Cloud Video Production Buffering for Network Delay Synchronization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Live video production, such as for news or sports broadcasts, requires physical production staff on site, making it costly and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A cloud-based video production system with a control unit and buffers to account for network delays, using video timestamps to synchronize commands with video frames, allowing remote operation without on-site staff.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a cloud-based video production system is used to eliminate on-site staff, then cost and efficiency are improved, but network delay causes synchronization problems between commands and video frames
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-processes and timestamps video frames before transmission, and pre-calculates the expected arrival time of commands. This preliminary action allows the receiving end to compensate for network delay by knowing in advance when frames and commands will arrive, enabling synchronized processing without waiting for actual arrival times.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where the receiving end sends acknowledgments about frame receipt and command execution status. This feedback loop allows the transmitting end to adjust timing and retransmit if necessary, ensuring that despite network delays, the final output maintains proper synchronization between video frames and control commands.
2Ease of operation
If video frames are transmitted in real-time over a network, then remote operation is enabled, but network latency causes commands to arrive after the corresponding video frame has been displayed
Solution Approach 1:
Video frames are pre-numbered and timestamped at the source before transmission. The system calculates the expected arrival time of each frame and its corresponding command. This preliminary timing information is embedded in the data stream, allowing the receiving end to buffer and replay frames and commands in the correct sequence, ensuring that commands arrive and are processed at the exact moment their corresponding frames are displayed, regardless of network latency variations.
3Reliability
If buffers are introduced to compensate for network delays, then synchronization is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a timing synchronization intermediary that acts as a mediator between the video frame stream and command stream. This intermediary component receives both frames and commands, uses the pre-calculated timing information to determine when each should be processed, and releases them in synchronized sequence. By centralizing the synchronization logic in this single intermediary component rather than distributing complex buffer management across multiple system elements, the solution achieves reliable synchronization while keeping overall system complexity manageable.
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
A cloud-based video production system, methods, and apparatus are provided. Video sources are in communication with a cloud-based video production server and a remote user interface via a network. A control unit, which is located at or in communication with video production server, is in communication with the remote user interface. A buffer, corresponding to each of the video sources, is disposed between each of the video sources and the control unit to account for network delays. Commands for selecting and manipulating video content from the video sources are sent from the user interface to the control unit, each of the commands containing a command timestamp corresponding to the video timestamp of the video frame displayed on the user interface when the command is issued. The control unit executes each command at a time when the video timestamp at an output of the corresponding buffer corresponds to the command timestamp. The control unit outputs a video program in accordance with the commands.