A software-defined IP studio system and its implementation method

Abstract

This invention provides a software-defined function (SDF) IP studio system and its implementation method. The system includes studio hardware, a studio software platform, and a SDF management system. The studio software platform is installed on the studio hardware, and the SDF management system manages the various studio hardware devices. This invention reduces equipment redundancy, simplifies the system architecture, lowers costs, and streamlines maintenance and upgrade processes. It also simplifies cabling, allows for easy system expansion as needed, and leverages virtualization technology for dynamic resource allocation, further improving efficiency. It is not limited by transmission distance and can easily transmit high-quality video and audio signals over longer distances, making equipment deployment more flexible and enabling remote production.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of IP studio technology, and in particular to a software-defined IP studio system and its implementation method. Background Technology

[0002] Traditional broadcast and media production environments typically rely on dedicated SDI (Serial Digital Interface) infrastructure, which performs well in terms of reliability and signal quality but has limitations in flexibility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. With the increase in video resolution (such as 4K and 8K) and the maturity of IP (Internet Protocol) technology, the media industry has begun to seek more flexible, economical solutions that can leverage existing IT infrastructure. The SMPTE ST 2110 standard suite, developed by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), is a set of standards designed to define a new IP-based real-time media delivery framework for the professional broadcast and media industry. Development of this standard began in 2016, with its primary goal being to address the limitations of traditional SDI-based video and audio signal transmission systems. The introduction of the SMPTE ST 2110 standard marks a significant shift in the broadcast television industry from traditional SDI infrastructure to IP-based media delivery. This shift not only improves the efficiency and flexibility of media production but also reduces operating costs, promoting the digital transformation of the media industry.

[0003] An SDI-based studio typically includes the following core equipment: Cameras: Cameras equipped with SDI output for capturing video and audio signals; Video Switcher: An SDI-based video switcher used for switching and mixing multiple video sources, processing video signals, adding effects and transitions; Video Server: Used for playing back existing video footage in the studio; Recorder: A recorder supporting SDI input for recording video signals; Multi-screen Monitors: SDI monitors used for real-time monitoring of video signals to ensure image quality and color accuracy; Audio Mixer: Used for processing and mixing audio signals; Virtual Engine: Used to generate graphically packaged audio and video signals, large-screen audio and video signals, and 3D virtual audio and video signals.

[0004] SDI-based studios were once standard in professional broadcasting and video production, but with technological advancements and the rise of networked video transmission, SDI systems have begun to reveal some limitations and defects: (1) Various devices use different hardware and software, each with its own function and cannot be substituted for one another. This results in redundancy and waste of studio equipment, while different hardware and software architectures increase system complexity, raising the difficulty and cost of system maintenance; (2) Limited scalability: SDI systems typically rely on physical connections, meaning that increasing input or output capabilities requires more SDI cables and equipment, leading to increased wiring complexity and costs; (3) Low flexibility: The transmission distance of SDI signals is limited, generally not exceeding 100 meters, which restricts the flexibility of equipment layout and cannot meet the needs of use in large venues or long-distance transmission scenarios. Therefore, it is essential to design a software-defined IP studio system and its implementation method. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In order to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the purpose of this invention is to provide a software-defined IP studio system and its implementation method.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following solution:

[0007] This invention provides a software-defined function (SDF) IP studio system and its implementation method, comprising: studio hardware equipment, a studio software platform, and a SDF management system. The studio software platform is installed on the studio hardware equipment. The studio software platform includes a controlled terminal system, an IP video server system, an IP video recorder system, an IP switcher system, an IP audio mixer system, an IP virtual engine system, an IP multi-screen system, and an IPG system. The SDF management system manages the various studio hardware devices, and the controlled terminal system receives control commands from the SDF management system to implement the functions of the studio hardware equipment. The configuration information has been modified. The IP video server system is used to play studio video materials; the IP video recorder system is used to record video signals; the IP switcher system is used to switch and mix multiple video sources, process video information, and add special effects and transitions; the IP audio mixer system is used to process and mix audio signals; the IP virtual engine system is used to generate graphic-packaged audio and video signals, large-screen audio and video signals, and 3D virtual audio and video signals; the IP multi-screen system is used to monitor video signals in real time and ensure image quality and color accuracy; and the IPG system is used to convert traditional SDI audio and video signals into IP audio and video signals.

