Lossless PC Video & Voice Recorder, PIFREC, put on sale

Background

Today the environment surrounding the Internet is rapidly becoming high speed and high capacity due to the progress in such technologies as FTTH, xDSL, and wireless LAN. Consequently, the use of video services, such as distance learning, videoconferencing and video monitoring, is gradually spreading.
This trend increases the need for recording received content. However, until now there has been no method available to store received content without causing a degradation in quality.
To meet this need, NTT-AT has exploited its know-how in image and video processing, built up over a long period, to develop a "PC Video & Voice Recorder" (under the product name PIFREC), and is about to start sales.

The product uses a capture board to receive the signals passed from a PC to its monitor, without adding any processing load to the PC, and stores them while retaining high video quality. So, video service providers can evaluate and monitor video quality, an operation which is particularly necessary if the video service is charged for, without imposing a processing load on the receiving terminal, a penalty which has conventionally been unavoidable.

* Currently, the use of PIFREC for the above application is being proposed at the Video Quality Experts Group (VQEG), an international standards body for video quality measurement.

How the system works

PIFREC receives video data using a capture board at the exact frame rate, and stores it in a hard desk stably and at high speed. More specifically, it "relays" the video signals transmitted from the PC to its monitor, and simultaneously stores the raw video data from the PC as electronic data without any conversion. Conventionally, video data produced by video playing software is recorded. In contrast, the video data recorded by this product is not affected by any video playing, processing or other software. What is recorded is the video signal displayed on the monitor.
Even if frame loss occurs due to a network problem, resulting in a reduction in the frame rate, the recording of the video data by this product is not affected. Regardless of such problems, video signals are stored at their original frame rate just as if they come directly from a video camera.
Consider distance learning as a specific example. Not only the video showing the lecturer but also videos of other types of lecture materials appearing on a PC monitor, such as an electronic resume or Webpages, can be recorded at their original quality. The maximum frame rate of the recorded video data is 30fps^*1. Because of this high video quality, when the data is uploaded to a delivery server, it can be used, as it is, for on-demand lectures.

Main features

1. Raw screen data from a PC is recorded as it is
   Video signals other than those actually displayed by the user can also be stored.
2. Independence from software
   Video data can be stored, irrespective of what software is used to process it.
3. No additional processing load on the playing PC
   Various types of video can be played without the need to worry about any additional recording load to the PC.
4. Video signal storage function
   Any portion of the screen displayed on the user's monitor can be stored at a frame rate the user can specify.

   *The specifiable frame rate depends on the screen size of the portion to be stored, the number of color bits, and the hardware performance. The size and the number of color bits that can be stored at 30fps are respectively VGA and 24bits.
5. Voice signal storage function
   The voice played by the user's PC can be stored at 44 KHz, 16-bit stereo (when the highest quality is selected).

Expected applications

Video delivery services over wide-area networks, distance learning offered by enterprises and educational institutions, R&D on video delivery, maintenance support (including quality management) of video delivery, etc.

Product composition

Item	Functions
PC video & voice recording software	Frame detection, and storing of video and voice data
PC video capture board	High-resolution video capture
Video capturing PC set(PC, hard disc and other peripherals. Monitor is not included)	Video play-back

Specification

Item	Details
Input format	Analog signal/digital signal (DVI)
Output format	AVI formatVideo: uncompressed video, reference videoVoice: uncompressed audio
Maximum recording time	1 hour (in the case of VGA and 30fps)
Recording performance	VGA, 30fps and full color (24 bits)

Glossary

*1

fps (frames per second)
Frame rate: the number of frames displayed on the monitor each second. 30fps for example means that the display is refreshed 30 times each second. The higher the value, the smoother the video looks. The frame rate of television (NTSC) is 30fps.