IBC 2016: Ross Video enhances XPression graphics product line

Ross Video’s XPression product line of real-time motion graphics systems, clip servers, workflow tools, and purpose-built software applications will be showing a number of new offerings and enhancements at IBC 2016 on Ross Stand #11.C10 in Amsterdam.

“This IBC, Ross Video is enthusiastic about the new features we are bringing to XPression,” says Patrick Twomey, Director of Marketing Product Management for XPression, Ross Video. “XPression users are constantly trying to anticipate how XPression will bring an increased set of smart solutions to meet the demands of their evolving workflows. We think we have risen to the occasion.”

XPression Quad provides the ultimate in flexibility for users moving into UHD production. This multi-faceted solution provides a future ready Quad link UHD real-time motion graphics system for advanced graphics users, but provides complete functionality today by utilizing the multiple user-configurable HD-SDI inputs and outputs for a wide range of configurations. There are eight ports that can be configured in any number of configurations. For example, an XPression Quad is potentially capable of running 2 channels of 1080i insert graphics, a score bug, and baseband video preview for live sports on a single system. XPression Quad is available either with a full software interface for graphics creation or as a headless graphics engine.

To support fast and efficient news production workflows, XPression has added new features to its MOS plug-in interface. User Input Controls, variable-size thumbnails and XPression Clips content are all available within the MOS Browser:

· User Input Controls, including pull-down menus with lists, check boxes, and radio buttons. XPression designers can create smarter scenes with the User Input Controls, which leaded to a reduced number of templates the journalist must choose from. Fewer decisions to make, smarter choices, faster to air.

· XPression MOS users now have the ability to re-size thumbnails for the XPression scenes shown within the XPression ActiveX plug-in for MOS workflows. Newsroom users can also view the XPression graphics in their MOS rundowns as thumbnails.

· The database of the XPression Clips clip server can be visually browsed from the plug-in as well. This permits the MOS newsroom user to add show opens, animated bumpers, monitor and franchise animations to their rundowns, and empowers journalists to make smart choices in their show creation.

XPression Tick-it Flow offers the same centralized data aggregation as XPression Tick-it without the direct playout capabilities, and also includes elections software. This cost-effective data server permits feeding data to XPression production graphics systems via Datalinq™, and even creating feeds for third party graphics devices, websites and mobile. XPression Tick-it Flow is also fully upgradable to XPression Tick-it Core Server, if it is desirable to take those graphics directly to air.

XPression Tessera is a multi-display real-time graphics designer and controller for Sports Venues and Studio Video Walls. Tessera enables users to link together multiple XPression engines to create a scalable matrix of channels for seamless output of scenes across large or irregularly assembled display panels. Perfect for sports scoreboards, ribbon boards, and studio video walls, Tessera’s resolution can scale just by adding more XPression engines or “Tessera nodes.” Driving multiple monitors with a single XPression Take ID makes Tessera a smart solution for any production.

Frame-accurate, non-tearing recall of graphics and clips across any or all nodes is made possible with XPression Multi-Engine Sync technology. More importantly, XPression’s unlimited scene layering on output is preserved across Tessera nodes for incredibly dynamic animations and transitions.

The Tessera Region Manager permits operators to divide scenes into regions and assign those regions to specific nodes. The Tessera Node Manager allocates the XPression engines and channels to be used as render nodes. The XPression Project Server handles automatic one-click publishing of scene updates and resources to all nodes for ultimate efficiency.

“Tessera is the single most exciting addition to the XPression family,” continues Patrick. “Enabling a single user to control content across multiple XPression engines to virtually any size or number of displays is a game changer. XPression users are no longer limited by the horsepower of a single graphics engine to fill a wall of monitors. Scaling the power is as simple as adding more XPression engines to create larger and larger displays.”