for the OCA Alliance: Bill Scott Bosch Communications Systems

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for the OCA AllianceBill ScottBosch
Communications Systems
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What is OCA?

• Control and monitoring architecture for networked
  media devices
• "Media" audio video
• OCA is not
• A media transport standard
• A device programming model
• A system controller programming model
• A user interface generation architecture
• Target
• Professional applications
• Networks of all sizes, tiny (2 nodes) to huge
  (10k nodes)
• Work with many/most media transport architectures
• Mission-critical applications
• Goal
• Open public standard
• Honored Ancestor
• AES-24

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What is the OCA Alliance?

• Unincorporated alliance of nine companies
• Bosch Communications Systems
• db audiotechnik
• Duran Audio
• LOUD Technologies Inc
• Media Technology Systems

• PreSonus
• Salzbrenner Stagetec Mediagroup
• TC Group
• Yamaha Corporation
• plus 52 Observer members

• Purpose Make OCA an open public control
  standard.
• Plan
• Phase 1
• Produce draft 1.0 of OCA Specification by end of
  April 2012
• Work with a public standards organization for
  formal standardization
• Phase 2
• Incorporate as a trade association
• Support evolution of the standard
• Promote adoption of the standard
• Expand membership

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Alliance Status

• Technical
• Draft 1.0 OCA specification Complete May 15 (2
  weeks late)
• Reference implementation Available in Q4 from
  Bosch Discounted price to members
• Management
• Incorporation Expected complete June 14
• Future membership 8 of 9 founding members
  (including all the large ones) have committed
  expecting 9th as well
• Standards Development Organization Not selected
  yet
• Position
• Trade profile Established growing
• Other comparable open efforts None known

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Alliance Near Future Plans

• Update and Augment OCA technical specifications.
• Begin OCA 2.0 specification work.
• Primary addition VIDEO
• Begin work on recommended practices to support
  the standard.
• First Recommended OCA API
• Enhance public programs.
• Public relations
• Design program
• Tradeshow presence, initially via members' booths
• Education training
• Produce OCA Overview white paper - 10-15 pages
• Launch OCA developer tools discount program for
  members.
• First examples, available 2012 Q4
• Bosch OCA reference implementation - discount for
  full members
• Bosch OCA conformance test tool - free to all
  members
• Create liaison relationships with other trade
  associations.

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OCA Features

• Flexible
• Expandable, evolvable
• Upwards-compatible
• Friendly to proprietary extension (aka "laterally
  compatible")
• Multiple protocol platforms
• Functional
• Full discovery and enumeration feature set
• Full multiple controller support
• Supports control grouping - submastering,
  ganging, etc
• Supports parameter storage - presets, scenes,
  snapshots, etc.
• Supports multiple simultaneous control and media
  transport networks
• Robust
• Fully acknowledged
• Security option (uses TLS in TCP/IP protocol
  version)
• Efficient
• Compact binary protocol data formats (in most
  protocol versions)

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OCA Parts

• Framework (OCF)
• Architectural concepts and mechanisms.
• Device model
• Functional mechanisms
• Class Tree (OCC) Object-oriented definition
  of control monitoring functional repertoire.
• Manager Classes Device housekeeping global
  functions
• Worker Classes Signal processors monitors
• Agent Classes Control monitoring
  modifiers/aggregators
• Protocol Implementations (OCP.1 ... OCP.n)
  OCA will be a family of protocols for different
  contexts.
• OCP.1 for TCP/IP networks
• OCP.2-n TBD, may include USB, XML, ...

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OCA Typical Classes

• Workers
• Actuators
• OcaGain Value
• OcaFilterParametric Frequency, Boost, Shape
• OcaMute Setting Muted Unmuted
• Sensors
• OcaLevelMeter Reading, MeterLaw
• OcaTemperatureSensor Reading
• Blocks
• Agents
• Grouper Sets of Workers
• Library Sets of stored parameter values

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Steps Forward

• The Alliance is seeking a standards development
  partner organization.
• Goal Make OCA an open public standard or
  standards suite.
• The standard will have no proprietary technical
  content.
• Multiple versions of the standard will need to be
  published.
• Alliance version 1.0 draft specification ready
  (nearly) now
• Alliance version 2.0 draft specification targeted
  2013 Q4.
• The Alliance will actively support the
  standardization effort.
• V1.0 documents
• Current drafts are readable and complete, but
  not in standards format or language.
• The Alliance is prepared to provide writers to
  (help) render the documents into the appropriate
  form.
• The hope is for a relatively expeditious process.

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www.oca-alliance.com

• Ms. Tina LipscombOperations Managertina.lipscomb
  _at_oca-alliance.com1 425 870 6574

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OCP.1 - Protocol Context
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Device Model
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OCA Design Goals

• Scalability 2 to 10,000 nodes, possibly over a
  wide geographic area.
• Reliability Loss-free exchange and prompt
  malfunction detection.
• Evolvability Upwards-compatible evolution.
• Multivendor Flexibility Seamless support of
  proprietary extensions.
• High Functionality Support for media devices at
  all levels of complexity.
• Security Optional security features using
  standard exportable algorithms.
• Reliable Firmware Update Failsafe firmware
  updating over the network.
• Full Discovery and Enumeration Capability.
  Ability for controllers to know everything about
  the members of the network.
• Platform Independence No reliance on
  manufacturer-specific technology.
• Efficiency Conservative use of network
  bandwidth and processing power.
• Media Transport Neutrality Ability to be
  integrated with virtually any media transport
  architecture.
• Multiprotocol Capability Ability to be realized
  using various application protocols, to suit
  available networks and platforms.