Volume 8, Issue 3 — March 15, 2016

I have used the watch for making phone calls, sending text messages, calendaring and many more things. A lot of the apps have a long way to go but some of them are pretty impressive for the nascent product. The health applications are pretty impressive already and clearly are continuing to grow. I think Apple has a real opportunity in the health market with the information it is able to gather from the device around your wrist.

And that is the golden key that all marketing and technology firms are interested in, data.

So, how does this affect digital signage? I can envision a couple of ways that digital signage will integrate with wearables in a very short time. One is with the sharing of data. Right now the Apple Watch knows my heart rate at any given time. That means it also knows my resting heartrate, active heart rate and average heart rate. It knows how many steps I take in a day, how much exercise I have done and how often I have stood compared to sat. In conjunction with my iPhone it also knows everywhere I have been. All of this information would be very interesting for drugstores and pharmacies. By walking up to a digital sign and allowing my wearable to share information with it, the sign can point me to specific items (e.g. vitamins, health drinks) that may be of interest to me. If I go into an athletics store, the information on my watch could be shared with the digital sign to point me in the direction of clothes specific to the exercise I like to do. It could also point me in the direction of equipment that may help me with my regular exercising, say a book on proper stretching before running.

Think about wayfinding and appointment at offices. How often have you you walked into an office building and wondered where you are supposed to go? Colleges and Universities try hard to provide wayfinding, but their campuses are so large it is very difficulty. What if you could hold your watch near a digital sign and it read your appointments for that day. Then the sign showed you a map of exactly where you needed to go. That map could then easily be send right to your phone. When you walk into a doctor’s office, you could simply check in by getting close to the digital sign. Heck, at the same time you could share some of the health information that your watch has been tracking.

All of the above examples are what we can do right now with the technology that exists. Think about how this changes and grows as Apple and other competitors begin to develop better products.

There is one major caveat about all of this working as planned. Right now, Apple does not permit developers access to the iWatch NFC radio. There seems to not be a strong reason for Apple to keep this from developers. I would expect that they will begin to see the power that access to the NFC antennae would give developers and how that would drive sales at the App Store, and before too long they will provide this access.

I am a believer in the concept that those of us in the technology field need to be early adopters and tech geeks. We need to understand where technology stands today and where it is moving in the future. If you don’t have a smart watch of any type, now is the time to go get one. The future is moving in that direction!

So, what are the implications of wearables for digital signage and place-based messaging, advertising, or visualization applications where larger displays and video walls are used today? I think the technologies are very complementary.

Watches and wearables are first and foremost instruments. Measurement devices that can be used to monitor and track individually. Secondarily, they take messages from the world and put them on a human scale at an ultimate level of personalization.

Digital displays, especially those in public space, take messages to the world and although they increasingly can be instrumented for measurement of ROI and audience engagement, they are generally designed for more than one person at a time. The combination can be very powerful. Using geofencing or similar technologies, the combination of mobile, wearable, and digital signage technologies can be used to bring the mass message down to the individual and vice versa.

And with the advent of virtual reality and augmented reality technologies, which used to be discreet objects or devices, is now becoming a seamless layer on top of the space. What people call calm technology, ubiquitous computing, and the all-digital-all-the-time movement that is already having an impact on our world.

The PX803UL has a selection of wide-zoom bayonet lenses, an optional ultra-short throw lens, and the option to use third party lenses. The lens options also enable customized installations and easy upgrade of projectors that are already installed. Additional flexibility is made possible due to the option to install in any direction.

The projector has an OPS-input, HDMI-out and the edge-blending capability.

The NEC PX803UL laser projector will be showcased on the NEC Display Solutions stand 4-R24 at the ISE trade fair in Amsterdam, and commercially available from February 2016 onwards. Here are the tech specs.

Navori Labs’ CDN module establishes a connection between QL Professional and Microsoft’s Azure global cloud network. Azure’s open nature and robust backbone is an ideal content delivery network for video, graphics and data across large retail or transit networks, for example, where Navori QL Server distributes targeted content to many locations and displays.

“Integration with Azure will provide the higher capacity required to increase the number of concurrent users supported, and the scale to increase network strength and decrease server load,” said Jerome Moeri, CEO, Navori Labs. “This integration will additionally improve availability of server content and reduce network latency and packet loss, resulting in better quality of service network-wide.”

The QL Load Balancer module ideally pairs with the QL CDN module, though it can be deployed separately as well to manage workload distribution across multiple servers. Useful with both QL Professional on-premise or cloud deployments, QL Load Balancer accelerates response times through efficient distribution of network resources that prevents server capacity exceedances. The result is increased reliability and availability by nature of QL Load Balancer’s redundancy.

