JP2011171955A - Nonlinear server system, raw material management and delivery method, and raw material management and delivery program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To use the shared disk of a SAN, which is handled in the same way as a local disk in respective apparatuses, by constructing the SAN with a nonlinear editing machine, a transmission server, and a raw material server. <P>SOLUTION: A raw material is delivered between the respective apparatuses in a SAN shared disk, so that the raw material can be delivered at high speed. Even before the play list of a program for an OA is generated, the raw material with the edition completed therein is previously output from the nonlinear editing machine, and an application is constructed thereby to perform registration of the raw material in a raw material management system and the delivery of the raw material to the transmission server after the generation of the play list is completed. Thus, much time to be used for editing is taken. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a non-linear server system, and more particularly to a non-linear server system that manages and delivers program sending materials.

  Currently, in a program production and transmission system, when a material edited for program transmission (data such as video streamed in a program) is transferred from a non-linear editing facility to a transmission server, it is via a LAN (Local Area Network). The main (mainstream) method is to perform FTP (File Transfer Protocol) transfer. Currently, except for special applications, most LANs are Ethernet (registered trademark).

  In the above method, both the processing to output the material in a specific format on the nonlinear editing machine and the process to transfer the material to the file by FTP are executed, so the processing takes time, and the nonlinear editing machine can be operated until completion. Since the next editing job cannot be started, there is a problem that the time for editing on the nonlinear editing machine cannot be taken as expected.

  In addition, since FTP transfer is performed via a LAN, it often depends on network specifications (specifications / performance). In a 1 Gbps LAN (Gigabit per second) used in the main, a plurality of LANs are used. When a file is transferred from a non-linear editing machine, there is a problem that the load increases and the file transfer process takes time.

  Furthermore, with regard to the number of sessions that can simultaneously perform FTP file transfer, there is usually a limit on the number of sessions that can be connected on the sending server side, and even if the network is 10 Gbps on the LAN, the sending server itself has low specifications. There is a problem of the limit value, and there is a problem that the network specifications cannot be fully utilized depending on the selection of the device.

  As a problem of the operation method, when using a method of transferring a file from a conventional non-linear editing machine when an editor edits, the name of the material is transferred to the ID (identification: identification) according to the material management system. (Information)-Since it is necessary to make the name, an operation of making it an arbitrary name is necessary at the time of editing or transferring, and the ID for the material is kept until the playlist of the program for OA (On the Air) is completed. There is a problem that the material cannot be output from the non-linear editing machine when editing is completed.

  In addition, file transfer is often executed from a plurality of non-linear editing machines all at once after the completion of the playlist, and the load on the network and transmission server is concentrated before OA, especially in news programs, preparation of materials by OA There is a problem that there is a case that cannot be.

  As a related technique, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-059096 discloses a program production support apparatus and a program production method. In this related technology, a news program production system in a television broadcasting station includes a program production support system and a video server system. The program production support system is provided with a news gathering management terminal, a news gathering information fetching terminal, a dummy program production terminal, and a program production terminal each comprising a computer (personal computer or workstation), and these terminals are connected to each other via Ethernet (registered trademark). ). In the video server system, a material server (video server for storing material), a control terminal that controls the material server, a nonlinear editing machine, a transmission server (video server for transmitting on-air material), and a computer Are connected to a management terminal for transmission management consisting of a high-speed network such as Giga Ethernet (registered trademark). Video material obtained by executing coverage is directly input to the material server from a VTR (Video Tape Recorder) that records the video material, or after being edited by a non-linear editing machine or linear editing machine. The However, Patent Document 1 does not specifically describe a method of sending a non-linear editing machine to a transmission server in a workflow for inputting video material to a video server.

  Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-302052) discloses a storage system and a digital broadcasting system. In this related technology, a configuration in which a storage system is used as an editing storage and a management storage of a digital broadcasting system is shown.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-276160 discloses a program production / sending device. In this related technology, in the news report department HB, the program production / sending device mainly creates and manages the news material production support department for managing the news material ordering and the news gathering schedule for producing the news program. A news material creation management unit for sending out and a sending device control unit for sending the produced program to the master room when on the air. These news program production support unit, news material creation management unit, transmission device control unit, and DB (database) server for storing data input for news program production and program transmission are mutually connected by LAN. It is connected. Outside the news report department HB, it is composed of branch offices / branches / club terminals such as branch offices, branch offices and reporter clubs that are remote from the news report department HB. The inside and outside of the news report part HB are connected to each other via a dedicated line or a public line.

