Canon Nab News; Digisuper 100AF and 86AF, HDgc Lenses, Canobeam uncompressed Bi-Directional HD and SD SDI transmission

The

tremendous
picture detail contained in H

igh Definition television (HDTV) makes anything in less-than-perfect
focus immediately obvious.

As a result,
shooting HD video poses new challenges for camera operators, who must

simultaneously
pay close attention to picture framing and physical control of their camera and
lens, while also continually maintaining sharp focus of selected objects within
complex scenes.

Canon

U.S.A.,
Inc.’s extensive experience in long-zoom HD field-lens design provides a unique
understanding of the challenges that HDTV presents to camera operators, which
is why Canon developed a powerful new automated solution to assist in the task
of maintaining constant and perfect HD lens focus.

The new Canon DIGISUPER 100AF and DIGISUPER
86AF* auto-focus long-field HD zoom lenses feature sophisticated auto-focus
capabilities based on a proprietary HD implementation of Through-the-Lens
Secondary Image Registration Phase Detection Method technology.

These new lenses will be featured at the
Canon booth #SU 3020 at NAB2007, the annual convention of the National
Association of Broadcasters, held April 14-19 in

Las Vegas.

“Our new DIGISUPER 100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF lenses are designed to help
camera operators ensure that their shots are always in exact focus, even in
challenging situations,”

said Gordon Tubbs, director, Broadcast and Communications division, Canon

U.S.A.

“These lenses assist camera operators to
create the highest quality video images possible – operators know they can
always achieve exact focus with the push of a button.

This is especially helpful in situations where
the operator is unsure due to

poor lighting

or cannot otherwise determine exact
focus just by looking at the viewfinder.

“In
addition to the Part-Time focus-check mode there’s a Full-Time mode to help
camera operators during long shoots.

Either way, the Canon

DIGISUPER
100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF auto-focus lenses enable camera operators to apply
their full attention to the creative aspects of framing HD images and following
the action in the scene,” said Tubbs

The Canon DIGISUPER 100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF lenses (model numbers
XJ100x9.3B AF and XJ86x9.3B AF, respectively) create an operator-controllable
window in the HD camera’s viewfinder that targets the object operators want to
focus most sharply on in the scene.

Camera operators can change the window’s
position and size by means of a miniature joystick on the camera handle’s focus
servo control.

An additional button
provides three modes of operation:

Part-Time – actuates the auto-focus system as long as a control button
is depressed.

Full-Time – actuates the auto-focus continually on selected moving
objects such as racing cars (which might be speeding toward the camera
position), or for shooting situations entailing full-servo robotic operation.

Off – allows for normal, unassisted lens focus.

In addition to their auto-focus capabilities, Canon’s new DIGISUPER
100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF long-field HD zoom lenses feature Canon’s highly
acclaimed built-in Optical Image Stabilizer, or “Shift-IS” system, to help
create rock-solid images even at telephoto distances.

The DIGISUPER 100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF lenses are based on Canon’s
DIGISUPER 100xs and DIGISUPER 86xs long-field HD zoom lenses, which are among

the most widely used lenses in HD
sports and entertainment production.

(The Canon

DIGISUPER 100xs was the world’s first triple-digit
HD zoom lens.)

All Canon
DIGISUPER lenses feature the HD optical precision and heightened long-range
zoom capabilities that have made Canon a global leader.

All of Canon’s DIGISUPER HD field lenses also feature
Canon’s unique XS technology for improved optical performance and lighter
weight, as well as Canon’s

second-generation Digital Servo
System, which provides microcomputer compensation of lens-focus breathing (the
inadvertent alteration of field of view when operating the focus control).

The new DIGISUPER 100AF and DIGISUPER 86AF long-field HD auto-focus zoom
lenses are

Canon’s latest
advancements designed to provide camera operators with the industry’s most
sophisticated tools for television production.

HDGc

Canon U.S.A., Inc.

has
introduced nine additional models in its HDgc line of cost-effective portable
HD lenses, offering a broad product line to best meet a wide range of customer
needs.

This new line of Canon HDgc lenses will be featured
at the Canon booth #SU 3020 at NAB2007, the annual convention of the National
Association of Broadcasters, held April 14-19 in

Las Vegas.

