The Free University of Bozen led an experimentation (5VREAL) on systems using AI to recognize phases and parameters of play in Volleyball and to generate data associated with video to be used either at a strategic level (supporting the development of game tactics) or to increase fan engagement (Fan engagement) by producing highlights with real-time augmented reality graphics for inclusion in the event’s TV program.
As part of this experimentation, 5G network-based remote broadcast production techniques and technologies played a twofold role. The first, to make possible the capture of images and their transfer into the Edge Cloud that hosts the AI-based systems. The second, to enable the creation of real-time highlights and make them available for playout at the director’s office.
The 5VREAL project was the recipient of a MIMIT call aimed at promoting the use of the 5G network and computing resources in proximity data centers (Edge Datacenters or MECs) for audiovisual production and applications employing artificial intelligence.
The Free University of Bozen/Bolzano was the leader of a grouping of institutions and companies engaged in the development of technologies useful for achieving the goal. In particular, the Bruno Kessler Foundation (FBK) and UniBZ were involved in the development of artificial intelligence-based systems for analyzing game phases. Small Pixels developed and made available their AI-based technology for improving the video quality of content that has undergone compression processes. Taking advantage of the capacity and flexibility of its 5G network, Vodafone installed dedicated indoor coverage at the Trento sports hall to ensure the necessary performance for the mobile devices deployed there. It also built a private network that would allow them to connect with the Edge Computing resources set up inside EMG Italy’s MCR in Cologno Monzese.
EMG Italy built the entire technological infrastructure of the datacenter, made its production facilities available and oversaw the implementation of a low-latency remote contribution and production system based on what Vodafone has already experimented with its 5G Remote Media Production Platform.
The result of the trial was demonstrated at an event at The T-Quotidiano arena (sports hall in Trento). The comprehensive process set up by the partners allowed a volleyball match to be filmed with 4 cameras connected both in 5G to the remote production system at the edge datacenter in Cologno and to the Nova 126 mobile unit. In addition to the Broadcast cameras, the event was filmed with 3 Smartphones, also connected in 5G to the Edge Cloud in Cologno, to demonstrate the possibility of having all the AI-based tracking part even when the event is not produced for TV broadcast.
The result of the AI-based systems’ processing was displayed on a tablet where, in addition to the event video, game data extracted from the systems were scrolled through, while augmented reality-enriched clips were inserted into the event program in the form of highlights. The extracted data and generated content could also be consulted after the event for game analysis useful for developing game strategies.
Vodafone’s 5G Remote Media Production Platform and EMG Italy’s expertise
The trial thus benefited from the 5G network solution developed by Vodafone for remote video contribution and production applications, which was extended by adding the Edge Computing node built at EMG Italy’s Cologno Monzese MCR datacenter. In order to benefit from maximum performance in terms of low latency and reliability, the Edge Computing infrastructure has been made directly accessible from devices enabled on Vodafone’s 5G network through a direct and virtually dedicated connection.
In this way, devices equipped with special SIMs (not commercial SIMs, to be clear) benefit from advanced features such as network slicing, which reserves the necessary resources for them to have a relevant amount of bandwidth (especially in upload) and extremely low latency levels. Without these resources, they could not enable the transmission over wireless networks of high-quality video streams in real time.
Moreover, such devices benefit from a direct and dedicated connection, almost as if “there was a direct line” between the indoor coverage equipment in the arena and EMG’s Edge Cloud.
All thanks to the large capacity and advanced capabilities of Vodafone’s 5G infrastructure. In order to maximize the performance of its network for audiovisual contribution and production uses, Vodafone contributed to the development of dedicated devices that were acquired and managed by EMG Italy for the occasion.
These devices, which can be likened to “backpacks” commonly known in the broadcast industry, represent an “extreme” evolution of it in that, in addition to possessing audio/video capabilities superior to what is available on the market today, they add to technologies such as bonding a precise integration with the operator’s network.
The result is that, regardless of where in Italy one connects via one or more SIMs, data will arrive at the data center in Cologno Monzese in an average time of about 15 milliseconds without traversing the Internet and therefore without being impacted in terms of bandwidth availability and latency. In practice, what will impact the characteristics of the link (bandwidth and latency) will only be the quality of the radio access, which, however, is improved thanks to the characteristics of the terminal. In fact, the latter, in addition to being equipped with 5 latest-generation 5G network interfaces, also benefits from a case design designed to optimize radio performance. This is because, despite the benefits derived from the specific integration of the device into the network and the dedicated resources at the access level, the device plays a key role in that it must be able to take advantage of capabilities and technologies made available by the network in order to be able to perform very well.