JP 2008-059096 A JP 2006-302052 A JP-A-10-276160

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a material management system for transferring materials between a non-linear editing machine and a transmission server using a SAN (Storage Area Network).

  The non-linear server system of the present invention includes a non-linear editing machine that edits material for program transmission, a transmission server that transmits the material to the outside, and a material server that stores the material. The non-linear editing machine, the transmission server, and the material server construct a SAN (Storage Area Network). Each of the non-linear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server transfers materials in a SAN shared disk that can be handled in the same manner as a local disk.

  In the material management / delivery method of the present invention, a SAN (Storage Area Network) is constructed by a non-linear editing machine, a transmission server, and a material server. In addition, the material for program transmission is edited by a non-linear editing machine. Further, the material is sent to the outside by the sending server. The material is stored by the material server. In addition, each of the nonlinear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server transfers materials in a SAN shared disk that can be handled in the same manner as a local disk.

  The material management / delivery program of the present invention is a program for causing a computer used as one of the devices included in the nonlinear server system to execute the material management / delivery method described above. The material management / delivery program of the present invention can be stored in a storage device or a storage medium.

  Since the editing machine, the material server, and the transmission server can use a common SAN shared disk, and the material can be transferred by moving a file in the SAN shared disk, the edited material can be transferred to the transmission server at high speed.

1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall configuration of a nonlinear server system of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the apparatus structure of the nonlinear server system of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the material management system which concerns on this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the Example of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<Overall configuration>
Referring to FIG. 1, a non-linear server system according to the present invention includes a non-linear editing machine 10, a sending server 20, a material server 30, a DB (Database) server 40, an AP (Application) server 50, and a material management PC ( A personal computer 60 and a SAN shared disk 70.

  The nonlinear editing machine 10 is a material editing server. The sending server 20 is an external sending server for materials. The material server 30 is a material storage server and is a management server for the SAN shared disk 70. The DB server 40 is a server for storing information regarding folders and files in the SAN shared disk 70. The AP server 50 is a control server for other servers. The material management PC 60 is a PC that executes a material management system (shown in FIG. 3) described later. The SAN shared disk 70 is a SAN shared disk and is a material storage disk.

  Note that the nonlinear editing machine 10, the sending server 20, the material server 30, the DB server 40, the AP server 50, and the material management PC 60 may be plural.

  The non-linear editing machine 10, the transmission server 20, the material server 30, and the SAN shared disk 70 constitute a SAN (Storage Area Network) 100. Thereby, the non-linear editing machine 10, the transmission server 20, and the material server 30 can share and refer to the SAN shared disk 70 and can be operated in the same manner as the local disk.

  That is, the SAN shared disk 70 is a network drive connected to the nonlinear editing machine 10, the sending server 20, and the material server 30 via the SAN 100.

  The non-linear editing machine 10, the transmission server 20, the material server 30, the DB server 40, the AP server 50, and the material management PC 60 are connected by a LAN (Local Area Network) 200, and data and commands are transmitted. Communication can be performed via a LAN. The LAN 200 is merely an example of a communication line different from the SAN 100.

  The SAN shared disk 70 has an editor material output folder 71 and a sending server material folder 72.

  The editor material output folder 71 and the send server material folder 72 are folder names existing in the SAN shared disk 70.

  Here, examples of the nonlinear editing machine 10, the sending server 20, the material server 30, the DB server 40, the AP server 50, and the material management PC 60 include a PC, a thin client terminal / server, a workstation, a mainframe, a supercomputer, and the like. A computer is assumed. The non-linear editing machine 10, the sending server 20, the material server 30, the DB server 40, the AP server 50, and the material management PC 60 may be a virtual machine (Virtual Machine (VM)) environment operating on a computer. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

  Further, as an example of the SAN shared disk 70, a storage device that is mounted on any of the non-linear editing machine 10, the transmission server 20, and the material server 30 and is shared via the SAN can be considered. Alternatively, a storage device installed in a non-linear editing machine 10, a transmission server 20, and a material server 30 via a SAN or a peripheral device or other server, or a DAS (Direct Attached Storage), FC-SAN ( Fiber Channel-Storage Area Network (NAS), Network Attached Storage (NAS), and IP-SAN (IP-Storage Area Network) may be used. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

<About SAN>
A SAN is a high-speed network that connects external storage devices and between storage devices and servers. When there are a plurality of servers in the network, data transfer between these servers is also possible. SAN is used for servers that require high performance. The SAN is particularly effective in a configuration in which a plurality of servers cooperate to provide one function, or a configuration in which a single mass storage device is shared by a plurality of servers. By introducing SAN into such a configuration, the processing performance of the server is improved, and the load on the LAN used for communication with the PC as the client can be reduced. In general, the main protocol of LAN is TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol), but SAN uses a completely different protocol called “Fibre Channel”.

