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April 12, 4:36 EST
VICTORIA, British Columbia -- Officials at the Thales Avionics in Montreal recently signed a memorandum of understanding with AVT Audio Visual Telecommunications Corp. to develop a new concept of video security systems for eventual use on commercial aircraft.
The agreement sets the stage for discussions regarding a more cooperative agreement, which will lay the groundwork for a joint development project, AVT officials say. For the proposed project AVT experts will provide Thales Avionics with their video compression technology, VideoCrunch, which will then be integrated into Thales's product.
The new system would integrate a security camera provided by Thales Avionics ? Inflight Systems in Irvine, Calif., and a SATCOM satellite communication system supplied by Thales Avionics. This system will enable operators on the ground to visually monitor the cockpit and other areas of the aircraft while in flight, if the need arises, AVT officials say.
"We identified AVT over a year ago as an potential technology supplier due to its superior video compression technology, and its ability to stream quality real-time video from a mobile environment," says Tom Henderson, vice president of business development at Thales Avionics ? Inflight Systems. "The tragedies on September 11 accelerated our plans to develop products that will enable real-time, on-board video in commercial jets. We are confident that we can map out a development plan with AVT to cooperatively develop a new video security system."
AVT's technology will enable low bit-rate video compression, good quality image resolution, and management of dial-up functions over wireless networks, AVT officials claim. Thales Avionics intends to license and/or purchase AVT's VideoCrunch technology, which through a joint engineering project, will be developed for use on board commercial aircraft, company officials say.
"AVT's technology and video compression expertise complements Thales Avionics' expertise in surveillance and SATCOM systems, providing a great foundation for a technology partnership," says Garry Robb, president and chief executive officer at AVT. "We hope that the memorandum of understanding we have just signed will result in a co-op development agreement to build an in-flight video security system this year. We look forward to partnering with Thales to make commercial flights safer in the future."
Thales Avionics specializes in avionics and cabin electronics and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thales.
AVT produces low-bit rate video and speech compression technology and provides products and technology that can be used to conduct real-time video over existing cellular and satellite wireless networks, AVT officials say. AVT is a technology company that designs and develops wireless audio-visual solutions, based on the industry endorsed, interoperable MPEG-4 standard, company officials say.
For more information on AVT's VideoCrunch technology contact Tanis MacSween by phone at 250-380-9343, by email at tanis@avt.net, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.avt.net.
Military & Aerospace Electronics
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