NHK shows its latest technology

An exhibition featuring the latest broadcasting equipment and technology opened on Saturday at NHK’s Broadcasting Center in Shibuya, Tokyo.

34 devices developed by the staff of NHK and others are on display at the site.

One item on display is a “balloon camera”, a 5-meter-long airship-shaped balloon equipped with a compact camera to shoot footage from as high as 300 meters above the ground.

The angle of the camera can be adjusted by remote control from side to side and up and down. A mechanism is also installed to prevent the camera from shaking in the wind.

Another showpiece is a power-supply unit to be attached to a robot camera that was developed after the March disaster last year. The unit automatically starts functioning in the event of a power failure and can supply electricity to a camera for more than 3 days.

The exhibition also displays panels showing equipment actually used at NHK’s broadcasting stations, including a device that can create footage at the very moment of an earthquake.