Navori Labs will offer QL Load Balancer in several configurations, including a reverse proxy that distributes traffic across many servers; a virtual shared drive, which further enhances storage; and clustered Microsoft SQL databases.

Also new is Navori Labs’ Failover module, which provides the dual benefit of switching between parallel components and/or content streams in the event of system failure or maintenance. This ensures the network remains operational in the case of system upgrades or repairs. Furthermore, QL Failover operates in a modular fashion. In the case of a project requiring upgrades across all network modes, engineers can take one node offline at a time, which supports a seamless network-wide upgrade process without any downtime.

Learn more here.

Videro Compositions can transmit Timecode via the network to the Medialon system for frame-accurate synchronization of Medialon timelines to Videro media playback, which is particularly useful in 4D cinema applications.

MxMVideroMediaPlayer can be downloaded here.

First 4K Keynote

The tour begins with the world’s first keynote focused specifically on 4K. Led by Gary Kayye, founder of rAVe Publications, the session discusses the misinformation about 4K, such as exaggerated specs, compatibility and performance. Kayye teaches how to specify, sell and integrate these systems right the first time with just the facts and shares the top four applications for 4K.

E4 Experience Workshops

Back by popular demand, the E4 Experience workshops allow attendees to roll up their sleeves and get hands-on by participating in two different practical application sessions using the industry’s hottest AV products. Both sessions are worth InfoComm RUs and available multiple times throughout the day:

• Design a Huddle Space: Become part of a team that’s putting the finishing touches on the design for an interactive huddle space. Use tools such as Sharp’s Aquos Board and Barco’s ClickShare to experience how they help share, collaborate and inspire.
• Behind the Scenes: Creating the E4 Digital Signage. Go behind the scenes to learn how digital signage is created for the E4 AV Tour using BrightSign’s BrightAuthor software. Participants will have the opportunity to create and publish their own digital signage.

Educational Courses

By partnering with InfoComm, Almo Pro A/V is able to offer an entire day of CTS-certified courses. The following sessions are available this spring:

• The HDBaseT Installer Expert Program (1.5 RUs)
• Assessing Network Readiness for AV Systems (1.5 RUs)
• The Great Outdoors: High Bright, Outdoor and Weatherized Displays Defined (1 RU)
• Solid State Light Source Technology (1 RU)
• Creative Video Wall Designs (1 RU)
• May the (Work) Force Be With You (Outsourcing to 3rd Party Services) (1 RU)
• Power and Grounding Best Practices (1 RU)
• Dante Audio Networking Fundamentals (1 RU)
• The Indoor LED Explosion is Happening (1 RU)

For complete details on the spring E4 educational sessions, click here.

Exhibition Hall

The E4 exhibit hall continues to grow and this spring will include Almo’s newest manufacturing partners Bose Professional Americas and tvONE. Other exhibitors include ADTI Media, AKG, AMX, Barco, BrightSign, BWG, C2G, Canon, Chief, ClearOne Comprehensive Cable, Da-Lite, dbx, ELO, Epson, Hitachi, InfoComm, JBL, LG, Listen Technologies, NEC, Panasonic, Peerless-AV, Planar, Premier Mounts, QSC, Samsung, SecurityTronix, Sharp, Soundcraft, Tightrope Media, Toshiba, TouchSystems, Tripplite and ZeeVee.

Register here.

Developed in partnership with Thinlabs, the Carousel All-In-One display systems offer what TMS says is a rugged kiosk designed to withstand heavy use in high-traffic locations. Its interactive properties are elevated through 22-inch projective capacitive touch displays with built-in quadcore computing to accelerate content delivery, intelligently organized and delivered on-demand by Carousel’s powerful content playout software.

Systems integrators benefit from the system’s Power over Ethernet (PoE) connectivity, which minimizes wiring and eliminates high-voltage concerns. This simplifies initial deployments, requiring only a low-voltage Ethernet cable to connect the kiosk to the network. Ongoing maintenance is streamlined through hot-swappable motherboards, and a three-year warranty provides additional assurances and protections for customers whether deploying standalone systems or a large network of kiosks.

All the detailed specs are here.

With built-in edge-blending, warping and portrait mode projection with 360 degrees, the Vivitek DU8090Z is a versatile projector, designed for multiple applications. The DU8090Z is native WUXGA (1920×1200) resolution and includes the DLP and BrilliantColor technologies from Texas Instruments. The DU8090Z specs a contrast ratio of 10,000:1.

