AVIWEST, a global provider of video contribution systems, announced that Thai Public Broadcasting Service (TPBS) deployed AVIWEST’s RACK180 hybrid contribution video encoder, StreamHub transceivers, and QUAD wideband antennas to improve video quality and lower distribution costs for live, breaking news.

The broadcaster used AVIWEST’s solution for live coverage of the recent high-profile rescue operation involving a youth football team trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand. AVIWEST’s solution was the first wireless camera unit on location, enabling TPBS to broadcast live HD video of the incident over bonded 4G wireless networks, while maintaining exceptional signal quality.

Thanks to AVIWEST SafeStreams technology and an intelligent bonding stack featured in the RACK180 encoder and QUAD Antenna wideband cellular antenna arrays, TPBS can successfully stream live footage of news events, even when network conditions are limited. AVIWEST’s solution resides in the broadcaster’s digital cellular newsgathering van, which was designed by Strong Brothers 1961. Housed in a compact, 1RU rackmount chassis, the RACK180 offers easy integration into newsgathering vehicles.

The RACK180 contribution encoder includes a robust combination of hardware and software, including eight 3G/4G internal modems and two USB interfaces, a built-in Wi-Fi modem, and eight MCX antenna connectors that are used with the QUAD wideband antenna arrays to strengthen the broadcaster’s signal transmission. AVIWEST’s StreamHub enables reception of multiple concurrent incoming streams from the RACK180 and other streaming equipment in a way that is simple and intuitive.