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Make Anything Your Canvas: Projection Mapping Content

Make Anything Your Canvas: Projection Mapping Content

Video appearing on large objects is nothing new. For decades, Times Square in New York has had video monitors on the sides of buildings. What is becoming more common, with the advent of stronger projectors, is making the building itself a screen.

In a process called projection mapping, a 3D model of a building is made, then this model or map is entered into special software that allows video designers to “wrap” images that are projected back onto the original surface. This requires very high resolution, high lumen projectors and often more than one projector to cover a large surface. The result is a stunningly clear image and new levels of creativity.

 

The Disney Way

When it comes to creativity and innovation, the Walt Disney Company often leads the way. We spoke with Chuck Davis, Principal Technical Director at Creative Entertainment for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and he told us that the concept was actually born in Disneyland.

There are three singing statue busts in the Haunted Mansion, which debuted in 1969. Originally the illusion was done by projecting a head shot of the singer that was perfectly cut out to match the surface. Chuck tells us, “Disney pioneered the process of taking specific imagery that is designed to highlight or augment or work with the surface that it’s projected onto. Walt Disney Imagineering has been working on this for a long time.”

 

Let’s Celebrate

Fast Forward to the present and Disneyland’s 60th Anniversary Celebration. The creative team took 18 months to develop a fully immersive outdoor show called “Disneyland Forever”. Davis says, “We wanted to tell the story of what Disneyland was about. We projection mapped on the castle with super high accuracy.” But because of the way Disneyland is laid out, not every guest can see it during the fireworks show, so he tells us that they projection map onto “It’s a Small World” and even the 80 ft high Matterhorn. Davis continues, “We projection mapped the entirety of Main Street. Each block is a 4K shot, so literally Main Street is a 16K video image.”

 

Erik Koehler is the Senior Video Designer for Creative Entertainment at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. He gives us the technical specs on the hardware: “Those are all separate systems and we tried to keep all the pixel densities similar across all the surfaces. It requires three totally different systems with totally different lenses to achieve that.” Koehler tells us that all of the projectors are by Christie (link is external). They chose the Boxer 4K30 for the Matterhorn. There are four Roadster HD20K-J’s to cover the castle. Main Street is longer but the throw is shorter so they use 14 projectors.

 

A Green What?

Both men say they the key to the process is the Hippotizer (link is external) from Green Hippo). This is the processor that seams the images together and software that allows for the creation of 2D images laid over large 3D objects.

Chuck Davis says that there are three ways to think about the process, “We can just project on the object like it’s a flat screen. We put textures and things on there. Second, using the Hippo itself to do shrink wrap, we can take a 2D image, project it onto the model detail and then we can start moving it around.”

Additionally, he says they can add barriers within the animation to make objects appear to follow the building’s exterior. “There’s a scene in the show where balloons start popping up. They are flying in the air and they bounce off the contours. They bounce off a ramp, bounce off the veranda and one hits a little bit of the turret and then flies off into the air.” Davis continues, “The third thing we can do, that people are most amazed by, is that we can animate in 3D on a 3D and it looks like the building is doing something that it can’t do. It looks like it’s getting squashed or blown up or flipping over or doing crazy things. We play with your eye and trick you into believing that these crazy things are happening.”

Erik Koehler designs the systems and he says that the greatest limitation they face is the size of the images and the speed of their processors, “The size of that file is the tricky part. You can’t go too big because then it becomes too burdensome on the video server to playback live.”

 

Look East To The Future

Davis and Koehler say that what we’ve seen at Disneyland is just the beginning. Their team is working on 4K resolution they are moving that way very rapidly. Chuck Davis says, “We’re opening a new park in Shanghai. It features the largest castle ever built. We’re working on a show that will have 18 4K projectors. It’s the largest canvas that we’ve ever projected on in terms of pixels. Green Hippo has never done anything this large and they are the king of the industry.”

Real Mirror-like Interactive Signage

Real Mirror-like Interactive Signage

Elevate your traditional mirror into a futuristic, appealing display that brings a ‘wow’ factor to any customer-facing environment. Samsung’s MLE Series display is a multi-functional hybrid display that adds unparalleled clarity and readily-available information to any mirror setting. The polarized film overlay within MLE displays ensures higher transmittance and reflectance in order to attain a more realistic product view. The MLE Series displays add ambience to any retail setting through a sleek, pristine design. With an embedded proximity sensor, built-in WiFi and integrated Samsung MagicInfo software, MLE displays can be leveraged as an all-in-one retail solution, allowing for the displays to become a valuable tool for driving and managing retail sales.

