Digital TV System Research Articles

Advanced ISDB-T—Next Generation Digital TV System: Performance in Field Tests in Brazil

Advanced ISDB-T—Next Generation Digital TV System: Performance in Field Tests in Brazil

Life and Times of Akira Matsuzawa: In his own words

I graduated with a master’s degree in electronics from the Graduate School of Engineering at Tohoku University in March 1978 and joined Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (currently Panasonic) in April of the same year. After one year of training for new employees, I was assigned to the semiconductor-development division of the Central Research Laboratory, and in April 1979, I started to work as an IC designer. My role was to develop ICs to realize digital video and TV systems, rather than to contribute to the semiconductor business.

Supporting Targeted Advertising in Integrated Broadcast-Broadband Systems With Automatic Media Content Preparation

Integrated Broadcast-Broadband (IBB) Systems enable a range of new services for viewers, including content personalization, such as targeted advertising. Custom advertising is delivered using the broadband connection synchronized with the broadcast content, demanding high-control synchronization among both communication channels. As the broadband channel is shared among different applications, delays may occur during the transmission of targeted advertisements, which can cause synchronization faults. Aiming at reducing these faults and truly supporting targeted advertising in IBB systems, this work proposes the automatic preparation of media content before its presentation. In order to provide automatic preparation, a preparation plan to orchestrate content loading in advance is also proposed. Our proposal is implemented in the Ginga-NCL middleware, which is a standard for the Brazilian Digital TV System. Our performance evaluation shows that the average switching time from broadcast to broadband is around 40 ms, if automatic content preparation is used, which is an outstanding result.

Digital TV Channel Prediction Using Clustering Algorithms and Statistical Learning

Due to the rise of new communication services, more portions of the electromagnetic spectrum must be relocated and their distribution optimized. With the digitization of the open TV service, it was observed that the distribution of channels in  he frequency band destined for this service generated an inefficient use of the radio spectrum. These unused frequency bands are the so-called void spaces. To establish efficient spectrum use, it is important to identify these spectrum gap  opportunities and use according to certain criteria. In this article, machine learning algorithms are proposed to identify new spectrum opportunities, through the signal levels received in the UHF frequency range of the Digital TV system. These  spectrum opportunities are generated from natural or artificial obstacles present in the propagation environment. Two measurement campaigns were carried out in a suburban area to obtain the level of the signal received in an area of approximately 240,000 square meters. From the received power values, machine learning algorithms were used to make prediction of the received signal levels. By using a reception threshold, it is possible to identify the shadow regions and possible  spectrum opportunities.

HDR10+ Concepts, Principles, Capabilities and Advantages for the Next-Generation of Brazilian Broadcasting System (TV 3.0)

This paper aims to briefly introduce the current Brazilian DTV scenario towards the next generation DTT system (TV 3.0) as well as HDR (High Dynamic Range) principles, features and applications. Different HDR formats have been proposed along the history with different features and purposes. One of them is the HDR10+ technology that can provide powerful advantages and benefits related to picture quality and based on dynamic metadata system. HDR10+ is being adopted by major international digital terrestrial TV systems and other standardizations bodies. In this scenario TV 3.0 can take advantage of HDR10+ to improve the overall system from industry perspective, and consequently delivering a consistent user experience.

MPEG-H Audio System for SBTVD TV 3.0 Call for Proposals

Under the name “TV 3.0 Project”, the Brazilian Terrestrial Television System Forum (SBTVD) has issued the Call for Proposals (CfP) for a next generation Brazilian digital TV system, in July 2020. The MPEG-H Audio system, based on the open international standard ISO/IEC 23008-3, has been proposed by Fraunhofer IIS, ATEME, the Digital Broadcasting Experts Group (DiBEG) and the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC). This paper provides an overview of the MPEG-H Audio system and the TV 3.0 Project requirements for the audio component. The TV 3.0 Project specifies a detailed test and evaluation procedure for verifying the fulfillment of the requirements. With wide industry support, the MPEG-H Audio system brings immersive sound, advanced interactivity, and accessibility options, as well as advanced features like hybrid delivery, consistent loudness after user interaction, connectivity options for external sound devices and seamless configuration changes. The MPEG-H Audio proponents have submitted a complete production and broadcast real-time chain to the SBTVD Forum which demonstrates the most advanced features.

