(Woodbury, New York--February 10, 2009) The University of Delaware (UD), in Newark, DE, selected three Hitachi SK-HD1000 HDTV studio/field cameras to produce live HD video shows for big screen displays at its football games and graduations. The cameras were purchased based upon their competitive price/performance, reputation for reliability, and outstanding customer service.
Since they were delivered in August 2008, they have been used at every UD Blue Hens football game at Tubby Raymond Field, UD’s 22,000-seat open-air stadium, which added a giant Daktronics video board at the start of the fall 2008 season. The video board offers non-stop live video, highlights packages, sponsor ads and logos, realtime game and player stats, graphics, and Slomo replays. Video packages are also produced for streaming on demand from UD’s website at www.udel.edu.
On January 10, 2009, the cameras were moved next door to the Bob Carpenter Center, UD’s 5,000-seat basketball arena, where they provided HD image magnification on a large 13.5’ x 24’ rear projection screen for the winter graduation of 1,000 students. Parents and students could purchase a copy of the graduation ceremony on DVD; as well as stream it live or download the podcast from UD’s website. In May 2009, the cameras will be used for the spring graduation of 4,000 students at Tubby Raymond Field, which will be displayed on two large LCD widescreens.
“Regardless of camera locations, light levels, or severe weather, these cameras have performed flawlessly,” said Carl Asti, Director of IT-University Media Services for the University of Delaware. “For twilight football games, we’re able to paint the cameras on the fly to adjust for changes in light levels from daylight to stadium lighting. And at the graduation, even with the cameras in the stands and students under stage lighting, we were able to capture their faces with tremendous clarity.” These “I-Mag” images were projected in 1080i HD through two 10,000 lumens widescreen projectors in the arena.
While the cameras move between the two locations, they are switched from a central control room on the mezzanine of the Bob Carpenter Center. The HD control room houses a Ross Vision 1 multi-definition switcher, Chyron MicroX HD character generator, Harris Platinum HD router, dual-channel Click Effects Flashback for video replays, and Click Effects CrossFire multimedia clips server.
A 2,000-foot fiber optic cable run connects the control room to the camera positions in the football stadium. There are two camera platforms high above each 30-yard line on the home side of the field, and one high above the end zone, on the roof of the Bob Carpenter Center, which in addition to game action provides a beauty shot of the entire field. The cameras sit on Vinton Vision 250 tripods, and have Hitachi CU-3300 camera control units that transmit HD pictures, camera power, Clearcomm intercom, camera control data, multiple audio channels, and other signals over a single fiber.
“We have received exceptional customer service from Hitachi, as well as our dealer Lerro Corp, in Valley Forge, PA. Our decade-long history with Hitachi dates back to our purchase of four Hitachi Z3000W cameras that are still in service in our 48x32 foot TV studio,” said Asti. “At a recent Lerro Open House, I mentioned in passing to our Hitachi Sales Rep Ken Cyr that we were thinking of upgrading our 5-inch black/white viewfinders to 9-inch color LCD widescreen viewfinders, and he immediately shipped us a unit that we could try out before our next season. He treated us as if we were his only customer.”
About The University of Delaware
Since it was founded in 1743, the University of Delaware has been the State of Delaware’s premiere institution for higher education, serving over 20,000 students, including undergraduates, graduate students and professional and continuing studies students. UD offers four associate’s programs, 130 bachelor’s degrees, 695 master’s degrees, and 208 doctoral degrees in a wide range of subjects and disciplines. Information about the University of Delaware, in Newark, DE, is available at www.udel.edu.
About Hitachi
Hitachi Kokusai Electric America, Ltd. designs, manufacturers and markets video cameras, digital transmission, processing and recording devices for the broadcast television, cable, video production, and industrial vision markets. For more information, please call (516) 921-7200 or visit Hitachi's web site at http://www.hitachikokusai.us. Hitachi Kokusai Electric, Inc., is a Hitachi, Ltd. (NYSE: HIT) group company.
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