WDR Installs Riedel MediorNet Compact in HD Upgrade of Mobile Units

Riedel Communications has supplied German public broadcaster Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln (WDR) with MediorNet-based signal transport solutions for the HD upgrade of two OB vans. MediorNet Compact frames installed in each mobile unit will provide real-time media networks that support flexible transport and routing of audio, video, data, and control signals.

“Adapting readily to the specific requirements of any given event, highly versatile production units are the future of our industry,” said Markus Gerlach, division head of studio production at WDR. “By integrating Riedel’s MediorNet Compact into our recently upgraded OB vans, we not only realize a higher level of flexibility but also achieve greater efficiency through simpler configuration and a dramatic reduction in cabling.”

Riedel’s MediorNet Compact is a multimedia stagebox that offers the flexibility of a true real-time media network, including integrated signal processing, at the cost of simple point-to-point products. Together, the seven MediorNet Compact frames installed in each WDR OB van serve as a decentralized routing infrastructure with an optical topography governed by common control software. In addition to providing eight HD inputs and eight HD outputs with each Compact frame, the resulting solution features integrated “glue” including a frame store synchronizer, embedder/de-embedder, test pattern generator, on-screen display, and timecode inserter. With a network bandwidth of 50 Gbit/s, MediorNet Compact includes eight HD-SDI video inputs and eight outputs, two MADI interfaces and three Gigabit Ethernet ports, and multiple audio channels or intercom ports.

With this MediorNet Compact solution, each OB van will gain greater flexibility in distributing signals, as well as the ability to connect and work in tandem with other MediorNet-equipped OB vans on a larger shared network infrastructure. Because configuration presets for particular productions can be saved and recalled as needed, WDR can very quickly prepare for a production and easily transition from one project to the next.