Immersive Audio Application Coding Proposal to the SBTVD TV 3.0 Call for Proposals

In July 2020 the Brazilian Terrestrial Television System Forum (SBTVD) has issued a Call for Proposals (CfP) for their next-generation digital TV system called TV 3.0. Fraunhofer IIS and ATEME have proposed the MPEG-H Audio system, based on the open international standard ISO/IEC 23008-3, MPEG-H 3D Audio, as a candidate technology for the Application Coding component of SBTVD TV 3.0. The submitted proposal specifies a new Application Programming Interface (API) enabling applications to make use of the nextgeneration interactivity features of the MPEG-H Audio system. This paper provides a detailed description of the proposed API, as well as the submitted JavaScript implementation, and the architecture of the prototype system. Additionally, the paper outlines the proposed evaluation process demonstrating how the MPEG-H Audio system fulfills the TV 3.0 Application Coding requirements for 3D object-based immersive audio interaction and emergency warning information delivery

Optimum Positioning of Base Station for Cellular Service Devices Using Discrete Knowledge Model

Abstract A good wireless network design depends on technical and financial viability and a number of other criteria that must be met. Following the emergence of new technologies and services, such as 5G transmission and the reuse of frequencies, new work is being carried out to ensure a better design for a particular area. This study examines a discrete radio propagation model which employs the K nearest neighbors classifier. The model takes into account the different characteristics of the environment. This article presents a case study for the optimum positioning of base stations in Federal University of Para (Belem – Brazil), representing a typical Amazon environment. The mentioned scenario is heterogeneous, presenting edifications and considerable forest area. Measurement campaigns were conducted in three different frequencies for the design features of the model: 521 MHz (Brazilian digital TV system), 2100 MHz (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), and 2600 MHz (Long Term Evolution). A study of the fading phenomenon in these frequencies was carried out to generalize the frequencies of application for the propagation loss model. When this model was ready, tests (computing simulations) were conducted in two scenarios to optimize the positioning of the radio base stations being studied.

Design of the Ladder Multi-slot Fractal Split Growth Array Antenna

According to the performance requirements of the ultra-wideband multi-band compatible antennas for microwave band multi-network integration systems, the present paper originally combines the structure of ladder multi-slot, “Embedded” slot fractal iteration and the split growth array, designs a ladder multi-slot fractal split growth array antenna. The result of test indicates that this antenna can completely cover all working frequency bands of the mobile communication system, the frequency bands of the radio frequency identification system, the frequency band of the ultra-wideband system and the frequency band of the mobile digital TV system. With the advantages of small size, high radiation intensity and stable radiation characteristics, it can be applied to large-scale applications in the multi-network system of microwave frequency band.

Design of the Tree Growth Array Ultra Wideband Antenna

According to the performance requirements of the antenna for multi-network wireless communication terminal equipment, the present paper originally combines the structure of inductive multi-line antenna with the tree growth array, designs a tree growth array ultra-wideband antenna, and we also complete the production and the test of antenna samples. The measured results show that the antenna has stable ultra-wideband performance and can work in mobile communication systems, radio frequency identification systems, ultra-wideband communication systems and mobile digital TV systems at the same time. It has excellent compatibility and it is also a performance microwave frequency band multi-network and one terminal device antenna.

ADVISOR: An Adjustable Framework for Test Oracle Automation of Visual Output Systems

Test oracles differentiate between the correct and incorrect system behavior. Automation of test oracles for visual output systems mainly involves image comparison, where a snapshot of the output is compared with respect to a reference image. Hereby, the captured snapshot can be subject to variations such as scaling and shifting. These variations lead to incorrect evaluations. Existing approaches employ computer vision techniques to address a specific set of variations. In this article, we introduce ADVISOR, an adjustable framework for test oracle automation of visual output systems. It allows the use of a flexible combination and configuration of computer vision techniques. We evaluated a set of valid configurations with a benchmark dataset collected during the tests of commercial digital TV systems. Some of these configurations achieved up to 3% better overall accuracy with respect to state-of-the-art tools. Further, we observed that there is no configuration that reaches the best accuracy for all types of image variations. We also empirically investigated the impact of significant parameters. One of them is a threshold regarding image matching score that determines the final verdict. This parameter is automatically tuned by offline training. We evaluated runtime performance as well. Results showed that differences among the ADVISOR configurations and state-of-the-art tools are in the order of seconds per image comparison.

