BBC R&D Annual Review 2001-2002
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BBC Research & Development maintains a world-class forward research programme. This enables us to deliver significant competitive advantage to the BBC. BBC R&D ANNUAL REVIEW 1 foreword BBC Research & Development maintains a world-class forward research production systems, and the planning of a their roll-out across the BBC. Our R&D expertise programme in a variety of broadcast technologies. As a consequence we are is placing the BBC at the leading edge of this revolution – offering us a major efficiency advantage compared with our competitors. BBC Technology is implementing these pilot able to deliver significant competitive advantage to the BBC. This last year systems, and will themselves gain an important time advantage in reaching the market with has been particularly productive and fruitful. this key new technology. BBC R&D has also delivered leading-edge technology to support the BBC’s production The full benefits of digital broadcasting are now beginning to come through to our viewers function. Examples include our work on the new production centres, speech-assisted and listeners. The BBC has launched new television and radio services and significantly subtitling, high-definition video production, digital radio cameras, and virtual production. enhanced the quality and sophistication of the interactive and enhanced services on the In a time of rapid technology change, there is no shortage of demand from our BBC FOREWORD digital platform. Interactive Wimbledon 2001, the enhanced Walking with Beasts colleagues for our effort and advice. Demand exceeds our ability to meet it, and we have to programme, the BBC i-Bar, regional news programmes and the new BBC Children’s work hard to retain a significant allocation of effort to continue the long-term, blue-sky channels have all been critical successes for the BBC. BBC B&D has been a key research programme which creates the seed-corn for the future. Last year, we contributor to the multifunction teams across the BBC which have made these popular fundamentally re-structured our process for prioritising R&D projects, and established a new innovations possible. system for monitoring progress and value for money. In all of this we have concentrated on As the full value of the digital broadcasting revolution starts to become apparent to linking our work very closely with the needs and priorities of our customers in the BBC viewers, the opportunity to switch off the analogue TV signal seems to be more achievable. operating divisions. We are entering the new financial year with greater confidence that we The Government has reiterated its commitment to switchover by 2010, and has launched a have balanced long and short term deliverables correctly. major national initiative to plan how to achieve this. BBC R&D is playing a major part in this Working in close collaboration with other parts of the BBC is also strengthening our process, especially by providing our spectrum planning expertise to address issues in the ability to deliver what our customers need. BBC Imagineering is a key partner, focused on digital terrestrial broadcasting field. The ‘Digital Action Plan’ is a multi-year commitment to a research into new content, complementing our focus on new technology. Kingswood major national strategic change. It will not be easy to achieve, but the BBC is committed to Warren Ventures was set up as a commercial subsidiary of the BBC to exploit our doing everything we can to make it happen. intellectual property and enhance the BBC’s return on its investment in R&D. Our first At the same time, Digital Radio has in the last year reached some critical milestones. success is likely to be the creation of a joint venture company to exploit our development of The BBC has launched the first of five new national stations; and listeners are getting the plasma display interfaces (which we reported last year). benefit of digital’s greater capacity to carry new services. Receivers are coming down fast It is very gratifying when our achievements are recognised by awards. This year we in price, and we expect to see £100 products in the shops soon. And the BBC has received, jointly with LSI Logic, the Queen’s Award for Enterprise, recognising our chip committed to the next phase of rollout of the digital radio service to cover the great majority design which was fundamental to the successful launch of digital terrestrial broadcasting. of the UK population. BBC R&D is providing the tools for leading edge data services for Our Spectrum Planning work (vital work whose importance is not often acknowledged) was digital radio, as well as working closely with the industry to deliver improved receivers. Our recognised by the Royal Television Society Southern Centre; while our pioneering radio spectrum planning function is leading the further expansion of coverage. We have also camera was given this year’s RTS Award for R&D. And the National Academy of Television made great progress with Digital Radio Mondiale, the digital standard to replace analogue Arts