1. AMCOM Digital Archive
Design Review - Week 4

2. Summary of Last Week’s Review
Identified areas of the existing system that can be improved
Capture video straight to disk
Use analog DV decks for backup during test
Examined video possible video capture cards
Picolo Tetra-X
Videum 4400
ITuner - Spectra 8

3. This Week’s Presentation (Overview)
Functional / Physical System Overview
Research of Relevant Standards and Technologies
Video Standards
Component
Composite
NTSC
PAL
Secam
Video File Formats
AVI
MPEG
Others

4. Functional Hierarchy

5. Physical Hierarchy

6. Inputs & Outputs of the System
V.E.N.O.M.
System
User
Encoded Data

7. Video Basics
Component Video
Composite Video
NTSC
PAL
SECAM

8. Component Video Collected in RGB format Converted to “Component Video”
Consists of three signals
luminance signal or “Y” component
2 “color difference” signals (“B-Y” and “R-Y”)
Green signal is calculated
Reduces required bandwidth by 3 to 2
Bandwidth required is still too large for transmission

9. Composite Video The “over the air” signals that you receive
Except HDTV
Compressed version of component video
Once luminance (Y) and chrominance (C) are combined they cannot be perfectly separated
Three main standards
NTSC
PAL
SECAM

10. NTSC National Television System Committee
Devised in 1953
The “basic television signal”
Used primarily in the United States and Canada
Pros
At 30 (29.97) frames/second flicker is minimized
Less inherent picture noise
Almost all video equipment achieves better SNR that compared to PAL
Cons
Lower number of scan lines resulting in reduced clarity
Susceptibility to Hue Fluctuation
Lower Gamma Ratio results in pictures with less contrast

11. NTSC technical Lines/Field 525/60 Horizontal Frequency 15.734 kHz
Vertical Frequency
60 Hz
Color Sub-carrier Frequency
MHz
Video Bandwidth
4.2 MHz
Sound Carrier
4.5 MHz

12. PAL Phase Alternation by Line
adopted in 1967
Used primarily in Western Europe and Australia
PAL-M is used only in Brazil. It has 525 lines, at 30 frames per second
Pros
Greater number of scan lines
more stable and consistent hues (tint)
Higher gamma ratio
Cons
More flicker
Lower SNR
Loss of color editing accuracy due to alternation of phases of color signal

13. PAL technical SYSTEM PAL PAL N PAL M Line/Field 625/50 525/60
Horizontal Freq.
kHz
kHz
Vertical Freq.
50 Hz
60 Hz
Color Sub Carrier
MHz
MHz
MHz
Video Bandwidth
5.0 MHz
4.2 MHz
Sound Carrier
5.5 MHz
4.5 MHz

14. SECAM Systeme Electronique Couleur Avec Memoire
Sequential Color with Memory
adopted in 1967
Used primarily in Eastern Europe and France
Pros
Stable Hues and Constant Saturation
Higher Number of Scan Lines
Cons
Mixing of two synchronous SECAM colour signals is not possible
Patterning Effects
Incompatibility between different versions of SECAM

15. SECAM technical SYSTEM SECAM B, G, H SECAM D, K, K1, l Line/Field
625/50
Horizontal Frequency
kHz
Vertical Frequency
50 Hz
Video Bandwidth
5.0 MHz
6.0 MHz
Sound Carrier
5.5 MHz
6.5 MHz

16. Video Architecture - Current
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
Component Video
4 Streams
(1/Camera)
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
DV Deck
AVI File
Video Switch
DV Deck
AVI File
DV Deck
AVI File
DV Deck
AVI File
Each video feed is captured to a DV tape which is then manually converted to an AVI file and stored on a hard drive
Multiple Testing facilities

17. Video Architecture - Proposed
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
Component Video
4 Streams
(1/Camera)
Testing Facility
Video Camcorder
Computer w/
4 Stream
Capture Card
Video Switch
AVI File
All video feeds will be captured and simultaneously encoded into an AVI file.
Multiple Testing facilities

18. MPEG MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group)
MPEG1. Used in digital cameras and camcorders to capture small, easily transferable motion video clips, and is also the compression format for creating video CDs.
MPEG2. Commercially produced DVD movies, home-recorded DVD discs, and digital satellite TV broadcasts all employ MPEG2 video compression to deliver their high-quality picture. MPEG2 can rival, or even slightly outperform, the DV format when it comes to picture. The MPEG2 codec allows for selectable amounts of compression to be applied, this allows a range of recording "speeds."
MPEG4. This newer, very flexible MPEG codec is used for both streaming and downloadable Web content, and is also the video format employed by a growing number of portable video recorders.

19. More Video Formats DV (Digital Video) AVI (Audio/Video Interleaved)
DV is the format used by most digital camcorders for capturing crisp, colorful movies and CD-quality sound, usually on Mini DV cassettes
AVI (Audio/Video Interleaved)
AVI is a "container format," meaning that it specifies how the data will be organized, but it is not itself a form of audio or video compression
Motion JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
With Motion JPEG, each frame of video is captured separately and reduced in size using JPEG compression

20. And One More File Format
WMV (Windows Media Video) Used for both streaming and downloading content via the Internet. Lets you playback and manage a range of audio and video file types

21. Discussion / Questions