A Low Complexity Decoding Scheme for Raptor-Like LDPC Codes

Recently, a new structure of low density parity check (LDPC) code named raptor-like LDPC code has attracted much attention. It has better performance at low code rate. In this paper, a novel decoding scheme for raptor-like LDPC code is proposed. First, the Gaussian approximation density evolution (GADE) algorithm is used to track and analyze the message transmission during the decoding process. It is found that certain log likelihood ratio (LLR) messages can be approximated by “zero” setting in the early iteration of raptor-like LDPC decoding. In other words, some column and row operations could be eliminated without compromise the performance. Next, we propose a new decoding scheme, which can skip unnecessary column and row operations. In comparison with the traditional belief propagation (BP)-based LDPC decoding scheme, the proposed scheme can reduce the decoding complexity. Additionally, a new algorithm is developed to facilitate the selection of the early iteration number. With this novel design, the proposed decoding scheme performs almost the same as the traditional BP-based scheme. To proof the concept, the raptor-like LDPC codes in the ATSC3.0 digital TV system are used to evaluate the proposed scheme, in comparison with the traditional BP-based schemes, i.e., sum-product algorithm (SPA), offset min-sum algorithm (OMSA), and normalized min-sum algorithm (NMSA). The simulation results confirm that the proposed scheme can reduce the decoding complexity without sacrifice in performance for all SPA, OMSA, and NMSA methods. About 10% complexity reduction can be achieved. This will reduce the buttery consumption for Internet of Things (IoT) and handheld devices.

Mobile Digital TV Induction Array Four Helix Antenna

According to the performance requirements of the mobile digital TV system, the present paper originally combines polygonal four helix antenna, induction array antenna, dielectric constant gradient film, graphene conductive ink and nano silver conductive ink, designed a mobile digital TV inductive array four helix antenna. The result of test indicates that this antenna has completely covered the frequency band of the mobile digital TV system. This antenna has strong corrosion resistance and damage resistance, stable physical and mechanical performance and radiation performance, small size, thin thickness and large working bandwidth, so it has broad application prospects.

Design of the Photonic Crystal Slot Fractal Array Ultra Wideband Antenna

According to the performance requirements of the multi band compatible antennas for the mobile communication system, the radio frequency identification system, the ultra wideband system and the mobile digital TV system, the present paper originally combined photonic crystal structure, embedded slot fractal, rectangular array antenna, relative dielectric constant gradual thin film, potassium tantalum niobate thin film, Fe-based nanocrystalline alloy coating and graphene conductive ink, and designed a photonic crystal slot fractal array ultra wideband antenna. The result of test indicates that this antenna has strong anti-EMI capability, large performance redundancy and ultra wideband operation capability. This antenna completely covered all working frequency bands of the second generation to the fifth generation mobile communication, the frequency bands of the radio frequency identification system, the frequency band of the ultra wideband system, and the frequency band of the mobile digital TV system. This antenna has small size, high radiation intensity, stable and reliable operation performance; it is a microwave band multi network integration antenna with excellent performance.

Gradual Dielectric Constant Induction Array Fractal Antenna Used for Mobile Digital TV System

According to the requirements of the mobile digital TV system, the present paper creatively combined cross fractal antenna, induction array antenna, gradual dielectric constant film, graphene conductive ink and nano silver conductive ink, designed a gradual dielectric constant induction array fractal antenna used for mobile digital TV system. The result of test indicates that this antenna completely covered the working frequency band of the mobile digital TV system. This antenna has the advantages of small size, wide bandwidth and more redundant performance, and it has stable radiation performance and excellent physical and mechanical performance. This antenna can ensure the good transmission quality of wireless signal in mobile digital TV system in various harsh electromagnetic environments.

Design of the Gradual Patch Spiral Dipole Complementary Gap Composite Ultra Wideband Antenna

According to the performance requirements of the multi band compatible antennas for microwave frequency band multi network integration system, the present paper originally combines gradual patch spiral dipole antenna, complementary gap antenna, polyethylene terephthalate film, ceramics thin slice and ferrite coating, designed a gradual patch spiral dipole complementary gap composite ultra wideband antenna. The result of test indicates that this antenna has a better anti-jamming ability. When the antenna is placed near metal objects and various microwave signal sources, the radiation performance of the antenna is almost unaffected and the antenna can work normally. This antenna completely covered all working frequency bands of the second generation to the fifth generation mobile communication, the frequency bands of the radio frequency identification system, the frequency band of the ultra wideband system, and the frequency band of the mobile digital TV system. This antenna has high radiation intensity and large performance redundancy, so it has broad application prospects.

