HDBaseT


HDBaseT, promoted and advanced by the HDBaseT Alliance, is a consumer electronic and commercial connectivity standard for transmission of uncompressed high-definition video, audio, power, home networking, Ethernet, USB, and some control signals, over a common category cable using the same 8P8C modular connectors used by Ethernet.

History

The HDBaseT Alliance, incorporated on June 14, 2010 by Samsung Electronics, Sony Pictures Entertainment, LG Electronics and Valens, was developed to promote the HDBaseT standard originally created by Valens. The HDBaseT 1.0 specification was also finalized in June 2010.
External accessories, such as dongles, were on the market in 2010 for devices not yet embedded with HDBaseT.
Products were demonstrated at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show.
In mid-2013, the HDBaseT Alliance issued Spec 2.0, an update to the original specification, which enriches the HDBaseT offering to the pro-AV market, and enables a multimedia home connectivity solution. Spec 2.0 specifies the HDBaseT network protocol, defining the required adaptations across all layers of the OSI model, to provide the optimized services for time sensitive applications, such as high throughput video and audio. Spec 2.0 maintains all the features of Spec 1.0, but also adds networking, switching, and control-point capabilities such as flexible and fully utilized mesh topology, distributed routing, and end-to-end error handling, enabling multipoint-to-multipoint connectivity and multistreaming. Spec 2.0 also embeds USB 2.0, enabling touch-screen functionality and keyboard-video-mouse for no-latency transmission of ultra-high-definition audio and video. It also specifies either category cable or fiber as the transmission medium.
In 2014, the IEEE Standards Association announced that it formed a series of P1911 Working groups with the intention of adopting HDBaseT as a new standard. This project ended up being abandoned with it being administratively withdrawn by 2018.
An Internet Protocol version of HDBaseT was demonstrated in 2017.

Features

HDBaseT transmits uncompressed ultra-high-definition video, audio, power, Ethernet, USB, and other control communication over category 5e cable or better up to, using the same 8P8C modular connectors used for Ethernet.
HDBaseT is complementary to standards such as HDMI, and it is an alternative to wireless AV, coaxial cable, composite video, S-Video, SCART, component video, D-Terminal, or VGA. HDBaseT connects and networks CE devices such as set-top boxes, DVD players, Blu-ray Disc players, personal computers, video game consoles, and AV receivers to compatible digital audio devices, computer monitors, and digital televisions.

Video

HDBaseT delivers uncompressed video to a network of devices or as a point-to-point connection. Uncompressed video accurately renders gaming graphics and features such as electronic program guides, and does not degrade video quality or add latency.
It supports TV and PC video formats, including standard, enhanced, high-definition, ultra-HD, and 3D video.
Due to bitrate limitations of 10.2 Gbit/s instead of the required 18 Gbit/s in the HDMI 2.0 specification, HDBaseT 2.0 can only support uncompressed 4K at 30 Hz with 4:4:4 color coding, or 4K at 60 Hz with 4:2:0 color coding, but not the full 60 Hz with 4:4:4 color.

Audio

Audio is a requirement for most consumer electronics devices. Audio is passed through the same media as video, so all standard HDMI formats are supported. However, HDBaseT does not support the Audio Return Channel, a feature found on HDMI 1.4.

Ethernet

HDBaseT supports the 100 Mbit/s version of Ethernet over twisted pair. This can provide Internet access, or enable televisions, stereos, computers and other CE devices to communicate with each other and access multimedia content on the local network. HDBaseT is supported by category cables such as Cat5e, Cat6 and Cat6A copper twisted pair.

Power

Sending power over the same LAN cable gives the option to forgo plugging devices into the wall for power. HDBaseT uses a variation of Power over Ethernet standard called "power over HDBaseT" to provide up to 100W of power to CE devices, such as Blu-ray players, monitors and TVs, and eliminate the need for external power cables. HDBaseT can power remote TVs and other devices up to 100 watts. A 60" TV connected via an HDBaseT-enabled Cat5e/6 cable requires no power source.

Control signals

HDBaseT delivers control signals starting from CEC that operates basic functionality such as power-on, power-off and play/stop, to RS232/USB and IR commands.

Variants and application fields

Audiovisual

Feature attributes of the specification are "5Play feature set, the converged delivery of uncompressed ultra-high-definition digital video and audio, Ethernet, control signals, USB 2.0, and up to 100W of power through a single, 100m/328ft LAN cable."

Automotive

Key parameters of the specification are "6Gbs tunneling of video & data, with native networking capabilities over 15m of a single unshielded twisted-pair cable."

Consumer

This variant of the specification "can distribute audio, video, Ethernet, controls, USB and power over one category cable for 100m/328ft." Depictions do suggest usage in a system with a central media cabinet and a distribution hub. Applications could be home entertainment and media delivery as a hotel service.

Industrial

This setup claims to make "use of a single category cable to meet all of industrial PC requirements, offering video & audio, Ethernet, controls, USB 2.0 and power over 100m/328ft." Further descriptions and depictions indicate the ability of daisy-chaining, usage of fiber optics for length extending, bi-directional tunneled USB connections and KVM-switch functionality that is for example usable for various types of terminal applications.