An established leader in high-end HD lens technology, Canon has
leveraged the advanced image quality and superior operational capabilities of
its

eHDxs line of portable lenses to
engineer its new line of HDgc lenses for

2/3,” 1/2″ and 1/3″

video camera imagers.

First
introduced at last year’s NAB, the HDgc line now includes a total number of 16
lenses in both ENG and remote-control versions with the addition of these
latest models.

The
higher-end

eDrive Series of HDgc
lenses includes three models

the KJ16ex7.7B IRSE, KJ21ex7.6B IRSE and KJ10ex4.5B IRSE
lenses

– which

are
designed for cameras with 2/3-inch imagers.

All three of these lenses feature a built-in 2x extender and Canon’s
digital

eDrive feature, which enables
users to easily program such functions as zoom and focus settings into the lens
for precise, automated repeatability.

The
three new additional HDgc lenses that comprise the Economical Series include
the KJ13x6B KRS (for 2/3″), KH13x4.5 KRS (for 1/2″) and the KT20x5B
KRS lenses (for 1/3″).

The third
category of new HDgc lenses is the Remote-Control Series, which includes the
KJ20x8.5B KTS (for 2/3″), KH20x6.4 KTS (for 1/2″) and KT20x5B KTS
lenses (for 1/3″).

“Canon’s
HDgc line was very well received at last year’s NAB,” stated Gordon Tubbs,

director, Broadcast
and Communications division, Canon U.S.A. “Smaller, more affordable portable
HDTV cameras for news and other applications are increasingly popular and are
being made available to broadcasters and program producers by all the major
camera manufacturers.

Canon has
conceived and engineered its entire line of HDgc lenses to match the different
imager sizes these new cameras employ at correspondingly affordable price
points. We can now offer a lens model to suit every one of these new portable
HD cameras, with equally attractive features and pricing.”

All 16
HDgc lenses combine the best characteristics of Canon’s world-leading optical
expertise and engineering innovations, including

a well-controlled Modulation Transfer Function (MTF) profile over their
entire respective image planes. Furthermore, the HDgc lenses feature excellent
contrast performance, reduced chromatic aberration, compact size and
weight (in direct response to the equally compact new affordable HD camcorders),
and

eDrive, which is featured in
Canon’s eHDxs series portable lenses.

In addition, these lenses incorporate special
elements,

including “Flourite” with
extraordinary dispersion characteristics and the newly developed high index
ultra low dispersion (Hi-UD) glass.

The Canon

eDrive technology included in the HDgc
model KJ16ex7.7B IRSE, KJ21ex7.6B IRSE and KJ10ex4.5B IRSE lenses is a feature
previously found only on Canon’s eHDxs line of high-end portable HD
lenses.

Canon

eDrive represents an advanced way to control portable lenses.
Utilizing three Canon ultra-high-precision, microprocessor-driven digital
servos with miniature 16-bit optical encoders,

eDrive enables users to easily program such functions as zoom and
focus settings into a lens for precise, automated repeatability via an
easy-to-use display menu, assignable “soft” function buttons and the rocker
switch built into the lens grip.

Users
can program multiple settings or none at all, depending on their personal needs
and preferences.

Among the
lenses in Canon’s HDgc Economical Series, the KJ13x6B KRS lens (2/3″)
features a wide angle of 6mm, for a focal length of 6-78mm.

The KH13x4.5 KRS lens (1/2″) has the same
13x zoom ratio, but with a wide angle of 4.5mm and a focal length of 4.5-59mm.

The KT20x5B KRS lens (1/3″) has a longer
(20x) zoom ratio, with a wide angle of 5mm and a focal length of 5-100mm,
joining its counterparts for 2/3″ and 1/2″ imagers.

The three
models in Canon’s Remote Series of HDgc lenses feature servo-controlled zoom,
focus, and iris to allow for remote-controlled operation.

Each of the three lenses has a 20x zoom ratio
and offers the same viewing angle for all imager formats.

All HDgc lenses feature

new,
smaller ergonomic drive units with

grip support and a ribbed surface that is tilted at an
ideal angle to achieve optimum balance and comfort to reduce operator fatigue.