and Sciences in the United States recognised the fundamental breakthrough in in the short wave bands. up-conversion made at Kingswood in the late 1980s which is now the foundation for high Alongside the digital revolution for viewers and listeners, we are seeing the beginning of definition television services. a digital revolution in the production process. Standard IT equipment and networks are The scientific and engineering work at BBC R&D continues to be world class. We are reaching the point where they can handle video material. This opens the potential for a fortunate in having an outstanding research staff, backed up by an excellent support team. fundamental re-structuring of the BBC’s production process. BBC R&D has been pioneering I am particularly encouraged that BBC R&D continues to attract some of the most talented in this field for some time – this year we saw the first implementations of IT-based engineers, scientists and mathematicians graduating from university. Their energy and new ideas are an essential part of the continual renewal of our achievements. Peter Bury Head of Research & Development 2 April 2001 – March 2002 BBC R&D ANNUAL REVIEW 3 production systems, and the planning of a their roll-out across the BBC. Our R&D expertise is placing the BBC at the leading edge of this revolution – offering us a major efficiency advantage compared with our competitors. BBC Technology is implementing these pilot systems, and will themselves gain an important time advantage in reaching the market with this key new technology. BBC R&D has also delivered leading-edge technology to support the BBC’s production function. Examples include our work on the new production centres, speech-assisted subtitling, high-definition video production, digital radio cameras, and virtual production. In a time of rapid technology change, there is no shortage of demand from our BBC colleagues for our effort and advice. Demand exceeds our ability to meet it, and we have to work hard to retain a significant allocation of effort to continue the long-term, blue-sky research programme which creates the seed-corn for the future. Last year, we fundamentally re-structured our process for prioritising R&D projects, and established a new system for monitoring progress and value for money. In all of this we have concentrated on linking our work very closely with the needs and priorities of our customers in the BBC operating divisions. We are entering the new financial year with greater confidence that we have balanced long and short term deliverables correctly. Working in close collaboration with other parts of the BBC is also strengthening our ability to deliver what our customers need. BBC Imagineering is a key partner, focused on research into new content, complementing our focus on new technology. Kingswood Warren Ventures was set up as a commercial subsidiary of the BBC to exploit our intellectual property and enhance the BBC’s return on its investment in R&D. Our first success is likely to be the creation of a joint venture company to exploit our development of plasma display interfaces (which we reported last year). It is very gratifying when our achievements are recognised by awards. This year we received, jointly with LSI Logic, the Queen’s Award for Enterprise, recognising our chip design which was fundamental to the successful launch of digital terrestrial broadcasting. Our Spectrum Planning work (vital work whose importance is not often acknowledged) was recognised by the Royal Television Society Southern Centre; while our pioneering radio camera was given this year’s RTS Award for R&D. And the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in the United States recognised the fundamental breakthrough in up-conversion made at Kingswood in the late 1980s which is now the foundation for high definition television services. The scientific and engineering work at BBC R&D continues to be world class. We are fortunate in having an outstanding research staff, backed up by an excellent support team. I am particularly encouraged that BBC R&D continues to attract some of the most talented engineers, scientists and mathematicians graduating from university. Their energy and new ideas are an essential part of the continual renewal of our achievements. Peter Bury Head of Research & Development BBC R&D ANNUAL REVIEW 3 CONTENTS PRODUCTION BASED ISSUES 8 foreword 2 radio cameras 10 awards 6 information technology in broadcasting 13 virtual production 14 speech recognition 19 pal decoding 21 distribution of sound 22 high definition television 23 4 April 2001 – March 2002 contents PROVIDING DIGITAL TELEVISION 24 SPECTRUM PLANNING 48 IN THE HOME 64 new digital television services 26 spectrum management 50 the television of the future 66 schedule information 32 television 52 technical support for digital television 72 interactive services 36 radio 58 digital radio 74 the evolving architecture of television 40 software tools 63 licence protection 79 monitoring 43 signing 44 opportunistic data 47 BBC R&D ANNUAL REVIEW 5 AWARDS From left to right: Peter Bury receiving the Queen’s Award.