The Bridge Technologies IBC stand this year will feature a demonstration of Bridge’s innovative VB440-SW dual 40 Gigabit Ethernet software probe and Embrionix Design's SDI conversion modules. Embrionix provides innovative conversion solutions using a unique product design based on an SFP (Small Form-Factor Pluggable) that can be inserted directly inside other manufacturers’ equipment.

The demonstration will show how the SMPTE ST 2110 standard provides a practical path to the industry requirement for maximum interoperability. It will use live local playback sources to generate live streams that allow visitors to monitor network performance in real time.

The VB440-V is also the first product to feature SMPTE 2022.7 dual redundant stream analysis as an extension to its support for ST2110, ST2022.6, RFC 4175 and AES67. The VB440-SW dual 40 Gigabit Ethernet software probe monitors high density IP media traffic in core broadcasting networks, production studios, outside broadcast and master control centers, enabling users to quickly rectify problems and maximize Quality of Service (QoS).

Real-time and parallel

The unique ability of the VB440-SW to support dual 40 Gigabit Ethernet interfaces give it an effective throughput of 80 Gigabits. Its support of any media over IP provides network operators and digital media organizations a monitoring/analytics solution for thousands of streams and multiple technologies in real-time and in parallel. Providing SDI analytics from 270MBit to 12GigaBit requires packet accuracy in the nanosecond range, and is already built in to Bridge Technologies IP probes.

“Achieving absolute and straightforward interoperability between the systems of every broadcast manufacturer is crucial to the future of our industry,” said Simen K. Frostad, Chairman, Bridge Technologies, “and it is uniquely made possible by IP technology. There is no doubt that IP can do, in technical terms, whatever we as an industry need it to do in order to achieve the interoperability that is fundamental to our success. The industry absolutely must embrace IP.”

“At Bridge Technologies, we have long been proponents of the significant advantages and benefits that IP brings,” continued Frostad. “As an industry, we’re making huge strides in the right direction – but there is still much to do if the true potential of IP is to be realized.”

“IP should not just be tolerated – it should be wholeheartedly embraced, for three reasons,” concluded Frostad. “First is the interoperability that it has demonstrably delivered over time. Second is the potential it holds for the future, as the broadcast industry reinvents itself. Third is the significant cost saving it can bring with it. The good news is that, as we move into a highly interoperable IP future, many of the tools we need to help us make that transition successfully are already in place, like the network probes offered by Bridge Technologies.”