Ikegami on IBC 2024

More than 40,000 visitors from about 170 countries came to IBC 2024 in Amsterdam.

Ikegami Electronics (Europe) displayed examples from its wide range of broadcast production cameras, controllers and monitors at IBC 2024, from September 13th-16, 2024. Numerous visitors from all angles of the world came to our stand in hall 12 for an informal update on our latest products innovations. 

The entire Ikegami staff was on site and more than happy to welcoming the customers.

The friendly Ikegami ladies offered coffee and drinks for refreshment at the Ikegami bar.

Let us have a brief look at "WHAT WAS NEW ON IBC 2024?"

Ikegami HDK-X500 3-CMOS HD portable camera system

A versatile new addition to the Ikegami range of broadcast-quality production equipment, the HDK-X500 HD portable camera system made its European market debut.

“The HDK-X500 is designed for use across a wide spectrum of applications,” says Gisbert Hochguertel, Ikegami Europe Product Specialist. “It can be configured easily for pedestal-mounted studio operation, tripod-based sports coverage and shoulder-mounted location production. At the front end are three latest-generation 2/3-inch CMOS sensors with a global shutter architecture which enables the camera to capture natural images even in challenging situations. Still-frame replay of fast-moving objects, for example, is completely free from geometric distortion and there are no flash bands when the camera is capturing a strobe-illuminated stage or flash lighting from still cameras.”

 “The HDK-X500 incorporates our latest-generation AXII digital processor which delivers high quality pictures, high reliability, lower power consumption and enhanced functions. Its capabilities include automatic optical vignetting correction throughout the range of OVC-compatible B4 bayonet mount zoom lenses, and remote back focus adjustment.”

 “Optimal control of interior or exterior ambient lighting is supported by the same neutral-density and colour-compensation dual filter system used in our high-end cameras. The colour-compensation filter wheel includes a free space to mount any desired effect filter or an additional optical low-pass filter, further reducing aliasing effects in difficult shooting conditions and especially helpful when shooting LED walls.”

 Included in the HDK-X500 is a 16-axis colour corrector for precise scene matching or the creation of colour-related effects. Chroma and hue levels can be individually adjusted within the 16-axes both during normal programme production and to allow colour matching with other cameras. This high-level correction can be processed in real time.

 Like the other camera models in the Ikegami UNICAM-XE family, the new HDK-X500 fully conforms to ITU-R BT.2020 specifications, covering a wider area than the conventional BT.709 colour space for HD. In combination with the wide dynamic range of the new CMOS sensors, brilliant HDR pictures can be produced by using the pre-installed HLG opto-electronic transfer function conforming to the ITU-R BT.2100 international standard. This allows detailed image reproduction from bright highlights through to deep shadows. Other OETFs, such as PQ and S-LOG, are available as an option.

 The performance parameters of the HDK-X500 include a horizontal resolution of 1,000 TVL (typical centre resolution at 5% modulation), 62 dB typical signal to noise ratio and F12 sensitivity (1080/50p). The HDK-X500 is also capable of high frame-rate capture at 2x speed (1080i at 100 Hz) or low-frame-rate capture (1080p/23.98, 25, 29.97), both as software license options.

 Accessories for the HDK-X500 include a variety of monocular and studio viewfinders, remote camera controllers (OCP-300/OCP-500), a 4K-UHD upscaler and an ST2110 media-over-IP interface for the BSX-100 base station.

Ikegami OCP-500 slim line Operation Control Panel 

Ikegami announced a space-saving addition to its range of broadcast quality television production equipment. Previewed at the April 2024 NAB Show in Las Vegas and scheduled for introduction to the European market at IBC in September, the new ultra-compact OCP-500 camera control unit has the slimmest panel surface of any Ikegami operation control panel to date.

 “A key design feature of the new OCP-500 is its compact width, just 83 mm, allowing multiple units to be integrated easily into an outside broadcast vehicle, REMI hub or studio control gallery without compromising on functionality or durability,” says Michael Laetzsch, Broadcast & Professional Video Division Manager at Ikegami Electronics (Europe) GmbH. “Illuminated silicone rubber control buttons tested to over 100,000 key presses contribute to the panel’s anticipated long working life. The control layout and functions are configured in a style allowing easy use, especially by operators accustomed to working with the OCP-300.”

