NAB 2016: Ross Video Preps Big Updates to Xpression Systems

For NAB 2016, a number of new products and enhancements are being shown for the Ross Video XPression line of real-time motion graphics systems, clip servers, workflow tools, and purpose-built software applications.

“We’re excited about what we’re bringing to Las Vegas this year,” said Brian Olson, Director of Marketing Product Management for XPression. “We want to make sure existing XPressioncustomers are constantly getting more value from their purchase and also offer a broader range of products for new customers to fit their varying workflows and use cases.”

XPression Quad continues the development of systems suitable to 4K Production. This graphics system supports up to 4 channels of HD/SD or Quad link 4K outputs with key, and is user configurable for any combination of inputs and outputs. XPression Quad is even capable of running 2 channels of 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 further support fast and efficient news production workflows, XPression has added new features to its MOS plug-in interface. There are new pull-down menus with lists, check boxes, and radio buttons. Users have the ability to re-size thumbnails and view newsroom computer systems rundowns with thumbnails. The database of the XPression Clips clip server can be visually browsed from the plug-in as well.

To assist in automating graphics production workflows for news and sports, XPression now supports Adobe XMP Metadata. The metadata stored in Adobe files can be used to change text, colors, images, and clips inside of XPression scenes. To enable customized workflows, the XMP metadata works with Visual Logic programming to achieve template automation.

Another design enhancement for XPression is the addition of a Slab primitive that can be skewed at any angle, offers separate front/back faces/bevels/extrusions, and can make a variety of shapes depending on parameter settings. The new primitive eliminates the need to go to a 3D authoring program for basics boxes, slabs, and rectangles.

XPression Tick-it is an automated, multi-channel, multi-zone, multi-function, collaborative workflow server for tickers and informational channels. Now, XPression Tick-it Flow offers the same centralized data aggregation as XPression Tick-it without the direct playout capabilities, and includes elections software. This cost-effective data server permits feeding data toXPression production graphics systems via Datalinq, and even creating feeds for third party graphics devices or websites and mobile. It is also fully upgradable to XPression Tick-it if you want to take those graphics directly to air.

Ross Trackless Studio is a new all-in-one virtual production tool that fits almost any budget. Built on the XPression Real-Time Motion Graphics System with an intuitive purpose-built interface, Trackless Studio leverages years of experience from Ross Video with virtual sets and augmented reality to bring quality virtual sets to even the most basic productions.

Cost-effective virtual productions are made possible with Ross Trackless Studio, as it uses stationary physical cameras instead of robotic camera systems, encoded camera heads/lenses, or optical tracking hardware. Trackless Studio uses the same high-quality virtual sets as tracked implementations to provide incredible results while staying on budget. It even ships with 6 stock virtual sets, with more available on the Ross e-commerce site. Budgets and studio real estate often necessitate a different approach to production. As all camera moves are done virtually, the need for a large studio space is eliminated. Ross Trackless Studio opens up new opportunities for virtual sets.