WJW Goes Live With Hitachi 3.0 Solution

The NAB and the Consumer Technology Association have deployed Hitachi Kokusai Electric Comark’s fully integrated ATSC 3.0 solution at WJW Cleveland.

Under an experimental broadcast license from the FCC, Tribune Broadcasting’s WJW has been used by NAB and CTA to conduct field testing for ATSC 3.0. Comark Digital Services (CDS) delivered, installed and activated a fully integrated 3.0 demo system.  The entire setup was integrated at the CDS lab in Southwick, Mass., and shipped to the facility in a short portable “fly-pack” equipment rack.

With the setup now complete, the CDS 3.0 integrated demo system can deliver UHD content at WJW with Comark’s Titan Live software-based encoding solution. In addition to the HEVC encoding, the 3.0 system includes a Route encoder, an Enensys Broadcast Gateway, a Triveni GuideBuilder, an Exact-V2 DTV exciter as well as 3.0 test and monitoring equipment.

The CDS demo system is being used to drive the existing Comark DCX-3H, a three-tube IOT-based transmitter that is operating on DTV ch. 31.  This transmitter was originally deployed in the field in 1999 and is still being supported by Comark and its customer service team.

“Having already provided ATSC 3.0 solutions to Dish Networks, the OneMedia Dallas SFN and PBS member station WKAR [Lansing, Mich.], CDS has been set up with the experience and integration capability just for these types of projects,” said Dick Fiore, president-CEO of Hitachi Kokusai Electric Comark. “Our team worked very closely with the staff at NAB to provide the right solution and we are extremely pleased to be part of this very important over-the-air field trial of next generation broadcast television services.”