In addition to the 3D compatibility and a wide range of interchangeable optical lenses, the DU8090Z features a full suite of connectivity options including HDMI 1.4a, DVI-D, component 5BNC, 3G-SDI and HDBaseT interface support for the distribution of HD video contents over a standard CAT5e/6 LAN cable.

Easy to set up and install, the Vivitek DU8090Z has a wide range of interchangeable lenses available to choose from, as well as motorized focus and zoom in addition to horizontal and vertical lens shift for greater installation flexibility and 10 predefined lens positions which are registered in the Lens Position Memory (LPM).

All the specs are here.

The CS782DP provides effortless switching between computers via Remote Port Selector, Hotkeys and Mouse. It also supports 2.1 channel surround sound systems and HD audio for a heightened audio experience. The compact CS782DP is DisplayPort 1.2 compliant and has the added versatility of Multi-Stream Transport (MST) and DisplayPort Dual Mode (DP++) support. These features make multi monitor configurations and the use of DVI and HDMI monitors possible.

Here are all the specs.

• Shuttle DH110: Able to support two independent displays, the DH110’s heatpipe cooling system and smart fan ensures reliably cool performance for long operation. With built-in USB 2.0, RS232/422/485, and PS/2 I/O ports, it has many connectivity options for multiple peripherals and supports two Intel Gigabit LAN ports, for increased installation flexibility in digital signage applications. The DH110 features a 1.3-liter slim design and body thickness of only 43mm with significantly fewer cables and no daughter board. This makes for easy assembly, enhanced thermal efficiency, and system stability due to increased airflow.
• Shuttle DH170­: Made for high-performance vertical markets like digital signage, the new DH170 slim PC has an Intel built-in graphics engine for 4K/Ultra HD video playback. It also supports three independent screen displays via two DisplayPort and one HDMI ports. Only 43-millimeter thick and VESA mountable, the DH170 is easily integrated into diverse business environments, and is approved for 24/7 non-stop operation with high stability.
• Shuttle XH170: Like the DH110, it has a heatpipe cooling system and smart fan, as well as an “Always-on-Jumper” for auto-start after power-fail, and can drive up to three displays at the same time. Its USB 3.0 connectors allow for data transfer of up to 5 Gbit/s (625 MB/s), which enables external devices such as USB hard disks to be connected and run at nearly the same speed as their internal siblings. USB 3.0 is downward compatible so that devices of previous USB generations can also be hooked up.

Shuttle Computer Group offers integrators imaging services and customized BIOS, which provides integrators a way to quicken deployments and reduce costs while maintaining consistency.

All three of them will be here.

Not many specs are available, yet, but we will see it at DSE next week. However, it includes both a USB input as well as wireless WiFI and LTE capability and we hear it has the ability to output both 1080p and 4K video.

Here are the known details, however.

For users who want a simple pathway to more storage, Shuttle’s new DS67U now supports M.2 SSDs and the player supports two discrete displays simultaneously with 1080p resolution. The DS67U has built-in HDMI and DisplayPort, two USB 3.0 ports, and two built-in RS232/RS422/RS485 serial ports. A VESA mount is included. The Shuttle DS67U fanless design operates 24/7 and consumes less than 20W of power at full capacity.

When it’s on Shuttle’s website, it will be here.

The VP500-103 can also accommodate SD, SDHC and MMC memory cards. The VP500-103 supports a variety of file formats including MPEG1 for 480p or 720p video playback as well as MPEG2 for 1080i or 1080p video content. Additionally, the unit offers support for multiple still image formats, including JPG, BMP, PNG and GIF — making it quick and easy to incorporate one’s company or school logo for display purposes. In addition to video content, the VP500-103 can also play audio files, including MPR, WMA and WAV file formats.

The new Altinex VP500-103 is designed for ‘idle image’ playback. Upon power up, the VP500-103 player automatically plays a default track and continuously loops that track until a new track selection is made using the included handheld remote control. The default track loops seamlessly from the end to the beginning without any artifacts in between. This track can be a fixed image (such as a company logo) that is continuously displayed or a video file that plays in a loop. And with its HDMI video output, the VP500-103 provides stunning picture and sound quality over a single cable.

Here are all the specs.