Canon’s
HDgc portable lenses combine high picture quality, ease of use, sophisticated
operation, lighter weight, compact size, performance and pricing that is
appropriate for the new HD cameras that manufacturers such as Grass Valley Group,
Hitachi, Ikegami, JVC, Sony and Panasonic are making for the expanding universe
of cost-effective HDTV production.

DT-150 HD Canobeam

The d
ramatic growth in HDTV sports and entertainment production, as well as
the need for permanent HD and SD video links at broadcast facilities, has
provided the impetus for a new and versatile uncompressed, high-bandwidth
(HD-SDI and SD-SDI) digital-transmission solution. This solution is known as
the DT-150 HD Canobeam transceiver and is designed for situations where
fiber-optic cables or microwave are impractical and/or the simplicity of Free Space
Optics is preferred.

The

DT-150 HD Canobeam is the newest
member of Canon’s acclaimed series of point-to-point optical beam transceivers
that use infrared light to bridge gaps in high-bandwidth transmission
situations. The DT-150 HD Canobeam provides bi-directional, uncompressed 1.5
Gbps transmission of embedded digital video, audio, and camera-control signals
on a single HD-SDI or SD-SDI stream with no delay. The DT-150 HD Canobeam can
also relay embedded HD-SDI and SD-SDI video from multiple cameras or other
HD/SD video sources, along with embedded return video and audio to the camera
operator, camera-control signals, and

robotic camera-control data. The DT-150 HD

Canobeam

has a range of up to one kilometer and — like all Canobeam DT-100 series
products — features Canon’s exclusive Auto Tracking feature to maintain beam
alignment despite vibration due to wind, rain, or unsteady camera platforms.

The DT-150 HD Canobeam has an
estimated selling price of $40,000* per pair.

“This is a
great leap forward for Canobeam, in terms of performance and price,” says
Gordon Tubbs, director of Canon

U.S.A.’s
Broadcast and Communications division. “HD is such a common factor in
everybody’s lives now, especially at most broadcast facilities. By seamlessly
providing users with affordable, wireless, point-to-point uncompressed digital
transmissions, the DT-150 HD Canobeam is playing a major role in
revolutionizing the broadcast industry as the transition to HDTV accelerates.”

The DT-150
HD Canobeam also features an important advance in the Canobeam DT-100 series
with the addition of a Small Form Pluggable (SFP) module system. Use of an SFP
HD module allows the DT-150 HD Canobeam to interface via single-mode fiber LC
connectors. Users who are already using single-mode fiber connections can
simply plug it into the DT-150 HD Canobeam and instantly transmit embedded
video, audio, and camera controls via the FSO connection. Users who do not have
an existing single-mode fiber connection will be able to use third-party media
converters to convert HD-SDI signals or SD-SDI signals from either coaxial or
SMPTE hybrid fiber cable into single-mode fiber for transmission. As with any
SDI stream, audio and/or multiple video signals will be embedded into the
stream via a multiplexer.

As with
all of Canon’s Canobeam products, the DT-150 HD uses Free Space Optics, which
requires no FCC licensing or frequency coordination. Free Space Optics provides
a highly secure and reliable video/audio link that is free from RF interference
and signal interception. Canon’s other DT-100 series Canobeam systems are
proven high-bandwidth data-networking solutions used by corporate and
university campuses, government and military facilities, and other situations
where existing bandwidth is insufficient, fiber is cost-prohibitive or
logistically impossible, or a redundant disaster/recovery system is essential.

The DT-150
HD Canobeam offers multiple applications, from permanent installations
(including such uses as STL), to live HD and SD television events. These events
may include golf matches where ponds and fairways can’t be bridged by fiber
cables, major outdoor concerts where remote camera platforms make fiber links
impractical, or sports where images from manned and robotic cameras may need to
be relayed to a central point from inaccessible locations. With the combination
of Canon’s exclusive Auto Tracking feature and the ability to embed camera
control and robotic control signals into the bi-directional HD-SDI or SD-SDI
stream, the Canobeam DT-150 HD Canobeam is the perfect solution for the
television broadcast and mobile production industry’s

dramatic
increase in HDTV sports and entertainment telecasts.

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