Australia’s ABC has installed the Riedel Artist Trunk Navigator system to support a VoIP-based communications network connecting producers, journalists and presenters working at the broadcaster’s bureaux. By simplifying the networking of geographically diverse Artist digital matrix intercom systems over 80 VoIP trunk lines, the Artist Trunk Navigator provides simpler, more efficient and reliable communications between sites for production and broadcast.
Riedel’s Artist Trunk Navigator software enables each of ABC’s existing Artist intercom systems to be connected to a central trunk master via a WAN connection, dynamically allocating either analogue or digital (AES3) audio trunks between up to 32 Artist intercom systems on VoIP lines.
Presenters on the studio floor are equipped with a Riedel Artist RCP-1112 control panel that enables them to create their own IFB submixes and make direct calls to production staff. Autocue operators are now able to create their own presenter mixes. Edit suite operators have the audio output of their editing stations interfaced into the Riedel Artist system, so they can listen back to the assets they are editing and be on communications during a news broadcast. ABC also uses local panel GPIs to interface camera tallies out in the field.
In Canberra, ABC has linked its Parliament House and Northbourne site with a 15km redundant fibre-optic link that allows technical staff to administer the system from either site. ABC has also installed multiple nodes at its Ultimo site in Sydney to form an Artist network. Rather than install new Cat5 cabling from a central point, ABC linked Artist nodes via fibre within the site, and used existing cabling from distributed Artist nodes to Artist keypanels.
ABC’s VoIP network has been configured as a mesh network with each site connected to many other sites. Thus, in the case of a power failure at a site or when a trunking path is busy, the Artist Trunk Navigator simply finds an alternate path though other ABC site routes. A redundant design enables the Artist Trunk Navigator software to run on two computers simultaneously and to switch seamlessly from one computer to the other in the case of failure.
‘By extending and improving communications across its bureaus, ABC has equipped its staff to collaborate more closely and effectively in delivering quality programming,’ says Riedel Communications Asia-Pacific Director, Cameron O’Neill.
More: www.riedel.net
