Integrated, flexible automation and media management functionality
Autocue Control Room offers transmission automation and media management functionality, either as an add-on to Autocue Newsroom or for stand-alone operation.
Autocue Control Room delivers a comprehensive, multi-channel, master control automation system that provides extensive scheduling and transmission playout for any kind of terrestrial, cable or satellite broadcast operation. Its integration with Autocue Newsroom makes it particularly appropriate for rolling news productions, or other combined operations.
Autocue Control Room also offers media management functionality, for use in combination with any other Autocue software or video server elements, and with third-party hardware. Autocue Control Room provides network-based control over ingest, review, low-resolution encoding and transcoding, shot-selection functions, including EDL generation and simple conform, media transfer and backup/restore functionality.
An integrated scheduling and transmission control solution
Autocue Control Room builds on the standard features of the Autocue software range to provide a multi-user transmission system with a common user interface. It allows for flexible deployment of scheduling and control functions, with real-time automation information available at every workstation.
Simple expansion to multi-channel control
An Autocue Control Room module running under the Windows Operating System provides overall control for single channel transmission. Further channels simply require their own additional modules; no other part of the system needs to be changed.
Control of all kinds of video servers, CG’s, still stores, DVEs, switchers, and routers
The Autocue Control Room device controller can handle anything that supports remote control, whether by direct serial connection, network connection or GPI triggering.
Legacy integration with standalone VTRs and cart machines
Autocue Control Room handles cart machines and manual VT machine stacks, as well as non-linear disk-based playback devices.
Hybrid transmission control of both non-linear and tape-based devices
Depending on the type of program output, it can be inefficient to transfer all material to a video server for transmission. Autocue Control Room can provide a hybrid playout solution based on a mixture of video servers and tape machines.
Better than 10 millisecond event accuracy
Every event (playing a video clip, displaying a graphic, rolling a tape, etc.) is frame accurate. A time code feed is used to ensure that all Autocue Control Room modules (including client workstations) keep accurate time.
Warning of, and correction for, timing problems
Every event in the transmission list is checked continuously to ensure it is valid. Warnings are given about invalid time codes, missing material and failed devices. Overall play list durations are kept up-to-date, with planned and actual variations highlighted. Individual events can be scheduled to occur at fixed times, regardless of preceding over- or under-runs.
Relevant status feedback for all users
All users are able to see detailed status about the current transmission, not just those in Transmission Control.
An On-Air Restart wizard to handle tape or device failures during transmission
The On-Air Restart wizard monitors the current on-air device, and provides help and guidance in the event of failure. For unmanned operations, an intelligent decision can be made about how to handle the problem, including, perhaps, the use of an emergency graphic or backup program.
A Rolling Start wizard to restart into the active transmission
The Rolling Start wizard allows the transmission system to be restarted into a current playing item without interruption to program output.
Extensive, integrated tape library facilities
The Autocue software range includes a tape library, available for use with Autocue Control Room and other product modules. The library allows detailed information to be stored about individual tapes and individual items. All information is fully indexed, providing extremely fast searching. The extensive facilities include the ability to check tapes in and out, keeping track of where each one is.
Media Management functionality
Integrated acquisition control
Autocue Control Room provides all the functionality required to manually or automatically record material into a video server. Control panels for servers and VTRs can be displayed on any user workstation. The video clip library is updated as material is ingested. Autocue Control Room also offers the ability to record a low-resolution copy of the material at the same time the high resolution material is ingested and to generate a low-resolution copy by transcode if the material was placed directly on the video server.
Media database management
The media database maintains information about all video clips that have been stored on any of the video servers connected to the Autocue Control Room system. The software provides the ability to manually or automatically (based on preset rules) copy, move, delete or archive material. It is possible, for example, to automatically copy material to a transmission server, automatically move material from a daily server or present a list of expired material for an operator to confirm for deletion.
Video clip management, with high and low resolution preview
Autocue Control Room can communicate directly with one or more video servers to obtain details of all currently stored material. Once a clip record has been created within the clip database, it will never be deleted, so that if a clip is removed from a video server it is still possible to obtain information about it. Metadata can be added about each clip in the database and material can be copied, moved or deleted. High and low resolution versions of the clip may be reviewed from the workstation.
Media viewing
Material may be viewed in either high- or low-resolution from any workstation equipped to do so. The same browse viewer allows in- and out-points to be marked so that only a portion of an existing clip is played for any particular specified item. Extended versions of the browser allow cuts-only editing, based on marked in and out-points on multiple clips. According to the abilities of the connected video server, these edits may be passed back as EDLs to be conformed into brand new clips.
Video thumbnails incorporated into a transmission schedule
All screen layouts, including scheduling and monitoring displays, can incorporate video stills, providing confidence that the correct items have been scheduled.
Other Autocue Control Room features include;
- Detailed information can be added about each clip in the database
- Manual or automatic recording of material into a video server
- Control panels for servers and VTRs are provided at the user workstation
- Multi-user scheduling and media review
- User control over dedicated and shared devices
- A powerful, configurable GUI
- Video thumbnails can be incorporated into transmission schedules and news running orders
- All screen layouts, including scheduling and monitoring displays, can incorporate video stills
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