<Device configuration>
With reference to FIG. 2, the structure of the server and PC in the nonlinear server system of this invention is demonstrated.

  The nonlinear editing machine 10 includes a material editing unit 11, a file output unit 12, and a material management control unit 13.

  The material editing unit 11 edits material data for transmission.

  The file output unit 12 outputs the edited material data as a file in a specific format.

  The material management control unit 13 activates and operates a material management system (shown in FIG. 3) described later.

  The sending server 20 includes a material searching unit 21 and a material sending unit 22.

  The material search unit 21 extracts a material whose file name is designated by external program control from among the materials in the transmission server material folder 72.

  The material sending unit 22 sends the material taken out from the sending server material folder 72 in the baseband from the playback port.

  The material server 30 includes a shared disk control unit 31.

  The shared disk control unit 31 operates each folder and file in the SAN shared disk 70 by program control from the outside.

  The DB server 40 includes a material information storage unit 41.

  The material information storage unit 41 stores the file name, storage location, and other information of each material, such as the material total scale, format, creation date / update date. The material information storage unit 41 also stores information on data registered in the material management system.

  Examples of data information registered in the material management system include a material ID and a material name. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

  The AP server 50 includes a DB server control unit 51, a PC control unit 52, and a command transmission unit 53.

  The DB server control unit 51 executes registration / update / deletion of each data in the DB server 40 in accordance with an operation performed by the material management system operating on the material management PC 60.

  The PC control unit 52 acquires each data of the screen referred to by the material management PC 60 from the DB server 40 and transmits it.

  The command transmission unit 53 executes a program for controlling the transmission server 20 and the material server 30 and transmits each processing command to the transmission server 20 and the material server 30.

  As an example of each processing command, an “mv command” or a “ren (rename) command” for moving and renaming a material in the SAN shared disk 70 can be considered. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

  The material management PC 60 includes a material management control unit 61 and an AP server control unit 62.

  The material management control unit 61 activates and operates an application of a material management system (shown in FIG. 3) described later.

  The AP server control unit 62 transmits each operation result to the AP server 50 and requests the AP server 50 for necessary data.

  For example, the material editing unit 11, the file output unit 12, the material management control unit 13, the material search unit 21, the material sending unit 22, the shared disk control unit 31, the material information storage unit 41, the DB server control unit 51, and the PC control unit 52. The command transmission unit 53, the material management control unit 61, and the AP server control unit 62 include hardware such as a processing device driven by a program and software such as a program that drives the hardware to execute a desired process. And a storage device for storing the software and various data.

  As an example of the processing apparatus, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a microprocessor (microprocessor), a microcontroller, or a semiconductor integrated circuit (Integrated Circuit (IC)) having a similar function can be considered. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

  Examples of the above storage device include a semiconductor storage device such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), a flash memory, and a HDD (Hard). An auxiliary storage device such as Solid State Drive), a removable disk such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) or an SD memory card (Secure Digital memory card), a storage medium (media), or the like is conceivable. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

<Material management system>
The material management system will be described with reference to FIG.
When starting the material management system, the material management control unit 61 displays a date 611, a thumbnail display screen 612, a material ID 613, a detail button 614, and a material name 615 on the screen.

  Hereinafter, it is assumed that the material management control unit 61 executes processing in the material management system.

  In the material management system, a thumbnail display screen 612, a material ID 613, a detail button 614, and a material name 615 are displayed for each material. Actually, the date 611 may also be displayed for each material.

  In the material management system, items for registration of each material can be created and deleted, and materials can be registered. Each item for material registration indicates an event created in each program such as news and variety. For example, a news program such as “Opening: Material A”, “Case 1: Material B”, “Promotion: Material C”, “Case 2: Material D”, “Ending: Material E”, etc. Each item (event) is created so that the timing and usage of the material are used, and the material to be used is registered for each item.

  In FIG. 3, “new”, “display”, “delete”, and “search” are shown as examples of operations for each material registration item. “New” indicates new registration of a material. “Display” indicates the display of the material. “Delete” indicates deletion of a material. “Search” indicates a search for a material.

