In Broadcast - October 2015 - 56

www.inbroadcast.com | Vol: 5 - Issue 10 | October 2015

InMedia

G&D Rely On Self-Developed
Compression Method
Guntermann & Drunck say that to guarantee the speed and operational consistency of its high performance
KVM systems it developed its own compression technology...

hen it comes to KVM, the letter
V - short for video - plays the
most important role because it is the
only component that is visible when
transmitting and switching signals.
The improvement from analogue
to digital image signals constituted
a major challenge for KVM - high
resolutions require high data volume.
However, the bandwidth of cable
infrastructures, especially when using
CAT cables, is extremely limited. Here,
signals cannot be transmitted without
being compressed. For the benefit of
their customers, G&D rely on their selfdeveloped compression technology.
The Crucial Letter V
When applying KVM technology,
the main focus lies on the most
critical component: the video. KVM
transmission stands and falls with the
video signal because high resolutions
and crystal clear images
without any loss or
latency are extremely
important.
However,
such fascinatingly high
resolutions also come with
great challenges. Without a doubt, one
of these challenges is the high data
volume required for 4K resolutions
with over 10Gbit/s, which in turn
places enormous demands on the
cabling infrastructure.
When it comes to data volume,
keyboard and mouse signals play only
a minor role although they form two
thirds of the term KVM. The transfer of
these two signals is very stable and not
susceptible to faults. They need only
an extremely small bandwidth when
transmitting a wide variety of signals.

KVM & Compression
Although Guntermann & Drunck
have been approached by external
development institutions regarding
the development of a compression,
they decided to develop their own
compression algorithms to keep both
their independence as well as the
speed in their own hands. G&D have
always been rejecting the development
of external compression since they
consider compression to be an
important part of their development
work. The German manufacturers
are aware of their obligations to their
customers to deliver the best possible
video quality even when dealing with
market-related changes in graphics
cards and monitors, and even though
this means having to invest years of
developing time.

The DP-HR console lets users integrate
monitors with DisplayPort connectors
at high resolutions into the KVM matrix
systems ControlCenter-Digital and
DVICenter

Keyword Bandwidth
For reasons of cost, the bandwidth
of KVM matrix systems must be kept
on a low level - even when it comes
to high resolutions. Due to the limited
bandwidth of CAT transmission, the
video signal has to be compressed in
order to handle the large data volume
while
guaranteeing
high-quality
images. High-resolution video content
can be transmitted only when
compressed. Therefore, the
compression developed by G&D
uses a multistage process that
supports full sharpness and full
colour depth at 24 bits.

KVM matrix
ControlCenter-Digital

Compressed Or
Uncompressed?
At G&D, customers are not
necessarily required to pick
only one solution. The German
manufacturers offer KVM

solutions that compress video signals
for transmission and therefore
support cost-effective cable
infrastructures.
But their portfolio also
includes extenders covering
the full range to transmit video
resolutions up to 4K. The DL-Vision
system, for example, transmits the full
bandwidth via two fibre pairs without
using any compression, lossless at 24bit colour depth even over distances
of several kilometres - provided
the system uses optical fibres, the
more powerful cable medium when
it comes to transmitting digital video
information.
Ready For The Future
KVM adapts itself to ever-changing
installations, graphics cards (output
signal) or displays (input signal).
Without the help of external suppliers,
G&D are able to react fast to these
changes. Experience has shown
that internal development is often
faster
than
the
collaboration with
third parties.
In addition, the
future generation
of KVM components
can profit significantly
from the interplay between
hard and software. In such a

rounded system, customers benefit
from G&D standards such as:
* Higher image quality;
* On-screen display;
* Faster switching through
harmonised matrix end devices
- even for different video formats
at input and output side;
* CrossDisplay-Switching to use
the mouse to switch between
channels;
* Positive hand-eye coordination;
* Lip sync, which is especially
important for the broadcast
industry.
In many ways, G&D's compression
is the key to current and future KVM
products. Being able to rely on a selfdeveloped compression also means
the protection of investments for
G&D customers: on the one hand for
maintaining existing installations,
on the other hand with regard to the
compatibility of future investments.

G&D: 4K KVM
extender DL-Vision

http://www.inbroadcast.com http://www.gdsys.de/en/products/digital-kvm-matrix-systems/console-modules/ http://www.gdsys.de/en/products/kvm-extenders/dl-vision/ http://www.gdsys.de/en/

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