DIPOL Weekly Review - TV and SAT TV, CCTV, WLAN

No. 14/2011 (April 4, 2011)

Interactive television - iTV.

In late March, the CEO of YouView, a joint initiative of the leaders of the UK television market (BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel Five, TalkTalk, BT, Arqiva), announced that the consortium will start the interactive television in Great Britain in February 2012.

It is an important initiative which may have a considerable impact on the television business.

YouView is an interactive platform which combines television and the Internet. Viewers will have access to new services such as video on demand (VoD), interactive games, electronic newspapers, YouTube videos, photo albums. They will also be able to watch any show broadcast within last week. The selecting of television programs and new services will be possible through thematic portals (like in the Internet), which offers greater opportunities than the current selection of TV channels. iTV changes the traditional, passive model of providing content into situation where the viewer decides about the current programming.

The British concept is similar to the continental HbbTV initiative, but has a wider dimension. After launching, its interactive features will be available both for programs broadcast by satellite (Freesat) and for the terrestrial ones (Freewiew). Simply, a greater degree of digitization of the UK TV market allows for more advanced solutions.
It is to be hoped that this time the February 14 will be the actual launch date, because YouView has encountered many obstacles in its development. There were protests of Sky and Virgin Media, which complained last year to stop YouView going ahead on anti-competitive grounds, Google recognized the name YouView to be infringing on its rights to Youtube. The consortium also had to solve multiple technical problems and agree technical standards.
A video presenting functions of the interactive television
The basic issue concerning interactive television is suitable software. There are several standards for linking television and the Internet. The most important are MHP (GEM) (Multimedia Home Platform), MHEG (Multimedia and Hypermedia Experts Group), OpenTV, OCAP (OpenCable Application Platform), ACAP (Advanced Common Application Platform), DAVIC, MediaHighway.

YouView will use MHEG, an open standard which describes the application programming interface (API) designed to enable broadcasters to deliver interactive/hybrid services, including the traditional broadcasting of audio-video content. MHEG has been developed by ISO Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group (MHEG) and Digital Audio Video Council (DAVIC).
The growing popularity of this standard is attributed to the UK, which became a pioneer in implementing new solutions in terrestrial television. The standard has been adopted by the British TV platform Freeview, and adapted for hybrid applications. This profile has also been standardized (ETSI ES 202 184 V1.1.1, 2004 MHEG-5 Broadcast Profile) and has become the prototype of all MHEG-5 profiles currently used in the world, e.g. in Hong Kong (TVB) and Germany (TechniSat).
Many countries are facing the dilemma of whether to use pay standards (likeMHP), which will raise the prices of the set top boxes, or one of open standards.

Antennas in the "Golden Triangle".

The "Golden Triangle" is a popular term for one of the major opium production regions in the world, with an area of 350000 square kilometers, located in mountainous terrain. The region is sparsely populated and the satellite broadcasts are available in C-band (3.4 to 4.2 GHz).
Unfortunately, the inhabitants of the country with the dishes visible in the picture must use services of foreign operators, the signals are relatively weak, requiring installation of large dishes.
Which country are we talking about here? The answer at the end of this issue.
Satellite dishes in the "Golden Triangle"

Optical node Terra OD-003 for FTTH systems.

Modern, spacious apartment and office buildings, or sports facilities with large distances between signal distribution points, require the use of optical fibers.
Typically, the attenuation of optical fibers is 4000 times lower than that of high quality coaxial cables.
Optical transmitter TERRA MOS-211AOptical Node TERRA OD-003 (FTTH receiver)
Application of optical transmitter Terra MOS-211A R81720 and FTTH receivers Terra OD-003 R81728.
The solution has been used by a manufacturer of consumer electronics to test DVB-T receivers.
Thanks to using several optical fibers the system covers two test rooms with several outlets.
Until recently, due to the high cost of the components of FTTH systems dedicated to television, the problem of large distances has been addressed through the use of both thick and expensive copper cables and cascades of RF amplifiers. Today, such a solution is neither modern nor cost-effective.
Optical Node TERRA OD-003 (FTTH receiver)
Optical node Terra OD-003 R81728 is ideal subscriber receiver for FTTH systems. The maximum RF output level of 80 dBuV is suitable for distribution of the channels via passive components throughout an apartment, office or one-family house.