 

A Captivating Mirror/Signage Hybrid Display

Samsung’s MLE mirror displays create a more engaging and informative customer experience by combining the power and reach of digital signage with the visual clarity of a standard mirror. Featuring high (55 percent) reflectance, the MLE displays clearly portray both real-time mirror imagery and complementary content with minimal visual impairment. Through improved visual accuracy, the MLE display can serve as a valuable sales tool that persuades and informs customers.

Clearer, More Visible Presentation

The unique composition of Samsung’s MLE mirror displays offers consumers a more realistic and complete product view. Featuring a polarized film overlay, the MLE mirror displays deliver superb transmittance (90 percent) and advanced reflectance (55 percent) that reduce visual distraction. As a result, customers can enjoy clearer and more vivid content than standard half-mirror format alternatives offer while simultaneously receiving higher-performing mirror visibility.

Distraction-Free Design

Samsung’s MLE displays elevate the traditional mirror through a bezel-free design that further keeps viewers focused on reflected and shared content rather than on the signage itself. Additionally, this bezel-free composition grants retail owners added flexibility to take their mirror display arrangements even further. Several MLE displays can be combined into unique, video-wall style arrangements without gaps or inconsistencies between screens, generating endless visual possibilities.

Seamless Mirror and Content Transition

As shoppers approach and depart, the MLE displays’ embedded proximity sensor instinctively transitions between traditional promotional signage and a clear mirror. Retailers can set the sensors to activate once motion is detected at one of three distances (0.7m, 1.0m and 1.5m), while also pre-setting the display to shrink (small-image mode) or expand (full-image mode) featured imagery. Users also have the flexibility to set the shape and position of the expanded or contracted content to match specific motions.

Easy Content Control

Enjoy the versatility of expanded connectivity to mobile devices, from easy media sharing and screen control to simple content mirroring from a tablet or mobile phone to your display. With Samsung MagicInfo content management software, selecting and scheduling software is simple to control with either an RS232 or LAN/WiFi connection.

Powerful System-on-Chip Performance With a Quad Core CPU

Powered by a System-on-Chip (SoC) semiconductor and quad core CPU with 8GB of storage, Samsung’s SMART Signage Platform is an open and integrated player side media platform that provides a powerful, streamlined solution to reduce TCO for digital signage deployments, through savings in hardware, installation and operating costs

Enhanced Connectivity Options

2 USB, DVI, DP, HDMI, Component and Composite inputs provide enhanced connectivity to meet your business’ digital signage needs.

Samsung’s Revolutionary New Digital Display Product Range

At ISE 2016, Samsung showcased a wide range of future-focused technologies, including the industry’s slimmest video wall, fine pixel-pitch LED signage, interactive mirror display and transparent OLED display.

Check out the video above for more information.

ZTE has Turned its Smart Projector into a Full-Fledged Tablet

ZTE has Turned its Smart Projector into a Full-Fledged Tablet

ZTE’s Spro line of mini smart projectors have always been curiosities. Combining the functions of a smartphone, projector, mobile hotspot, and USB battery into one chunky device, the Spro (pronounced “ess-pro”) units have always seemed like an interesting idea, but with really niche use cases. Still, ZTE has had success with two generations of the Spro, and its latest model, the Spro Plus, takes its crazy combination device ideas further than ever.

The Spro Plus is bigger and more powerful than its predecessors, with an 8.4-inch, 2560 x 1600 pixel Super AMOLED display, making it more of a tablet-sized device than the earlier versions. It’s powered by a Snapdragon 801 or 625 processor, comes in both Wi-Fi and LTE variants with support for VoLTE, and runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Its projector is a 500 lumens, WXGA resolution laser unit, which is more than twice as bright as the projector in the Spro 2. The Spro Plus also has video conferencing capability with an external camera and two four watt JBL speakers. All of this is housed in a frame that’s significantly thinner than the Spro 2 and is powered by an enormous 12,100mAh battery. ZTE says that’s good enough for at least four hours of streaming video projected on a wall.

ZTE really wants the Spro Plus to be “second most used device after your smartphone”, which helps explain why it’s tried to cram so many features into the box. But while the Spro Plus definitely looks cooler and can do more than the Spro models before it, we’ll have to see if anyone outside of a traveling salesperson bites on ZTE’s offer when it hits stores this summer for a to-be-announced price.