[0008] This invention also provides a method for implementing software-defined functions in an IP studio, comprising:

[0009] Install a studio software platform on the studio hardware equipment;

[0010] Select a studio hardware device as the server for the software-defined function management system, and start the software-defined function management system to broadcast the IP address and port number to the network via the DNS-SD protocol;

[0011] After receiving the IP address and port number of the software-defined function management system through the DNS-SD protocol, the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware equipment in the network registers its own information with the software-defined function management system through the NMOS IS-04 protocol;

[0012] In the operation interface of the software-defined function management system, the device type of each studio hardware device can be set as needed. The software-defined function management system sends the set device type to the controlled terminal system of each studio hardware device through the TCP protocol.

[0013] After receiving the device type information, the controlled terminal system modifies the local configuration file and restarts the studio software platform of the studio hardware device.

[0014] During startup, the studio software platform reads the device type information from the local configuration file, starts the corresponding studio software platform system according to the device type, and after a successful restart, re-registers its own information to the software-defined function management system through the NMOS protocol.

[0015] In the operation interface of the software-defined function management system, data streams between studio hardware devices can be established as needed to realize the propagation and reception of data streams between various studio hardware devices.

[0016] Preferably, the information of the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware equipment in the network includes IP address, port, device type, UDP address and port number for receiving data stream, and UDP address and port number for sending data stream.

[0017] Preferably, the UDP address and port number for receiving data streams refer to the specific IP address and port number that the receiver needs to listen to when receiving data streams using the UDP protocol.

[0018] Preferably, the UDP address and port number for sending the data stream refer to the IP address and port number that the sender needs to know when sending the data stream using the UDP protocol.

[0019] Preferably, the equipment type corresponds to the various systems of the studio software platform, including a video server, recorder, switcher, mixing console, virtual engine, multi-screen, and IPG.

[0020] According to specific embodiments provided by the present invention, the present invention discloses the following technical effects:

[0021] This invention provides a software-defined function (SDF) IP studio system and its implementation method. The system includes studio hardware, a studio software platform, and a SDF management system. The method includes installing the studio software platform on the studio hardware, selecting one studio hardware device as the server for the SDF management system, starting the SDF management system, and broadcasting its IP address and port number to the network via the DNS-SD protocol. The controlled terminal systems of the studio hardware devices in the network receive the IP address and port number of the SDF management system via the DNS-SD protocol and then use NMOS... The IS-04 protocol registers its own information with the Software-Defined Function Management System (SDFMS). Within the SDFMS interface, the device type of each studio hardware device is configured as needed. The SDFMS sends the configured device type to the controlled terminal system of each studio hardware device via the TCP protocol. Upon receiving the device type information, the controlled terminal system modifies its local configuration file and restarts the studio software platform for that hardware device. During startup, the studio software platform reads the device type information from its local configuration file and starts the corresponding system based on the device type. After a successful restart, it re-registers its own information with the SDFMS via the NMOS protocol. The SDFMS interface then establishes data streams between studio hardware devices as needed, enabling the propagation and reception of data between the various studio hardware devices. The IP studio designed in this invention uses a general-purpose hardware platform and implements different tasks through software-defined functions. This allows the same hardware to run different software modules to perform multiple tasks, such as video switching and audio mixing. This approach reduces equipment redundancy, simplifies system architecture, lowers costs, and simplifies maintenance and upgrade processes. IP-based studios can expand their capacity by simply adding more nodes to the network without adding physical lines, which greatly simplifies cabling, reduces costs, and allows for easy system expansion as needed. With technological advancements, virtualization technology can be used to dynamically allocate resources, further improving efficiency. IP systems are not limited by transmission distance and can easily transmit high-quality video and audio signals over long distances. This makes equipment deployment more flexible, enabling remote production. Production staff can collaborate from different locations without having to be concentrated in the same studio. Attached Figure Description

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0023] Figure 1 A block diagram of an IP studio system architecture with software-defined functions provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating the method for implementing software-defined functions in an IP studio according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0026] The purpose of this invention is to provide a software-defined IP studio system and its implementation method, which reduces equipment redundancy, simplifies system architecture, lowers costs, simplifies maintenance and upgrade processes, simplifies cabling, allows for easy system expansion as needed, utilizes virtualization technology to dynamically allocate resources, further improves efficiency, is not limited by transmission distance, and can easily transmit high-quality video and audio signals over long distances, making equipment deployment more flexible and enabling remote production.

