History and Future of Connecting Broadcast Television Cameras: From Multicore to Native IP

Since the early days of broadcast television, there has been an ongoing evolution of the signal transmission between the camera heads and the camera base stations or camera control units (CCUs). In the 1970s, multicore cables were replaced by triax cables and more recently, with the introduction of ultrahigh-definition (UHD-1)/4K standards, SMPTE hybrid fiber cables became the de facto standard for most applications. At the same time, the signals transmitted over camera cables migrated from analog to digital, and now the most advanced broadcast cameras use Internet Protocol (IP). This paper explains the challenges and the potential solutions for a direct integration of a system camera for live broadcast applications into a full IP infrastructure. This next step in the evolution of camera signal transmission and connectivity will establish new workflows and offers more flexibility for cameras
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