MICKEYPHON Kinetic Audio Visual Installation Inspired By Mickey Mouse

panGenerator based in Poland have created a new kinetic audio video sculpture for Disney that takes the form of a Mickey Mouse inspired installation, which can be seen in action in the video embedded below.

Named the MICKEYPHON the installation has been created to listen for sounds in its surroundings and will then rotate into the direction. It then samples them to create and playback rhythmic patterns based upon the sound that it has heard.

Its developers explain a little more about the inspiration and functionality of this very unique interactive kinetic installation.

The visuals displayed on the custom cylindrical RGB LED matrix are audio-reactive, tightly integrated with the music output of the installation. The piece invites both children and adults to experiment with creating sounds using their voices,
clapping their hands or using the provided instruments and observe their influence on the kinetic, visual and audiatory output of the sculpture.

MICKEYPHON-1

Jump over to the panGenerator website for more projects created by the team and more details about the MICKEYPHON which was inspired by Mickey Mouse and created for Disney.

Interactive Floor Projection – Water Effect

Motion interactive floor and wall projection systems are ever increasing in their popularity. Here’s a clip of one of our all-time favourite interactive floor effects – “Motion Water.”

Featuring your official company logo/imagery, your customers can engage and interact with a fully-responsive water-space as ripples emerge when the projection service is interacted with.

To learn more about our motion interactive floor and wall projection systems, click here.

10 Ways to Show Your iPad on a Projector Screen

10 Ways to Show Your iPad on a Projector Screen

Projecting your iPad on a large screen is great for demonstrations, simulations, explanations, and showing examples. There are several ways this can be done in the classroom. Scroll to the end of this post for a comparison chart.

If you don’t mind keeping your iPad in one spot, then a VGA adapter (for 30-pin Dock connector or for Lightning connector). Apple has made four types of adapters – determine which one you need. Or, a document or USB camera might work for you.

If you want to wirelessly transmit your device’s screen and audio so that you or your students can walk around the room, then it gets more complicated. You’ll tap into Apple’s AirPlay feature that is built into all iPad 2s and newer, including iPad mini. AirPlay works over Wi-Fi and requires all devices using it to be on the same network (unless you’re using the newest Apple TV and iOS 8–then you can use a peer-to-peer connection or if you’re using Mirroring360).

Apple TV is a small black box that can connect to a projector. iPad can mirror wirelessly to Apple TV using AirPlay. Apple TV only outputs HDMI. Your projector might not have HDMI input. If that’s the case, you’ll need an HDMI to VGA adapter like the Kanex ATVPRO. Read more about Apple TV in classrooms.

If you already have a computer connected to your projector, you should look into using software to turn that Mac or Windows PC into an AirPlay receiver. You can download and try for free AirServer, Annotate Mirror Client, iToolsMirroring360Reflector 2, or X-Mirage. The software runs on your computer and allows devices to mirror iPad to the computer screen. Since the computer is connected to a projector, then the iPad shows on the projector. I’ve written lots more about both AirServer and Reflector.

In my visits to various schools, I’d say that Apple TV, AirServer, Reflector, and X-Mirage work about 50% of the time. That’s because AirPlay requires the device and the computer or Apple TV to be on the same network (unless you’re using the newest Apple TV and iOS 8). Often schools have different networks for mobile devices and for PCs so AirPlay won’t work. Also, AirPlay requires specific ports to be open on the network for Bonjour (and frequently they are not configured to be open).

Mirroring360 has a feature called Mirroring Assist. It can work without the need to open ports for Bonjour. That means Mirroring360 can work on your school’s network, even when other AirPlay solutions do not. Another feature of Mirroring Assist is the option to turn off the broadcasting of your computer on AirPlay. Instead, devices can be paired with your Mac or PC via a QR code. This is a very welcome feature in schools with long lists of computers under the AirPlay menu.

Even if your network allows for AirPlay connections, it also needs to be reliable. Many teachers experience slow and dropped AirPlay connections, which can make mirroring a frustrating experience. It’s a good thing there are free trials of each of the software mirroring solutions so you can test your school’s setup before purchasing.