  In the material management system, the display period can be designated on the date 611 for the type of material displayed on the screen.

  In the material management system, a material sent for OA is managed by a unique key called material ID 613.

  In the material management system, programs can be displayed in playlist units, and can be sorted in order of transmission.

  On the thumbnail display screen 612, thumbnails that are representative of each material can be displayed. Note that a thumbnail is an image reduced to display a list of a large number of images.

  In the material management system, nothing is displayed on the thumbnail display screen 612 when the material is not delivered to the transmission server 20 as when a new item is created.

  In the material management system, the thumbnail of the material is displayed on the thumbnail display screen 612 at the timing when the material is transferred to the transmission server 20.

  In the material management system, a material name 615 can be registered and displayed as material metadata information.

  Also, by pressing the detail button 614, a detailed screen for confirming and registering data such as the total scale of the material and the playlist of the program using the material is displayed on a separate screen as detailed information of the material for each user. It is possible to display.

  Here, the detail button 614 is an operation button for displaying a detail screen. The detail button 614 may be a link display. Alternatively, the detail button 614 may display the detail screen on a separate screen when the display area is moved over the mouse. Accordingly, menus, buttons, images, text links, and the like can be considered as examples of the detail button 614. However, actually, it is not limited to these examples.

<Example>
Next, the operation of the embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

(1) Step S101
First, the editor uses the nonlinear editing machine 10 to edit the material to be sent for OA. That is, the non-linear editing machine 10 edits a material in accordance with an operation / instruction by the editor.

(2) Step S102
After the editing is completed, the non-linear editing machine 10 outputs the edited result in a specific format to the editing machine material output folder 71 existing in the SAN shared disk 70. That is, the nonlinear editing machine 10 saves the edited material in the editing machine material output folder 71.

(3) Step S103
After that, when the playlist of the OA program is completed, the nonlinear editing machine 10 starts the material management system shown in FIG. 3 on its own OS and creates items for registering each material on the material management system. To do.

(4) Step S104
The non-linear editing machine 10 performs drag and drop on the thumbnail display screen 612 of an item desired to be registered in the material management system from the materials output to the editing material output folder 71. Here, the drag and drop indicates an operation for moving data or a file by a mouse operation. The dragged and dropped material moves from the material management system to the material server 30. That is, the nonlinear editing machine 10 transmits the dragged and dropped material to the material server 30.

(5) Step S105
The nonlinear editing machine 10 transmits the dragged and dropped material path, the material file name, and the material ID on the material management system to the AP server 50 using this operation as a trigger.

(6) Step S106
The AP server 50 transmits to the material server 30 a command for instructing the movement of the material and the name change of the material. Upon receiving this command, the material server 30 moves the material dragged and dropped from the non-linear editing machine 10 to the sending server material folder 72, and based on the material ID of the dragged and dropped material, the material file Rename your name.

(7) Step S107
The AP server 50 transmits a status confirmation command to the material server 30 at regular intervals.

(8) Step S108
The AP server 50 transmits a command for obtaining a thumbnail of the corresponding material and metadata to the material server 30 at a timing when it can be confirmed that the processing has been normally completed. Get metadata.

(9) Step S109
The AP server 50 registers the acquired thumbnail and metadata in the DB server 40, and displays the necessary metadata on the thumbnail and the detail screen that can be activated from the detail button 614 on the thumbnail display screen 612 on the material management system. To do. That is, the AP server 50 stores the thumbnail and metadata acquired from the material server 30 in the DB server 40 and then reflects them on the thumbnail display screen 612 on the material management system.

<Features of the present invention>
In the present invention, the same SAN is constructed by the non-linear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server, so that each device can use and refer to the shared disk in the SAN that can be handled in the same manner as the local disk.

  The non-linear server system according to the present invention is characterized in that the material can be transferred at high speed so that the material can be transferred between the devices in the SAN shared disk.

  Further, even before the playlist for the OA program is created, the edited material is output from the non-linear editing machine, and after the creation of the playlist is completed, it is registered in the material management system and sent to the transmission server. We are building an application so that material can be transferred, and we are proposing an operation method that allows more time for editing.

  In the present invention, a material can be output from a non-linear editing machine in a pseudo manner by saving the material from a non-linear editing machine to the SAN shared disk by the same operation as outputting to a local disk. The material output by the above operation can be transferred to the sending server by moving the file inside the SAN.

