AJA technology brings to life CuePilot coordination solutions

CuePilot, a developer of studio and portable production planning and execution solutions with media such as LED screens, relies on the AJA I/O technology to coordinate major broadcasts such as the Eurovision Song Contest.

When CuePilot was first launched almost fifteen years ago, it started out as a tool for directors, but quickly evolved into a cross-production solution so that everything from the LED content team to lighting programmers, stage managers or performers could coordinate to create more complex and engaging live shows and TV broadcasts. Available as a portable solution or as an integrated element in the daily production of production companies and broadcasters, CuePilot facilitates the planning, editing and subsequent execution of their live multi-camera shows.

The CuePilot MacBook Pro mobile production kit includes an AJA Io X3 Thunderbolt 3 integrated video I/O box, which provides all the functionality and I/O connectivity your customers need in a small form factor that fits in a 1RU. Allowing users to connect to a laptop via Thunderbolt, Io X3 gives CuePilot customers the video output needed for four CueSreens (a new feature in CuePilot 8), follow the timecode reference to ensure all production elements are synchronized, and RS-422, which allows users to cut over serial for switchers operated via serial.

On the other hand, designed for studio environments and mobile units, the CuePilot production server consists of a Mac Studio, rack-mounted in a three-unit box with an AJA Corvid 44 12G BNC multi-format I/O card, which helps the solution communicate the plans visually to the entire production team. Again, four SDI outputs allow for four different CueScreens, each of which allows for a customized view, helping all elements of the plan communicate easily throughout the production, whether in the production gallery, backstage, or to each camera position. Corvid 44 12G BNC also allows CuePilot to read and sync with external timecode, enabling CuePilot to keep time with the rest of the production and control vision switchers, sending frame-accurate commands to control camera cuts, macros, keys, and more.

Commenting on the use of AJA technology in both solutions, CuePilot specialist Chris Abbott notes, “We’re a small team with a big client base operating around the clock to service clients in multiple time zones, so it’s important that our technology can be easily deployed and will hold up in the field, which made AJA an obvious fit. We also knew the AJA SDK would make it easy to develop both our portable and permanent solutions with the same toolset. The fact that AJA is also awesome about delivering updates that answer shifts in the field also played a role in the decision. I love that AJA kit built for one generation will work in the next, and the SDK is so flexible, which means our solutions can grow with AJA.”