DigitalSignage Issue 27

Time to Upscale Your Display Samsung’s latest SMART signage innovation, the QMR/QBR Series, provides UHD picture quality along with Samsung’s cutting-edge intelligent UHD up scaling technology.

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D E L L I A T E R T S A F G N I L SEL IREMENTS YOUR REQU TO ED R no two LED O IL TA e so we believe m sa e th is t lly ronmen n provide a fu No retail envi me. Aurora ca sa e ientation th or be , ze to oice of si ch ur displays need yo to ng y talk to lution, cateri lutions. Simpl so g in customised so nt ou m e h, with bespok and pixel pitc ents. em ir qu re t your our team abou

Shaver Shop Innisfree Sportsgirl Adairs City Beach

Contact us for more information www.westan.com.au

CONTENTS ISSUE 27 2020

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

Advertising Office: 0416 230 329 PO Box 6216, Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086

Editorial Office: (03) 5331 4949 PO Box 295, Ballarat, VIC 3353

Editorial Director: Christopher Holder (chris@alchemedia.com.au) Publisher:

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Philip Spencer (philip@alchemedia.com.au) Art Director: Dominic Carey (dominic@alchemedia.com.au) Graphic Design: Daniel Howard (daniel@alchemedia.com.au) Accounts: Jaedd Asthana (jaedd@alchemedia.com.au) Circulation Manager: Sophie Spencer (subscriptions@alchemedia.com.au)

10 COVER STORY 6 What a Stunner!: Ocean Invaders Jellyfish exhibit takes interactivity to new levels.

IN ACTION 10 Signage Oasis: Paradise Casino a signage hotspot.

12 Taking a Peek at Poké: LG signage food change.

14 Grand Entrance: RAC Arena’s foyer signage.

18 Flying High: Istanbul Aiport pushes signage boat out.

20 Showroom Showcase: Mercedes showroom signage extravaganza.

24 Fresh Thinking: Corporate signage goes with the flow.

26 Changed Minds: Brainwaves meet digital art.

COMMENT 34 Mug Punter: Truth in (food) advertising 16 Sound for Signage 4

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Digital Coliseum: Frictionless theatre entry with smart kiosks.

Something Huge Brewing: Moon Dog World makes big screens a priority Wall of Fame: Video wall leads inspiration.

School’s In: Walford School Leverages Apple TVs Force of Nature: Te Papa Museum — Immersive & Interactive.

TECHNOLOGY 30 Audience Intel: Quividi & TechMedia deliver intelligent audience-driven campaigns.

alchemedia publishing pty ltd (ABN: 34 074 431 628) PO Box 295, Ballarat, VIC 3353 info@alchemedia.com.au All material in this magazine is copyright © 2020 Alchemedia Publishing Pty Ltd. The title AV is a registered Trademark.

Apart from any fair dealing permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. The publishers believe all information supplied in this magazine to be correct at the time of publication. They are not in a position to make a guarantee to this effect and accept no liability in the event of any information proving inaccurate. After investigation and to the best of our knowledge and belief, prices, addresses and phone numbers were up to date at the time of publication. It is not possible for the publishers to ensure that advertisements appearing in this publication comply with the Trade Practices Act, 1974. The responsibility is on the person, company or advertising agency submitting or directing the advertisement for publication. The publishers cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions, although every endeavour has been made to ensure complete accuracy. 24/2/20

TechMedia manages and supports thousands of DOOH Smartscreens in high-end malls across Australia & New Zealand

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www.techmedia.com.au Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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What a Stunner!

New jellyfish exhibit takes visitor interactivity to new levels.

Story: Christopher Holder

W

ho’d have thought jellyfish could be quite so mesmerising?

These sea-going invertebrates get a bad rap in Australia, on account of their handy knack of paralysing people. But that’s just the box jellyfish and the man o’ war. There are plenty of loveable, non-lethal jellyfish to get to know, and Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium is doing it best to introduce them to the wider public with a stunning (sorry) new exhibition, called Ocean Invaders.

Making the new exhibit happen is Interactivity.

GO FISH

Interactivity is a regular to these pages, distinguishing itself as unique provider of interactive technology solutions (including animations and media) along with low-tech theming and fabrication.

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You might say that Interactivity’s history, working primarily in public-space kids’ interactive play areas, has all been leading up to this monumental project.

Interactivity not only provided the touch-tech solutions for Ocean Invaders, it took care of everything from the commissioning of the neon signage, the ocean theming (including UV-activated graphics), the lighting, the plasma Edison screens (more on these later), the video interviews and more.

CHUCK A WOBBLY

met with Interactivity’s Technical Manager, Maddi Goricane, a few hours prior the launch party. Speaking of stunned, Maddi could hardly believe the months of work was finally to be revealed to the public. After weeks of round-theclock work on-site, Maddi was attached to the exhibits… blue blubbers, lion’s mane, tiger sea nettle, moon… every species of jellyfish was her favourite!

DigitalSignage

It was Interactivity’s job to ensure those jellyfish remained the stars of the show. But to also provide hands-on enjoyment and information to the visitors.

SCHOOLED

Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium is part of a larger group that encompasses the likes of the London aquarium, and expectations for Ocean Invaders was high. The Ocean Invaders exhibition needed to be utterly world class and has proven to be so.

Visitor numbers are high and Ocean Invaders was an instant school holidays hit, and will no doubt be a crowd favourite for years to come. 

COLOUR & MOVEMENT The Invaders Art Aquarium and interactive wall provides a pitstop for kids at the end of the exhibit, before they head into the back end of the aquarium. Interactivity has mounted touchscreens on the side walls for kids to colour in their favourite jellyfish, and are then invited to take a selfie and submit their creation to the giant interactive wall. Some serious data crunching and network switching ensures the submission is displayed on the interactive wall in around 30 seconds. Naturally the child is lured to the interactive display, powered by three high-brightness Epson laser projectors, where the infrared sensors trigger movement in the content. The floor in front of the sea life interactive projection screen is also interactive — with bio luminescent colour chasing kids’ every move. Again, this is Interactivity’s sweetspot but the animations, and the integration of media from the art kiosks is next level.

IDEA INCUBATOR The Jellyfish Lab not only serves as an incubator but also as a laboratory for marine biologists to get to know their subjects in more intimate ways.

Interactivity conducted video interviews with staff to provide informational content for the lab’s touch tablets. The handheld earpieces are a museum staple sourced from a Berlin-based supplier.

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STING IN THE TALE The Stinger Wall is a non-lethal means by which visitors can better get to know some of planet Earth’s most deadly creatures, such as the man o’ war and box jellyfish. The key interactive tech offering is what Maddi Goricane calls a flat Edison globe.

