To counter the massive increase in student numbers due to the double university entry year groups and abolishment of national service, the University Hospital Aachen has equipped its lecture theatres with video broadcasting technology from Teracue. Among other things, the lecture theatres are used for lectures by the RWTH Medical Faculty based in the building.
The point-to-multipoint broadcast is made possible by a video distribution system on an IP network which allows a video data stream to be fed to any number of end devices. This means that, today, lectures in the University Hospital Aachen teaching department can be held simultaneously in up to six lecture theatres. For this purpose, the lecturer’s laptop and their camera image is transmitted simultaneously onto projection systems in the individual rooms in split-screen mode.
To be able to display both SD signals – for example, the camera – and also HD signals such as a PowerPoint presentation on the laptop, the university uses ENC-300-DVI and ENC-200 encoders. The ENC-300-DVI, which is designed for broadcasting H.264 and MPEG-4 streaming, is said to be highly suitable for video training and e-learning purposes and supports DVI and HDMI signals with up to 1,920 x 1,200 pixels. The subsequent conversion of H.264 HD streams into RTMP Flash is accomplished using a Wowza media server. For the live streaming of SD signals, the university uses a Teracue ENC-200 type encoder. In the overall system, the Teracue IP solutions give the university hospital maximum flexibility for the simultaneous broadcasting of lectures and makes room occupancy significantly more flexible. The IP-supported solution can also, according to Teracue, be quickly and easily extended to other rooms.
Photo courtesy of UKA