If your Wi-Fi network won’t cooperate with AirPlay, you should check out iTools. It’s free software for Windows PCs that will mirror to a computer using your device’s charge/sync cable. iTools Live Desktop feature is buggy and might not work on your computer, and there is no help documentation.

After upgrading to to OS X 10.10 Yosemite, Mac users can mirror their iPad’s screen using a Lightning cable. iPad will show up as a camera source in QuickTime.

DocCam.001-001.jpg

When you mirror your screen, it’s a great opportunity to use your iPad as a document camera! You’ll want to buy or rig up some sort of stand to use iPad as a visualizer. I wrote about the Justand v2 and other options in this post, including apps that let you draw and annotate over the image.

I maintain a chart that compares the methods of displaying iPad’s screen on a projector. Click the image below to download the PDF.

*article courtesy of Learning Hand with Tony Vincent*

The Juno Hearing Augmentation and Assistance System – A Student Report

What students hear isn’t always clear. Recent studies show that most students miss at least 25% of what their teachers say. So if we want our kids to learn, we have to make it easier for them to listen.

FrontRow Active Learning Systems compensate for these problems, gently amplifying and clarifying teachers’ and students’ voices, essentially giving every student a front row seat.

In this video, Ms. Free’s class demonstrates the use of the Juno system in a practical, day-to-day teaching environment.

Come experience the true clarity of FrontRow.

Interactive Display Market Worth $15 Billion by 2020

Interactive Display Market Worth $15 Billion by 2020

According to a new market research report “Interactive Display Market by Product (Interactive Kiosk, Whiteboard, Table, Video Wall, Monitor), Application (Retail, Education, Healthcare, Entertainment), Panel-Size (17″ – 32″, 32″- 65″, Above 65″), & Geography – Global Forecast to 2020″, published by MarketsandMarkets, the total interactive display market is expected to reach $14,964.5 Million by 2020, at a CAGR of 12% between 2015 and 2020.

The Interactive Display Market is expected to exhibit high growth in the next five years. There is growing adoption of interactive displays in applications such as retail, hospitality, industrial, healthcare, government/corporate, transportation, education, entertainment, and other applications. The other applications such as residential and, military & defense are using interactive displays to train their personnel.

This report provides a detailed analysis of the overall interactive display market and segments the same on the basis of on product, application, panel size, and geography.

The objective of the research study was to analyze the market trends for each of the industries, growth rates of the various applications (retail, hospitality, industrial, healthcare, government/corporate, transportation, education, entertainment, and others) and the demand comparison of the products in the interactive display market such as interactive kiosks, interactive whiteboards, interactive tables, interactive video walls, and interactive monitors.

Apart from the market segmentation, the report also covers the Porter’s five forces analysis, the market’s value chain with a detailed process flow diagram, and the market dynamics such as drivers, restraints, and opportunities in the overall interactive display market.

This report profiles all major companies involved in the interactive display market such as Samsung Display Co., Ltd. (South Korea), LG Display Co., Ltd. (South Korea), NEC Display Solutions Ltd. (Japan), Elo Touch Solutions, Inc. (U.S.), Planar Systems, Inc. (U.S.), Horizon Display (U.S.), GestureTek, Inc. (Canada), GDS Holdings S.r.l. (Italy), Interactive Touchscreen Solutions, Inc. (U.S.), and Crystal Display Systems (England).

MarketsandMarkets also has a new study, detailing how the global digital signage market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.18% between 2015 and 2020, from $14.63 Billion in 2014 to $23.76 Billion in 2020. This report on global market analyzes the digital signage value chain, giving a clear insight into all the major and supporting segments of the industry. The market has been segmented on the basis of type, application, and major geographies (North America, Europe, APAC, and RoW). This report also evaluates market trends and technologies and market dynamics such as drivers, restraints, and opportunities along with the industry’s challenges.

The global market report profiles some of the key technological developments in the recent times. It also profiles some of the leading players in these markets and analyzes their key strategies. The competitive landscape section of the report provides a clear insight into the market share analysis of key industry players.

The major players in global digital signage market include, according to these reports, NEC Display Solutions (Japan), Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (South Korea), LG Display Co., Ltd. (South Korea), Sharp Corporation (Japan), Sony Corporation (Japan), Panasonic Corporation (Japan), AU Optronics Corp. (Taiwan.), Planar Systems, Inc. (U.S.), Adflow Networks (Canada), and Omnivex Corporation (Canada).

View our new 2024 product & solutions catalogue!