Hitomi Broadcast’s MatchBox now measures latency, or the delay between an event happening in real life and seeing it on screen.
Taken either from the front of multiple cameras or at various points through the broadcast chain, readings are displayed in real time with milli-second accuracy. MatchBox Latency, says Hitomi, further strengthens its applications for remote and virtual productions.
Typically, live broadcast workflows add delay which can vary each time and different paths need to be synchronised for the best viewer experience. For example, in golf coverage, graphics that show the trajectory of the ball can take up to a second to generate. If this latency is overcompensated for, viewers see the flight of the ball before the golfer hits it. The same principle applies when cutting between cameras with different delays, including drones, wired, or shoulder-held.
Live interviews between studio presenters and a remote correspondent require low latency links for a true two-way interactive conversation. With audiences disliking long pauses in between replies, MatchBox Latency can measure the speed of links in order to ascertain if faster ones are necessary.
MatchBox is a two-part solution. A timed test pattern is launched as the source with a bespoke analyser receiving and decoding it at the destination, resulting in the timing measurement. This method can be thought of as a multi-meter for signal timing with a probe at each end of the section of interest.
“This product is designed to help broadcasters prepare for live transmissions, as well as virtual studios and other applications where timing needs to be known, not guessed,” said Russell Johnson, Hitomi’s Broadcast Director.
“The need for ‘low latency’ is much talked about, but rarely quantified. With MatchBox, it can be.
“As the system is already deployed worldwide with major name broadcasters, widespread adoption of this new technology can be rapid.”
If you are attending IBC 2022, do not delay … head for booth 10.A42 to view the potential of Hitomi’s MatchBox Latency solution. No more guesswork, timing is everything.