44 TVBEurope Forum Communications
as customers’ infrastructure moves toward fibre for live events, sports and outside broadcast and to IP for everywhere else. No — because many customers will be wary of operating their communications systems on the same infrastructure as other aspects of their operations, in case of some kind of catastrophic failure. We can support both mindsets equally well. Clear-Com has a native digital IP transport from matrix to panels and can co- exist with LAN, WAN and Internet networks, and be compatible with AVB Ethernet, VLAN and VPN IT networks. Diehl: Absolutely. Integration and easy interfacing with other parts of a production system are becoming more and more important. Imagine, for example, an outside broadcast truck, that is self-sufficient while on the road, but can connect to its headquarters and become an additional Control Room. Sparrow: Some customers are happy to risk putting all their eggs in one basket, using a single network for audio, video, talkback and control. What we see is a general reluctance to this approach and a preference to keep talkback on a separate IP network, although we can, of course, use any combined network.
Are there any downsides to these networks?
Diehl: Depending on the protocols and standards used, solutions may not be able to guarantee bandwidth or introduce a non-negligible delay. If they are not engineered properly integrated networks may become complicated and hard to handle. This is where Riedel profits from its expertise in digital media networks and why we have identified Audio Video Bridging (AVB) as a core transport technology for intercom. Fleetwood: The main worry is running out of bandwidth. I would have thought the programme stream would be fairly predictable, and certainly the main bandwidth user. But I would be more concerned about the less predictable requirements of talkback. I guess it all comes down to system configuration, but I
would be apprehensive that someone might set up some kind of ‘all call’ key that fills the network with individual speech packets addressed to every user on the system. Rogers: The reality is that with a single network, trying to find a problem in one media format will have a knock on effect on other formats. Redundancy across the networks will avoid this as long as it is supported within the network devices.
www.tvbeurope.com June 2013
“Talkback will move away from panels attached to a dedicated matrix, and towards panels that connect direct to each other via the network” — Mike Fleetwood, FACE
IP connectivity has been around for a while. Are there any innovations regarding this technology?
Christian Diehl: “More interesting than IP-based communications such as VoIP is Audio Video Bridging”
Does designing such networks with an open public standard technology mean that users have more choice when it comes to mixing and matching vendors’ products?
Browne: It should, but as we all know from recent trends with IP media technologies, it might not. de Bruyn: Yes, provided the industry comes to a general agreement on standard(s). Diehl:We believe that AVB, which is comprised of a set of IEEE standards, will establish as a standard in the broadcast and pro audio world. This means that the level of interoperability between manufacturers will be elevated to a certain point that is most probably higher than today. It is my personal belief that any innovative manufacturer will be able to offer unique
features and solutions that will distinguish its products from others. Rogers: RTS and Bosch are driving for the OCP (Open Control Protocol) to become an open public standard exactly for that reason. The interoperability provides manufacturers with a platform that will remain operational regardless of the latest trending gadget. Re-engineering constantly — as technology goal posts keep moving — detracts from being able to spend resources on the operating surfaces to further enhance the human interface.
When it comes to talkback links between a studio and an outside broadcast, what is the preferred method of communication today?
Browne: The telephone, IP and satellite IFB predominate. Diehl:We have been observing a shift towards VoIP technologies for talkback connectivity in outside broadcast. Fleetwood: We are into a period of transition, from proprietary matrix-matrix connection to something based on individual VoIP connections. Rogers: Probably not the preferred method of communication, but ISDN and
E1/ T1 circuits from the OB back to a studio takes the brunt of the communication traffic. Sparrow: IP is the preferred communications medium for links between a studio and an outside broadcast, usually over a network involving satellite links and fibre optic connections. Using our Gemini distributed matrix system makes this sort of link straightforward, with redundant connections possible via dual fibre optic rings.
John Sparrow: “The ability to quickly deploy a solution using IP networks helps customers keep smaller inventories”
Browne: We introduced cloud working for our Concert IP-based intercom system. It has enabled smaller project groups to set up wide area intercom very quickly and has been successful in enabling more dynamic communication. Diehl: There are certainly sub- functions of an intercom system, where a cloud-based service is helpful. Spontaneous outside broadcast events could benefit
de Bruyn: There’s Dante, Omneo, Ravenna and a few others, but none is really ‘ground breaking’. The question is ‘what is going to become the standard used by all manufacturers of audio and comms equipment’. And when is AVB (also called Ethernet 2) going to be available and is it going to be used by everyone? Diehl: More interesting than IP based communications such as VoIP is AVB. Since it is currently basing on OSI Layer 2, AVB is technically speaking not an IP connectivity, but certainly the most exiting innovation. AVB is built on new IEEE 802.1 standards at network Layer 2 which extend the established Ethernet by adding mechanisms that guarantee reliable transport of media data besides data traffic, provide timing and synchronisation mechanisms for low and deterministic latency as well as algorithms for avoiding packet streaming congestion in LAN structures. So AVB not only offers an unprecedented reliability, but also comes with its own protocol for device detection,
enumeration and network control (IEEE 1722.1) which enables interoperability and control mechanisms, common to all AVB-enabled devices. Rogers:RTS has been using RVON (RTS Voice Over Network ) for over a decade providing reliable secure network links between intercom devices, but with G.711, G.729 and G.723 codec options rather than full bandwidth audio. There is also a RTS VLINK software solution based on a virtual matrix on a server with licensed clients having trunked audio links into the hardware intercom system giving access through mobile phone technology. However, Bosch, of which RTS is a division, has developed a technology architecture called Omneo that provides full audio bandwidth with low latency as well as offering provision of control. Products are now rolling out which will allow Layer 3 routing of audio on networks from matrix to keypanels, and matrix to matrix, the current offering is a card based on Audinate’s Dante supporting up to 64 channels of audio per card on a single cable to any standard TCP/IP networks.
Does the cloud come into the comms world?
from such services. It is hard to imagine, though, that a broadcaster would outsource his intercom to a cloud service. As unimportant as it may seem at a first glance, intercom provides the communication backbone. Without this backbone production is impossible. Therefore high availability, reliability and security are key features of a good intercom system. Fleetwood: I believe this is the next big change, in the sense that talkback will move away from panels attached to a matrix, and towards panels that connect direct to each other via the network. Here, the cloud will replace the matrix. I think this will be quite a shake-up for the comms industry. Rogers: Omneo provides the framework for cloud based system architecture, Being a secured open standard, it will allow different manufacturers to have interoperable devices linked via a given network.
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