Maddi and her team researched how to turn a stripped back plasma display into an interactive Edison panel. Only some 5V are applied to the back of the display, so this isn’t hair-raising stuff, but the visual impact is certainly effective, especially when combined with some Tesla cage-style electrical sound effects.

FLOORED BY FISH Interactivity’s stock ’n’ trade is an interactive projection display combining house-generated animations with a infra-red camera for multi-point interactive play. In this case the screen is on the floor covered in perspex; while the ultra short throw Epson projector is under the floor. The display covers the threshold between two parts of the exhibit; a cool, interactive wayfinding device.

BUILT LIKE A TANK Two jellyfish tanks feature a rearprojected backdrop. The display at the back of the tank provide interactive content. The visitor on one tank can raise the temperature of the ocean to see what that does to the jellyfish numbers. The other tank’s backdrop introduces jellyfish predators — sunfish and turtles — in response to visitor interaction with the attendant touch tablet. Interactivity ensured the content wasn’t going to freak out the real-life jelly fish in the tank, or heat from the Epson rear projectors wasn’t going to impact the creatures (no problems, the Epson laser projectors run remarkably cool). Jellyfish don’t have a brain, as such, and remain cheerfully unfazed by all the staring, glass-tapping or animations.

STAYING IN TOUCH The touch tablets are the same as what Interactivity has provided the rest of the aquarium. They’re comparatively compact, something Maddi Goricane prefers: “when you’re interacting with children, especially, you don’t want or need a 55-inch display, there are no advantages. A smaller screen is more approachable.”

Each touch tablet can display information on any number of the featured jellyfish (up to 12 species) along with some wayfinding. The UI was heavily test driven for ease of use as well as robustness.

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See more. Do more.

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www.sharp.net.au Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Signage Oasis Paradise Casino a Signage Hot Spot

In Action

The Paradise Casino is what you might call a true destination.

Situated in the deserts of Arizona, the casino is an entertainment oasis.

A renovation to the main gaming floor saw the installation of a number of large digital screens, video walls, and active ceiling lighting.

The casino engaged I-5 Design Build and Praece Consulting to help them use the technology to create a synchronised and dynamic ambience across the entire gaming floor.

The casino’s wishlist included:

MadisonAV (Spinetix): 1800 00 77 80 or connect@madisonav.com.au

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•

High-impact visual theming integrated with the existing architectural features of the gaming floor

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Easy-to-use and change guest ambience including beach, aquatic, and winter themes

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Dynamic screen content from multiple locations (streaming, pre-programmed animations, and guest messaging)

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Multi-layer screen content for flexible overlay of messaging on top of visuals

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A centralised system that is simple to deploy and control

Active Ceiling Lighting: A structure of highly programmable light fixtures are built into the ceiling structure. Multiple preset videos are used for mapping colours on the light fixtures and for creating the needed ambience at the right moment.

PLAYER ONE I-5 Design Build has plenty of casino design and reno experience under its belt. I-5 also has years of experience relying on Spinetix hardware, so there was no question it would specify HMP media players for the digital signage and active lighting — they’re bullet proof and they’re able to support multi-layer screen content and network control commands.

In total, eight HMPs went into the casino. One player is placed behind each of the seven digital signage displays to control content throughout the gaming floor. In addition, one player controls the dynamic ceiling lighting.

ELEMENTI UI Elementi from Spinetix is fast becoming the digital signage software of choice for creating or pre-programming screen content. The signage consultant on this project, Praece Consulting, used Elementi to help create an easy web-based control interface for the casino. The UI can be accessed on one or multiple devices connected to the casino’s secure local network.

The web-based UI runs on iPads and allows casino staff to

The Reef Bar: Three high-resolution custom-curved LED screens feature an impressive virtual aquarium videowall behind the casino’s bar. The videowall content can be synced with the rest of the displays in the casino and can be changed at a click of a button.

Gaming Floor: Four extra wide upper-wall displays feature themed dynamic content and are flexible enough to individually display different messages at different times. The displays are designed to seamlessly fit within the casino’s décor and reinforce the gaming floor’s overall visual ambience.

conditionally display content and messages at any screen location throughout the gaming floor and control lighting.

The control interface is a simple web page accessed from a browser. It’s stored on one of the Spinetix HMP media players, so there’s no need for a PC server.

JACKPOT Paradise Casino has been radically transformed, in no small part due to the power and ease of use of the Spinetix digital signage systems.

The synchronised theming delivers a major improvement to the visual impact of the gaming floor and a property-wide upgrade to the image of the casino. The combination of the HMP media players and the Elementi control software has allowed the signage to be managed easily from any location. The transformation is undeniable: dynamic and high-impact. 

iPad Web UI: Spinetix’s Elementi software helped create an easy web-based control interface accessed by one or multiple iPads connected to the casino’s LAN.

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Taking a Peek at Poké Sometimes food needs explanation. Finn Poké was glad it did.

In Action

Story: Derek Powell

Jem Jacinto knows the food business. After all, he learned his craft in some of the world’s toughest markets, helping his brother-in-law build the Fig & Olive fine dining chain with restaurants in New York, Chicago, DC and LA. Now that new owners had taken over, he was in Australia, looking for new opportunities.

Having watched Poké Bowl grow from a novelty to become a staple in the US food scene, Jem jumped on the opportunity to bring this concept to Australia and opened his first outlet, Finn Poké, in the heart of Byron Bay. As Jem tells it, Poké originated in Hawaii: “Originally, it was a fisherman’s food. Out on the boats they would cut up some of the fish they’ve caught to have with soy sauce and rice. Then it was popularised in California as ‘Poké Bowl’ by adding other ingredients to the sashimi and the marinade.”

FRESH CONCEPT The menu at the first Finn Poké was fresh, tasty and affordable and capitalised on the region’s great produce and seafood but Poké was brand new to Australia and, early on, customers were wary. The Finn Poké concept allows the customers to build their own meal in a four-step process — or choose among a dozen signature bowl offerings. Once experienced, customers are hooked, but the wide choice could be daunting and getting prospects to take the plunge in the first outlet proved tricky.

LG: www.lg.com.au

“We started with written menus and a board on the street,” Jacinto recalls. “People couldn’t get it. They’d look at it 12

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

and be like ‘ah… too hard’, so they’d move on.” With his second Finn Poké opening soon at Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast Jem knew he had to quickly find a better way to tempt customers to try Poké.

