NEWS
Getting Your Game On: Precision Timing from Kick- Off to Final Touchdown
Rich Kapusta, VP, Segment Marketing, SiTime I
f you are a football fan, getting the right camera angle delivered at the right time, synchronously to your television set, is critical for your game-day viewing experience. Whether it is from a bird’s eye drone, a the video feed, orchestrated together with audio, gives you the real-time sequence of events and a cohesive understanding of the game. That is, if the data transmission timing is right and the broadcast systems are in sync.
The best live broadcast viewing experience requires a great deal of engineering complexity. Massive amounts of data must be transmitted through electronic systems of varying bandwidths, performance to production facility to the cloud and the satellite and eventually the stream to
your television set. In the dynamic world of broadcast production, precise timing and synchronisation of the data transmission is and seamless transitions.
This blog dives into critical aspects of timing and synchronisation challenges and solutions touchdown, it is all about precision.
Picture Perfect Stream: Precision Timing in the Studio
The complexity of modern studios, equipped with multiple cameras, audio inputs and video processors, requires a meticulous approach to timing and synchronisation. When working with multiple cameras or video sources in a studio, synchronisation ensures that switching between feed sources is seamless. A lack of synchronisation can result in glitches, delays
Fig 1: A master sync generator is a central timing source for all video equipment in the studio. External feeds use frame synchronisers as intermediaries, buffering incoming signals and retiming to a
genlocked SDI output that is synchronous with the studio equipment 6 FEBRUARY 2025 | ELECTRONICS FOR ENGINEERS
or degraded video quality during transitions, compromising the overall production value. Synchronisation to a reference time enables switching equipment to seamlessly transition between video sources without the need to buffer or re-synchronise input signals. A master sync generator serves as the central timing source for all video equipment in a production studio. This generator distributes a common master synchronisation signal, known as generator lock (genlock). An example of this in a composite video signal is a black burst which is a type of genlock with a black video frame that includes timing information for syncing and is used for all connected video sources and processors. Things get more complex with video signals from remote sources, such as outside broadcast cameras in football stadiums that may not have access to the master genlock signal. These signals often arrive to the production studio unsynchronised, posing a challenge for integration into the studio act as intermediaries, buffering incoming video signals and aligning their timing with the studio’s master synchronisation source. The process involves re-timing the remote video signal to produce a genlocked SDI output that is synchronous with other studio equipment. The capability is essential for integrating remote footage into live broadcasts, ensuring that all signals are consistent and synchronised, regardless of
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46