In the course of the experimentation, and particularly in the Trento event, exceptional access performance was verified that allowed the terminals to have connectivity with more than 700Mb/s download and 100 Mb/s upload and with transport latencies always below 20ms.
The result is that, regardless of where in Italy one connects via one or more SIMs, the data arrives at the data center in Cologno Monzese in an average time of
Video contribution latency, thanks to the encoding and decoding performance of the devices and systems in the datacenter is always less than 150ms thus enabling the realization of any contribution or remote direction activity.
The experimentation also benefited from the technology made available by Small Pixels, which, thanks to its software developed together with the University of Florence and based on pre-trained artificial intelligence neural networks, allows for a clear increase in video quality with the same compression technology and available bandwidth.
In fact, the technology developed by Small Pixels proved crucial in eliminating visual artifacts such as pixelation, noise and distortion, on the contributions made by smartphones, helping to optimize both streaming and real-time transmission. This made it possible to use streams generated by ordinary smartphones to feed the UniBZ and FBK systems dedicated to game data analysis and ball tracking, as well as for all subsequent data interpretations.
The infrastructure created in EMG Italy’s datacenter in Cologno represents a consolidated asset that lends itself to future evolutions for the provision of new services similar to those implemented during the trial, namely: Remote Production, On-site Wireless Production, Video Analysis on AI-based systems, augmented reality content generation, etc. All with the simplicity and speed of deployment resulting from mobility over a 5G network.
“On the infrastructure of EMG Italy and Vodafone,” emphasizes Luca Bertoldi IT Manager of EMG Italy, “advanced solutions have been developed that allow to manage a director or MCR directly from remote locations, offering also the possibility to operate a mobile director.
It is enough to have an access point to Vodafone’s 5G network to control a direction and manage 3-4 cameras efficiently.”
Luca Sampietro, Product Marketing Manager 5G Vertical Solutions at Vodafone points out that “we have worked side by side with EMG Italy and the other members of the grouping not for the purpose of pure experimentation, but because we are confident that 5G can contribute strongly to innovating the broadcasting industry in a structural way.”
On Site Wireless Production
This is an adjunct workflow to remote production where, direction is done on handheld devices connected to the 5G network. The typical application could be for sporting events that take place outdoors and would be expensive to produce using traditional methods where the use of the program is more than just broadcasting. A typical example might be a mountain bike race where the organizer wants to have strong on-site audience engagement through ledwalls but also wants a streaming broadcast. A remote production solution would bring few benefits compared to using an OB truck, which would still be expensive. With this solution, taking advantage of the virtualized control room in the datacenter, cameras scattered around the competition grounds send signals that are displayed in real time on tablets (or notebooks that may also have dedicated control panels) from which video mixer, audio mixer, graphics, and clip contribution is managed. The program can thus be sent to both the streaming platform and the ledwall via a 5G device with SDI/HDMI/IP inputs and outputs.
These systems, in addition to providing extremely low latency that allows for remote event direction, include broadcast-specific features such as multiple 12G SDI inputs and outputs to handle up to 4 video inputs or more than one video return simultaneously with 2 4K inputs for each device, along with two intercom circuits and other audio inputs/outputs; essential features for use in the broadcast environment.
Each device integrates five 5G modems and a high-performance encoding and decoding engine, capable of achieving encoding latencies of ½ frame.
EMG Italy’s platform design was overseen by Luca Sciotti, who has been active in supporting Vodafone in the development of the 5G Remote Media Production platform and mobile devices for several years now.
His comment on the sidelines of the trial results was, “These are solutions that, as they grow along with the coverage and performance of mobile networks, open up new production scenarios or improve the processes of existing ones. One thinks of the possibility of using these high-performance devices even in the studio where they can guarantee superior performance in terms of functionality, quality and latency to those of traditional radio camera systems, or the possibility of managing the production of an event totally on site without the need to move the expensive and cumbersome means that remain indispensable for high-level productions anyway.”
Contribution
Among the distinctive features of 5G Remote Media Production is the ability to allow point-to-point contribution anywhere, even between non-professional mobile devices, albeit high-end ones. Let’s not forget that the latest iPhones have very high video quality and are already used today for some journalistic contributions.
Unlike other solutions on the market, in fact, devices combined with cloud servers and other infrastructural components are not required. 2 devices and a connection are sufficient to allow the exchange between them of 4 video signals in total (even UHD), service communications and control signals, etc. All with latencies that stand at 150ms point-to-point and high reliability due to the fact that you are in all respects on a dedicated portion of the network.
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