NMOS Device Capabilities Control Overview and Demonstration

An overview of the NMOS Device Capabilities Control Suite of specifications and how we remove barriers for simple and seamless integrations. We will explore the control framework and protocol and see them in action in an end-to-end demo. It doesn’t come as a surprise that device capabilities control has always been a hot topic in the hope of enabling simpler and more seamless integrations inside media production facilities. As depicted in layer 3 (Operational Control) of the EBU technology pyramid, it has gained significance at a time when there is a greater desire to make the transition to IP technologies while keeping complexity and integration efforts under control. The NMOS Device Capabilities Control Suite of specifications provides a platform for interoperability inside an open ecosystem powered by modern web technologies. The journey sets out clear convergence points in the modelling language, discoverability, transport, message encoding, and even prepares the ground for identifying common reusable components. We explore the specifications with particular focus on the control framework and protocol and how the architecture enables vendors to implement the protocol once. This allows more focus on modelling the functionality of their device, making interoperability an easy task when adding new exposed features. We touch on why having the platform as a part of the NMOS ecosystem comes with benefits in terms of governance, interoperability testing, security, and openness. We explore some of the technologies involved and how they can enable quicker adoption with implementers having access to a wider pool of developer talent. Finally, we go through an end-to-end demo showcasing a controller and mock node. This demonstrates how without any prior knowledge of the device, the controller can find its control endpoint, establish a session, explore its structure, discover its capabilities and constraints, make changes to its properties, and keep up to date with changes using notifications. With a comprehensive set of public specifications available and a full open-source mock device repository, vendors can start their early implementations with confidence in preparation for future interoperability workshops. It’s rare to be in the right place at the right time, but as shown by the needs of the industry that time is now, and the place is within the open NMOS ecosystem.