Best in Test Finalists: Audio/video and multimedia
-- Test & Measurement World, 12/22/2008 2:00:00 AM
→ IxRave Service Validation Platform, Ixia
→ Multimedia Test System, VI Technology
→ PEVQ Analyzer, OPTICOM
→ WaveQoE Test Suite, VeriWave
IxRave Service Validation Platform
Ixia
www.ixiacom.com
IxRave is an end-to-end remote network and service validation platform for IPTV/triple play. It enables carriers and enterprises to actively isolate faults, verify that end customers are receiving services and that the services are working according to SLAs (service level agreements), and then continually monitor the networks remotely.
The scalable system integrates with carriers’ operation support systems to provide active, rather than passive, service validation. Passive validation relies on expensive probes that only give a limited picture of network health and cannot provide end-to-end QoS. IxRave uses inexpensive probes deployed along network edges to perform real-time active network validation and ensure end-to-end QoE.
Additionally, IxRave includes IxRave Voice, an enhancement that enables providers to assure VoIP QoS and identify problems before subscribers become aware of them. IxRave Voice is a probeless, Web-based system accessible by multiple service-provider organizations. It places automated test calls to customers’ devices at predetermined times to proactively address VoIP issues.
IxRave performs full life-cycle testing, from pretesting to post-monitoring. The system reduces operational expenditure by providing remote network monitoring, which minimizes truck rolls and provides a quick return on investment.
Prices for IxRave start at $100,000.
Multimedia Test System
VI Technology
www.vi-tech.com
Test, design, and manufacturing departments can use the Multimedia Test System (MMTS) to measure the analog and digital audio and video performance of multimedia devices. The system supplies all the measurement hardware and software necessary for testing common video and audio signals and digital protocols, while test times are optimized through resource sharing and the use of dual-core processors.
Powered by National Instruments’ PXI instrumentation and software, the MMTS is capable of testing up to four multimedia devices in parallel. Right out of the box, users can test for composite, S-Video, HD (component), and HDMI signals including NTSC-M, NTSC-4.43, PAL-M, PAL-N, RGB, and YUV. Audio test capabilities include S/PDIF, PCM, Raw Dolby Digital, and DTS. In addition, the system lets users make power measurements, as well as check Ethernet, USB, and modem connectivity.
With the MMTS, test engineers configure the sequences that are available and define the test parameters within which their device should perform—without the need for programming. Also included are built-in test data management and reporting capabilities. The software-based modular architecture of the MMTS makes the system highly scalable and easy to upgrade as new standards are developed.
Base price for the MMTS is $32,900.
PEVQ Analyzer
OPTICOM
www.opticom.de
OPTICOM’s PEVQ Analyzer provides perceptual video and audio QoE measurement with benchmarked accuracy. It evaluates the quality of multimedia (QCIF, CIF, VGA), SD and HD video formats, and accompanying sound based on MOS (mean opinion score) analysis. A range of interfaces (HD-SDI, DVI) supports two-channel uncompressed, synchronous SD and HD video I/O from a hard-disk array.
The PEVQ Analyzer combines both perceptual video and audio MOS analysis in a single box: PEVQ (Perceptual Evaluation of Video Quality) is a video quality measurement technology that provides MOS analysis of the video quality degradation resulting from MPEG/H.264 coding or IPTV networks. PEVQ was benchmarked by the Video Quality Experts Group and released as International Standard ITU-T J.247 (2008); PEAQ (Perceptual Evaluation of Audio Quality) is OPTICOM’s perceptual audio quality measurement technology, widely adopted since its standardization by ITU-R BS.1387 to score the sound quality of MP3, AAC, Dolby, and the like.
The combination of PEVQ and PEAQ allows for audio-visual quality analysis and provides a useful means for lip-sync measurement. Together, the technologies analyze the aggregated effects of encoding/decoding, RF issues during satellite upload/download, and IP-based transmission artifacts (packet loss), including residential gateway and set-top box quality.
The PEVQ Analyzer, Compact Desktop Version PVQ-101-000-D, costs 31,900 euros.
WaveQoE Test Suite
VeriWave
www.veriwave.com
WaveQoE is a suite of tests that lets developers of wireless and wired edge network devices accurately preview and measure end-user QoE in vertical industry environments from the test lab. With WaveQoE, you can obtain detailed performance metrics without deploying applications in actual live networks.
The platform replicates the complex interaction of clients, servers, and traffic profiles in wired and wireless LANs. Application performance metrics provide the means for determining whether the system measures up to desired quality levels. These metrics precisely quantify the results, define an SLA (service level agreement) in terms of quality thresholds, and compare actual measured test results to the desired SLAs. Testers can model real-world deployment scenarios and what-if scenarios, study end users’ quality of experience, and define any needed changes.
WaveQoE tailors tests to vertical environments by using a core test methodology that allows the generation and configuration of thousands of actual clients used in the DUT and other devices in the environment, each with independent behavior and application characteristics. The suite also accommodates a mix of wireless and wired traffic in a single test environment using native WiFi and Ethernet test interfaces.
Pricing for WaveQoE is based on the number of test ports required, starting at $7000 for a single port.
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