تعرض شركة Sapec سير العمل الكامل بدقة UHD في قمة 4K HDR

ال 4K-HDR Summit, the world’s largest summit dedicated to Ultra High Definition, hosts a UHD workflow powered by Sapec compression solutions including signal generation with a playout server (BBright), a low compression contribution (نيفيون and Sapec), and final distribution to the user with UHD HEVC compression.

The complete Sapec deployment includes signal generation with a playout server (BBright), contribution in low compression (Nevion, Sapec), and distribution to the user with UHD HEVC compression (Sapec). In this way, the Spanish company demonstrates the solvency of its solutions in a highly demanding real environment.

The generation of 4K HDR content with BT.2020 color space is carried out with Bbright’s BMedia solution, which is responsible for generating the UHD signal in baseband. BMedia, a tool commercialized by Sapec, is a 1 RU production server capable of performing the ingest and playout of a UHD channel, supporting HDR, Dolby Atmos and SDI or SMPTE-2110 inputs/outputs. Through its management system, it can program the broadcast of content in SDI or SMPTE-2110 baseband format, and also allows SDR⇔HDR conversion in real time.

Sapec’s demonstration also recreated a low compression contribution in TICO compression format using Nevion’s Virtuoso MI system converting a 12G signal to 3G. Virtuoso MI is a 1 RU modular infrastructure device with redundant power supplies and internal redundancy for element management, internal communications and network uplinks. Nevion Virtuoso also supports JPEG-XS compression, JPEG2000 or uncompressed SDI transport S2022-6 and ST2110.

From the Nevion solution, which can host up to 8 media accelerators, 4 3G signals are sent to the Sapec SIVAC-ONE Compact, which encodes the signal in HEVC 4K (as if it were a DTT headend).

This entire workflow, which has been exhibited for two days at the National Digital Content Pole in Malaga, emulates a typical signal generation scenario. The process would be similar if the signal is generated, for example, in a soccer field. The contribution, in this case, would reach the headquarters of a television station to end up in the viewers’ televisions after passing through the head-end.

Sivac-One Compact

Sivac-One Coimpact is a robust, high quality solution designed as a portable, lightweight and very low power consuming platform. Sapec’s development is perfectly suited for the most demanding live video transport applications where simplicity, reliability and low latency are key requirements.

It enables real-time encoding on the popular Sivac-One Media Processor (SMP) card, designed for HEVC/H.265 4:2:2/4:2:2:0 video transport, 10 bits per pixel and latencies below 150ms. This model is capable of processing one 4K UHD (HDR, WCG) video channel with 2160p50/60 resolution, or up to 4 FHD/HD channels with resolutions up to 1080p50/60 in a small footprint and with a power consumption of less than 30W. In both cases, with support for up to 16 channels of digital audio (stereo).

Just like SMP, the Compact version offers different possibilities for input/output to adapt to the needs of each project. The available inputs are 12G/4x3G/HD/SD-SDI and outputs are 2xDVB-ASI or 2xIP UDP/ RTP with FEC SMPTE 2022-1/2/7 (Multicast/Unicast).

In the workflow demonstrated by Sapec at the 4K HDR Summit, the signal, instead of being carried over the air, is transported to a UHD TV receiver via HDMI after passing through a Sapec GUR5002 multi-format receiver-decoder. This solution is capable of decoding UHD (4K) signals in 4:2:0 10 bit (DTT, IP or ASI), with HDR support and HEVC, H264 or MPEG2 algorithms, and distributing through a 4x 3G-SDI interface decoding UHD signals that can be received from satellite, DTT, IP or ASI. Nevion’s (Sony) VideoIPath media orchestration platform, which enables video service management for broadcasters, IP service providers and optical networks, is the control infrastructure for the entire demo.

Regarding signal monitoring and analysis, these have been carried out with BBright and VideoClarity systems. The BBright RMD-8 solution is in charge of monitoring the decoded signal (with PIP compression alarms, audio and video bandwidth…). Videoclarity equipment allows video quality analysis regardless of resolution and format with 8K and 4K uncompressed recording and playback capabilities. Perceptual and objective video quality metrics include VMAF, MS-SSIM on DMOS and MS-SSIM scales, NIQE, PSNR, ΔEITP, and JND as an option. For audio, audio performance metrics include aFREQ for quality with lip-sync measurement, aPeak for LKFS loudness test.

For a year and a half, a 2-channel UHD signal playout has been continuously maintained. Two main tests have been carried out: the analysis of the encoding in the video chain, and format interchange tests on the TV receivers. For all these tests, Sapec is using Videoclarity’s ClearView 4K solution, creating a model based on 3 stages: two contribution stages (HEVC with 4:2:2 and 4:2:0 profile) and one distribution stage, with SIVAC-ONE encoding.

The BBright, Nevion and VideoClarity portfolios are distributed in Spain by Sapec.