HOME Apps

Think Outside The Box

HOME Apps Chip

Server-Based Processing Platform

The broadcast and media industries are changing faster than ever before. New delivery channels, a variety of source and destination formats, and ever tighter budget constraints are the new reality. Five- to ten-year purchasing cycles may be just a little long when planning your next infrastructure overhaul, especially since no-one appreciates a lot of hardware sitting idle for the best part of that period.

Chances are that new formats will emerge which are not supported by the dedicated hardware you own. Purchasing more bespoke hardware that may be obsolete faster than we like, simply no longer makes sense. The only way out of this conundrum is a flexible, instantly scalable processing solution that can run anywhere.

Meet Lawo’s HOME Apps—the abstraction of broadcast and media functionality from the hardware that does the compute heavy lifting. When you need it, where you need it, with a revolutionary commercial model.

HOME Apps are single-purpose applications that run on standard servers.

HOME Apps — Features

Run on Standard Servers, On-premise, in Private Data Centers or in the Cloud

Decide for yourself how much to Invest Upfront

All Formats and Requirements at the Click of a button

Complement your Existing Hardware with Software Apps

Fully integrated with, and managed by the HOME platform.

Mix and match SMPTE ST2110, NDI®, JPEG XS and SRT

One overarching solution for Private Datacenters and Public Clouds

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HOME_Apps_Brochure_Cover

HOME Apps brochure

Meet Lawo’s HOME Apps—the abstraction of broadcast and media functionality from the hardware that does the compute heavy lifting. When you need it, where you need it, with a revolutionary commercial model.

Microservices for Macro Agility
Lawo App CPU

Select, Configure, Spin Up/Down

HOME’s three existing pillars—Connectivity, Security and Management—are joined by a fourth building block—Processing—that will future-proof your operation and infuse it with a striking amount of agility and flexibility.

Along with the new “Processed” element of HOME, Lawo releases four video processing apps that will soon be joined by additional audio and video applications:
» HOME Multiviewer
» HOME UDX conversion with HDR processing
» HOME Stream Transcoder
» HOME Graphic Inserter

Designed for Lawo-grade processing quality in a nifty, containerized software guise, HOME Apps can be spun up and down instantly via HOME’s intuitive user interface, which will conveniently preserve your settings for future use.

App usage is based on permanent licenses for constant, long-term availability, if so desired. The Lawo Flex model, on the other hand, offers peak-time relief and frees operators from the pressure (and budget constraints) of getting the project planning right for the life of the CapEx period, with little or no wiggle room once the budget has been approved.

Lawo’s HOME Apps interface with all widely used protocols, allowing operators to adapt their equipment pool to the production at hand.

Logos of supported protocols

Intuitive and Fast

Thanks to the native integration of Lawo’s apps with »HOME, Lawo’s management platform for IP infrastructures, operators enjoy a straightforward, fast and streamlined user experience. Plus, users are free to run HOME Apps only when they need them and where they need them, without any long-winded configuration sessions or expert knowledge.

Running apps only when they are needed has the distinct advantage of freeing up budget that can be spent on other functionality.

New_App_MV_Window
Lawo Flex — Ultimate Commercial Flexibility
Depending on how you plan your server infrastructure, three flexible usage models, collectively called Lawo Flex, can be leveraged with Lawo’s HOME Apps.

Permanent availability: Staple processing capability can be acquired with perpetual licenses, which is similar to purchasing dedicated hardware, except that the processing is performed by apps running on standard servers.

Lawo Flex subscriptions: Licenses for processing resources with a high degree of flexibility and frequent temporary capacity top-ups where needed. This scheme covers all current and future HOME Apps—not just a specific one.

Hybrid Permanent and Flex licensing: Perpetual licenses for cruise-speed usage, and subscriptions for temporary capacity top-ups at peak times.

As every operation is different, the perfect mix depends on your specific requirements and can be changed at any time.

Usage models that involve occasional top-ups are handled via a temporary subscription model in HOME. Top-ups can be added quickly and have a minimum validity of one month. After using the available budget to run a multiviewer for a week, for instance, users still have approximately three weeks for graphics insertion, format and stream conversion, and a lot more, with the exact same budget.

The subscription budget is only consumed while the app it is assigned to is running. And it covers all present and future HOME Apps, in any combination. Don’t need format conversion during the whole day? Simply spin down the corresponding app in the morning and use the associated budget for something else.

Usage Models
Containers to Instantly Unleash Your Processing Capability

Based on a series of deliberate choices, HOME Apps processing is provided by means of microservices running in containers to ensure maximum agility. Containers are cloud-native, standalone executable software packages comprising the applications and their dependencies. They run on standard servers and offer the following benefits:

  • The ecosystem is based on a modern, agile system architecture;
  • Containers and apps are fast to boot;
  • They are easy to scale and are portable;
  • They are optimized for performance, memory and space requirements;
  • They operate in isolation (no interference from other apps);
  • They are quicker to update (short compilation times) and manage: switching off one microservice has no effect on others that may be running simultaneously.

Containers can be moved to most hardware platforms, whether CPU- or both CPU- and GPU*-based, whether on-prem, in a remote datacenter (fog) or in the cloud. Plus, HOME Apps command compute resources and energy only when they are in use, which is good news for the environment.

Amid the growing diversity of deliverables and the race towards ever more content, Lawo recognizes the benefits offered by NDI® and SRT, and is pleased to support its customers in search of the right production tools for the job at hand, enhancing their functionality with unbridled Lawo expertise.

Thanks to their support for NDI® and SRT, in addition to SMPTE ST2110 and JPEG XS, Lawo’s HOME Apps allow broadcasters and media producers to select the tools they require to tell compelling stories from the largest possible pool.

