Elizabeth-Forward School District Integrated Information System

Recently, American Hytech Corporation (AHC) successfully completed a very challenging and complex integration project. Working with teaming partners Nortel, Lucent Technologies and First Virtual Corporation, AHC created a world-class voice, video and data integration system for Elizabeth-Forward School District.

The complexity included analog video switching, digital video on demand, high performance video conferencing, and availability of multimedia and Internet content on the desktop (PCs, Macs and Unix boxes). The teaming partners, including Lucent, Nortel and First Virtual, all worked in a coordinated manner to successfully complete this project over two years. Nortel provided data switches, Lucent provided voice switches and First Virtual provided multimedia switches.

The district consists of nine buildings where the longest separation of two buildings is nine miles. To provide high-speed computer networking, the local cable TV company is allowing the district to use OC3 bandwidth on its cables. Thus any building in the district has the ability to use any of the computer resources anywhere in the system at high speed. Also, any building can receive full color, full motion video from the Head End room which uses VCRs, laser disc players, cable tuners, and video server as video sources. AHC also used equipment form Safari Technologies to complete the highly versatile system that can deliver video to properly equipped class rooms, conference rooms, and offices throughout the district.

The drawing shows the layout of the main equipment rack in the head end room. The two racks on the left hold seven cable tuners, ten VCRs, and two laser disc players along with one of the two uninterruptable power supplies that allow for a graceful shutdown in the event of a power failure. The cable tuners, VCRs, and laser disc players are controlled by Addressable Source Controllers (ASC) from Safari. The middle rack holds the Safari Server Monitor and the Video Switch which allows administrators of the system to control and schedule video streams from the various video sources to be placed on the computer network infrastucture. The second from the right rack holds a Preview monitor, which the system administrator can use to view the video streams playing on any video source. It also holds a DEC Prioris Server running the Windows NT Server operating system and the Safari Server software. Finally, it holds a Compaq PC equipped with Zydacron video conferencing hardware and software. The right-most rack holds six V-Casters from First Virtual Corporation and the second UPS to provide uninterrupted power to the equipment in the racks.

The sub-frame racks located at the bottoms of the middle three racks hold multiplexers and transmitters from Safari.

Elizabeth Forward is requesting an Advanced High Speed ATM Multimedia Network. The Backbone Network will require speeds of OC?3 which win interconnect the Administration/Middle School, High School, and rive Elementary schools. This will allow Elizabeth Forward School District to integrate all Multimedia services under one centrally managed platform. This ATM Wide Area Network will accommodate all Data/Video/Voice requirements.

The data requirements for Elizabeth Forward School District will be a need to provide data services to accommodate MacIntosh, PowerPC's, Printers, and File Servers. The PowerPC's will have a 10/100Mbps NIC. The data network will need to provide 10/100Mbps autosense switch ports to the PowerPC desktop. The File Servers will also need 10/100Mbps connectivity to the data network. Elizabeth Forward will initially like to have 10Mbps to the desktop with future growth of 100Mbps to the desktop. The number of PowerPC's , Printers, and Files Servers are given below. In addition, all network connected devices will need to attach to the ATM Infrastructure for connectivity throughout the network.

The video requirements for Elizabeth Forward School District will deliver interactive MPEG1 & H.320 Digital video and audio programming to the classroom. The system will be supported by a Media Management Center and provide routing of audio? video and control to the classroom. The system must interface to all standard AV products and provide all of the standard functions of these products. By definition, the system shall be referred to in this specification as a Digital Interactive Learning System (DILS).

The final DILS installation will include a centrally located video source origination and distribution system that is equipped to provide playback and control of digital video files from a digital video server, analog video cassettes, laser discs, CATV and all other AV playback equipment.

Switching and control equipment must be provided for local studio and remote origination, direct network, satellite TVRO viewing and teleconferencing. The distribution system will be copper and fiber?optic based ATM Multimedia network and will have the ability to provide video, audio and control at any classroom and/ or desktop location. It must provide total control of classroom distribution from source(s) to a single or multiple rooms. As the usage grows, the DILS will need to provide expandability.