That better way arrived courtesy of old mate Rennie Dolich (now B2B National Manager for LG Electronics). Rennie recognised the text-book case for digital signage, which could illustrate and explain the menu in a way that conventional signage could not. Step-by-step, he explained how LCD signage panels could transform the customer experience - making Jem a passionate convert in the process. Rennie spec’ed LG LCD signage panels front and centre in the new outlet and helped Jem develop a content workflow that told the Poké story and enticed the customers in. Three superbright 700 nit screens above the counter brought the menu choices to life, whilst other screens, flanking the dining area, showed off the colourful signature bowls and explained the product sourcing with a short video.

RAW STATISTICS “In two weeks after the screens were installed we saw a 25 to 30 percent increase in sales,” Jem recalls. “Because they can see what they’re ordering — people get it. And our food is vibrant, our food is photogenic, our food is colourful. I mean it’s gorgeous! The LG screens really help us really portray that, and attract the customers. For me, it’s money well spent and I see the return on investment daily.”

Rennie has used the unique advantages of LG’s panels with

In two weeks after the screens were installed we saw a 25 to 30 percent increase in sales

embedded WebOS to create an architecture that suits Jem’s geographically dispersed stores. “His system is cloud-based, so his designers and PR people can log in and update content from anywhere there’s an internet connection,” Rennie explained. “There’s also software onboard made by LG called Control Plus that allows Jem to manage all 22 panels from his bedroom. He can look at what’s actually playing on, say, the Byron Bay screen, at any time of day or night. He can even do that on his mobile phone, so he can manage each asset remotely.”

BOWLED OVER LG Panels have another advantage that keys in with Finn Poke’s seaside locations. “Conformal coatings are a really big part of these screen’s DNA,” says Dolich. “All the internal electronics have been coated in a special rubberised plastic material so that the screens are not susceptible to dust and moisture and they won’t short out or get rusty on the inside.

So they are designed to be [in tough locations] like the back of a kitchen wall in Byron or Burleigh Heads”.

The digital-led kick-start to the business has seen Finn Poké now expand from Byron and the Gold Coast to outlets at Westfield Pitt Street and Circular Quay in Sydney — with more planned. Digital signage is now integrated into the design concept, with his interior designer Jessica Kim from Studio MKZ now fully on board with the signage strategy. “I was a bit hesitant because there are so many screens in the interior,” Jessica admitted. “But we trusted [Jem] and it turned out great. I mean it just marries everything all together.” 

Grand Entrance RAC Arena upgrades foyer signage with Aurora LED

In Action

Making a grand entrance has always been a high priority for the RAC Arena in Perth.

Readers may recall that back in 2012 the arena launched with an extraordinary, multi-faceted digital signage feature in its foyer, comprising scores of LCD panels. But after that installation had reached its use-by date, management decided it would leverage the versatility and visual impact of large-scale LED to totally reboot its foyer signage.

The replacement LED feature would be designed to hug the architecture of the foyer entrance arches. The RAC Arena team put the job out to tender, with Perth-based integrator, Focus AV, awarded the project.

“We bid on the project after consulting with Aurora Signage about the right spec for the installation,” recalls Focus AV Director, Alan Bird.

“Aurora really came to the party with its superior on-site warranty and keen pricing. I think that really got us over the line.”

Focus AV: focusav.com.au Aurora Signage: aurorasignage.com.au

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HIGH OUTPUT The remarkable new LED feature signage comprises some 312 (500mm x 500mm) Aurora Signage cabinets – a total of 78sqm of 4mm pixel pitch LED. Two VD Wall 4K processors drive the display, taking two 4K outputs from the Media PC of the Arena’s in-house marketing and content team.

The 15,500-cap venue is a thoroughbred sports and concert arena attracting big acts such as Michael Bublé, Fleetwood Mac and more, while the Perth Wildcats basketball team and the Westcoast Fever netball club are also key tenants.

The new LED feature is an instant smash hit.

Perhaps not as experimental as the previous pendant signage feature, the LED wall is already proving to be more versatile and powerful in reinforcing the RAC Arena’s marketing messaging. The messaging includes upcoming events and supporting the venue’s sponsors. The position of the display ensures all patrons are exposed to the content. 

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Technology:

Audio Supercharges Signage Clive O’Brien is co-owner and CEO of EAV Technology, a Melbourne-based distributor of broadcast and AV equipment. Clive has over 50 years experience in the broadcast and AV industries in Australia and founded EAV Technology over 30 years ago with his wife, Barbara Ward. Clive is passionate about providing innovative solutions to the AV and digital signage market in Australia.

Story: Clive O’Brien

‘A

udio and digital signage don’t mix.’ It’s an oft-repeated refrain.

We’ve all heard of stories of how digital signage executions have been ruined by audio. ‘Digital signage isn’t a TV advertisement,’ we’re reminded. This is true but it doesn’t mean we should entirely dispense with the ‘A’ in what is essentially and ‘AV’ production.

AUDIO BREATHES LIFE INTO NIKE SCULPTURE The Beacon is a three-storey sculpture suspended in the atrium of Nike’s newest NYC Flagship. 40 speakers, 29 screens and 70 programmable lights were positioned across the form to create a multimedia spectacle. Parallel (a sound-focused design studio specialising in environmental and interactive sonic experiences) worked alongside the Nike design team with a host of other vendors to create a unified multimedia experience.

If we examine why the ‘audio is digital signage kryptonite’ trope is so prevalent, we see some common denominators.

Endlessly Looping Audio: Clearly this is bad. An endlessly repeated music/voiceover loop gets on anyone’s nerves very quickly. There are unconfirmed reports of employees in one mass convenience store signage rollout, breaking into the ceiling space to rip wires out to make the audio loop stop. Endlessly looping video can be ignored if necessary, but it’s much harder to escape the audio equivalent.

Don’t do it — looping audio should be against the Geneva Convention.

Indiscriminately Used Audio: It’s one thing to learn from mistakes of yore and ensure the audio isn’t endlessly looping but if audio is indiscriminately triggered by any activity, this can quickly become about as annoying as the incessant motionsensor doorbell tone of a 1980s retail outlet. If it’s a museum exhibit then a stock audio response makes sense in the context of providing information but for advertising executions, a generic audio track can easily be a turn-off. Consumers are increasingly expecting something that’s appropriate to their age or gender, if not something entirely customised to their presence.

Non-localised Audio: Spraying sound around is a terrible idea. It might work for inoffensive background music but it’s terrible for effective messaging. This is especially true where you might have a number of digital signage executions in the one area. Having audio from two entirely different installations overlapping is a disaster. What’s more leakage of sound to neighbours (adjacent retailers, staff etc) will quickly drive those people nuts.

Relentlessly Unaltered Audio: An audio track quickly reaches its use-by date. If an audio loop or voiceover message is left unchanged for months it will cease to have any effectiveness. In fact, it’ll get downright annoying.