• Membership Committee
  • Len Dudis, Corporate Vice President, IT, Seaworld Parks & Entertainment
  • Sandi Stambaugh, Vice President, Product Management, Synnex Corp.
• Education Committee
  • Paul Fleuranges, Vice President, Corporate Communications, NYC Transit
  • Ryan Cahoy, Managing, Director, Rise
• Advocacy & Outreach Committee
  • Oliver Vagner, Senior Director Data Analytics & Restaurant Solutions, TGI Fridays
  • Brian McClimans, Vice President, Global Business Development, Peerless-AV
• International Committee
  • Jeff Kent, Chief Technology Officer, Cineplex Entertainment
  • Manolo Almagro, Managing Director Digital & Retail Technology, TPN Advertising

Respective committee co-chairs, which represent both end-user and supplier organizations are now expanding these committees for the purpose of attaining a better cross-section of participants to help plan and work toward the organization’s goals for 2016. Each committee may also direct the work of sub-committees for specific projects, to develop advantageous programs for DSF members or recommend policy or other improvements to the board of directors.

To become involved or to find out more about the direction one or more committees will be taking, please contact DSF Executive Director Brian Gorg.

In addition, GDS will be showing a new interactive drive-thru outdoor LCD for the QSR market. The 46” LCD screens creates a camera to camera interaction similar to FaceTime resulting in an improved store/customer connection.

You can see both of them here.

The CL100 features a Quad-Core Intel Celeron N3150 processor with onboard Intel HD Graphics. The system can power three independent displays or accommodate one 4K display and connectivity includes 3x USB 3.0, USB Type C, 2x HDMI, one DisplayPort and a Gb LAN port. The CL100 can be configured with up to 16GB of RAM and is WiFi and Bluetooth capable. Operating system options include both Windows and Ubuntu Linux.

You an see all the specs here.

Anyone can mount a digital sign on a wall, but integrating sign as a design element to enhance the physical environment requires forethought and planning. Architects and interior designers are now proactively working with digital signage technologies to create design statements that communicate a brand’s message or convey a company’s culture by incorporating the signage into the overall design.

Hangouts are 45-minute panel discussions using Google’s Hangout platform with a moderator and a panel of three or four industry professionals.

The panel comprised of Digital Signage professionals who are members of the DSF, will include:

• Hussain Ali, Founder & CEO, Houston Dynamic Displays
• Georgia Reid, Marketing Strategist, Parabit Systems
• (Third Panelist to be Confirmed)

In addition to sharing their thoughts on content trends, the panel may discuss issues such as:

• How digital signage can be used as a design element
• The information an architect needs to plan for the signage
• The information designers need to successfully incorporate digital signage technology
• Use case examples
• Common mistakes and missteps of design collaboration

More information on the April 13 Hangout event or other DSF events can be found on the DSF website here.

The other focus area has been the interest in expanding interactive displays from the classroom to the meeting room. Numerous vendors produce interactive displays aimed at the boardroom, company meeting rooms and huddle spaces. At the ISE (Integrated Systems Europe) exhibition, there was an abundance of examples of how the technology, which is currently in 1 in 4 classrooms, over 10 million across the world, can start to move into companies. The argument has been, for many years that children are taught using advanced interactive display technology. However, when they venture out into the workplace they are faced with paper flipcharts and little interactive technology. The 1 in 4 classrooms with interactive displays compares with 1 in 50 meeting rooms, so the opportunity is enormous.

Many have embedded PCs so they become stand-alone devices, such as the Microsoft Surface Hub that also integrates existing Microsoft platforms such as Office, Skype and One Note. There are many other time-saving features such as Sahara Clevertouch Pro with Clever Share, a USB plug-in module allowing fast connection to a laptop without the need for Wi-Fi or drivers. These products also combine simple video conferencing solutions such as Kickle’s Skype for Business, a video based conferencing solution.

The capability of touch technologies built into IFPDs is changing with the introduction of solutions such as those from ShadowSense and Flat Frog.  Projective Capacitive (PCAP) technology, often found in the mobile device industry, is also starting to appear, Microsoft’s Surface Hub will have PCAP.  Other manufacturers are expected to adopt the technology in the near future.

Schools are choosing larger screen sizes.  In the UK and USA, the bestselling IFPD size is now 60” to 69” but the fastest growing is 70” to 79” which is an ideal size for most classrooms and accounts for 1/5 of the UK school sales and 1/3 of USA. At BETT, there were 18 vendors demonstrating 84” 4K interactive displays. 4K and multi-touch is now standard with most offering ten touch.

This 100+ page report examines the current state of interactive display market across 67 countries, exploring market segmentation, drivers and barriers as well as detailed 5 year forecasts. For more information or to make a purchase, please get in touch with Leon Morris.

Here are all the details.

