Robo-Vision taps Ikegami POV cameras for Super Bowl, NASCAR TV productions

Ikegami HDL-50 one-piece POV cameras have been a part of
some of this year’s biggest sporting events, including Super Bowl XLII and
NASCAR coverage on Fox, ESPN, and Speed.

Deployed throughout the
University
of Phoenix Stadium by
robotic camera specialists Robo-Vision, the Ikegami HDL-50’s, which feature
leading-edge CMOS imaging technology, were central to an innovative new robotic
pan/tilt system on both goalposts.

“The HDL-50 really captured the action on both Super Bowl goalposts,” says Jim
Warden, President and CEO of Robo-Vision. “Combining the Ikegami cameras with
the new robotic pan/tilt system was very advantageous for covering football.
Using this technology, there’s no delay like there often is for joystick-based
systems. You can set up exactly as a cameraman, but from a remote
location.”

There was a total of seven Ikegami HDL-50 cameras employed
by Robo-Vision at Super Bowl XLII, providing POV from the goalposts, locker
room hallways, and other locations where placing a full-size HD camera would
have been difficult or impossible. In all, Robo-Vision has recently added 20
Ikegami HDL-50’s to its equipment list, for coverage of NASCAR, Indy Car,
Formula One, truck racing, and other thrilling events.

Ikegami’s HDL-50 series one-piece full-digital native
multi-format POV cameras employ newly developed 2.5 Mega-pixel CMOS sensors
that provide wide dynamic range and superb picture quality. These CMOS sensors
include native progressive and interlace modes for multi-format HD operation,
including 1080/59.94i, 1080/50i, 720/59.94p, and 720/50p directly from the
camera head (the HDL-51 sister-model POV camera supports native 1080/23.98p
format operation as well). The HDL-50 series cameras’ 2.5 Mega-pixel CMOS
sensors employ a compact, low-power digital video interface between the sensor
and the camera’s DSP. End-to-end digital processing is achieved through the use
of a highly advanced ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) that
assures signal integrity, high picture quality, and stable and reliable
operation.

Adding to the Ikegami HDL-50’s compact, multi-format HD
appeal is the value it brings to productions of all kinds, giving Robo-Vision’s
Director of Field Operations Rich Glandorff and Field Office Manager Chris
Fuydal flexibility in every situation. “At Super Bowl XLII, it was astounding
how good the colors looked coming from the HDL-50,” says Warden. “When you
consider how relatively inexpensive these cameras are, it’s amazing that they
can deliver such high quality for such a low price.”

Beyond the Super Bowl, Ikegami is one of the Robo-Vision
vendors that Wardern believes has been key to transforming the way the world
watches motor sports. “I’m really proud of what we have been able to do,” he
concludes. “In conjunction with the network crews at FOX and NBC, we really
have changed the way NASCAR races are broadcast. In the past, the races were
televised only from up-top, but now you’ll notice that the race is televised
trackside from corner-to-corner, and today in each corner is an Ikegami HDL-50
bringing the action to the living room.”

Password must contain the following:

A lowercase letter

A capital (uppercase) letter

A number

Minimum 8 characters

;
SVGLogoHR_NOTAG-200

The Latest in Sports Video Production & Technology
in Your Inbox for FREE

Daily Email Newsletters Monday - Friday