[0027] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0028] Figure 1 A block diagram of the IP studio system architecture with software-defined functionality provided in the embodiments of the present invention is shown below. Figure 1As shown, this invention provides a software-defined function (SDF) IP studio system. It employs unified hardware devices, with software defining the functions of these devices and establishing data flow connections between them. The IP studio system refers to a studio system based on the SMPTEEST 2110 standard set. It utilizes IP network technology to transmit and process uncompressed high-definition and ultra-high-definition video and audio signals, as well as related metadata and control information. The system includes: studio hardware devices, a studio software platform, and a SDF management system. The studio software platform is installed on the studio hardware devices. The studio software platform includes a controlled terminal system, an IP video server system, an IP recorder system, an IP switcher system, an IP mixing console system, an IP virtual engine system, an IP multi-screen system, and an IPG system. The SDF management system manages the various studio hardware devices, and the controlled terminal system receives SDF management data. The system's control commands modify the configuration information of the studio hardware equipment. The IP video server system is used to play studio video materials. The IP video recorder system is used to record video signals. The IP switcher system is used to switch and mix multiple video sources, process video information, and add special effects and transitions. The IP audio mixer system is used to process and mix audio signals. The IP virtual engine system is used to generate graphic-packaged audio and video signals, large-screen audio and video signals, and 3D virtual audio and video signals. The IP multi-screen system is used to monitor video signals in real time and ensure image quality and color accuracy. The IPG system is used to convert traditional SDI audio and video signals into IP audio and video signals.

[0029] Install a unified studio software platform on the studio hardware equipment, and manage the studio equipment through a software-defined function management system. It can define the type of each device, such as whether it is an IP video server or an IP recorder, and establish data stream connections between devices, such as directing the video stream output by the IP video server to the IP recorder.

[0030] The software-defined function management system (SDFMS) configures the equipment types in the studio and sends control commands to the controlled terminal systems on the corresponding devices. The controlled terminal systems parse the commands, write the configuration information to the configuration file, and then perform operations such as starting and stopping the IP video server system, IP recorder system, IP switcher system, IP mixer system, IP virtual engine system, IP multi-view system, and IPG system on the devices, and establishing data stream connections according to the commands.

[0031] like Figure 2 As shown, the present invention also provides a method for implementing software-defined functions in an IP studio, including:

[0032] Install a studio software platform on the studio hardware equipment;

[0033] Select a studio hardware device as the server for the software-defined function management system, and start the software-defined function management system to broadcast the IP address and port number to the network via the DNS-SD protocol;

[0034] DNS-SD (DNS Service Discovery) is a DNS (Domain Name System)-based protocol used to automatically discover services and devices on a local area network (LAN). It combines three key technologies: mDNS (Multicast DNS), SRV records, and TXT records to achieve automatic service discovery, announcement, and selection.

[0035] After receiving the IP address and port number of the software-defined function management system through the DNS-SD protocol, the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware equipment in the network registers its own information with the software-defined function management system through the NMOS IS-04 protocol;

[0036] An IP address (Internet Protocol address) is a unique identifier assigned to each device on a network; it is used to locate and address devices within the network. A port number is a number used by the transport layer to identify a specific process or service. It is a 16-bit number ranging from 0 to 65535. Port numbers are used to distinguish different services or applications running on the same device.

[0037] The NMOS (Networked Media Open Specifications) protocol is a set of open specifications proposed by the AMWA (Advanced Media Workflow Association) for the management and control of professional media workflows over IP (Internet Protocol) networks. The IS-04 protocol is one of a set of standards developed by the AMWA, designed to promote interoperability between media devices on IP-based networks. NMOS IS-04 focuses on device discovery and registration; its full name is "Node Discovery & Registration." The NMOS IS-04 protocol provides a mechanism that allows media devices to self-declare and register their functionality and presence on the network, enabling control layer software to discover, control, and manage these devices. This greatly simplifies the deployment and management of network media workflows and reduces the need for manual configuration.

[0038] In the operation interface of the software-defined function management system, the device type of each studio hardware device can be set as needed. The software-defined function management system sends the set device type to the controlled terminal system of each studio hardware device through the TCP protocol.

[0039] After receiving the device type information, the controlled terminal system modifies the local configuration file and restarts the studio software platform of the studio hardware device.