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Speakers were positioned to play audio across three floors of retail space, amplifying different experiences as you moved around the sculpture. Themes of transmission and data quantification combined with the sounds of sport, NYC, and a variety of featured athlete voices to create a remarkable storytelling platform. Parallel’s custom software and sound design came together, allowing different sounds to move across the form. The overall effect was an immersive spatial audio experience that brought the consumer journey to a whole new level.

Audio Spotlight directional sound technology plays an integral part of the centrepiece attraction.

THE RIGHT TECHNOLOGY

To wrap up: the key to good digital signage audio is for it to be appropriately activated; personalised (as much as possible); to be localised; and to be regularly updated.

If you can do this, research suggests your digital signage execution will be far more effective than using video alone.

Still, in my experience, clients are remarkably reticent to consider audio in their signage installations.

I think mostly this is because of a bad personal experience, negative word of mouth advice, and, lastly, a gap in their knowledge about available technology that can assist with the successfully deploying highly localised sound.

The Audio Spotlight system by US company

Holosonics creates focussed beams of sound by using a narrow beam of ultrasound as a ‘virtual’ sound source. While ultrasound itself is outside the range of human hearing, this innovative technique causes the air itself to change the ultrasound’s ‘shape’ as it travels. This change leads to the creation of clear sound that can be directed to a precise location, with directivity and control far exceeding any traditional loudspeaker. This directional audio technology has been used in the past to reach visitors at museums, trade shows, and many retail environments. 

Pictured: Ravenwood Prison displays protected by Gilkon extra heavy-duty shrouds.

Every display (24-inch – 58-inch) are protected with a custom Gilkon shroud.

Designed & Manufactured in Australia www.gilkon.com.au Sales@gilkon.com.au Tel 02 9914 0900 Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Flying High 1000sqm of Absen LED into the new Istanbul Airport

In Action

Set to become the world’s largest airport, the US$11bn Istanbul Airport will eventually handle up to 200 million passengers a year.

At the heart of the new airport terminal, is the freshly constructed Unifree Duty-Free area, which at 53,000sqm, is the biggest duty-free shopping area in the world – equivalent to nine football fields – and home to 54 brands and 71 retail stores.

Over 1000sqm of Absen LED was used to create a visually striking experience for passengers and advertisers, including a 300m-long curved LED façade that follows the walkway through the duty-free area as well as two 120sqm ceiling-mounted video screens on either end of the terminal.

Absen: absen.com AVD (Absen): avdistributors.com.au

For the 300m-long display, the technology integrator Astel had to install each section in waves, fitting the LED tiles at different angles and using special connectors between the screens. Due to the curved design, the cabinets had to be significantly modified to achieve the desired effect. The curved façade is made of Absen’s N2.5 LED screen, which features a 2.5mm pixel pitch and 1500 nits brightness.

FLIGHT TIME On either end of the duty-free shopping area are two towering 120sqm LED screens that greet passengers as

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they enter their respective departure terminals. The video walls are made of Absen’s N5D Plus displays which feature a 5.2mm pixel pitch and 3500 nits ultra-high brightness to ensure content is clearly visible from afar.

Installing the two giant hanging video walls into the nonstandard architectural design of the new airport brought with it its own technical challenges, recalls Selen Guler Arabaci, business development manager for Absen.

“The ceilings at the airport are not able to take no more than five tonnes of weight so Absen provided the lightest LED tiles available, without compromising the visual performance. Astel also created a lighter bracket to mount the screens from.” she said. “A specially-designed motorised lift was then used to hoist and secure the video walls into position 8m metres above the ground.”

“The LED screens have been in operation since the beginning of the year and we have been extremely pleased with the result”, said Osman Ayhan, Unifree’s IT Director. “The shopfront façades of our Istanbul Airport Duty-Free store in particular, have attracted the most attention of our passengers. Our goal in almost all of these digital applications is to differentiate the shopping experience for our visitors at the airport and make them more enjoyable for them. We believe we have achieved this and made Istanbul airport the destination of choice for travellers.” 

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Showroom Showcase

Interactive digital signage plays a key role in Mercedes-Benz’s new retail corporate identity.

A

gleaming new landmark now graces the Brisbane riverfront at Breakfast Creek. Created as a luxury lifestyle precinct, the anchor tenant will be LSH Auto’s state-of-the-art Mercedes-Benz new car showroom and service centre, the first in Australia to incorporate the brand’s new retail corporate identity. Behind the arresting five-storey glass façade is a retail experience like no other – “a prototype for how the world’s leading luxury car brand believes modern premium automotive retail should be experienced”.

Every aspect of the showroom, the design, layout, lighting, furnishings, and the unique audiovisual experience is closely defined in the MercedesBenz MAR2020 design rules. This new “market architecture” replaces the previous worldwide Auto Haus theme and is highlighted by what are known 20

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

as “stage media walls”. These are dramatic 32:9 format video displays, surrounded by floor to ceiling black glass, which form stunning, ever-changing backdrops to the vehicles on display. Faced with such an extensive audiovisual fit-out – and the need to comply closely with the specifications in MAR2020, builder John Holland called upon consultants InDesign Technologies to design and ultimately manage the complex AV installation.

IDEAS AT THE WALL

The showroom workflow envisioned customer interactions where staff using portable tablets could cast specific content to any of the video display walls while chatting with clients. This might relate to model variants, accessories, colour choices and so on. Seamless integration of customerspecific illustrations onto any display was seen by Mercedes-Benz as key to an enriched, 21st century retail experience.

Story: Derek Powell Photos: Jason Smith Photography

The question for InDesign was how best to enable ad hoc switching from any mobile device to any videowall. Ideally, sales staff should be able to do this from wherever they were, without having to access a touchpanel controller to switch sources.

Initially the AV design saw content sources located in a central rack that were switched then distributed throughout the showroom floors over IP. However, Peter realised that a rethink on this strategy could potentially shave half a million dollars from the burgeoning budget. His distributed strategy placed a Lightware 4x2 mini switcher right at each videowall input. Inputs to the switcher were the Scala players (which provided model-specific branding images in each sales zone) and a Mersive Solstice Pod to which any of the mobile tablets could connect at will. This obviated the need for a centralised rack and video switching system; and a raft of AVoIP or HDBT extenders.

POLL DANCING

CABIN SOUND

Cleverly, the switching could now be automated as Peter explained: “The Crestron central controller polls the switcher at each video wall input every two seconds to check if a mobile device has connected to the local Mersive receiver. With no mobile connection, the videowall will display the brand identity content from the player. Once a salesperson connects to the receiver, the polling detects the new connection and commands the switcher to send the tablet output to the display wall.”

