New Wireless Grass Valley LCP400 Local Control Panel Puts Full Camera Control And Metadata Integration into the Palm of the Hand
LCP400 from Thomson Controls Camera Functionality and Creates and Edits Metadata from a PDA or Smart Phone
"Because the Infinity camcorder is recording video files on standard data storage media we can wrap as much metadata as the user requires with the content. The LCP400 gives the user a simple, intuitive and fast way of entering and accessing that metadata at any time, even when the camcorder itself is switched off," said Marc Valentin, president of the Grass Valley business within Thomson.
The LCP400 local control panel is a software application installed on a PDA or smart phone which runs Windows Mobile 5 (or Windows Mobile 6 when that becomes available). It communicates with the Infinity camcorder wirelessly, typically by Bluetooth using a USB dongle in the camera, although it could also use WiFi. It replicates the side control panel on the camcorder, giving access to all the menus and settings and allowing changes even during shooting. Extremely low latency in the wireless connection makes it practical even for critical adjustments such as audio levels.
It is also the way to enter and read metadata associated with the content before, during and after the shoot. This metadata can even be prepared on the PDA or smart phone with the camera switched off: as soon as the camera is back online the two devices synchronise.
In electronic news gathering (ENG) workflows the LCP400 could also be synchronised with the newsroom computer system and updated using cellular or WiFi connectivity. Assignments can be loaded in advance, and details of interviews and shotlists can be recorded on the LCP400 at any time, wrapped as metadata and also transmitted to the newsroom so that programme editors and directors have full details on the content even before it arrives. Journalists and editors can use the metadata to get straight to the key content to prepare the story. This bridges a vital gap for the fully integrated newsroom, allowing the unified production process to start at the moment of assignment and go through acquisition to editing and delivery.
For electronic field production (EFP) workflows the LCP400 can be pre-loaded with the shot list or even the complete shooting script, allowing the production assistant to mark good takes with a single tap on the mobile device and add annotations and comments during the shoot.
Because the connection between the LCP400 and its Infinity camcorder is wireless, these comments and annotations are added into the metadata without the need for the production assistant to be close to the camera and getting in the way of the operator. As with ENG applications, this builds the link between shooting and post production, speeding the process by taking the editor straight to the right content and being able to read production notes from the director which are wrapped with the media itself.
The LCP400 software application is priced at $499 or €399, not including the PDA or smart phone. It is available with production deliveries of the Infinity digital media camcorder.
"At Grass Valley we continue to stress the power of IT immersion — the combination of our unrivalled broadcast experience with the latest in commodity IT technology — and this small device is a perfect example of what it can achieve," said Valentin. "It has the potential to boost workflows by changing the way information is handled, bundling it tightly with the content itself all the way from acquisition to delivery."
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