Panasonic Connect KAIROS IP Platform For Video Production

In a recent interview posted on Broadcast Beat, Frank Beachman from Broadcast Beat, speaks with Michael Bergeron who is currently managing Panasonic Connect’s broadcast studio systems business. He is currently focused on the KAIROS IT/IP based live production platform.

Panasonic Connect's expansion of their KAIROS platform with new Core mainframes and software enhancements is a significant development for the video production industry. The increased scalability of the platform will enable production teams to manage larger and more complex video productions, which is critical given the rise of streaming workflows and the need to create dynamic content that can be delivered across multiple screens.

With the growing demand for high-quality video content across various platforms, the video production industry has faced significant challenges. The KAIROS platform's new Core mainframes and software enhancements will provide production teams with the scalability and flexibility they need to produce high-quality video content more efficiently and cost-effectively. This is an excellent example of how technology is advancing to meet the evolving needs of the video production industry.

KAIROS is scalable and can meet the needs of any production, and the new Core products - KC2000 and KC200 - offer increased input/output capacity and video processing power. The larger internal clip player on the KC2000 Core is a significant enhancement, as it will allow production teams to store and play more clips during a live production.

The SMPTE 2022-7 network redundancy support when connected to two 100Gb ST 2110 networks is also a notable feature. It provides a level of redundancy and backup to ensure that the production is not interrupted in case of network failures. Additionally, the reduced audible noise levels of the 4RU Chassis for both the KC200 and KC2000 will enable the platform to be used in remote venues or studio racks without disturbing the production environment.

Overall, these enhancements to the KAIROS platform demonstrate Panasonic Connect's commitment to meeting the evolving needs of the video production industry by providing powerful and flexible solutions for live video production.

Broadcast Beat’s Frank Beacham spoke with Bergeron.

Frank Beacham: Panasonic has expanded the KAIROs system. Could you give us a layman’s overview of what the KAIROS system is and what it does?

Michael Bergeron: In many ways, KAIROS is like a switcher. But it’s more general purpose than that…it’s also a video processor. It has an open-ended amount of output that’s based on total pixels. We can create content on it using video, video sources, graphic sources…any kind of any kind of format, and then mash those together into layers — sort of like Photoshop — and then create outputs for various screens.

People are using more LED walls, rear screen projectors, lobby monitors and other video displays…it’s perfect for use in public spaces with lots of displays. It’s also excellent for broadcasts or webcasts.

Frank Beacham: Can all of this content be mixed, produced and fed simultaneously to different platforms such as display screens, webcasts and broadcasts?

Michael Bergeron: Yes, it can all be done simultaneously. There are two ways to approach the user interface. One looks like a switcher panel that can be set up for anyone to operate. Also, there is the GUI interface. Things can be layered there…like you are using After Effects.

Mac or Windows displays can be used as our assignable player. Every control can be assigned to do a different task. Our Creator Software is where you do the creative set-ups. Once you’ve set-up your show, then it can be controlled from a either a complex or a very simple panel.

KAIROS has both a built-in IP switcher and IP routing. The system is basically a central computer that can do any kind of production and send it anywhere at any frame rate or any resolution.

We went from SD to HD, HD to 4K. I remember there was a lot of talk about what’s the next format going to be…will it be 8K? I said that the next format is going to be no format at all because we are not tied to formats anymore. When people are producing content for large screen projects, projection mapping or massive LED walls, they don’t really think in terms of format anymore.

Yes, there are limitations to what fits a particular output, but other than those constraints, we can we can build whatever we want.

Frank Beacham: KAIROS natively supports SMPTE ST 2110 IP connectivity…including some Panasonic cameras. I know that combines the scalability of IP with SDI. Why is that standard important to this system?

Michael Bergeron: SMPTE 2110 is really a combination of low latency — meaning no delay of SDI — and multipoint. You can send any uncompressed source that comes into a 2110 network to any other source as long as you just assign it to what IP address it’s going to on a network. It replaces SDI routing and is far more flexible.

If I plug a 2110-compatible camera into the network, it can be seen as an input. If I want to record it, I just have that IP route it to the recorder. We also still work with SDI and HDMI equipment or a combination of all of them. The system basically adapts to whatever equipment you might have.

I can program presets into macros on my control surface. I can hit a button that calls up any camera and sends the signal to a preset location and changes the background to something else. I can operate the movement of a robotic camera. This system is very flexible.

Read the full interview from Broadcast Beat HERE