The next question was where to place the speakers that would provide the necessary ambient sound to accompany the video on the screens. Yamaha commercial’s sound range has a couple of products that could be recessed into the narrow space above the glass. The combination of its baby VXS1ML, with its minuscule 1.5-inch full-range driver and the VX3S 3.5-inch subwoofer, were just the right size to be tucked away.

Crucially, the salesperson does not need to access any of the Crestron control screens throughout the building; they simply connect or disconnect using their iPad screen. “The whole idea is we didn’t want touchpanels everywhere,” Peter noted. “We wanted to make it as seamless and as frictionless as possible.”

Interestingly, the showroom devoted to the AMG class vehicles had quite a different look (and specification) from the ultra-smooth feel of the luxury C- and S-class product display areas. Here, the theme is raw and edgy so the videowalls were to be surrounded by a steel mesh and the audio had a lot more punch. The audio for this area was one of the

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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few places where actual products were specified by Mercedes-Benz. Putting some bite into the AMG range video soundtracks were Bose MA-12E speakers together with Bose MB-210 subs.

HITTING THE GO BUTTON

The most challenging aspect of the build, perhaps not surprisingly, proved to be the stage media walls.

The huge black glass sheets framing the videowalls had a clear section that exactly matched the screen size. But the positioning of the monitors behind the glass had to be perfect on all sides. Fitting the huge sheets of glass into position in front of the mounted screens required six strong blokes using special glazier’s suction pads. However, making everything match proved challenging and the glass needed to be removed and re-fitted several times while tiny, incremental adjustments were made to the alignment of the videowall mounts. “We’re talking millimetres but when you’re not millimetre perfect it shows – you can see any gap,” Peter recalled. 

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Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

STAGE MEDIA WALLS

Team Details

Signage Players: Scala software on Lenovo Thinkstation PC HDMI Switches: Lightware MMX4x2-HDMI Monitors: NEC UN551VS Wireless Presenter: Mersive Solstice POD Speakers: Yamaha VXS3S and VXS1ML Amplifiers: Yamaha MA2030A Videowall Mounts: Chief ConnexSys 55 LVS1U-W

InDesign Technologies: Peter Coman Director Gavin Stein Documentation Corporate Initiatives: Simon Whipps National Enterprise Director Tony Luff Project Manager Tyne Ainsley Installation Lead Serkan OzcanControl System Programmer John Holland (Builder): John Magoffin, Services Manager, Building group Developer: LHS Property Australia Andrew Cutter: General Manager Property Development & Operations

AMG SHOWROOM MEDIA WALL Speakers: Bose MA-12EX and MB-210 subwoofers Amplifiers: Bose Powermatch PM4250

BACKGROUND MUSIC SYSTEM Powered Speakers: Soundtube IPD-CM62BGM-WH DSP: Q-SYS Core 500i Distribution: Dante (each speaker is addressable as a separate zone)

“ The dBbox2 stands out as not only being a quick and powerful field tester, but a quality calibration and measuring tool in the same package.

All our key staff have one” — Chris Dodds, Managing Director The P.A. People

The CTP dBbox2 handheld audio test unit now released with V2 software, allowing monitoring, metering and generation of analogue, AES/EBU and SPDIF audio in the field.

“The dBbox2 now forms the backbone of our touring fault finding capability and with so much reliance now on digital systems this box handles everything superbly.

So much so that there is at least one on every single show we put out through the door! ” — Mark ‘Magic’ Ellis-Cope Sound Dept Manager

• The dBbox2 is an invaluable tool for all temporary outside broadcast situations where identification, levels and audio quality tests are needed to ensure the show wiring grid is solid.

• Offers monitoring of analogue mono and stereo, AES/EBU balanced or unbalanced digital audio as well as Midi receiver/ transmitter ID on a pass through.

• The audio generator covers tone, tone sweep as well as glitz and EBU with tone level adjustments and with the inbuilt loudspeaker and microphone many detailed tests are possible.

Contact Us at 03 9489 0010 | sales@eavtech.com.au | www.eavtech.com.au

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Fresh Thinking Signage Goes with the (Tidal) Flow

In Action

The foyer of Freshwater Place has been transformed into a contemporary and inspiring space and is one of the most striking in Melbourne. The use of colour and water in the signage content creates an energy and excitement that can’t help but draw visitors (new and old) into the building. The Digital Artwork Display provides a modern business lounge with state-of-the-art technology and an immersive art experience, where both occupants and visitors can meet and work

ENGIE: engie.com

BIG CANVAS

Siliconcore: siliconcore.com

ENGIE were engaged by JLL property to create the digital artwork display using Siliconcore LED to showcase immersive content and create a high tech but nature-driven aesthetic.

TAG (QSC): (02) 9519 0900 or tag.com.au

The artwork had to encompass functional requirements including, LED video wall display, a display interface unit for image processing, LED time module control and remote monitoring, a digital artwork content playback server capable of the graphics’ intense digital content, and a control interface. The 11m x 3m display’s aspect ratio of 32:9 presented a challenging canvas for content creation.

Crestron: crestron.com.au

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Digital signage has come a long way. Its role as a digital billboard remains important but increasingly digital signage is seen as a way to delight and inspire. The signage installation into this Melbourne commercial building is an amazing example of what’s capable with some imagination and, of course, technical prowess in taking care of a (sub) millimetre perfect installation.

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

NO SIGN IS AN ISLAND The content is an interesting story. It’s produced in real time, responding to waves, tides and currents from an island cluster off the coast of Australia. The content PC reads the tidal information in real time and converts it into the artwork. As the wind blows, waves ripple across the screen and during high tide, the islands are covered with water.

Naturally, the big screen can also play the Melbourne Cup (and the like) when called upon via a digital set-top box. The LED cabinets are mounted onto a custom aluminium-extruded mounting frame to ensure sub-millimetre accuracy required for an extremely flat image without visible cabinet lines.

To support the video art, a sound system with 25 speakers across three separate zones and eight audio channels, allow for optimal tuning and configuration. The audio resides on a QSC DSP platform supporting network audio. Control of the video wall takes place via a Crestron control system with a wireless touch panel that technicians can access from the foyer. All head-end equipment is powered by a 2kW uninterrupted power supply, allowing soft power downs in case of power outages, helping extend the life of the system. 

The new highly-anticipated Philips LED range offers exceptional performance and innovative design features that guarantee easy installation and operation.

