Broadcast and multiscreen systems integration company Visual Unity will launch 4K Gateway, a portable device for realtime low-latency video streaming up to 3D 4K at IBC2012. 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 selected to compensate high network jitter or for special applications. 4K Gateway uses HD-SDI interfaces for eight video inputs and eight video outputs, all-working simultaneously in multi-channel 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 Gigabit Ethernet 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. These include a remote realtime low-latency collaboration on colour grading of 4K video content, which was demonstrated over a distance of more than 6200 miles (10000 km) from Prague to San Diego, California. Another successful project saw 4K Gateway employed to remotely access scientific visualisations using low-latency realtime 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,” said Tomas Petru, president of Visual Unity. “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.”3.B60