 Compatible with all cameras in Ikegami’s Unicam series, including the latest generation HDK-X500, the OCP-500 incorporates all the features required to allow full remote camera control. Up to five OCP-500 units fit into the same desktop footprint as four of Ikegami’s established OCP-300 remote camera controllers.

 The OCP-500 front panel is equipped with a joystick allowing simultaneous rotary adjustment of camera pedestal settings and front-to-back control of the iris. Among other control elements are 10 function-specific pushbuttons, assignable pushbuttons and a colour LCD display panel. Assignable-control settings and related data can be stored on removable non-volatile memory which also allows easy data sharing.

 Function-specific controls include camera power, viewfinder power, lens cap, colour bars, calibration, auto white balance and auto black balance. Maximum controller-to-camera cable distance is 60 metres (serial control over CP cable) or 100 metres using Power-over-Ethernet cable. The unit is designed to support operation in temperatures of 0 to 45 degrees Celsius and 30% to 90% non-condensing humidity. Power requirement is 12 volts DC (10 to 18 volts acceptable range) at approximately 5 watts.

Ikegami HD Video Monitors: HLM-2460WA 24” and 18.5” HLM-1860WR

Ikegami announced two new additions to its range of broadcast quality picture monitors: the 24-inch HLM-2460WA and 18.5 inch HLM-1860WR.

“Both monitors are optimized for 1920 x 1080 HD which continues to be the most popular resolution for routine broadcast production and transmission,” comments Gisbert Hochguertel, Ikegami Europe Product Specialist. “Building on the features and performance of its HLM-2460W predecessor, the 24-inch HLM-2460WA reproduces more accurate dynamics of the source images thanks to a 1920 x 1200 native pixel IPS LCD panel with 1,800:1 contrast ratio and 400 nits peak brightness. It is designed for use in broadcast environments such as edit suites where a computer-friendly WUXGA display resolution is preferred, and for integration into monitor walls.”

 Production-related features of the HLM-2460WA include picture-in-picture and side-by-side video display, preset and operator-configurable onscreen markers plus red/green/yellow tally. Dynamic and static under-monitor display facilities are provided in addition to closed caption and vertical interval timecode display. Also included are user selectable test signals, waveform monitoring and vectorscope display tools, image and test signal mix, dot-by-dot display, plus 2x and 4x zoom. Audio capabilities include SDI audio de-embedding, eight-channel audio level metering and 5.1 channel surround-sound down-mix output.

 Optional automatic calibration software ensures consistent and accurate colour reproduction throughout the monitor’s lifetime. It aligns R/G/B gain levels to exhibit the correct white balance by acquiring real-time measurement data via a choice of colorimeters from JETI Specbos (model 1211-2), Klein Instruments (K10-A) or Konica Minolta (CA-310/CA-410).

 The HLM-2460WA can be controlled remotely (via Ethernet, RS-485 or GPIO), or directly from its front panel. High dynamic range support is available as an option.

 Also new, the Ikegami HLM-1860WR is a 1920 x 1080 pixel native HD multi-format monitor with a larger 18.5-inch IPS LCD panel than its HLM-1760WR predecessor, within the same 19-inch rack-width 7 U high housing. The display has a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and 500 nits peak brightness, allowing it to reproduce clear images even in outdoor environments. Among features shared with the HLM-2460WA are user-definable reference marker lines or boxes which can be created easily using a USB mouse, eight channels of SDI-embedded audio metering and seamless tally integration via Ethernet via TSL V5.0 protocol. The HLM-1860WR requires just 47 watts of mains power or 42 watts of 12 volt DC battery power. Width/height/depth dimensions are 440 x 301 x 80 mm.

What else did you see on the Ikegami booth on IBC 2024?

Ikegami showed the flagship model of the Unicam-XE camera family in studio configuration, the UHK-X700 together with the system expander SE-U430 and a box type lens. The UHK-X600 sister model was shown in a portable application in combination with an EFP lens.

Ikegami also presented their UHD-box cameras, the UHL-43 and the ultra-compact UHL-F4000, both mounted on compact robotic heads with remote controllers.

On a special monitor wall, Ikegami presented the complete monitor lineup, including the new HD-models, HLM-2460WA and HLM-1860WR, together with the current 4K-models HQLM-3125X, HQLM-3120W, HQLM-1720WR and the HD-models HLM-960WR and ULE-217AR.