FEATURES • Range of pitch sizes: from 1.2mm up to 4.8mm • Choose from a complete kit or a custom configuration • Choice of 27- or 44-inch tiles • Preconfigured kits include: tiles, cables, cable management, cabinets, industry standard controllers and an edge finishing kit • 100% front serviceable • High levels of customer support • Three-year warranty

+61 (0)3 9005 9861 corsairsolutions.com.au Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Changed Minds Dexus Art Installation / Think Piece

In Action

To demonstrate the benefit of an inspiring physical environment to employee wellbeing, workplace specialists Dexus installed ‘Brainwaves’ — open to the public in the lobby of 100 Mount Street, North Sydney.

Users are encouraged to enter the installation and focus on a moment of mindfulness. Using cutting-edge brainwave detection wearables, brain activity is detected and transformed into pulsing and undulating unique artworks on the 16m lobby video wall.

The tech behind Dexus Brainwaves is very impressive too. A modified electroencephalogram (EEG) device reads beta and theta brainwave activity to analyse how focussed someone is.

Changes in brainwaves activity triggers real-time reactions via the artistic visualisation on the lobby screen.

Dexus: www.dexus.com/leasing/ workplace-consulting

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

According to Deloitte, wearables are driving workplace productivity and wellbeing in workplace settings such as health care, retail, travel, financial services, and real estate.

“Importantly, employees are excited about the changes new technology can bring so it’s crucial workplaces are up-to-date and providing the best opportunities for workers,” says Hansen.

“Our focus on providing future workspaces will enable employees to harness the latest technology and trends to help make the most of the time spent at work.”

The Brainwaves art installation also showcases the importance of wellbeing in the workplace.

The installation demonstrates the importance of both technology and wellbeing to the workspaces of the future.

Hansen says: “An inspirational work environment can be a positive catalyst for organisational and cultural innovation and change and has a direct impact on employee wellbeing.”

Mark Hansen, Chief Information Officer at Dexus, explains: “Advancements in technologies such as robotics, the Internet of Things, and augmented and virtual reality, are driving adoption of new technologies in the workplace.”

According to research undertaken by Dexus, more than 70% of office decision makers recognise a great workspace has a positive impact on productivity, job satisfaction, team engagement and culture.

In a recent survey of over 1100 Dexus customers, interest in using new technology in the workplace was extremely strong with the highest interest recorded for wearable technology at 56%, followed by virtual reality at 54% and digital artwork at 52%.

Hansen adds: “As organisations are increasingly focused on the importance of employee wellbeing to business success, they are understanding the benefits to be gained by improving their workspace. The presence of art is one small and easy change an organisation can make.”

Brainwaves combines two of these new technologies in an innovative way, by using wearable technology to create the unique digital artworks.

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WEARABLES EXCITABLES

Other improvements include access to natural light, plants, sleep/relaxation pods, flexible desk design and sit/stand desks and personal workspace temperature control. 

Build a network of any HDMI devices say from 10 sources x 30 screens in a luxury home to 100+ sources x 300+ screens in a casino

go to video distribution “ Myenvironment for 4K �

CEPro Review

NEW 3G+ 767DSS Dante Enhanced Sound System transmitter: adds compatibility with Dante & AES67 audio networks to Ultra HD over IP systems, with separate switching of audio & video.

Drivers:

As used in:

www.avation.com.au

Distributed by Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Digital Coliseum Frictionless Entry Thanks to Smart Kiosks

In Action

It’s rare to see a new theatre being sold so heavily on its technical superiority. There again, the new $100m Coliseum Theatre in West HQ has gone extra hard to impress with its technical credentials.

The new venue on the Rooty Hill club site in Sydney’s West has a suite of capabilities unmatched by any other in the country and will be in demand not just for concerts, theatre and dance but also for all kinds of conventions and events.

It has brought together technologies that until now have been the preserve of tradeshow proofs-of-concept booths.

The Coliseum isn’t actually a standalone theatre. As part of the massive West HQ complex in Rooty Hill, entry is through the main Club entrance and via the extensive new food court. That means that theatre patrons have to sign in, as they would to any registered club.

To avoid potential delays in getting some 2000 theatre patrons quickly and legally signed in before a performance, West HQ have partnered with NEC and Cisco to implement a novel kiosk-based sign-in procedure.

ID SCANS NEC: nec.com.au

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Patrons place their ID (typically a driver’s licence) on the scanning pad at the kiosk. The scanner first verifies your address against the NSW Club rules to check if you live

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

within 5km of the venue and thus would need to be a member. Then, using a built-in camera, the system scans the patron’s face and cross checks with various databases (including a link with the NSW Roads & Maritime Service, the digital driver’s licence issuing authority) to verify that the person at the kiosk matches the photo ID presented.

Testing of the 20 kiosks installed at West HQ by NEC prior to the official opening has seen verification and voucherissuing times as low as nine seconds per person.

Throughout the venue, NEC LED display systems, powered by CiscoVision IPTV, speed patrons on their way by displaying menus, wayfinding, and interactive customer promotions.

Even the now ubiquitous security systems have been made faster and simpler with an intelligent metal detector at the start of the ‘Crystal Bridge’ which gives access to the theatre building from the club complex. Using ferromagnetic detection the Metrasens pillar checks for metal on each person as they pass by. But is smart enough to distinguish between harmless items like keys, phones or even artificial hips – and only issues an alert if it detects items such as guns and knives. 

Something Huge Brewing Moon Dog World makes big screens a priority

A Moon Dog brew is always something special and very often something really quite out of this world. Some 10-plus years ago, when the rest of Australia was beginning to question why they were only drinking ‘a big cold beer’ rather than a beer with some hops and flavour, three Melbourne blokes were taking things way further, experimenting with barrel ageing and exotic flavours. Moon Dog was and is never meant to be a competitor to the huge multinationals but its new brewery HQ in Preston gives the craft brewer some serious capacity.

Moon Dog World is the new retail showcase for the brewer.

It occupies a significant chunk of the factory site in Preston and has a 700+ capacity. It’s quirky, original, and is the perfect way to enjoy some of the most innovative beer flavours going around.

UHD MULTICAST The Moon Dog World AV is based around an Audac background music system a BluStream video-over-IP TV setup and a super-sized Philips LED display in the beer garden.

The BluStream system replaces a conventional MATVstyle setup, offering low-latency BluStream Multicast UHD distribution of HDMI video over a 1GB network switch.

Using lossless compression technology, Multicast delivers HDMI, IR, RS-232 and USB/KVM up to lengths of 100m over a single Cat cable. The beauty of Multicast is its

flexibility and ease of installation — you don’t need any networking smarts.

The venue has six main sources — three Foxtel boxes plus two free-to-air set top boxes, with another source available for Apple TV, Fetch and the like. An additional source is positioned at the bar to accept the HDMI output from a customer’s laptop. The sources feed various screens around the venue — the latest Philips Q Line Commercial 4K displays in 55-, 65- and 75-inch sizes.

