Instant Replay System for NASCAR

Telestream Builds High Definition Instant Replay System for NASCAR Race Officials

December 12, 2011

 

Pipeline video capture and new Replay multichannel video player enable instant race analysis

Nevada City, Calif., December 12, 2011 – Telestream®, a leading provider of video transcoding and workflow automation systems, today announced that it has created a new High Definition (HD) instant replay system for NASCAR race control officials.  Developed for the start of 2012 racing season, Telestream’s new Replay™ multichannel video player combines with its Pipeline™ HD video capture system to provide instant capture and display of 18 high definition 720p camera feeds. This allows race officials to instantly see detailed information to make rapid decisions about on-track aspects of the race.

"The NASCAR race environment presented the perfect challenge for Telestream to provide high-quality video capture and instant synchronous playback in a time-critical situation," said Barbara DeHart, Vice President of Marketing at Telestream. "Together, Pipeline and Replay provide NASCAR or any sports organization with a cost-effective, easy-to-use system for instant event review and analysis."

"The instant replay system that Telestream will be providing NASCAR next season will enable our officials to perform their jobs in an even more efficient and time-sensitive manner," said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR Vice President of Competition. "Having instant access to that many camera angles featuring such high quality video will be a terrific addition to our race weekends."

Telestream’s Pipeline HD video capture system simultaneously acquires multiple camera feeds in high-quality Apple ProRes 720p as well as other HD and SD formats. Video feeds are delivered to shared storage where they are available for immediate playback, editing during capture, or transcoding to other file formats. 

Telestream’s Replay multichannel video player provides instant, synchronous multichannel playback of multiple HD camera feeds for simultaneous review and analysis of incidents from different camera angles. The player also allows officials to easily locate any camera and scrub forward or backward through any portion of the event video.

Highlights of the Pipeline video capture and Replay system developed for NASCAR include:

• Simultaneous capture of 18 HD 720p camera feeds in Apple Pro Res format

• Ability for officials to view on-track incidents through synchronized multiple camera angle displays, including time-stamped track status metadata – in real time or on-demand

• Ability to seamlessly scrub video forward or backward for instant analysis 

• Ability to jump between past and current sequential camera angle clips

• Ability to create tabbed pages such as Start/Finish, Pits, Turn 1, etc. to view video

• Ability to instantly go full-screen on one or more selected camera angles

• A timeline which displays event information over the entire duration of the event

Telestream is demonstrating Pipeline and the new instant Replay system at Sports Video Group’s League Technology Summit in New York City this week.  For more information about Telestream and its products, visit: http://www.telestream.net.

INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY CORPORATION TRACKS

NASCAR has banned the use of power tools when teams are transferring fuel.

NASCAR has banned the use of power tools when teams are transferring fuel. The decision Thursday is in response to a fuel fire next to Regan Smith's hauler at Talladega Superspeedway. The fire broke out as spouts from gas cans were being removed so excess fuel could be poured into storage.
A spark from a power tool apparently ignited gas inside one can. No one was hurt in the fire, which sent thick clouds of black smoke through the garage.
There was no previous rule as to how the spouts could be removed. This is the first year these cans have been used.
The ban was issued by NASCAR Vice President Robin Pemberton and applies to all NASCAR series 10/28/11

Shift to fuel injection a quantum leap for NASCAR

Shift to fuel injection a quantum leap for NASCAR

(October 17, 2011)

 CONCORD, N.C.—After Sprint Cup cars transition to electronic fuel injection next season, fans in the grandstands won’t be able to discern a difference in way the cars perform—or in the way they sound.

 Nevertheless, the move from traditional carbureted engines to fuel injection is one of the most important technical changes in the history of the sport.

 First, all the auto manufacturers are behind it, even though fuel injection will add to the cost of building each engine for the series. Offsetting the cost, however, is the benefit of bringing the cars on the racetrack closer to those that are sold in the showroom. In switching to fuel injection, NASCAR is embracing a technology that is common to every street car on the market.

 Sprint Cup drivers continued the process of testing and refining EFI on Monday at Charlotte Motor Speedway. NASCAR plans to roll out the new system for competition in time for the Feb. 26 Daytona 500.

 In place of a carburetor, EFI engines feature a throttle body that controls air flow. Where a carburetor mixes air and fuel, an EFI system injects fuel to each cylinder as needed, resulting in a more efficient fuel flow.

 The fuel injection system is run by an electronic control unit (ECU) that adds a level of sophistication previously unavailable to NASCAR teams. After practice or competition, NASCAR and teams can download data from the ECU that has the potential to provide after-the-fact lap-by-lap telemetry for analysis.

 As has been NASCAR’s custom in the past, teams will have no access to real-time telemetry, nor will they be able to change the tuning of the engines during competition.

 Driver Jeff Burton said he felt little difference in the performance of the fuel injection car and the carbureted car he drove in Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte.

 “It’s a minuscule change,” Burton said. “To leave the racetrack Saturday night and then come over here on Monday is really interesting, because you rarely get to do that when you’re testing major changes,” Burton said. “I drove into Turn 1 just like I did on Saturday night, throttled up just like I did on Saturday night, and nothing really felt all that different.

 “And I think that’s a good thing.”

 The first EFI test on a restrictor-plate track is scheduled for Thursday at Talladega. Burton is well aware that NASCAR and the teams have much to learn and many procedural decisions to make before Daytona.

 “When you have a major component change—and this is a big deal—when you do something like this, there’s a lot of things that will change between now and then,” Burton said. “The hard thing about it is, ‘What’s too much?’

 “This does open the box a bit to make (things) more complicated. What (NASCAR’s) struggle is going to be is, ‘Can a lower-funded team operate equally with a top-funded team as it relates to EFI?’ With a carburetor today, it’s a lot easier to do that, and that’s going to be the balance they’re going to have to strike.”

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service