Mini HD DVR camera Protect 701.

A security agency has decided to introduce a system of video recording to its patrol cars. The project has been based on Protect 710 M70701 DVR cameras.
Protect - Portable DVR Cameras
The operation of the DVR camera is simple, the audio-video recording may start automatically after power switch on. The device is equipped with an 800 mAh battery, allowing for continuous recording after power switch off or failure.
The recorded video has a watermark with the actual date and time. Thanks to the lens with viewing angle of 120 degrees, recording resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, and frame rate of 25 fps, the DVR camera provides detailed coverage of the route.
After returning to the base, each driver is required to archive the data from the entire day. Originally, the data is stored on a popular, resistant to shock and vibration, and easily removable flash memory media (SD/SDHC/MMC). It can be read using a card reader or by connecting the DVR camera to a PC via a USB cable.
The data archived on a dedicated PC is analyzed by the database manager. The recordings document the work of patrol groups, allowing reconstruction of the course of events, as well as of any road traffic collisions, the probability of which for such flying squads is relatively high.

White balance in cameras with Sony Effio DSP.

White balance function (WB) is responsible for the process of adjusting color of the images captured by the image sensor to the actual colors.
Auto white balance (AWB) or auto tracking white balance (ATW) is an automatic adjustment of color performed by the camera. Additional correction of the white balance parameters for specific conditions of lighting is usually possible in the OSD menu.
ATW menu in a camera with Sony Effio DSP
White balance modes:
  • ATW: Auto Tracking White balance - adjustment of the white balance to the current lighting conditions. The camera monitors and adjusts the color scale to the ambient lighting. The range of color temperature is 2500...8500 K.
    • SPEED: the period of performing white balance adjustment. The smaller the value, the more often the white balance is corrected. Too low value can result in oscillations of colors.
    • DELAY CNT: initial delay of the white balance processing.
    • ATW Frame: setting color temperature range. A value greater than x1 increases the range of color temperature.
    • ENVIRONMENT: optimization of white balance to the environment in which the camera is working: OUTDOOR (high color temperature - sunlight) or INDOOR (low color temperature - artificial lighting).
  • PUSH: automatic tracking white balance for a wider range of color temperature (1800 K...10500 K). This mode should be used when the color temperature of a light source does not fall within the scope of ATW, for example in the case of halogen lamps. It should not be used for scenes with uniform colors, because of the risk of misrepresentation.
  • USER1, USER2: individual adjustments of white balance; B GAIN - blue component gain, R GAIN - red component gain.
  • ANTI CR (Anti-color rolling): function reducing the problem of color fluctuations in fluorescent lighting.
  • MANUAL: setting white balance manually.
  • PUSH LOCK: setting the pattern of white (by directing the camera on a white object such as a piece of paper which becomes the white reference. The white balance is set only during pressing the middle menu button.

An intelligent "fish-eye" camera.

The panorama IP camera Pixord PD636E K1560 equipped with a fish-eye lens provides a preview of an entire room without having to mount additional cameras.
Panorama IP Camera: PIXORD PD636E (2MP, H.264, Fish-Eye)
View of the K1560 camera
The image is hardware-corrected, so the camera does not consume computational resources of the managing server.
Pixord 360° Camera
Watch the movie to see it in action
Main features of the camera:
  • Ceiling/wall mounted
  • H.264 / MJPEG codecs
  • 360-degree "Fish-Eye" lens
  • Motion detection
  • Day/night function with mechanical IR cut filter
  • 11 image layouts
  • Advanced e-PTZ
  • Two-way audio
  • Micro SD interface for local archiving
  • PoE
PIXORD PD636E K1560 can be managed by commercial IP CCTV software, e.g. NUUO or Digifort, which considerably increases the surveillance potential of the camera.
The K1560 camera is perfect for monitoring in offices, stores, bars, restaurants, hotels, etc.