In Action

Story: Christopher Holder

PHILIPS LED The Philips LED display in the beer garden is a show stopper. The 137-inch hi-def screen is huge but appropriately enormous given the large area and viewing distances. The image is outstanding and provides a stunning focus on game day.

Moon Dog directors Karl van Buuren and Josh UIljans have been delighted: Karl: The large screen TV in the beer garden really helps us to cater to the big sporting events. Josh and I are big AFL and cricket fans. And even in the Abbotsford Bar, whenever the cricket’s on or finals footy, we’d put on a big party.

Josh: The pleasure of watching live sport in the beer garden on one of the biggest TVs in town is a real delight. The big screen brings people together, it’s a shared experience for 200 people, which is something special. 

Corsair Solutions (Philips LED): (03) 9005 9861 or www.corsairsolutions.com.au Westan (Philips Commercial Displays): 1300 963 963 or www.westan.com.au BluStream: (03) 8691 1999 or www. blustream.com.au Audio Logistics (Audac): www.audiologistics.com.au

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Wall of Fame AV Distributor Drinks Own Champagne

In Action

As a major IT and Pro AV distributor, D&H Distributing is always looking for new tools to help its clients achieve their vision. Its recent move to a new HQ in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was the ideal opportunity to show off, and so a 5x3 panel video wall is now pride-of-place in the lobby. Gefen 4K AV-over-IP was effectively used to deliver customisable, simple, and reliable control of the HD content it presents.

“The video wall is a true showpiece.” said Jason Fregede, Pro AV Solutions Architect for D&H, “We only wanted to showcase brands we carry and trust. It’s an attentiongrabbing installation that also ensures we have access to any kind of visual content we want through a reliable, easy-to-use system. As an authorised distribution partner of Gefen’s video distribution products, we knew that the Gefen 4K AV-over-IP line would be the perfect solution to show our clients that it’s possible for not just us, but them also, to design beautiful, simple-to-operate video walls for different types of applications.”

D&H Distributing: www.dandh.com Amber Technology (Gefen): 1800 251 367 or ambertech.com.au

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Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

The video wall includes 15 NEC (UN4551S) 55-inch ultranarrow bezel display panels in a 5x3 configuration. Using four 4K digital signage players, and content managed by the Lenovo LDS platform, D&H can use the displays in a number of different configurations, with the option to create a 3x3 main display with flanking displays to show supplemental content. This was important, as the video wall’s use cases

vary from day to day with events and meetings that demand different capabilities. The video wall relies on multiple Gefen 4K UHD transmitters and receivers, plus the Gefen Matrix Controller, for scalable configuration and control.

SPECTACULAR SHOWCASE “Norman Yohay from Yohay & Associates was critical in helping us establish this successful relationship with D&H. Once forged, D&H learned that Gefen was capable of creating a spectacular showcase in a permanent, public installation,” said Aaron Hernandez, Director of Gefen’s manafacturer.

“With hundreds of people passing by the video wall every day, and the central role it can play in events and welcoming new partners to the building, it was essential to use an ultrareliable video distribution solution that can be quickly updated and easily controlled.”

Fregede also noted that the Gefen 4K AV over IP solution is one of the simplest to implement, which makes it ideal for integrators and resellers working on their first video wall project or looking to expand into the Pro AV market.

Currently, D&H’s lobby video wall is used to present custom “welcome” or “thank you” slides and videos for guests and vendors, and can also link with the company’s Twitter feed, YouTube channel and other online content sources to display a constant stream of branded content. 

Get Your Own Do you have a professional interest in digital signage? Would you like to secure your own copy of DigitalSignage? It’s easy: log onto our website and register. It’s free.

www.dsmag.com.au

School’s In Carousel The Apple of Walford’s Eye

In Action

Walford Anglican School for Girls, a P-12 school in Adelaide, has deployed Carousel Cloud digital signage software to improve the user experience and streamline costs for campus-wide communications. The deployment includes integration with an existing network of Apple TV devices, taking advantage of Carousel Digital Signage’s industry-first innovation of converting Apple TVs into digital signage players.

Walford operates on an all-Mac computing ecosystem, and had been using a digital signage system based in Windows that they found difficult to configure, manage, and update. “We had many Apple TVs around the school, and wanted to leverage those over purchasing separate digital signage players for each display. That was how we came across Carousel.”

The integration is made possible via a partnership with Jamf, an enterprise management that helps IT departments bring the Apple experience to business, education and government organisations. Walford IT operations manager Kyle Heading had previously integrated Jamf to manage the school’s iPads, Macs and Apple TVs.

Walford: www.walford.com.au Carousel: www.carouselsignage.com

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Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

Walford has since deployed Carousel to some of its Apple TVs via Jamf, leveraging Apple’s Device Enrolment Program (DEP). “We configure them as digital signage players, and once complete they are instantly functional as part of the Carousel Cloud network,” said Kyle. “We can very easily add new players to the network with a Carousel app. It is very user-friendly.”

PULLING CONTENT The Carousel software automatically pulls content from the school’s calendar, including upcoming events, photos, and data from Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology. Most content is targeted, with each educational program receiving content specific to their activities. General-purpose content is distributed to main reception desks.

“The Carousel user interface is very easy to use,” said Kyle.

“We can quickly get clarity on upcoming events, which we find particularly useful. As parents come in and ask ‘What’s on today?’ or, ‘What’s on this week?’ the Carousel network provides them with a quick reminder. Since the system automatically updates, that information is already there for them. We hardly have to do any work.”

Carousel Cloud suits Walford’s needs in various ways beyond the user experience. The biggest impact has been the cost-savings achieved by not requiring standalone digital signage players. Kyle estimates that they saved about $5000 by using their 20 existing Apple TV devices.

Additionally, they save on licensing fees and the cost of dedicated servers for an on-premise system, which would also add to management overhead costs.

Walford anticipates an expansion of the Carousel network as new screens locations are added, and older projection systems are upgraded to flat-panel displays. 

Force of Nature Te Papa Museum’s interactive & immersive environment

The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (Te Papa, for short) is a constantly evolving institution, charged with presenting and exploring the heritage of the nation’s cultures and knowledge of the natural environment. As part of its evolution, the museum has completed a total rebuild of the zone devoted to the natural environment. The new $12m permanent exhibition: Te Taiao | Nature, is the result of a three-year design and build project and is replete with more than three times the audiovisual technology of the old Nature zone.

