Telepresence

Evgenie Rudometov

Rudometov@rudometov.com

Developing resources of IP-transmission of multimedia data, company Cisco has offered the next product which raising convenience of link and has received name Cisco TelePresence

As the history shows, the mankind has been permanently anxious by problems of perfection of methods and resources of informational communications without which development civilisation development is impossible. As a result of technical evolution of the dispatch, signal fires and smoke signals have conceded superiority at first optical, and then and to electrical telegraph. But also they could not meet increasing requirements and there were more convenient and high-speed resources, such as phone and radio.

Would be naive to think, that the mankind will be satisfied with the given inventions and at last will stop. Certainly, the innovation of these resources which have made original revolution at the moment of the appearance, does not call doubts. However, as is known, to 90 % of the information the person receives by means of sight. For this reason appearance of transmission media of a video information has been determined, as it was promoted by progress in the field of a radio engineering and electronics.

Really, a television as operative mass media, has received very much a wide circulation already in second half of XX-th century. However the main transmission medium of the individual information very long there was the traditional phone providing transmission of the audioinformation. Here it is necessary to mark, that faxes could not be alternative to phone as transmission of each page of the text/picture demanded many tens seconds.

Generally speaking, the first videophone has been shown general public in 1930 in New York, and in March, 1936 in Germany the videophone between Berlin and Leipzig has been started up in maintenance. Later with them have been attached Nuremberg (1937) and Munich (1938). The map was handled on a broad-band cable and occupied a band 500 kgts.

But it were extremely bulky and expensive arrangements. As a matter of fact, the fracture has occurred after mass appearance of computers (the break-even sales level in 200 million has been transited in 2006), and also thanks to prevalence of the Internet. Really, high-powered units have provided processing of the big streams of the information in real-time mode, and the broad-band wide-area network of computers has provided development of IP-processing techniques. These two remarkable inventions have given at first audio transmission, and after short time — and video.

As an example it is possible to result program Skype installed on computers which hardware should be added by a microphone and the Web-chamber. Such packages which have been hooked up to the Internet, give to users of possibility, both traditional audio, and the videophone, of course, at connectivity with the same computer packages. The given solution differs simplicity and convenience of usage. Perhaps, its unique lack is quality of video as which while it is impossible to name high. Nevertheless, in comparison with possibilities of traditional telephony this solution is a considerable step forward that already many millions users have estimated.

Considering perspectivity of similar processing techniques, their development and the subsequent implantation occupies a considerable quantity of corporations. One of them is company Cisco which is one of recognised leaders of the computer market in the field of network processing techniques.

Recently given company has offered the advanced design which has received name Cisco TelePresence.

It is development it is intended for carrying out of remote negotiations with high level of effect of presence. Usage Cisco TelePresence allows to hold conferences and to communicate with colleagues without tiresome trips, that not only raises efficiency, but also saves considerable resources.

Realising this idea, Cisco, it was not limited only to development of hardware-software resources of the computer system as it it was possible to expect. Engineers of the given company have created completely completed solution including optimal design of a special room of link (a Fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Cisco TelePresence

The given solution is the first commercial system creating for natural sensation natural, live dialogue present sensation. By the way, for this reason the new processing technique also has received the name «TelePresence», that is translated as "telepresence".

Thanks to professional systems of the map and a sound all participants of conference as though are allocated behind one desktop irrespective of the fact how it is far they from each other are in a reality. Thus participants of virtual meetings see each other in complete growth. In addition to it in the virtual environment it is possible to show new products and to do presentations.

Company Cisco offers two variants, received names 3000 and 1000.

System Cisco TelePresence 3000 is calculated for group application that allows to participate in video conferences rather to a considerable quantity of people (formally — to 6 persons in one room, but present can be and more). In this variant uses three plasma panels, realising video translation under the standard 1080p, supporting progressive scanning with the permission 1920х1080. For each plasma screen the pass-band 1,5 Gbit/with, however thanking 99 % of the compression provided with codec Cisco TelePresence is required , the bar decreases to 3-5 Mbit/with. System cost — nearby $300 000 for each trunk-call room.

System Cisco TelePresence 1000 — essentially is easier and cheaper. It is calculated for essentially smaller quantity of people (1-3). This variant provides usage of one panel LCD with standard implementation 720p. Cost of this variant — nearby $80 000 for a trunk-call room.

Each of the enumerated variants provides presence of high-quality videocameras, microphones and necessary transmission media and mapping of data. Thus dokumentnaja the camera in system 3000 is mounted on a ceiling, and in system 1000 the desktop variant uses.

Fig. 2. Usage of the ceiling camera for carrying out of presentations

And it is finite, necessary hardware-software resources of support of confidentiality of the multimedia information handled on a computer network are included in structure.

On the simplicity in handle, to dependability and quality usage Cisco TelePresence to similarly ordinary phone call. It is possible to be convinced of it, having visited the Moscow offices of the companies the Microtest and the TransTV set where trunk-call complexes on the basis of processing technique Cisco TelePresence are installed. Petersburg journalists could be convinced Of effective operation of the presented solution (a Fig. 3).

Fig. 3. Demonstrating sitemy Cisco TelePresence at the Moscow offices the Microtest and the TransTV set

Despite completeness of the presented solutions, company Cisco does not stop operation over perfection of the processing techniques realised in the systems of models 3000 and 1000. Simultaneous support of transmission of audio and a video information from several points within the limits of a uniform virtual meeting became the important stage of development of processing technique Cisco TelePresence. The new multipoint commutator Cisco TelePresence Multipoint Switch supporting to 36 separate physical points, allows to hook up one pressing of the button to conference of new participants, irrespective of their site. At will of the user each appearing participant can be shown either on the common, or on the separate screen.

It is necessary to mark, that readiness to buy systems Cisco TelePresence already have expressed a number of the large companies, among which British Telecom, Media-Saturn, Regus, Telstra.