The LEC-2284’s quad-core or dual-core processing power comes from Intel’s Core i7-4700EQ, Core i5-4400E or Core i3-4102E processor, all three demonstrate significant performance gain over Intel’s 3rd generation Core processors (Core i7-3612QE/3555LE, i5-3610ME and i3-3120ME).

Lanner says the LEC-2284 is aimed at digital signage. In terms of storage and expansion, the LEC-2284 offers dual 2.5″ HDD/SSD drive bays and one mSATA socket; expansion is made possible via the included PCI, PCI Express x8 and mini-PCIe socket with SIM card reader. Furthermore, the LEC-2284’s Industrial design, 9 VDC to 30 VDC input range and -10℃ to 50℃ operating temperature ensure its availability 24/7. Its other notable features include 16GB DDR3L SODIMM memory, dual COM ports, dual serial ports, dual USB 3.0 ports, 4 USB 2.0 ports and wall/VESA/rack mounting options.

Lanner now offers two turnkey video wall solutions incorporating Matrox C-Series multi-display graphics cards. These new systems are designed for HD and 4K digital signage and video walls. Available in configurations designed for up to six displays, the LEC-2284 is available with Matrox C420 or C680 in a pre-tested and certified configuration, and provides maximum power and performance in an Industrial Ruggedized Platform.

Matrox C-Series multi-display graphics cards provide dual-, triple-, quad- and six-display configurations up to 4K and feature 2 GB of on-board memory plus secure mini DisplayPort connectivity. The cards come bundled with Matrox PowerDesk for Windows desktop management software for easy configuration and control of multi-display setups including stretched or independent desktops, clone mode, pivot, bezel management and edge overlap.

Here are all the specs.

DisplayPort is a packet-based, extensible protocol for transporting video and audio data. Initially introduced as a new external interface, its flexibility has enabled its adaptation to embedded displays and incorporation into other connectors like the new reversible USB Type-C interface and Thunderbolt. Its Multi-Stream Transport (MST) capability enables high-resolution support of multiple monitors on a single display interface.

In September 2014, VESA published DP 1.3, which has been the baseline for new system development.  DP 1.3 increased the maximum link bandwidth to 32.4 Gbps, with each of four lanes running at a link rate of 8.1 Gbps/lane, a 50-percent increase over the previous DP 1.2a specification. DP 1.3 added extra protocol flexibility to enable more seamless operation over the USB Type-C connector in the form of the DisplayPort Alt Mode. The increased link rate increased the uncompressed display resolution support up to 5K x 3K (5120×2880), and also upped the MST resolution, enabling simultaneous use of two 4K UHD monitors, each with a pixel resolution of 3840×2160, when using VESA Coordinated Video Timing.

DP 1.4 further builds on the capabilities of the standard’s prior incarnations. The use of video transport compression enhances the ability to take advantage of the USB Type-C connector, enabling both high-definition video and SuperSpeed USB, while also facilitating High Dynamic Range (HDR) and 8K video across the DisplayPort or USB-C connector. Examples of increased display resolution with the new standard include 8Kp60Hz HDR deep color and 4Kp120Hz HDR deep color. Other key new features include:

• Forward Error Correction — FEC, which overlays the DSC 1.2 transport, addresses the transport error resiliency needed for compressed video transport to external displays.
• HDR meta transport — HDR meta transport uses the “secondary data packet” transport inherent in the DisplayPort standard to provide support for the current CTA 861.3 standard, which is useful for DP to
• HDMI 2.0a protocol conversion, among other examples. It also offers a flexible metadata packet transport to support future dynamic HDR standards.
• Expanded audio transport — This spec extension covers capabilities such as 32 audio channels, 1536kHz sample rate, and inclusion of all known audio formats.

Here is the standard.

With one of the highest resolution displays on the market, the FLEXLite NXG is now available in two sizes (500×500 millimeters and 1000×500 millimeters) to meet the demands of any installation or production. Using a die-cast aluminum frame for additional durability, the FLEXLite NXG is also available in 2.6mm-6.25mm pitch options for an even deeper layer of creativity, plus it also includes a 6.25mm full outdoor, IP65 version.

For optimum performance, FLEXLite NXG tiles are calibrated directly out of the box to help decrease any failures in the field and ensure perfect color and brightness. Like all PixelFLEX products, the FLEXLite NXG is built with the demands of the consumer in mind making it ideal for many different applications in either a live production or permanent installation. Preview test modes allow for designers to be confident in the performance of the FLEXLite NXG before full deployment, and with serviceability in mind, easy access to the back of panels allows for quick and simple on-site repairs.

Here are the specs.