Te Papa’s in-house technology team designed and installed the innovative audiovisual systems that engage the visitors as they travel through the zone. Audiovisual Manager Andrew Bruce recalled the design process: “What we tend to do is have some real key pieces; or ‘king hit’ pieces, with a real wow factor,” he noted. There’s plenty of wow factor in the exhibits and artefacts themselves: from recreations of extinct birds to a real (pickled) colossal squid and even an immersive earthquake experience – but with a total of 18 high powered laser projectors in the zone, projected images are a key element.”

PROJECTING A LIFE FORCE Just inside the entrance is another of the ‘king hit’ pieces, a four metre high, portrait-format curved screen invites guests to feed their life force or ‘Mauri’ into the exhibition.

As visitors work together by placing their hands on

the carved wooden touchstone, the on-screen content expands and becomes richer and fuller.

As visitors touch the carving, a subwoofer hidden inside vibrates to provide tactile feedback and a backlight illuminates to help them learn how to operate the interactive. There are no buttons apparent on the centrepiece; instead the AV team placed sensors behind tiny holes in the carved surface. Each touch sends UDP commands from a BrightSign player into the computer to manipulate the content. Birds appear in the sky and blue whales are added to the ocean as people working together help rectify the climate.

The massive image is created by a single 10,000-lumen Panasonic projector hidden out of sight above a display cabinet opposite. Altogether, a further seven experiences use projection systems in the Te Taiao | Nature exhibit. All of these projection systems include bespoke and custom designed mounting solutions which include clever access considerations for maintenance of the projectors. 

In Action

Story: Derek Powell

Te Papa: www.tepapa.govt.nz Panasonic: www.panasonic.com.au Midwich (Brightsign): 1300 666 099 or midwich.com.au Photo: Colin McLellan

Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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Comment:

Food Screening Can digital signage lead a move to truth in (food) advertising?

Story: Mug Punter

‘The meal you order may be subject to the following conditions. Choose one of the below.’ a) The chef is going through a particularly messy divorce and doesn’t give a damn about anything.

b) The teenager serving you has absolutely no interest in his job, just wants to be a professional video gamer and picks his nose… a lot. c) The manager has gone down the betting shop again, and the staff have been passing around a joint and doing odd things to the food they find hilarious. d) To cut costs, the chef is using ingredients that were outdated three days ago, but he’s cooking them to death so you’ll never know. e) No one here can actually cook, but we’re expected to try.

T

here’s been an odd trend in recent years for people to post pictures of whatever meal they’re about to consume, like, somehow, we should care. Some responses might be, ‘Looks delicious!!’ (the superfluous use of exclamation marks is rife) or simply, ‘Yum’ perhaps. Deep down in our dark souls we really want to post, ‘For Pete’s sake, get a life. Who gives a damn what you’re eating?’

But for some reason, despite a whole generation, or two, of keyboard warriors, that rarely happens.

Something similar: how often have you jumped into your car with a bag of takeaway food, looked inside, and been so tempted to return to the restaurant and demand, ‘Why doesn’t my meal look even remotely like that?’ while pointing at the menu.

FOOD PHOTOS

Taking photographs of food apparently isn’t easy. It won’t move (yet), won’t get bored and restless, and it won’t bite you, however, it still requires serious skills to get a good picture that will inspire people to eat the stuff. There are experts at food photography. And in many situations the endeavour is to entice punters to eat your stuff, rather than someone else’s.

With modern pixel manipulation, combined with digital signage, there’s no excuse for not presenting what appears to be Michelin three-star grub, even when it’s your bog-standard burger and chips. As long as it’s not (how can we put this delicately?) misrepresentative.

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Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

Mug Punter recently spent a few days and nights at a casino to celebrate a significant birthday, and on the to-do list was a nosh-up at a fancy restaurant.

Being a casino complex, there was digital signage every couple of paces, and much of it extolled the merits of the in-house restaurants that promised ‘cuisine’ (perhaps a bad sign) along with smiling staff, romantic couples, and plates filled with sumptuous food. Suffice it to say, this bombardment of imagery influenced our restaurant choice.

Much later in the evening my wife and I found ourselves fighting over a single piece of broccoli marooned in a splash of HP Sauce. Belatedly we were told it was the main course, and apparently the recipe involved more of a concept than actual ingredients. To be honest, we felt hoodwinked — where was the piles of sumptuous food, the smiling staff, the romantic couples… as advertised on the splendid digital signs?

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

I know the issue of meal-on-the-plate versus meal-on-the-menu won’t be solved overnight, but with digital signage and touchscreen technology there’s no reason why a bit of regulation and reality can’t be introduced into the food promotions biz.

A means by which you can’t really complain, or feel slightly tricked, because an opportunity was provided to see exactly what you’re going to get.

Digital signage inside a restaurant displays, for example, a mouth-watering meal. Being a touchscreen display, a menu can offer a range of choices that represent what you’re really going to get.

f ) None of the above, but we’re not guaranteeing anything.

Selecting any of these menu parameters will alter the digital signage to display the meal appropriately, but be warned: because of those extraordinary photographic skills mentioned earlier, it’ll still look good. Edible, at least. Most of the conditions will alter on a daily basis (apart from the nose-picking thing), but the critical factor is the restaurant has subtly acknowledged things aren’t going to be perfect and you’ve still only yourself to blame, not the cook. And certainly not the menu or the signage.

BEER GOGGLES

On a positive note, the opposite process could be provided as a kind of community service. The digital signage will show a reasonable image of a lamb kebab with cheese, and the five menu choices apply photographic enhancement according to the customer having drunk one pint OF Guinness, two pints of Guinness, three pints of Guinness ... and so on. The image will improve, obviously.

Finally, through 21st century technology, we can ensure the food you see on the menu display, or the image on the digital signage, is what you’ll get on the plate.

Then you can take a picture and post to Facebook to impress 500 of your closest friend.  Mug Punter believes in full disclosure and truth in advertising, as witnessed by his 10 year old LinkedIn profile pic.

Welcome to a World of Interactivity

PROJECT: Ocean Invaders Jellyfish Exhbition CLIENT: Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium LOCATION: Yarra River, Melbourne ENGAGEMENT: To supply, install and integrate all the digital hardware and media, along with the exhibit’s theming.

STUNNING NEW EXHIBIT Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium has launched a brand new jellyfish exhibit powered by Interactivity’s full suite of services, including the design and installation of all the touch tablets, interactive projection walls, interactive jellyfish colouring in stations, the UV-activated wall graphics and more.

Interactivity’s unique range of expertise — from the cutting-edge digital all the way to traditional fabrication methods — meant it was able to meet the complex and demanding needs of the client.

Interactivity Pty Ltd 1300 797 199 www.interactivity.com.au Digital Place-Based Media & Technology

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