Harris Corporation (NYSE: HRS) has introduced a new airborne-hardened encoder. This advanced technology more efficiently packages and transmits data and full-motion video (FMV) gathered by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) during military missions.

The Harris AcuityH264 is a compact, versatile HD/SD encoding solution, which meets Motion Imagery Standards Board requirements for airborne applications. It efficiently compresses FMV and attaches mission data — such as telemetry and time of acquisition — that significantly increases the intelligence value of the imagery. State-of-the-art H.264 compression, combined with data standards, ensures interoperability with current and future exploitation systems. The AcuityH264 offers several features currently not available with most other encoders... features for image scaling and cropping of HD video to meet the needs of constrained, low-bandwidth channels — a slice design that enables additional channels of encoding to be easily added, and expansion capabilities for on-board storage of 'mezzanine-quality' video as well as a much higher-fidelity version of the captured video compared to that sent over the channel.

Initially designed for use in military missions, the encoder's broadcast-quality, video-encoding capabilities enable potential application to commercial broadcast markets — where video and data must be transmitted from remote locations and mobile broadcast vehicles.