/distance in collaborative environments.
To develop 4K Gateway, Visual Unity worked in conjunction with Czech academic association CESNET and Prague-based independent post-production facility ACE.
Operating over dedicated photonic networks or shared Internet, 4K Gateway offers very low latency of less than 1 ms plus networking delay. Higher buffering can be optionally selected to compensate high network jitter or for special applications. 4K Gateway uses industry standard HD-SDI interfaces for eight video inputs and eight video outputs, all working simultaneously in multichannel full-duplex operation. Each HD-SDI channel can operate in full mode (all dark areas transmitted) or view mode (dark areas not transmitted). The latter allows the transmission of eight HD-SDI channels over a single 10 GigE interface, thus enabling uncompressed 3D 4K or 4K RGB (4:4:4) transmissions.
Visual Unity and its development partners have already put 4K Gateway through its paces on a series of projects, including a remote real-time low-latency collaboration on color grading of 4K video content, which was demonstrated over a distance of more than 6,200 miles (10,000 km) from Prague to San Diego. Another successful project saw 4K Gateway employed to remotely access scientific visualizations using low-latency real-time interactive navigation in a remote 3D building model.
“We have proved that 4K Gateway can overcome bandwidth constrains to provide a truly flexible and efficient distribution platform for high-end content,” Petru adds. “Our successful collaboration with CESNET and ACE has resulted in a product that makes the breath-taking image quality of 4K native resolution even more accessible.”
Visual Unity will be in Stand 3.B60.
