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TANDBERG Television iPlexFeatures and Configuration Overview

Ian ButterworthTANDBERG Television

[email protected] 349 3401

Dascom IPTV User Group: October 22-23, 2008

Property of Dascom Systems Group- cannot be reproduced, copied or altered without permission

2008 IPTV User Group2008 IPTV User Group

iPlex IPTV Video Processing Platform

Comprehensive Functionality

MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC encodingMPEG-4 AVC transcodingMPEG-2 transratingIP streaming

Configurable and Compact

Highest density with 8 expansion slots plus 2 GbE interfaces in a single rack unit

Cost Effective PlatformGround breaking price/ performanceReduced operational costs: less equipment to maintain, less space, less power




PMC Slot 2

Control

Linux

iPlex Hardware Architecture

SFP

SFP

GE

GE

10/100

Serial100M Eth

FrontPanel

SerialVideo

VxWorks

PMC Slot 1

PMC Slot 8

NetworkProcessor

GEMAC

“SCM subsystem”

“MCM subsystem”

10/100Control

Redundancy

GE

GE

•••

GigESwitch – FDXnon-blocking




Example iPlex Transcoding NxM Redundant System

• iPlex N+M redundancy available

• nCompass Control– Alarm aggregation– System monitor– Failure detection & recovery– Northbound interfaces– Not critical to normal operation or

startup– No A/V matrix (router) needed for

GbE-only configurations




MPEG-4 AVC Ultra Encoders

• Latest and most advanced HD/SD MPEG-4 AVC compression technology for the IPTV market

– High-quality and complexity image support down to 1 Mbps SD, 6Mbps HD

• Superior pre-processing options– Clarus™ pre-processing

• Flexible audio options– Up to 6 stereo pairs– MPEG-1 Layer II, AAC-LC, HE-AACv1/v2,

Dolby Digital 2.0, Dolby Digital 5.1, AAC-LC 5.1– Dolby pass-through

• 2-submodule form factor– 4 encoders per iPlex– Low power consumption and heat emission

• Simultaneous PiP support option– Supports independent audio for PiP and main– 96x96 up to full D1 resolution

• Ancillary data– Closed captioning, content advisory, Nielsen AMOL, AFD, Teletext

Composite + SD-SDI HD/ SD-SDI




MPEG-4 AVC Ultra Transcoders

• License for SD or HD output• SD version will accept HD input and

down-convert to SD• HD version can also process SD• Integrated decoder module for HD and SD

MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC input• Video compression powered by TANDBERG

Television’s ICE3 technology• User selectable bit rate of 2 - 20 Mbps • Advanced single slice, full look-ahead encode• CBR and Capped VBR rate control • Supports all commonly required video resolutions • Advanced ancillary data service handling

– Pass-through and time synchronization of packetized VBI information (e.g., AMOL, Teletext, WSS)– Transcoding of closed captioning, content advisory, AFD

• Audio service pass-through and advanced audio transcoding features• Hardware also supports MPEG-4 AVC transrating




Clarus™ advanced noise reduction

• TANDBERG Television’s latest generation noise filter

• Allows transcoder to achieve the same compression performance with noisy sources conventional technologies only achieve with “clean” sources

• Can be used for transcoding and encoding• Combines an advanced content-adaptive

spatial filter with a motion-adaptive temporal recursive filter

• Provides the optimum level of noise filtering– Spatial filter

• Operates in horizontal and vertical direction• Content adaptive, which preserves edges and

detail– Temporal filter

• Removes residual noise in slow moving areaswhere it is most visible

• Available on UltraCompression submodulesas license option




Clarus™ integrated input de-blocking filter

• Operates in addition to the MPEG-4 AVC in-loop de-blocking filter that reduces MPEG-4 block boundary artifacts

• Used in MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 AVC transcoding applications

• Detects blocking artifacts of video input signal

• Detects horizontal resolution of previous encoding stage (prior to MPEG-2 compression)

– It knows where the block edges are

• Leaves clean material untouched– Filter switches off when clean source is detected

• Removes MPEG-2 compression artifacts with fully adaptive filters

• Improves end-to-end picture quality

• Available on UltraCompression submodules as SW option




Ultra Transcoder Audio

YESYESYESYESYESYESYESDOLBY DIGITAL1x 5.1

NOYESYESYESNOYESYESDOLBY DIGITAL (AC3) 2x 2.0

NOYESYESYESNOYESYESMPEG-4 AAC (HE) V22x 2.0

NOYESYESYESNOYESYESMPEG-4 AAC (HE) V1 2x2.0

YESYESYESYESYESYESYESMPEG-4 AAC (LC)1x 5.1

NOYESYESYESNOYESYESMPEG-4 AAC (LC)2x2.0

NOYESYESYESNOYESYESMPEG Layer II2x2.0

DOLBY DIGITAL

1x 5.1

DOLBY DIGITAL (AC3)

