[TriEmbed] Project advice: SmartTV hacking
Brian Chamberlain
blchamberlain at gmail.com
Thu Jul 28 08:21:13 CDT 2022
Yeah, I have the same worries. And from the teardown videos I've been
watching on youtube I noticed some custom ASICs in the pixel pipeline.
Given this industry trend overall to move this way there will be almost no
(reasonable) way "tap into" anything that resembles a video feed going
forward. But there's still opportunity here as their camera at TV approach is
very DIY so perhaps I can help them distill that into a more consistent and
scalable solution on their end.
Thanks all for the advice! It was really helpful to get all your views on
this.
-Brian
On Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 3:08 PM Kevin McClaning via TriEmbed <
triembed at triembed.org> wrote:
> I worry that each TV would become its own reverse-engineering adventure,
> due to differing chip sets. Also, the internal chip sets will change as
> time progresses. Even the same model of TV may have an entirely different
> internal structure.
>
> Sorry to say it, but I think their web cam solution is probably the best
> one. Maybe add some 3D printed love to give them more standardized camera
> mounts for the various TVs types. Also, appropriate lenses may allow for
> cameras that don't have to stick out so much from the screen.
>
> The thing you can count on from EVERY TV is that it will display a picture
> and its menus to the user.
>
> K
>
>
> On 7/27/22 14:51, Brian Chamberlain via TriEmbed wrote:
>
> Interesting 🤔 idea. I will ask them if they've looked into it. Thanks!
> -Brian
>
>
> On Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 2:35 PM Trampas Stern <trampas at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> It might be better to look and see if you can capture the frame buffer
>> and send over the network, think remote desktop. I have not looked at the
>> SmartTV API but it might include this capability for app developers.
>>
>> Trampas
>>
>> On Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 2:29 PM Brian Chamberlain via TriEmbed <
>> triembed at triembed.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Scott, Thanks for the advice and suggestions (and very cool
>>> diagram BTW). This client makes media/software for smartTVs. So part of
>>> their development process is that they need to test their content/software
>>> on actual TVs. They have a solution for testing Roku's, AppleTV, game
>>> consoles, etc...since those all have HDMI outputs. But there's a whole list
>>> of major brand TV's and models they want to be able to test in a
>>> similar/consistent way. Their engineering staff is remote so I'm guessing
>>> they'd want to rack and stack these modded TV's somewhere so they can
>>> access the output of the TV via a video stream, controlled by some kind of
>>> IR blaster interface... if that helps paint a better picture.
>>>
>>> So, at this point I'm just putting together the SOW (which would include
>>> some exploratory hands-on TV teardowns and investigation) and requirements
>>> gathering. My gut says that there's probably not some silver bullet
>>> solution. Each of these TV's (and maybe even different revs of the same
>>> models) will have very different internals. So every model/brand would be
>>> it's own research project. But perhaps some have debug/diagnostic outputs
>>> somewhere on the main board? Though that really feels like wishful
>>> thinking. But I am also hoping there's some other entirely sane approach to
>>> this.
>>>
>>> -Brian
>>>
>>>
>>> On Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 12:08 PM Scott Hall <scottghall1 at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Brian,
>>>> This is done all the time in companies, churches and schools for
>>>> "electronic signage". First, with the chipsets used, the rendering of the
>>>> video signals is not in a form that can be 'tapped off' to be able to make
>>>> a transmittable signal, unless the motherboard of the TV is already doing
>>>> that for its own features -- in other words already creating an HDMI output
>>>> port. Essentially what I do when consulting with places is to get an
>>>> external Roku device and forgo the internal "smart" works, then use an HDMI
>>>> distributing amplifier. If you have more than one signal source, like
>>>> cable, Roku, DVD, etc, then an external HDMI switch is used. You chain the
>>>> devices together kind of like this:
>>>>
>>>> Cable ──→╖ ╓───→ TV or Monitor
>>>> ╠══════╗ ╔══════╣
>>>> DVR/Camera──→╢4-to-1║ ║1-to-4╟───→ TV or Monitor
>>>> ║ HDMI ╟───→╢ Dist.║
>>>> DVD Player──→╢Switch║ ║ Amp ╟───→ TV or Monitor
>>>> ╠══════╝ ╚══════╣
>>>> Streaming ──→╜ ╙───→ TV or Monitor
>>>> Device
>>>>
>>>> a sample link for a 4-to-1 HDMI switch:
>>>> https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00OJMAXZ2/ (really a 4-to-2 switch, as it
>>>> has 2 outputs)
>>>>
>>>> a sample link to a 1-to-4 HDMI distribution amp:
>>>> https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0180PPTNO/
>>>>
>>>> link to a review of switches and dist. amps:
>>>> https://www.gearhungry.com/best-hdmi-splitter/
>>>>
>>>> - sgh
>>>>
>>>> On Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 10:50 AM Brian Chamberlain via TriEmbed <
>>>> triembed at triembed.org> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi all, Just wondering if anyone here has any TV hardware reverse
>>>>> engineering experience? I have a client asking if I can pull a usable HDMI
>>>>> signal off of “SmartTVs”. Basically, they want a mirror of what is on the
>>>>> display panel (menus and all). Not just one TV but multiple brands/models.
>>>>>
>>>>> Their current solution is pointing a web cam at the TV from a
>>>>> distance. They’re looking for something more scalable (less space
>>>>> requirements, easier setup, more TV brand selection, etc).
>>>>>
>>>>> My answer to them at this is, “maybe and I’ll look into it”. They seem
>>>>> willing to pay me to do the investigation. Which sounds like fun but I am
>>>>> looking to talk with anyone who might have any experience with this or
>>>>> could point me in the right direction.
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks!
>>>>> --
>>>>> -Brian
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Triangle, NC Embedded Interest Group mailing list
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>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Scott G. Hall
>>>> Raleigh, NC, USA
>>>> scottghall1 at gmail.com
>>>> *Although kindness is rarely a job, no matter what you do it's always
>>>> an option.*
>>>>
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