As broadcast facility networking increasingly becomes indistinguishable from IT and as these facilities find themselves networking more types of media devices to feed new avenues such as Internet and mobile media, bottlenecks and choke points are bound to form.
For such contingencies, interface/machine control equipment maker DNF Controls has released its AnyWhere Interface Box. The AIB features a plethora of input (event) formats and connectors along with outputs (action). The key is conversion.
A press release lists conversions: “GPI-to-GPO(s), GPI-to-serial, GPI-to-Ethernet and GPI-to-SNMP control; serial-to-GPO, Ethernet-to-GPO, and SNMP-to-GPO monitoring; and serial-to-Ethernet and serial-to-SNMP conversions; all of which are user-configurable.”
The AIB is designed to be used by nontechnical personnel and can be operated via a Web browser. Configurations are stored in nonvolatile memory and can be stored in a computer for recall. It has eight opto-isolated GPI inputs, eight relay contact closure GPO outputs, one RS-422/RS-232 serial port and one 10 BaseT Ethernet port. The unit can be powered by power over Ethernet (POE) or an optional 12-W external power supply.
The maker says it is suitable for radio, TV, A/V and industrial applications.
