The Open Control Architecture is a system control and monitoring architecture. As such, it does not provide signal transport, but is designed to cooperate with current and future signal transport standards, such as the audio/video bridging (AVB) protocol suite now under development within the IEEE, and the IP-based media transport protocols defined by the IETF.
OCA's intended application is professional media networks. "Media network" means a network that interconnects audio and/or video devices for the purposes of program transport and system control.
The current focus of OCA is on audio systems. However, the orderly expansion of OCA to cover control of video devices will be a straightforward matter.
The OCA definition has three parts:
- An Architectural Framework, designated as OCF. OCF defines the set of structures and mechanisms upon which the rest of OCA rest.
- A Class Structure, designated as OCC. OCC is object-oriented. It is an expandable, evolvable hierarchical structure which defines OCA's repertoire of control functions.
- A suite of Protocol Definitions, which are designated as OCP.1, OCP.2, et cetera. Each protocol definition describes an implementation of OCA for a particular network type. At present, only OCP.1 exists. It describes the implementation of OCA for standard TCP/IP networks. Future protocol definitions will be created for USB and other interconnection methods.
These levels are not protocol layers, but simply sets of specifications upon which other specifications depend.
More details are available in this Introduction to OCA, this Technical Overview, and this PowerPoint Demonstration prepared by the OCA Alliance.
An current overview is also available in this presentation made to PL+S 11 April 2013 (PDF | PPT)
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