2x 2.0

MPEG-4 AAC (HE) V2

2x 2.0

MPEG-4 AAC (HE) V1

2x 2.0

MPEG-4 AAC (LC)1x 5.1

MPEG-4 AAC (LC)

2x 2.0

MPEG Layer II

2x 2.0




Audio bit-rate planning is important

• Audio bit-rates require more attention as video bit rates decrease• Multiple languages per video service are common, increasing the number of stereo pairs• Multiple, simultaneously broadcast audio codecs often required• Separate audio channel can be assigned to PiP stream• Audio transcoding may be beneficial• Encoder offers a variety of bit rates and codecs to accommodate available network resources

160kbps256kbps320kbps384kbps -448kbps

Not Supported

5.1

64kbps96kbps96kbps192kbps192kbps2.0

MPEGHE-AAC

MPEG AAC-LC

Dolby Digital Plus

Dolby Digital (AC-3)

MPEG Layer II

Audio Channels

Claimed bit-rates for CD quality for average complexity content, not the configurable range




iPlex- Physical Layout

• Contains “virtual” SCM and MCM that mimic Mediaplex architecture

• Carrier card(s)– 1st is included– 2nd is optional

• 2 or 4 sub-modules (PMC) per carrier

console port

alarm port

mgmt 10/100

2 GE SFP

1:1 redundancy




iPlex Cooling

• Ensure air intake and exhaust vents are not blocked• TANDBERG Television recommends the use of a plastic separator to keep

warm exhaust air from circulating back to intakes

Air Intake

Air Exhaust




iPlex Card Carrier Installation• Insert carrier card with care – align guides first• Seat card, close ejectors, and tighten knurled thumb screws• Carrier cards are NOT hot-swappable• Install blank covers for missing carrier card or sub-modules• GE SFPs are hot-swappable

SFP ports will not auto-negotiate to 100Mb –you must use gigabit switch ports

After-market SFP modules are not recommended or supported

SFP ports will not auto-negotiate to 100Mb –you must use gigabit switch ports

After-market SFP modules are not recommended or supported

Single-mode fiber (LC connector)N20005

Copper (RJ-45)N20007

Multi-mode fiber (LC connector)N20006

Power off iPlex before removing/inserting carrier cards





Carrier Submodule Installation

• PMC submodules are customer installable• Use static discharge protection measures• Position BNC connectors through the cutout in the

module/carrier faceplate• Push down at the back of the board to firmly seat the bus

connectors• Install mounting screws• Note that outside screws on outside submodules are flat-

head to prevent binding on ejector handles• Be very careful not to damage or bend parts on

component side of PMC• Reinsert carrier and tighten knurled screws

Install all four submodule screws to ensure reliable operation

Install all four submodule screws to ensure reliable operation






Physical & Logical Slot Numbering

iPlex (rear view)Format:Blade # / Slot #

Blade is always “1” for iPlex1 / Slot #

Logical slots are numbered right to left, top to bottom

ASIIn1/12 means:“an ASI receive port on the bottom carrier on the right side of physical position #2”

AvcENC1/0 means: “an encoder on the top carrier in physical position #4”

GbE GbE1 2

Virtual MCM (#1)

Virtual SCM (#10)

Physical carrier positionLogical Slot Numbers




Serial Port Boot ROM Menu

• Initial Configuration through serial port (9600, 8, n, 1– DB9 female-female cross-over serial cable to PC– “Catch” the boot: CTRL-M– Set control IP, subnet, and default gateway– Set root password (please change from default value)– Set boot source

Flash-1, Flash-2, or TFTP– Set date and time– Boot the system




iPlex GUI Structure

• Statistics Section– View only– Check stream rates– Check device status– View configuration files

• Configuration Section– Change settings– Save configuration files

• Maintenance Section– Software update from FTP server– Set system clock

• Diagnostics Section– View logs– Ping from iPlex– Tech Support Dump




iPlex GUI Structure

• Be sure you are in the correct GUI Section

• Statistics and Configuration Sections have very similar hierarchies

• Being in the wrong section is a common mistake

Statistics

Configuration




Configuring the Ultra Encoder

Input Source

Output video bit-rate – be sure to count the zeros carefully!

