We have been dedicated to the development and deployment of control, management, monitoring and automation systems in the broadcasting industry for over a decade, accumulating extensive product and project experience. Our products are highly adaptable and widely applied to system management and control in studios, playout, transmission, Master Control Room (MCR), earth stations, OB Vans (outside broadcast vans), satellite uplink vehicles / DSNG vehicles, flyaway stations, equipment rooms / machine rooms, and more. We also provide comprehensive solutions for building large-scale broadcast command & dispatch centers.
Application of the Unified Control Platform (iSwiftMedia) in MCR: A Case Study of the Tencent New Building Smart Platform
At Tencent, with the development of the broadcasting center in departments such as Tencent Video and the increase in business volume, standardized, process-oriented, and automated solutions are needed to handle daily work needs and improve work efficiency. Previously, the broadcasting center had the following problems:
(1) The current reservation path for studios is: employees directly contact broadcasting center employees to apply for studio reservations. There is no unified website platform for employees, and requirements cannot be fully understood, bringing inconvenience to subsequent studio arrangements and other work, and also creating work pressure for broadcasting center employees. Therefore, a unified reservation system is needed to realize requirement collection and aggregation, and to transmit the collected information to the control system for identification; providing operational reports from different perspectives, enhancing insight and understanding of system operations;
(2) On the same day or throughout a month, there are many competitions and events, requiring manual entry and modification of device parameters one by one, and these parameters are relatively fixed. However, since there is currently no control platform system, employees need to manually adjust the matrix for operation every day. Therefore, it is necessary to generate XML files or other forms based on the reservation scheduling system for the control system to read, and automatically select corresponding devices according to pre-written templates to achieve automation;
(3) Currently, monitoring of all devices inside the broadcasting center is relatively passive. It may only be discovered when a device is to be used and found unusable, or when there is a problem with the monitor's signal, that the device or link has a problem. Therefore, a real-time monitoring system is needed. When any problem is found, an alarm is immediately issued, and the system can also provide certain troubleshooting ideas and solutions based on fault phenomena;
(4) The broadcasting center has many asset devices, with many devices borrowed daily, such as earphones, and because of business needs, devices are often lent out. In order to uniformly manage these devices, a unified Asset Management System is needed to manage borrowed devices, prevent device damage, loss, and other phenomena, and transform from offline paper to online approval processes;
(5) Currently, the broadcasting center lacks promotional efforts for external visitors. In order to increase influence and provide a good experience for foreign guests and visitors, an information publishing system is needed to meet actual needs. For example, there are displays at the entrance of each studio where information about the studio's hosts and guests can be viewed at any time. To facilitate events and advertising promotions, advertisements can be embedded on various screens, and even some touch screen functions are needed to interact with users;
(6) Information cannot be synchronized in a timely manner. Some faults that occur and are resolved cannot be made known to everyone else. Therefore, it is necessary to establish a knowledge base, and the system can also provide some simple troubleshooting reminders based on faults encountered before;
In response to the above pain points, the Unified Control Platform (iSwiftMedia) has been deployed, primarily for control and management of all equipment in the studio production domain (including but not limited to baseband and non-baseband, IP, SDI over IP). This includes parameter modification, signal scheduling, equipment resource scheduling (including module cards, etc.), big data analysis and tool development for equipment control protocols, meter reading systems to facilitate subsequent data analysis and full resource utilization, converting scheduling system data into executable tasks for automatic execution by the control system. Reasonable human intervention mechanisms are set up. Template or snapshot functions are provided, which can be used to reproduce faults for troubleshooting based on snapshots, and provide reasonable control logic (providing operation hardware controlled by this platform, such as hardware panels). With this platform, the time occupancy of various equipment can be reasonably allocated, preventing unnecessary emergency problems, ensuring that expensive resources are not abused and similar resources are not idle, thus maximizing the utilization of various resources.
Project Composition:
Tencent New Building Intelligent Platform System Composition and Workflow
Addressing the original pain points of the broadcasting center, based on the Unified Control Platform (iSwiftMedia), we have deployed multiple services/subsystems including reservation scheduling, asset management, project management, information publishing, Cost Center and task execution, detection and monitoring. The system provides a visual reservation-scheduling solution, making reservation distribution and conflicts clear at a glance, avoiding unnecessary trouble caused by resource conflicts. The system can perfectly interface with the Sports Department's API, realizing automatic program pulling, automatic scheduling, and automatic parameter filling functions, reducing workload. The system integrates reservation, approval, parameter filling and other functions, shielding the broadcasting center from data delays and data inconsistencies caused by cross-platform operations, realizing process-based and automated workflows, while providing facilities and services for post-event data statistical analysis.
