
Dive Into the New Age of NEXTGEN TV
Detailed Seminar Outline
NAB Pilot is sponsoring a 1.5-day seminar presented by Gary Sgrignoli of MSW on ATSC's new ATSC 3.0 NextGen digital television transmission system. This seminar, which is similar in makeup and tone to the original MSW ATSC1 seminar, is aimed at broadcasters, broadcast consultants, equipment manufacturers (commercial, consumer, & test), translator/LPTV operators, FCC engineers, and wireless operators.
The seminar will help develop a fundamental understanding of the ATSC 3.0 Physical Layer (transmission system) as well as provide practical application and implementation ideas. Current highlights of the ATSC 3.0 deployment progress will be briefly discussed as well.
Attendance at this seminar earns one SBE credit towards continuing education and it can facilitate preparation for the SBE ATSC 3.0 Specialist Certification exam.
Questions will be strongly encouraged throughout the 1.5-day presentation (2-hour ATSC3 overview session and a 2-hour Generic Digital Television Fundamentals followed by the next day 8-hour “deep-dive” sessions). A PDF file of all seminar PowerPoint slides (hidden & unhidden) plus a short summary of key system information will be available for download to all registered attendees just prior to the seminar. It is strongly recommended to bring either an electronic version or a paper version of these two documents which will be heavily referenced throughout the seminar. Dress will be casual.
1.
ATSC3 System Overview
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Performance Benefits
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Flexibility and Extensibility
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Key State-of-the-Art Technologies and Applications
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Optional ATSC3 Technologies
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Comparison between ATSC1 and ATSC3
2.
Generic Digital Transmission Fundamentals
3.
ATSC3 Transmission System: Physical Layer Details
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System Architecture
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Data Signal Formats
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Physical Layer Pipe (PLP) Data Streams
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Data Frame Structure and Configurations
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Forward Error Correction, Interleaving, and Constellations
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OFDM Modulation, Pilots, and Guard Intervals
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Expected Performance and Data Capacity versus Robustness Tradeoffs
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Applications such as Fixed, Handheld, and Mobile
4.
ATSC3 Recommended Practices: Mod-Cod Parameter Selection Considerations

Presenter: Gary Sgrignoli
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Gary Sgrignoli received his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. Upon graduation, he joined Zenith Electronics Corporation, where he worked as a design engineer in the Research and Development department for 27 years. In March 2004, Gary set up Sgrignoli Consulting, a DTV-transmission consulting firm, and in April 2005 he merged his practice with those of Bill Meintel (Techware, Inc.) and Dennis Wallace (Wallace and Associates) to create Meintel, Sgrignoli, and Wallace (MSW). Further information can be found at www.MSWdtv.com.
He has worked in the R&D design area on television “ghost” canceling, cable TV scrambling, and cable TV two-way data systems before turning to digital television transmission systems. Since 1991, Gary has been extensively involved in the VSB transmission system design, its prototype implementation, the ATTC lab tests in Alexandria, VA, and both ACATS field tests in Charlotte, NC. He holds 35 U.S. patents.
Gary was involved with the DTV Station Project in Washington DC, helping to develop DTV RF test plans. He has also been involved with numerous television broadcast stations around the country, training them for DTV field testing and data analysis, and participated in numerous DTV over-the-air demonstrations with the Grand Alliance and the ATSC, both in the U.S. and abroad. Gary also participated in the 2009 1-hour educational television program “Receiving Digital Television” that was a joint venture between IEEE and Iowa Public Television.
In addition to publishing technical papers and giving presentations at various conferences, he has held numerous digital VSB transmission system seminars around the country since 1998. Gary was named the 2005 SBE Educator of the year, and has participated in the IEEE’s Distinguished Lecturer program.
He is currently consulting with broadcasters on ATSC3 transmission system physical layer signal design, lab testing, and field testing.
5.
ATSC3 Design Examples and their Performance