The Vislink HDCU relays MotoGP race action at speeds of more than 200 mph.MADRID —Dorna Sports is an international sports management, marketing and media company and was established in 1988. As the exclusive commercial and television rights holder for MotoGP, we are dedicated to providing fans with the most dynamic racing experience possible.
At more than 200 miles per hour, things can change in hundredths of a second. Track, wind, speed, engine and rider all become one as MotoGP bikes race alongside each other, and it takes a specialized system to broadcast the complete event live.
The 2015 racing season is shaping up to be an exciting one, with 18 races taking place over four continents and 13 countries, including two races in the United States. And in the world of high-speed racing, nothing is more important than delivering live, crystal-clear video of the action to fans. To ensure that not a minute of heart-stopping action is missed, we turned to Vislink to supply the RF linkage equipment needed for our operation.
ON-BIKE FOUR-CAMERA COVERAGE
For the races, the specially-designed MotoGP bikes incorporate the new Vislink HDCU transmitter which sends HD video streams from each of the four onboard cameras. In addition, the system gathers and transmits data that’s translated into onscreen graphics, providing information about the bike’s speed, position and other metrics. The HDCU onboard system provides plug-and-play operation and robust high-quality onboard live footage, race after race, season after season.
Vislink’s close relationship with Dorna’s research and development department and our engineering teams during the past few years has allowed us to produce a customized racing coverage system that provides some really incredible imaging under very demanding conditions. The HDCU system combines very small, custom-designed high-definition cameras with a powerful transmission system that incorporates H.264 encoding along with Vislink’s proprietary modulation system that’s optimized specifically for robustness at high transmitter/antenna speeds. This adds up to a very stable transmission system that delivers the sort of high-quality up-close images that our viewers demand.
KEEPING IT RUGGED AND LIGHT
A very important consideration for our organization is that race teams have confidence in the equipment we use. To that end, the mounting components are designed to withstand Federation of International Motorcycling impact requirements and employ the latest ultra-lightweight connectors and other components in order to minimize unit weight. These on-board-equipped vehicle systems are also designed and tested to withstand very high levels of vibration and provide very low power consumption.
To round out the action and deliver the most robust experience to our fans, pit lane cameras are fitted with Vislink’s HD D-Cam Clip-Ons and helicopters are equipped with Vislink wireless video links for aerial shots. All systems transmit to our production studio via a Vislink MDR receive system.
Our experience with the Vislink portfolio of mobile, portable and aerial camera products has shown them to be extremely reliable, providing seamless data transmission. With this sort of support, Dorna is able to provide the ultimate in high-speed racing experience for our viewers.
Sergi Sendra Vives is the director of TV production at Dorna Sports. He may be contacted atsergisendra@dorna.com
For additional information, contact Vislink at 978-671-5793 or visitwww.vislink.com.