(*) GPU support is a future product development.

Four Essential Apps for Starters

Lawo’s HOME Apps run on standard servers* with CPU processors as well as CPU + GPU** processor combinations, and in any public cloud. Operators are free to select the processing combination they are most comfortable with.

(*) Please ask your Lawo contact for details about the system requirements.
(**) GPU support is a future product development.

Multiviewer icon

HOME Multiviewer

High-quality multiviewer functionality for monitoring UHD, 3G, HD and SD video as well as audio sources, with pixel-perfect mosaics and ultra-low latency.

This app generates the required number of PiPs for one multiviewer mosaic head. Spinning up additional instances allows operators to provide as many heads as are required for a given production. The multiviewer can be configured using the theWALL app and its wealth of widgets for level metering, clock, tallies, etc.

The input and output formats can be specified independently (SMPTE ST2110, SRT, JPEG XS or NDI®).

UDX icon

HOME UDX (with HDR processing)

The UDX app with HDR processing provides video format and aspect ratio conversions with support for up to four audio send and receive streams. In addition to up, down, cross and aspect ratio conversion, it features frame synchronization and non-linear edge enhancement.

The input and output formats can be specified independently (SMPTE ST2110, SRT, JPEG XS or NDI®).

Stream Transcoder icon

HOME Stream Transcoder

The Stream Transcoder app allows operators to convert incoming video streams to one of the supported output formats. It is the perfect tool for a variety of applications: transcoding content to the required delivery or transport format; stream preparation for dedicated hardware processors that do not support the source’s video format; and—more importantly—signal compression (or decompression) before (or after) long-haul WAN stream transport.

The following input and output formats are supported: SMPTE ST2110, NDI®, SRT, and JPEG XS.

Graphic Inserter icon

HOME Graphic Inserter

The HOME Graphic Inserter app allows users to turn 2D or 3D animated graphics into video streams. Simply add the URL of your HTML5 graphic, pick your output resolution and specify the required output format.

The following output formats are supported: SMPTE ST2110, NDI®, SRT and JPEG XS.

Orchestrated by HOME

Lawo’s HOME Apps for IP infrastructures are single-purpose applications that run on standard servers. With the exception of the need for a network interface card (NIC), they are completely abstracted from the hardware.

HOME Apps require no proprietary hardware and are orchestrated in a broad sense: »HOME manages the stream flows, the services, the applications and the processing capacity in a lightning-fast and intuitive way.

This allows operators to solicit, and spin down, services on demand, via a single, unified user interface, without having to worry about everything that needs to happen in the background.

Call it functionality on demand if you will, presented in such a way that operators remain free to run containerized apps on on-premise servers, in their OB trucks, in a datacenter and/or a public cloud—whichever makes most sense.

SPECIFICATIONS

Please see the dedicated HOME Apps pages for app-specific specifications.

Note: All information given below refers to preliminary product specifications and is subject to change.

SMPTE Specifications
STANDARDS

  • SMPTE 2110 Professional Media Over Managed IP Networks:
    ST2210-10: System Timing and Definitions
    ST2110-20: Uncompressed Active video
    ST2110-21: Traffic Shaping and Delivery Timing for Video
    ST2110-22: Constant Bit-Rate Compressed Video
    ST2110-30: PCM Digital Audio (Levels A, B & C)
  • ADDITIONAL SUPPORT
    SMPTE ST2022-7: Seamless Protection Switching (Class A & B)

REFERENCE STANDARD

  • IEEE1588 (PTPv2)

SUPPORTED FORMATS

  • SD: 525i59.94 (NTSC) and 625i50 (PAL)
  • HD: 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60, 1080i50, 1080i59.94, 1080i60
  • 3G: 1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60
  • 12G: 2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING (Server connectivity)

  • In-band Control via 2 x QSFP28 (100GbE) interfaces
  • Out-of-band Control via 1GbE Interface
  • API protocol: Lawo HOME

DATA FORMAT

  • 10-bit 4:2:2 YCbCr
JPEG XS Specifications
SUPPORTED FORMATS

  • HD: 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60, 1080i50, 1080i59.94, 1080i60
  • 3G: 1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60
  • 12G: 2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

DATA FORMATS

  • 16-bit 4:2:2 YCrCb
  • 10-bit 4:2:2 YCrCb (decode only)
SRT Specifications
STANDARDS

  • MPEG-TS
  • H.264, H.265/HEVC
  • Accelerated via GPU (optional)

SUPPORTED FORMATS

  • SD: 525i59.94 (NTSC) and 625i50 (PAL)
  • HD: 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60, 1080i50, 1080i59.94, 1080i60
  • 3G: 1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60
  • 12G: 2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

DATA FORMATS

  • 8-bit 4:2:0 YCbCr
  • 10-bit 4:2:2 YCbCr (decode only)
  • 12-bit 4:2:0 (decode only)
NDI® Specifications
STANDARDS

  • NDI
  • NDI-HX2 (H.264)
  • NDI-HX2 (H.265)

SUPPORTED FORMATS

  • SD: 525i59.94 (NTSC)* and 625i50 (PAL)*
  • HD: 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60, 1080i50*, 1080i59.94*, 1080i60*
  • 3G: 1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60
  • 12G: 2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

DATA FORMATS

  • P216 16-bit 4:2:2 YCbCr
  • UYVY 8-bit 4:2:2 YCbCr (decode only)
  • PA16 16-bit 4:2:2 YCbCR, alpha discarded (decode only)

(*) NDI only (not NDI|HX2)