Automatically learning usage behavior and generating event sequences for black-box testing of reactive systems

We propose a novel technique based on recurrent artificial neural networks to generate test cases for black-box testing of reactive systems. We combine functional testing inputs that are automatically generated from a model together with manually-applied test cases for robustness testing. We use this combination to train a long short-term memory (LSTM) network. As a result, the network learns an implicit representation of the usage behavior that is liable to failures. We use this network to generate new event sequences as test cases. We applied our approach in the context of an industrial case study for the black-box testing of a digital TV system. LSTM-generated test cases were able to reveal several faults, including critical ones, that were not detected with existing automated or manual testing activities. Our approach is complementary to model-based and exploratory testing, and the combined approach outperforms random testing in terms of both fault coverage and execution time.

Controvérsias na padronização do middleware de interatividade da TV digital brasileira: democracia técnica à prova do dispositivo de normatização da inovação Ginga

Resumo O presente texto tem o propósito de reconstruir a cena da controversa normatização do middleware de interatividade da TV digital brasileira - Ginga - cuja arquitetura final resultou na combinação de duas linguagens NCL-Lua (código aberto) e Java-DTV (proprietária). Nosso objetivo é mostrar como, nos termos da democracia técnica, se deu a disputa entre os distintos atores do ecossistema do Sistema Brasileiro da Televisão Digital e Interativa (SBTDi) em torno da coordenação entre digitalização do simbólico, alta definição e interatividade a serviço do mercado e de projetos de inclusão social governamentais pela TV aberta. Interessamo-nos pelos valores e pelas normas postulados por pesquisadores, desenvolvedores, radiodifusores, governo, indústria de software, representações de movimentos pela democratização da comunicação em função do dispositivo de normatização do Ginga, o Fórum SBTVDi. A trajetória do Ginga ilustra como a normatização de inovações são tributárias de tramas sociotécnicas nas quais se vinculam e se desvinculam elementos técnicos e humanos, como se fazem e se desfazem negociações em torno delas. A partir da realização de análise documental e entrevistas semiestruturadas, discutimos a constituição de um objeto-fronteira resultante de embates entre atores que exprimem distintos regimes de engajamentos ao projeto de interatividade aliado à inclusão social e à política industrial no país, propósito inicialmente atribuído ao SBTVDi.

Data Amount Reduction in Mosaic Image Transmission Techniques for Digital Interactive Television Applications

Several images are used as a part of the interactive data in the Nipo-Brazilian digital TV system that require good subjective quality while using the lowest possible bandwidth but the well-known traditional compression systems are already applied by default to these images. The concept of a mosaic image (several images forming one) has been formerly used in the steganography application field. The mosaic image is obtained by reordering the image-blocks of a secret image disguised as another image, the so-called target image, and then feeding both to a near reversible color-transformation algorithm. Its use is a possible solution to this need in digital interactive television, for which the main challenge is to achieve this by using less bandwidth for transmission. We propose here a procedure to reduce the amount of data needed to recover the secret image from the mosaic image, as well as a criterion to select the target image and therefore improve the quality of the recovered secret image in interactive data applications. The main objective is to efficiently transmit two images as one using a lower bandwidth. On the one hand, the number of bits needed to recover a given secret image is highly reduced by modeling the image-block standard deviation statistical distribution. On the other hand, the entropy of the image-block means and standard deviations per color component are used to identify the most convenient target image among the images set present in the interactive application of interest. A series of experiments with a set of 20 mostly natural images showed a reduction in the number of bits close to 3-to-1 with respect to techniques of reference. The proposed method allows us to improve the bandwidth use by reducing the number of bits needed to recover the secret image, it preserves the subjective quality of recovered secret images, and it gives the possibility to determine the best target images available in several multimedia and digital terrestrial television applications.

Aplicação do sistema digital em emissoras regionais brasileiras

Depois de quase uma década das diretrizes estabelecidas sobre o sistema digital de TV no Brasil é importante esclarecer como as emissoras se adaptaram, em especial as regionais, uma vez que são elas que possuem maior proximidade com o público local e, ao mesmo tempo, por motivos comerciais, podem ter mais dificuldades para implementar a digitalização total do sistema. Portanto, ao estabelecer tal apontamento o presente artigo contribui com o desenvolvimento e os estudos do sistema digital adquirido pelas emissoras regionais localizadas na região de Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil. Compreende-se que o sistema digital brasileiro teve um grande planejamento técnico, subdividido em várias categorias, mas paralisou-se ao ser posto em prática nas emissoras.