The Digital Interactive Learning System (DILS) shall be a "point?to?point" (star configuration) distribution consisting of hardware and software product designed to enable end users to access, retrieve and control digital and analog audio/video information, on demand or on scheduled, over a Local Area Network (LAN) and District Wide Area Network (WAN). As a result, virtually any program on any media (analog or digital) shall be made available to any end user workstation area or room in any building or group of buildings within the school district. The Digital Interactive Learning System shall use an ATM network architecture technique to deliver high quality, stereo audio and near broadcast?quality video to the computer desktop via MPEG 1(encoded between 1.5 ? 2.5 Mb/s) and a portable video teleconferencing system utilizing a H.320 codec from 768Kps to 1.544 Mb/s over ATM overlay without affecting the LAN or WAN data performance.

Low bandwidth control and management information and high bandwidth video and audio information is to be transmitted via the ATM LAN/WAN. This LAN/WAN architecture shall take advantage of EIA/TIA wiring standards and shall be capable of being scaled to handle hundreds of simultaneous users. The DILS systems can be installed to serve one or two rooms or span entire campuses and link cities. The DILS shall be capable of providing support for standard analog video, digital MPEG 1, 2, motion JPEG, H.320 and H.323. The DILS shall be software controlled and capable of system expansion

The system network architecture includes a centrally located Digital Video Server and analog source origination and distribution system equipped with video film, digital video MPEG I files or playback devices such as VCR's, video disc players, CD?ROM servers and film to video converters. Switching, control equipment, MPEG 1 encoders and multipoint control unit are to be provided for local, studio, or remote origination of cable television, direct satellite (TVRO) viewing and teleconferencing. All analog video feeds originating at the headend will be switched through the analog baseband matrix switch connected to MPEG I encoders and distributed "real?time" over the ATM network as a data stream to any endpoint attached to the LAN/WAN.

The system shall also provide for Live programming/interactive teleconferencing. Interactive two?way video teleconferencing must be realtime using a portable H.320 encoder/decoder. This self contained portable unit will be mounted on a AV cart and connected to an analog camera and video monitor for two?way interactive video conferencing or just for viewing one way video only. The motion JPEG encoder/encoder shall be connected via multimode fiber to an OC3 port on the ATM network. Because of the need to create a near natural setting for two?way interactive video conferencing the video/audio must be encoded/decoded at a data stream between 10?16 Mb/s/s. Additionally the motion JPEG encoders/decoders must be capable of being connected via scheduling software to an Intelligent multipoint controller (located at the headend) that is connected to the ATM network. The Intelligent Multipoint Controller will allow simultaneous viewing of four (4) separate video endpoints over one data stream providing a quadtrature picture on the video monitor. The Intelligent Multipoint Controller shall also provide for connecting up to 48 endpoints in a continuous presence mode.

A Digital Video Server will be located at the central headend. This video server shall be connected to the ATM network via an OC3 port and have scaleable storage with a minimum of 50 Gbytes at implementation. All video at this time will be encoded and stored as MPEG 1 riles. However, the video server must also support storage of MPEG 2 and motion JPEG files and utilize raid 5 technology. The video server will provide real time/near time access.

Various multi?media services way be scheduled by users and "logged " to a Windows NT Server. A user then accesses and controls the media source at any time within the scheduled time period through the use of a computer running Macintosh client control software that communicates to the server via the data LAN. Local resources refers to resources connected to one server or head end. Remote resources are connected to other servers or head ends in the school district.

Individual systems shall be capable of accessing resources from one another. The systems shall utilize the District's ATM OC3 Intranet video /data network architecture The control portion of the system must be capable of being routed over the Intranet or Internet.

In addition, video to the desktop for each MacIntosh PowerPC will require a connection of 25Mbps over Unshielded Twist Pair. The PowerPC's will need to be connected to a ATM switch which offers support for CBR and VBR classes of service for the transport of video traffic and also supports U?BR for LAN Emulation data transport. This combination allows to ATM switch to function in environments that must combine multimedia traffic with traditional LAN data traffic.