AirCleaner is the most advanced profanity suppression system on the market. It is housed in a one rack unit chassis and accepts HD and SD video signals along with eight channels of audio, AES or embedded. It offers 12 seconds of delay in HD and 68 seconds in SD. Del Parks, Vice President of Operations and Engineering said:    “The fact that AirCleaner works in SD and HD right out of the box means we don’t have to worry about upgrades later.”

The AirCleaner is unique in that it can be configured as a single- or dual-user system. In dual-user mode, the system is configured as two delay systems connected in series and operated by two people. “This is a very valuable feature, it is just like having two units when you need the extra protection on a high profile show,” says Mr. Parks.

Traditional profanity delay system switch to a safe input when the operator comes across a profanity. A sudden change to the program video actually draws viewer’s attention that something has gone wrong. In addition to switching to a safe feed, the AirCleaner can defocus the program video, masking the profanity without causing an abrupt change. The operator can dial in any amount of defocus, from slight to a complete blur. Mr. Parks concluded, “After evaluating many of the current products on the market, Sinclair felt that the AirCleaner was best suited to our needs and could help us ensure compliance with the FCC indecency standards, particularly in a “live” event where we don’t have an opportunity to pre-screen the content. We are delighted to have bought a good product from a good company and we look forward to working with Abekas into the future.”

About the Product

AirCleaner has two HD/SD SDI inputs and outputs with eight channels of digital audio on each; this can be AES or embedded. AirCleaner uses solid-state RAM for delay memory and comes in two models. Model-1 offers maximum delay time of 68 seconds in SD and 12 seconds in HD. Model-2 offers 34 seconds in SD and 6 seconds in HD. For video, the operator has the choice of an auxiliary safe source, internally generated matte, or the use of a built-in effects engine which allows for the creation of a defocused image to cover up a visual obscenity. For audio, the operator has the choice of an auxiliary input, audio tones, or mute to mask an audio breach. Audio and video delay can be adjusted independently, allowing audio/video sync errors to be corrected. One of AirCleaner’s unique features allows it to be configured as a single delay line being used by one operator or as two discreet delay lines connected in series and controlled by two operators. Another advanced feature of the AirCleaner is that the operators can also program their aural and visual reaction times for added security. When the operator hears or sees a profanity and pushes the button to conceal it, the “reaction time” backs up the point of concealment by the reaction time, making sure nothing unwanted gets on the air.

About Abekas

Abekas, Incorporated (www.abekas.com) is a privately-held company headquartered in Menlo Park, California. Abekas designs, manufactures, sells, and supports a complete line of digital video/audio delay devices, disk recorders, digital special effects and editing tools for use in the worldwide professional television marketplace — encompassing the production, post production, broadcasting and computer video markets.

About Sinclair

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., (www.sbgi.net) one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies, currently owns and operates, programs or provides sales services to 58 television stations in 36 markets. Sinclair's television group reaches approximately 22% of the U.S. television households and is affiliated with all the major networks.

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