Why Black Box Video?

Why are we called Black Box Video? Well, you would have to start by asking "What is a Black Box?"

According to Wikipedia it is, to quote the following extracts:

Black box is technical jargon for a device or system or object when it is viewed primarily in terms of its input and output characteristics. Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a Black box: a transistor, an algorithm, the internet"

in electronics, a Black Box is a system in which only the input and output characteristics are of interest - without regard to its internal mechanism or structure

and in computer science, Black box testing refers to testing a system without knowledge of its internals

in transportation, a Black box is an informal name for the flight data recorder or cockpit voice recorder used in aircraft, the event recorder in railway equipment or the Event Data Recorder in automobiles "

The concept of inputting a problem and coming out with something that solves the problem electronically has always intrigued Jim. Hence, the name "Black Box" - and the "Video" bit comes from the fact that the problems to be solved involved his career at that time, ie recording stereo sound for video.

In the flight data recorder sense, one of the vital things about the Black box is that it can survive any aircraft crash and still provide the necessary information to allow investigators to analyse the events and cause of the accident.

Voila! Black Box Video was born in 1992. And it is based on a couple of notions as simple as this:

and the need - especially in the filming industry - for equipment to suffer the stresses and strains of being dropped, kicked and stood upon and carry on working regardless.

So, now you now why we are called Black Box Video, as well as the reason why all our units are housed in very sturdy and robust black boxes.

Should you like to read more about the workings of the Black box in an aircraft then look here

This page last updated 01 June 2008