June 2007

The new 2012 London Olympics logo has caused a sensation in the British press recently - and it was far from positive. Worryingly, the promotional video for the heavily-criticised logo triggered the largest number of epileptic seizures ever seen in the UK when it was broadcast on TV and the internet - and even affected 'lapsed' epileptics.

When the promo clip, shown on GMTV, was later tested with Cambridge Research Systems' Harding Flash & Pattern Analyser, it was found to contravene industry guidelines on at least 126 frames - showing that automated checking could have prevented this incident.

The Harding Flash & Pattern Analyser is used by many major broadcasters and production houses to analyse TV programmes to check that they comply with international guidelines on flashing and regular patterns. It is currently enjoying worldwide sales.

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Broadcast Live

March 2007

Lilly is already planning her next outing to the bright lights of London. The Broadcast Live exhibition is at Earls Court from 19th – 21st June 2007. In between the partying Lilly will again be answering questions, demonstrating the latest version’s of the Harding FPA software and making sure that broadcasters and editors know how to comply with the OfCOM Guidelines. Come along and say hello!

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Lilly at the Video Forum, London

February 2007

Lilly was very pleased to meet so many old friends and make so many new friends at the Video-Forum exhibition in London in February. It was a very busy time for her, showing all the features of the new V2.5 Harding FPA software, answering questions and discussing all the issues. She took away a lot of ideas for the future so we will all be working hard at CRS to meet her and your demands.

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New version of the Harding FPA released

December 2006

Cambridge Research Systems Ltd. are pleased to announce the release of a new version of the Harding FPA for checking television broadcast material for PSE compliance. The new V2.5 software introduces Field-Level checking and includes SDI as a standard video data feed. Other new features include administrator and user modes, new report formats and embedded PDF reporting. Said Tony Carpenter – CRS’s Harding Systems Sales Manager – “with this new version the Harding FPA becomes the professional's choice for ensuring that their television broadcasts both meet OfCom guidelines and present the least risk to photosensitive members of their audience”.

For more information please contact Tony Carpenter at CRS.

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The Harding FPA at InterBee 2006 Japan

November 2006

In conjunction with Namoto Trading Co. Ltd. our sole agents in Japan, CRS participated in the 2006 InterBee exhibition at the Makuhari Messe exhibition centre in Tokyo. On show was a new version of the Harding FPA software implementing the new Japanese guidelines as outlined in the NAB 2006 Broadcast Standards – Article 61.  This new software, developed specifically for the Japanese broadcast market, takes into consideration the new definitions of luminance flashing including the new 3Hz/5Hz rules and scene changes.

For more information please contact CRS in the UK or the Namato Trading Co Ltd in Japan.

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Lilly at Broadcast Production Show

June 2005

Lilly was delighted to attract so much interest in combating photosensitive epilepsy when she visited the Broadcast Production Show at Earls Court 2, London, on 1st-3rd June 2005.

If you need help to comply with broadcast guidelines, we can't promise to send Lilly, but you can get further information from the HardingFPA Sales Manager, Tony Carpenter.

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Schoolgirl death could have been prevented by HardingFPA

Rochester, Kent 6th April 2005

The National Press recently reported on the tragic death of a twelve-year-old schoolgirl who suffered an epileptic fit thought to be brought on by flickering TV images. The girl was in the house alone after coming home from school. She went to put on a video, was distracted by pictures on TV, had an epileptic fit and fell face-first into a plant pot, dying from suffocation.

Yet her sad death could have been prevented by a revolutionary piece of technology already in use amongst many TV, games and broadcast professionals, according to the UK’s market leader in vision science technology, Cambridge Research Systems.

Rochester based Cambridge Research Systems developed the HardingFPA Broadcast Flash & Pattern Analyser in 2001 in partnership with photosensitive epilepsy expert Professor Graham Harding. The equipment can analyze potentially harmful broadcast material at any stage of the production process and is fast and easy to use. However, many broadcasters and producers of games don’t realise that there are guidelines relating to what they can broadcast, or that there is an internationally recognised standard now available.

“Nicola’s death could have been prevented” said Tom Robson, Cambridge Research Systems managing director. Put simply, the HardingFPA prevents most, but not all, epileptic seizures brought on by bright, flickering TV pictures. The International Telecommunications Union, the body that sets the standards for broadcasting, ratified the ITU guidelines in February 2005. This is important as it now takes the solution worldwide” he said.

Tom Robson stresses the potentially life-saving importance of the HardingFPA: “It is vital that broadcast material complies with the new guidelines as it could save the lives of vulnerable people. The HardingFPA tells you quickly, frame by frame, if any image is likely to contravene the guidelines. The result is that broadcasters enjoy complete editorial control, reducing the risk of programmes being pulled” he said.

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ITU Recommendation

25th February 2005

ITU recommendation ITU-R BT.1702 entitled 'Guidance for the reduction of photosensitive epileptic seizures caused by television' came into effect on 25 February 2005.

There are 189 member states in the ITU and it is now recommended to ensure that programmes broadcast in their respective territories do not pose a threat to photosensitive individuals.

The guidance rules are effectively similar to the ITC/OfCOM Guidelines except that spatial patterns are not currently included. The HardingFPA therefore will accurately check images for compliance at international level.

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Nanotechnology - Small Science, Big Deal

25th February 2005

Nanotechnology - Small Science, Big Deal is the latest exhibition to feature at the Science Museum in South Kensington. On 25 February the exhibition acts as backdrop for Lord Sainsbury, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for State for Science and Innovation as he announces the results of the first ScienceWise grants and also the government's response to the report on Nanotechnologies published by the Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering in July last year.

What's the HardingFPA connection? The FPA was used to safety check various video sequences which appear in the exhibition and CRS are happy to have been able to sponsor the analysis check - particularly since we take pride in being a science-based organisation and number a Fellow of the Royal Society as a founding member of the company.

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