Encoded Resolution

Input Resolution




Input Resolution and Encoded resolution

• Input resolution is the type of incoming video signal– 1080i at 29.97 (30 odd/even HD fields per second)– 720p at 59.97 (60 HD frames per second)– 480i at 29.97 (30 odd/even SD fields per second)– etc

• Output resolution is the amount of information that will we capture and encode• Stream includes information to rescale the picture• Decoder/STB will expand the picture to fill the screen• Less resolution, means you use less bits to represent the picture. Allows you

to lower the bit-rate without introducing encoding artifactsExamples of reduced resolution:

– SD at “¾ D1” – 544 pixels wide is common– HD 1080i at 1440 pixels wide or 720p at 960 pixels wide also seen (DTH/Cable)




Configuring the Ultra Transcoder

If HD SD down-conversion, how to handle aspect ratio:

AFDCenter CutLetterbox




Configuring the Ultra Transcoder

Select SD or HD output

Select input format

Select output resolution

Output video bit-ratebe sure to count the zeros carefully!




Configuring Ports

• Ports are the logical and physical inputs and outputs of the iPlex

• Ports represent the streams attached to the system:– Encoders– Transcoder input and output– UDP input and output– ASI input and output– ATM input and output– RTP input and output– Backhaul (special case of UDPout)

• Physical ports (e.g. ENC, AdvENC, AvcENC, Xcdr, Xrtr, ASIin, ASIout) are created automatically

• Logical ports must be created by the operator (e.g. UDPout, UDPin, ATMin, ATMout, Backhaul)




Logical and Physical PortsGigE1

XcdrOut1/8

GigE2

XcdrIn1/8

VLAN_3untagged

UDPin1/1225.1.1.1:2000

UDPout1/2226.1.1.2:2001

VLAN_100tagged

Logical Port

Physical Port

Transcoder

Other UDPin/out

Other VLANs

Other UDPin/out

Other VLANs




Create or Delete VLAN

• An iPlex “VLAN” is a logical grouping of streams• A VLAN may be assigned to either or both GigE physical interfaces• A VLAN may be tagged (802.1Q) or untagged• If tagged, then the VLAN ID is used as the tag number• Only one untagged VLAN may be assigned to a physical GigE• A new feature in 4.6.0 can block the forwarding of unicast traffic between physical interfaces in the

same VLAN. See Configuration : SCM : GigE : Unicast IP Forward.• VLANs cannot be edited – you must delete and recreate




Configuring a UDP output port

• STBs in IPTV network expect to receive an MPEG-2 Transport Stream over UDP

• The UDP datagram is usually multicast, but can be a unicast for iPlex-to-iPlex transport

• UDP datagrams are not acknowledged by the STB, and a small percentage of loss in the network should be expected

• UDPOut ports are tied to an input device at creation (e.g. encoder, transcoder or ASI input). You cannot edit this association once made.

• Ports are configured in GUI at Configuration : New Port, then select “UDPOut” from the drop-down menu




Configuring a UDP output

Ties UDPOut to a source port





Gigabit VLAN -must be assigned or there will be no output!

Destination UDP port

Destination multicast IP address

Pad stream to strict CBR– be sure to monitor MCM utilizationNot usually necessary with Ultra encoder/transcoder





• Ports are labeled as UDPOut1/0, UDPOut1/1, sequentially

• The CBR Padding options is both floor and ceiling. Make sure your routed video and audio bitrates, plus PAT and PMT; do not exceed this rate.

• Stream will be padded with NULL transport stream packets if lower than the CBR rate

• Transport stream packets will be DROPED if stream is over limit

• Statistics display will tell you if you have problems




Media Routing Concept

••

Encode

Up to 16DVB/ASI inputs

Up to 8 SD MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 AVC

encoders or 4 Ultra MPEG-4 AVC

Up to 16 DVB/ASI outputs

Up to 4 ATM I/O interfaces

2 GigE SFP interfacesSerial

management port

Encode

••

ASI In

ASI In

••

ATM

ATM

••

ASI Out

ASI Out

10-100 Ethernet management port

MPEG-2 Transrate MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 Transcode




Media Routing – A Common Misunderstanding

• Remember that “Input” and “Output” are relative to the SwitchCore not relative to the sub-module

– ASI Transcoder GigE is configured as• ASIIn XcdrOut XcdrIn UDPOut

– GigE Transrater ASI• UDPIn XrtrOut XrtrIn ASIOut

SwitchCore

ASIin

UDPin

ASIout

UDPout

Xcdr Xrtr

in

inout

in out

out

inout




Transcoder Media Routing Example

• There must be two media routes per transcoder– Front-end (to transcoder)– Back-end (from transcoder)

• Media routes are actually built from output input• Important: Build the front-end route first or the back-end will not see traffic. You can

only build a route when a live service is present.• Example:

– 1) XcdrOut UDPIn (front-end)– 2) UDPOut XcdrIn (back-end)

SwitchCoreUDPin UDPout

Xcdr

inout

in out

Build this route first or there will be no traffic to build this route




iPlex Media Route Debugging• Use the “Statistics” section of the GUI to monitor streams at each port. For

example:– 1 ASIIn1/0– 2 XcdrOut1/8– 3 XcdrIn1/8– 4 UDPout1/20

• If you see streams at Stage 1, 2, and 3 but not at Stage 4 then check the media route from UDPOut XcdrIn it is not present/working!