Lightning - protection of RF equipment - part 1.

In a way, many antennas protect the cooperating transceivers (APs, GSM repeaters) against atmospheric discharges. These antennas are DC short-circuited (e.g. ATK-16/2.4GHz A7124). However, it is not a sufficient solution in the case of a direct strike. A good solution is mounting the antenna well below the top of a mast/tower, the base of which is connected to the lightning conductor and grounding system (the recommended cross-section of a copper cable is minimum 16 mm2), or using additional mast extension above the antenna. In the event of a direct lightning strike, the electric charge is conducted away to the ground.
The basic protection of an antenna against lightning
However, to protect the electronic circuitry against over-voltage caused by lightning electromagnetic pulse (LEMP), one should connect between the antenna and AP or cellular repeater a suitable surge protector. The lightning protector must be grounded via the clamp and low-impedance wire. To avoid overvoltages, the protector should be connected to low-resistance grounding (below 4 ohm), by screwing or soldering. As the grounding, it is not allowed to use any lightning conductors/arresters or gas installation pipes!
RF Surge Protector: TRANS-DATA 900-2500MHz
RF Surge Protector TRANS-DATA 900-2500MHz
A6815

Laos.

The "Golden Triangle" includes parts of Burma, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and some area of the Chinese province of Yunnan. Laos is inhabited by about 6 million people, most of whom live in the valley of the Mekong and its tributaries. The capital city: Vientiane (180 thousand inhabitants).
According to CIA Factbook, the people of Laos use about 130 000 telephone landlines and over 3 million cellular phones.
Pha That Luang in Vientiane, the capital of Laos
New products offered by DIPOL:
Web Smart Switch: TP-LINK TL-SL2428WEB 24+4G 2xSFP
POS Terminal Antenna: TRANS-DATA DW5 (GSM/DCS/UMTS)
Gigabit Ethernet Media Converter: TP-LINK MC220L SFP
CDMA 450 Antenna: ATK-10 (15m cable + FME)
Web Smart Switch
N29951
POS terminal
antenna A741005
GbE Media
Converter (SFP)
CDMA antenna
A6912_15
Worth returning to...

Cheap home wireless n network. A very popular wireless router is the TP-LINK TL-WR740N N3252, with the following features...
Wireless USB Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN721N (802.11n, 150Mb/s)Access Point: TP-Link TL-WR740N (w. router, 4p-switch, 150Mb/s 802.11n) Wireless USB Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN721N (802.11n, 150Mb/s)
A Wi-Fi network for home and SOHO applications
Taps with graded attenuation allow to compensate different distances. Signal level of any TV channel in each subscriber outlet should be between 62 - 80 dBuV. Weaker signals will cause visible "snow" in the picture, stronger ones may be the reason of overdriving the receiving equipment and interference. In community installations the distances between taps and wall plates in respective apartments are usually different. Signal family of taps includes devices that allow to solve the problem. The taps having outputs with different attenuation - R6024, R6026, R6028 - allow to build distribution network with equalized signal levels in wall plates, even in the case of unequal distances between the taps and the outlets...
8-way Tap: Signal O-8 (5-1000 MHz)
8-way Signal R6028 tap with graded attenuation
Proper grounding of CCTV equipment. Improper grounding of CCTV equipment may result in "hum" bars caused by a ground loop generating 50- or 60 Hz noise. The ground references (chassis of each piece of equipment) should be connected together in the central point of the system, e.g. at the switcher, DVR, and not at the cameras. It is also very important not to use the shielding of video cables as the common power rail.
The problems of ground loop and interference, often found in large systems, can be eliminated by using Video Separator SV-1000 M1711...
An example of application of the SV-1000 M1711
DVB-T Receiver Signal HD-507 (MPEG-2/4, PVR Ready)