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Sony previews latest technological developments

Tech giant previews developments in virtual production, VR and sport video

Sony has been previewing its work in various technology fields, including virtual production, next-gen VR and Hawk-Eye as part of its Sony Technology Day.

The event included updates on the work the tech giant is doing in virtual production, particularly around in-camera visual effects.

Sony has developed a 3DCG image linked with the movement of the camera, which is projected as a background on an LED display installed in the studio behind the performer. According to the company, this frees creators from the hassle of CG composition required for conventional green background shooting, as well as restrictions such as weather, time and place.

Crystal LED is an LED display that combines Sony’s unique LED control technology and signal processing technology cultivated in BRAVIA, and projects high-resolution images with overwhelming reality with high brightness and a wide viewing angle, said Sony. Combined with its digital cinema camera, VENICE 2 leads to a high affinity for colour reproduction and tonal expression, and makes possible more realistic content production, it added.

Sony said it intends to deepen its collaboration with creators inside and outside the company, as well as with engineers involved in actual filming, to promote the development of virtual production solutions that can efficiently produce high-quality content.

Next-gen VR

Another presentation showcased Sony’s prototype for an 8K VR headset.

It uses two 4K displays to create an 8K viewing experience. Sony said what sets its headset apart is the integration of low latency tech, to allow for a realistic, yet natural and comfortable VR experience.

“We aim to achieve smaller, lighter, ultra high-resolution head-mounted displays and to create spaces for people to interact over the network,” said Sony’s Kei Kimura of the company’s R&D Centre. “Ultimately, we’d like to create an astonishing sense of immersion for remote collaboration and sharing.”

Hawk-Eye

Sony’s Hawk-Eye division showed off its latest development, SkeleTRACK, a tracking system that can be used in football, to capture the movements of players and the match ball from live video feeds.

The software uses dedicated tracking cameras, collecting skeletal data in real-time and with what Sony describes as millimetre accuracy.

Hawk-Eye’s data visualisation technology, Virtual Recreation, was also used to manipulate the data obtained from the electronic performance tracking system and video review systems to create virtual outputs.

Hawk-Eye’s advanced image processing, AI recognition technologies fused with Sony’s specialty broadcast output capabilities and image sensor technology, enables users to track details down to the posture of the players, which are then converted into data, making it possible to visualise performances that were previously impossible to capture.

In the future, the Sony Group and Hawk-Eye aim to apply this technology and contribute to various entertainment businesses, not limited to sports, said the company.