Reservation System, related functions include reservation and scheduling, both of which are means of pre-planning and application for resource use. Among them, scheduling corresponds to columns such as variety shows and sports events, which are a form of resource pre-allocation with strong regularity; while reservation has a strong sudden color and greater uncertainty. Generally, scheduling may correspond to longer-term planning, such as the time for the dragon boat race to use the studio, etc. Scheduling, due to its regularity, tends to be imported in batches, and only needs to set time windows in advance; while reservation is more flexible and casual, a short-term form of resource application.
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Task Execution System, receives and displays task execution information scheduled from the reservation system in real time, issues reminders in advance, and duty personnel execute tasks according to the scheduled time, opening up signal transmission routes and cooperating with equipment and signal detection systems to monitor the working status of all equipment on the task route at any time to ensure correct signal transmission. When equipment fails or the matrix status is incorrect, it can issue sound and light alarms to remind staff to resolve faults. At the same time, it provides means to allow operators to manually adjust task routes according to actual conditions to ensure smooth signal paths.
Power and Environmental Monitoring, temperature, humidity, fans, CPU, etc.
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The System Features:
(1) People-oriented, direct and efficient collaboration/communication, information and services accessible anytime, anywhere;
(2) Seamless system integration, with subsystems in Tianjin, Beijing (Shougang, Side, Yinke, Sigma, Shangdi Headquarters Base) and multiple locations integrated in workflows, realizing seamless docking of information and services;
(3) In the form of reservations, task-order driven, full process integration;
(4) Adopting B/S architecture, convenient for users in different departments and regions to access the system anytime, anywhere;
(5) The system extensively uses code scanning (barcodes), ID card swiping and other methods to accelerate process linkage, improve security and work efficiency;
(6) Provides mobile H5 page, SMS push, email push and WeChat terminals and other methods, including enterprise WeChat groups, etc., to enhance collaboration among personnel in different regions and departments;
Reservation System
Reservations and scheduling are both means of pre-planning and requesting resource usage. Scheduling corresponds to programs such as variety shows and sports events, and is a highly regular form of resource pre-allocation. Reservations, by contrast, are more spontaneous and carry greater uncertainty. Scheduling typically covers longer-term planning, such as the time a studio is used for a dragon boat race broadcast. Due to its regularity, scheduling tends to be batch-imported with only a pre-set time window required. Reservations are more flexible and ad-hoc, serving as a short-term resource request.
Organizations invest substantial funds in purchasing various assets every year, yet over time it becomes difficult to know promptly and clearly how many assets the organization and its subsidiaries own, which departments they are distributed across, where they are stored, who is using them, and what condition they are in. Fixed asset utilization is often low, and duplicate purchases are common. When employees leave or change positions, asset handovers are frequently incomplete, making it hard to quickly and fully identify all assets in a person's custody, leading to asset loss. Unclear accountability, heavy audit and inventory workloads, and high error rates create many challenges for asset management departments. Discrepancies between records and physical assets, as well as significant gaps between book value and actual value, are common occurrences.
The task execution system receives and displays scheduled task information from the task management system in real time, issuing advance alerts so that on-duty operators can execute tasks at the designated times. It establishes signal routing paths and works in conjunction with equipment and signal monitoring systems to continuously monitor the operational status of all devices along the task route, ensuring correct signal delivery. When equipment faults occur or matrix states are in error, audible and visual alarms are triggered to prompt operators to resolve the issue. The system also allows operators to manually adjust task routing based on actual conditions, ensuring uninterrupted signal paths.
The software is built on an open-source encoding and recording framework, controlling hardware encoder cards and I/O cards for encoding and recording via software. It delivers high-density, high-quality, and highly reliable live workflows, while simultaneously supporting recording of input signals.
The project management system is specialized software used by project managers to effectively manage all work involved in a project under limited resource constraints, applying systematic perspectives, methods, and theories. It covers the entire process from investment decision through project completion, encompassing planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, controlling, and evaluating to achieve project objectives.
Data analysis refers to the process of applying appropriate statistical methods to analyze large volumes of collected data, extracting useful information and forming conclusions through detailed study and summarization. This process also supports the quality management system. In practice, data analysis helps people make informed judgments so that appropriate actions can be taken.
Cost Center
A cost center is a department or unit within a management accounting responsibility system that is responsible for collecting, controlling, allocating, accounting for, and evaluating incurred expenses. It is part of the responsibility center structure. From an organizational perspective, it can be a department, a business unit, an operating area, or even an individual. Regardless of the expense type or the level of cost center, each is accountable for its controllable expenses.
The information publishing system integrates information from various modules of the platform for unified publishing. Task information filtered by studio and building is displayed on screens. Key information at a glance: task time, location, participants and current task status, on-duty personnel information for each location, etc. Fully demonstrates Tencent's corporate culture, full of technological sense.