SwitchCore

ASIin

UDPout

Xcdr

in

inout

out

1

2 3

4




Routing a stream• Input stream elements need to be routed to an output.• There are two methods:

– Program Route• Quickly route all elements of a program

– Custom Route• More steps but more control• Drop unwanted audio elements

• Routing is used to ensure that a stream only contains the elements that are required

• Allows separate output streams to be created with PIP video or additional audio languages. STB only gets the data it needs, so increasing available bandwidth on the DSL loop.

• To configure a route go to Configuration : Media Routing




Select output portthen click Program Route




Select one or more input programs by checking the boxesThis source has two program streams (main video + PIP).

The top box selects all programs in the transport stream.




Routing a stream to the output

Review entries and then click Route




Almost there. Click OK to proceed




Click Apply to finish routing the stream

If you forget to Apply the route will show status “Not Applied”




Saving the configuration!• Configuration changes made to the iPlex, are made to the “running” configuration in volatile memory

• These changes need to be saved to flash memory or they will be lost at next power-up!

• Go to Configuration : Config File : Copy Startup

• “Copy Startup” means “Copy Running as startup-config”

• “Copy Running” means “Copy Running As any_file_name”

• DO NOT use spaces in file names!

• The special file “startup-config” is automatically loaded at power-up or if the MCM reboots

• If you “Copy Startup/Running” when the MCM is unbooted, its configuration will NOT be saved. This is because the MCM is dynamically polled by the SCM for its configuration in real-time. If it isn’t booted it won’t respond and the startup-config may become corrupted.

• Keep backup copies of your startup-config files! – Statistics : Config File : Show Running and copy/paste the full text to a notepad.txt file– or– Statistics : Config File : Upload Config to send the file to an FTP server




Write default values option, makes configuration file more complete.Recommend you always check this box.




Click here if you are sure you want to overwrite the existing startup configuration




After about 10-30 secondsshould be all green!




Monitoring the outgoing stream

• Statistics provide a good indication that the outgoing stream isactually outgoing!

• Provides some tuning information to help you eliminate NULL padding in the stream, and to ensure you are not over-subscribing the output

• Allows you to verify that the correct PID values and included in the transport stream

• Go to Statistics : Ports : UDPOut : UDPOut1/n




NULL packets insertedto pack stream

If we are over our pipesize this counter will increase

Components in thetransport stream

Select Programs, Elements, or Streams




ASIIn Configuration

GI: General Instruments (Motorola receivers)

DVB: Rest of world

MPEG: All other feeds including most US satellite feeds

ATSC: Terrestrial broadcast digital TV (including off-air HDTV)

NOTE: ASIIn submodule always parses table changes and always pushes every packet to MCM including nulls – reduce nulls if possible!




ASIIn Status

Problem: service not authorized, cable missing, receiver down?




Custom Program Routing

WHY?• Can improve video quality by releasing the bandwidth wasted on unneeded

streams– E.g., Fox has 4 audio streams, but you only want MPEG-2 English

1. MPEG-2 English2. MPEG-2 Spanish (SAP)3. Dolby Digital (AC-3) English4. Dolby Digital (AC-3) Spanish (SAP)

– This is even more important for MPEG-4 streamsOne extra AC-3 audio is 300kbps, or >15% of video bit rate!





WHY? (cont.)• Modify existing tables/descriptors• Add content to an existing program • Problems with some programs (e.g., Lifetime, A&E)

– Streams that contain multiple video PIDs

PROCEDURE

• Create tables (PAT/PMT/SDT)– Define elements– Modify descriptors

• Stream route desired PIDs– Don’t forget this step! This is what routes the actual video/audio streams.





1. Collect PMT PID, video PID, audio PIDfrom ASI input statistics

2. Create new program

•

3. Enter program #4. Enter PMT PID5. Enter PCR PID

(usually video PID in US)





6. Click new program entry

7. Click Add Element

8. Enter PID value9. Select video element type

(and create descriptors)





10. Repeat for audio element(s)

11. Select stream route

12. Select the video and audio streams you want to forward

13. Click Route, OK, Apply!

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