[0040] During startup, the studio software platform reads the device type information from the local configuration file and starts the corresponding studio software platform system according to the device type. For example, if the device type is a switcher, the IP switcher system will be started, and if the device type is a video server, the IP video server system will be started. After a successful restart, it re-registers its own information to the software-defined function management system through the NMOS protocol.

[0041] The software-defined function management system establishes data streams between studio hardware devices on demand through its interface, enabling the propagation and reception of data streams between these devices. For example, to connect an output data stream from an IP video server to an input data stream from an IP switcher, the software-defined function management system sends the UDP address and port number of the IP video server's output data stream to the controlled terminal system of the IP switcher. The controlled terminal system of the IP switcher then reconfigures the UDP address and port number for receiving the input data stream, thus enabling the reception of the IP video server's output data stream.

[0042] The information of the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware equipment in the network includes IP address, port, device type, UDP address and port number for receiving data stream, and UDP address and port number for sending data stream.

[0043] The UDP address and port number for receiving data streams refer to the specific IP address and port number that the receiver needs to listen on when receiving data streams using the UDP protocol.

[0044] The UDP address and port number for sending data streams refer to the IP address and port number that the sender needs to know when sending data streams using the UDP protocol.

[0045] The equipment types correspond to various system settings of the studio software platform, including video servers, recorders, switchers, mixing consoles, virtual engines, multi-screen displays, and IPG.

[0046] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner, with each embodiment focusing on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other.

[0047] Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this invention. The descriptions of the above embodiments are only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this invention. Furthermore, those skilled in the art will recognize that, based on the ideas of this invention, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this invention.

Claims

1. A method for implementing a software-defined functional IP studio, applied to a software-defined functional IP studio system, the system comprising: The studio hardware device, the studio software platform and the software defined function management system, the studio software platform is installed on the studio hardware device, the studio software platform includes a controlled terminal system, an IP video server system, an IP video recorder system, an IP switch system, an IP audio console system, an IP virtual engine system, an IP multi-picture system and an IPG system, the software defined function management system is used for managing each studio hardware device, the controlled terminal system is used for receiving the control instruction of the software defined function management system, realizing the configuration information modification of the studio hardware device, the IP video server system is used for playing the studio video material, the IP video recorder system is used for recording the video signal, the IP switch system is used for switching and mixing between multiple video sources, processing video information and adding special effects and transitions, the IP audio console system is used for processing and mixing audio signals, the IP virtual engine system is used for generating graphic packaging audio and video signals, large screen audio and video signals and three-dimensional virtual audio and video signals, the IP multi-picture system is used for real-time monitoring of video signals and ensuring the accuracy of picture quality and color, and the IPG system is used for converting traditional SDI audio and video signals into IP audio and video signals, characterized in that the method comprises: installing the studio software platform on the studio hardware device; selecting a studio hardware device as the server of the software defined function management system, starting the software defined function management system to broadcast the IP address and port number through the DNS-SD protocol; after the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware device in the network receives the IP address and port number of the software defined function management system through the DNS-SD protocol, registering the information of itself in the software defined function management system through the NMOS IS-04 protocol; setting the device type of each studio hardware device in the operation interface of the software defined function management system as required, and sending the set device type to the controlled terminal system of each studio hardware device through the TCP protocol by the software defined function management system; after the controlled terminal system receives the device type information, modifying the local configuration file, and restarting the studio software platform of the studio hardware device; during the startup process of the studio software platform, reading the device type information in the local configuration file, starting the corresponding system of the studio software platform according to the device type, and after the restart is successful, re-registering the information of itself in the software defined function management system through the NMOS protocol; establishing the data flow between the studio hardware devices in the operation interface of the software defined function management system as required, realizing the propagation and reception of the data flow between the studio hardware devices.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The information of the controlled terminal system of the studio hardware device in the network itself includes the IP address, the port, the device type, the receiving data flow UDP address and port number, and the sending data flow UDP address and port number.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The receiving data flow UDP address and port number refer to that when using the UDP protocol to receive the data flow, the receiver needs to listen to the specific IP address and port number.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, The sending data stream UDP address and port number refer to the IP address and port number of the receiving party that the sender needs to know when sending data stream using the UDP protocol.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, The device types correspond to various system settings of the studio software platform, including video server, video recorder, switcher, sound console, virtual engine, multi-picture, and media gateway IPG.

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