  In the present invention, since the editing machine, the material server, and the transmission server can use a common SAN shared disk, and the material can be transferred by moving a file in the SAN shared disk, the edited material is transferred to the transmission server at high speed. Can do.

  In the present invention, the output material can be linked with the material management system, and it is not necessary to transfer the file using FTP. Therefore, when the editing is completed, the playlist of the OA program is completed. The editing result can be output without waiting for a long editing time.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail, actually, it is not restricted to said embodiment, Even if there is a change of the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention, it is included in this invention.

10 ... Non-linear editing facility
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Material editing part 12 ... File output part 13 ... Material management control part 20 ... Sending server 21 ... Material search part 22 ... Material sending part 30 ... Material server 31 ... Shared disk control part 40 ... DB (Database) server 41 ... Material Information storage unit 50 ... AP (Application) server 51 ... DB server control unit 52 ... PC control unit 53 ... Command transmission unit 60 ... Material management PC
61 ... Material management control unit 62 ... AP server control unit 70 ... SAN shared disk (shared disk)
71 ... Folder for editing material output 72 ... Folder for sending server material 100 ... SAN (Storage Area Network)
200 ... LAN (Local Area Network)

Claims (10)

A non-linear editing machine that edits material for program transmission;
A sending server for sending the material to the outside;
A material server for storing the material,
The nonlinear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server construct a SAN (Storage Area Network),
Each of the non-linear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server transfers materials within a SAN shared disk that can be handled in the same manner as a local disk. The nonlinear server system according to claim 1,
The non-linear editing machine
Means for outputting the material to a folder for an editing machine in the shared disk when editing is completed even before a playlist of a program for OA (on-air) is created;
A non-linear server system comprising means for registering the material into a material management system activated on the non-linear editing machine and delivering it to the sending server after the creation of a playlist is completed. The nonlinear server system according to claim 2,
An application server connected to the nonlinear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server via a LAN (Local Area Network);
The material server is
In accordance with external control, comprising means for performing operations on folders and files in the shared disk,
The non-linear editing machine
When outputting the material, from the output material, specify the material desired to be registered in the material management system, to the application server via the material management system, the path of the specified material, Means for transmitting a file name and a material ID on the material management system;
The application server is
A non-linear server system comprising means for moving the designated material to a sending folder in the shared disk and transmitting a command for renaming the file name to the material ID to the material server . The nonlinear server system according to claim 3,
The application server is
Means for transmitting status confirmation commands at regular intervals to the material server;
At the timing when it is confirmed that the process of renaming the file name has been normally completed, a command for obtaining the thumbnail and metadata of the specified material is transmitted to the material server, and the thumbnail and the Means for obtaining metadata;
A non-linear server system further comprising means for displaying the thumbnail and the metadata on the material management system.   A computer used as one of the devices in the non-linear server system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. Building a SAN (Storage Area Network) with a non-linear editing machine, a sending server, and a material server;
Editing the material for program transmission with the non-linear editing machine;
Sending the material to the outside by the sending server;
Storing the material by the material server;
A material management / delivery method comprising: each of the non-linear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server delivering material within a SAN shared disk that can be handled in the same manner as a local disk. The material management / delivery method according to claim 6,
Outputting the material to the folder for the editing machine in the shared disk when editing is completed even before the playlist of the program for OA (on-air) is created by the nonlinear editing machine;
A material management / delivery method further comprising: registering the material with a material management system activated on the non-linear editing machine and delivering the material to the sending server after the creation of the playlist is completed. The material management / delivery method according to claim 7,
Connecting an application server to the nonlinear editing machine, the sending server, and the material server by a LAN (Local Area Network);
Executing operations on folders and files in the shared disk according to external control by the material server;
When the material is output by the non-linear editing machine, the material desired to be registered in the material management system is designated from the outputted materials, and the designation is made to the application server via the material management system. Sending the material path, file name, and material ID on the material management system;
The application server moves the designated material to the sending folder in the shared disk, and sends a command for renaming the file name to the material ID, to the material server. In addition Material management and delivery method. The material management / delivery method according to claim 8,
Sending status confirmation commands at regular intervals to the material server by the application server;
At the timing when it is confirmed that the process of renaming the file name has been normally completed, a command for obtaining the thumbnail and metadata of the specified material is transmitted to the material server, and the thumbnail and the Getting the metadata,
Displaying the thumbnail and the metadata on the material management system; and a material management / delivery method.   A material management / delivery program for causing a computer used as one of the devices to execute the material management / delivery method according to claim 6.

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