With all of the inevitable excitement surrounding cloud, IP, AI and remote production workflows at the 2024 NAB Show, what will be critical for many visitors is how leading edge technologies and techniques integrate with existing infrastructure. For much of the industry, the world is still very much a hybrid place so here we look at some of the technology that facilitates the exchange of content and data between SDI and IP infrastructure.

Most of the system designers we talk to are seeking to create production infrastructure which delivers a combination of the familiarity, predictability and cost efficiency of SDI with the increased flexibility of IP networking, and increasingly, the integration of cloud and remote workflows using IP as an enabling technology. Such hybrid systems are becoming more popular, powerful, important, and simpler to integrate and operate than ever. IP connectivity brings sophisticated production and processing capabilities to and through the cloud. Unfortunately, SDI to IP solutions are not all consolidated in a couple of NAB 2024 aisles.

If you’re integrating or want to integrate the benefits of IP and the cloud into your SDI media production and distribution work and content flows, the following exhibitors can show you what to do and how they can help you within your budget.

Meinberg (Booth C1814) is showing its new ANZ141/NET clock display that allows the time & date provided by a high-accuracy source to be displayed directly via a high visibility, high-contrast LED display that is readable in almost any conceivable lighting conditions and can be set to one of ten brightness levels, from studio sets to control rooms. The ANZ141 is synchronized via its DSUB9 serial interface (“COM port”) with a compatible time string containing both the time and date. It can optionally also be fitted with an integrated network interface (ANZ141/NET) or DCF77 long-wave receiver (ANZ141/DCF) to enable synchronization with an NTP server, PTP master, or the German DCF77 time service.

The integrated PTP slave capability of the ANZ141/NET supports both the C37.238-2017 Power and G.8265.1 Telecom profiles for use with industry-compliant PTP networks.  In the event of the upstream time reference failing for any reason, the ANZ141 will continue to operate reliably using the integrated real-time clock, and in the event of a loss of power to the ANZ141, the real-time clock will continue to operate accurately off the integrated goldcap capacitor or an optional lithium cell battery.

Meinberg will also show its new IMS-PSX210 Module 10 Gigabit PTP Solution. The new IMS-PSX210 is the latest IMS module for IEEE1588 PTP support, now with two discrete physical interfaces and direct support for 10 Gigabit networks, allowing a single module to be connected directly to two different 10 Gigabit subnets without the need to introduce a dedicated switch between the clock and network. This makes your network management more efficient and potentially increases clock accuracy due to the reduced hop count for PTP traffic.

Lawo (Booth C4110) describe their “.edge” as a hyper-density SDI/IP conversion and routing platform. .edge is presented as a viable replacement for traditional SDI routers with high bandwidth IP interconnection and software defined flexibility. It’s high-density processing blade is based on the latest generation of high-performance FPGAs, featuring high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for high-density, high-performance 100Gbps operation. The .edge blades are hot-pluggable and designed to support multiple ways of connecting to the network fabric. Each blade is equipped with four 25Gbps SFP28 and two 100Gbps QSFP28 ports, each with a dedicated LINK STATUS indicator. 25GbE connectivity comes as standard, 100GbE operation can be activated via an optional license.

Device control via LAN or WAN is addressed either in-band or out-of-band via two dedicated SFP-based 1GbE management ports. Mid-plane connections inform the .edge unit about the number of processing blades that have been installed (up to four per frame), which in turn controls .edge’s automatic power regulation and temperature-controlled fan activity. Designed with the environment in mind, a blade’s CPU module can be removed, serviced and even replaced with a more powerful one in the future.

Matrox Video (Booth SL5073) will be showing its ConvertIP product line to convert HDMI or SDI signals to and from ST 2110. ConvertIP is fanless and features PoE+ support for maximum reliability and flexibility. Laying the foundation for a standards-based, IPMX-ready infrastructure, ConvertIP supports compressed and uncompressed ST- 2110 formats, including JPEG XS for 2110-22. With support for up to 25 Gbps of connectivity, ConvertIP allows for the monitoring of full uncompressed 4K video.

The ConvertIP product line consists of six, single and dual-channel HDMI or SDI to IP converters, and a single channel SDI-IP transmitter/receiver. ConvertIP hardware devices support both copper or fiber networks.

Riedel Communications (Booth C4907) will present MediorNet Horizon, a new addition to the MediorNet family of video networking and processing devices. In addition to providing extensive and powerful video processing capabilities such as UHD up/down/cross conversion, SDR-HDR conversion, and color correction, the innovative hybrid processing platform blurs the boundary between SDI-based and SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructures with a dense array of UHD gateways. With its software-based app concept, HorizoN is set to bring next-level flexibility and simplicity to video ecosystems.

Designed to adapt and empower, HorizoN houses 16 independent and individually configurable processing engines within a single rack unit, facilitating flexible processing while seamlessly bridging the gap between baseband and IP systems. The platform provides up to 128 SDI - IP gateways, up to 32 channels of SDR-HDR conversion and color correction, or up to 16 up/down/cross conversions and color corrections. SFP-based baseband video I/O completes the package, making HorizoN an extremely versatile solution.

“As a highly dense gateway and processing solution, HorizoN not only combines the simplicity of SDI with the interoperability of ST 2110 but also provides all the key processing functionalities modern broadcast workflows require,” said Patrick Mandl, Product Manager Video, at Riedel Communications. “Because these capabilities can be distributed across the decentralized MediorNet TDM network, HorizoN reduces the need for external processing devices as well as deployment complexity and costs. And because HorizoN’s flexible licensing scheme accommodates user-specific combinations of processing and gateway capabilities, users pay only for the functionality they need.”

Arkona Technologies (Booth SU6037) will be showing its BLADE//runner in their exhibit. The BLADE//runner is based around the concept of ‘Infrastructure-as-Code’, allowing for rapid deployment of complex workflows through scripted and version-controlled templates. Input/Output functionality is provided through instantiable ST2110 and ST2022 transmitters and receivers while interfacing to legacy infrastructure is offered with versatile modular rear-plates. All IP senders and receivers support ST2022-7 seamless protection switching with at least class C (150ms) path differential.

Configuration is easy with the built-in FLOWS configuration tool which presents Sources, Processing and Outputs in a simple point, click, and drag web UI where all the most common parameters are easily accessible. BLADE//runner apps are designed to operate on the AT300 which is a modern FPGA Programmable Acceleration Card (PAC) with dual native true 100GE interfaces and high bandwidth memory (HBM). Designed to fit interchangeable modular rear-plates it is a great choice for hybrid applications that still require interfacing with legacy infrastructure.

Blackmagic Design (Booth SL5005 & SU3069) will demonstrate and display several new conversion products in their NAB 2024 exhibit. The Blackmagic 2110 IP Converter allows simultaneous conversion of SDI to IP and IP to SDI because the 10G Ethernet connection can handle three separate video channels at the same time. It includes a reference output timed to the 2110 PTP clock.

The company will also display its line of affordable Micro Converters and Mini Converter ‘problem solvers’, and its line of Teranex mini converters featuring multi-rate 12G-SDI technology and a built in LCD screen. All Teranex Minis include an internal AC power supply, professional XLR analog and AES/EBU audio connections and an ethernet connection for remote management and PoE alternate power. (121)

Evertz, AJA, Grass Valley and Ross are all also expected to show competitive SDI-IP conversion solutions on the 2024 NAB Show floor.

Other articles in this NAB 2024 'Show Focus' series:

The Broadcast Bridge will be at the NAB Show – on booth W4331. Please come and see us and share your thoughts on what we do and what you would like to see from us in the coming year.