Aurora is the automated, scalable file-based QC system that saves media providers time and money by driving efficiency, quality, and cost savings in their workflows. Aurora can be integrated with external workflow management tools in both on-premises and cloud deployments to continuously check, unattended, thousands of hours of content. And now, with the new TekMOS feature, picture quality has never been easier to measure. Unique to Tektronix, the non-reference TekMOS measurement can help you quickly identify content that fails to meet your threshold for acceptable video quality.


Datasheet

Manuals

Comprehensive High-Volume QC Saves You Time & Money

Aurora automates accurate assessments of thousands of hours of file-based assets for quality and compliance. Measurement accuracy and breadth of test coverage improves efficiency and saves costs, by reducing reworks. Aurora provides added levels of confidence to the QC Operations Teams who are responsible for certifying the quality of the exported content. Broad range of tests for video and audio quality and metadata accuracy.

Highlights
  • Ensures regulatory compliance of audio loudness, captions/subtitles, PSE, and more
  • Software predictable and sustained high performance architecture regardless of load
  • Scalable cluster-based solution to efficiently handle high volumes of content

TekMOS Measurement Simplifies Picture Quality Assessment

The TekMOS measurement—unique to Tektronix—is a picture quality scoring system that makes it easy to identify troubled content. TekMOS employs a machine-learning algorithm to create a model from a large set of training images. It then computes scores based on this model without requiring any reference video. The objective TekMOS scores have a very high correlation with the subjective scores gained from visual inspection by human observers.

Highlights
  • Finds both quality issues pervasive throughout the content, and quality issues present for shorter durations within the program
  • Graphical results in the QC report make it easy to visualize the quality scores and determine the reason for low scores (tiling, blurriness, or noise)
  • Provides an overall assessment of content quality without having to look at a long list of individual defects

QC Reports that Highlight What Really Matters

Informative and actionable QC reports provide a concise overview of the picture and audio quality, format and attributes, and any content compliance issues - swiftly identifying problem areas to review and correct.

Highlights
  • Graphical information to quickly assess the problems and rectify root cause
  • Summarized information to highlight the most important elements of the report
  • Quick review via active links that open playback at the precise timecode of each problem

Comprehensive API & Experienced Support Teams

Aurora has a feature rich API for easy integration with workflow orchestration tools. It is the experience of the support team at Tektronix that ensures the integration stands up to real-world complications before and after the system goes live or when you expand to meet new challenges.

Highlights
  • Existing integrations with Dalet, Tedial, SDVI and many others
  • Web Services API with software environments using standard development tools
  • Dedicated support team to quickly help with system configuration or other issues

‘Always On’ Scalable Enterprise Class Software Solution

Aurora is a highly fault tolerant system that scales dynamically to meet demands. As a software-only solution, it can run on any computing platform, on-premises, or in the cloud. Aurora is the trusted solution and delivers 7x24x365 value to many of the largest content providers in the broadcast and delivery industry.

Highlights
  • Fault tolerant cluster configuration that can easily scale
  • Runs directly on physical servers or on virtual machine instances
  • Industry-proven solution has already tested millions of hours of content

Be Confident That Things Are Running Smoothly – 24/7

Aurora has a team of highly skilled software and service engineers to support customers, add new product features that conform to the latest standards, specifications, and workflows.

Highlights
  • Direct customer service portal backed by technical support engineers in around-the-clock time zones
  • Highly responsive to changes in customer workflows
  • Active support of important emerging standards and specifications

Models

Aurora VU Aurora Pro VU
CPU Cores Up to 4 CPU cores per job Unlimited CPU cores per job
Operating System Windows Server 2012 R2 or later
Recommended Hardware Intel Xeon E5 v3 or later CPU, 4 GB RAM per VU
Configure and Quote Configure and Quote
Aurora VU
CPU Cores Up to 4 CPU cores per job
Operating System Windows Server 2012 R2 or later
Recommended Hardware Intel Xeon E5 v3 or later CPU, 4 GB RAM per VU
Configure and Quote
Aurora Pro VU
CPU Cores Unlimited CPU cores per job
Operating System Windows Server 2012 R2 or later
Recommended Hardware Intel Xeon E5 v3 or later CPU, 4 GB RAM per VU
Configure and Quote

Workflows

Standard Templates for Delivery Specifications Compliance

Once mastered and checked, content needs to be re-encoded and packaged to meet delivery compliance with Netflix, iTunes, AS-11 UK DPP, AS-10 PAD, ARD-ZDF, CableLabs, and others. Aurora automates the checking of ready to-be-delivered material and highlights any problems that will result in costly delays caused by package rejection.

Highlights
  • Check for delivery and regulatory compliance issues such as audio loudness, caption presence, and PSE
  • Evaluate quality of the content while testing for format compliance
  • Test common format and packaging issues

OTT Delivery for Video on Demand Assets

An OTT deployment relies on a flawless viewing experience, Aurora will verify the correct encoding of all profiles and that the packaging is error-free and perfectly aligned. Aurora tests the picture quality for each representation, to guarantee that it is acceptable and that the service provider can meet viewer expectations.

Highlights
  • EBP and IDR alignment tests for seamless transition between different representations
  • Support for common OTT formats such as HLS, MPEG-DASH, and Smooth Streaming
  • Single QC report for all video and audio representations and the manifest
  • Perceptual Video Quality tests uncover video encoding issues

Media Operations QC for Broadcast Playout

Aurora provides an efficient means of verifying playout compatibility of content that is received from post-production, advertisers, studios, and other content providers. After checking that the material conforms to the house format, Aurora does a final validation of picture and audio quality prior to playout.

Highlights
  • Check that incoming content meets delivery specs and is ready for transcode or playout
  • Verify that content will playout correctly and be free of errors
  • Check for regulatory compliance and correct the file if necessary
  • Hydra Media Player compliments Aurora with manual spot checks

Post Production Final QC

Aurora automates the final review of finished content in post-production environments, checking for both visible and audible defects and for file package metadata. The easy-to-read QC report provides details for the operator to quickly find areas of concern, saving time previously spent manually searching for defects in the content.

Highlights
  • Test for dropouts, dead pixels, incorrect mattes, audio clicks and pops, audio clipping, and more
  • Companion Hydra Player allows manual QC checking from frame accurate correlated timecode markers provided by the Aurora report
  • Easy to read QC report with thumbnail images and timecodes for detected errors
  • Support for all common mastering and mezzanine formats & resolutions