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Multimedia Platforms: Top Picks for Converged Networking
9/23/2005
Integrated control system manufacturers have long targeted the higher education market as an ideal place to sell large numbers of control processors and expensive touch panels. Several manufacturers have now focused on providing cost-effective solutions to the lowercost segment of the market, which has resulted in control solutions for well under $1,000 per classroom. The user interface can be a set of physical buttons, or can be integrated through the instructor’s PC and monitor, providing a touch-panel-like interface that d'esn’t add costly equipment (or extra footprint) to the teaching lectern.
These are considered converged network systems, rather than merely additional stand-alone products. Using a Web page in place of a touch panel is a cost-effective use of network bandwidth and existing PC infrastructure, and classrooms can be connected back to a central point, and integrated into...
AV resource management systems. Every campus technology department has examples of instructors being unable to use the technology-enabled teaching tools that have been provided for them. Many times, this means dispatching a technician to fix the problem, which occasionally is caused by equipment failure, but more often is the result of user error. Since lost class time is not replaceable, the ability to monitor and prevent equipment failure and to fix user-error problems in real time is extremely valuable.
An AV resource management system ties data from each individual classroom’s control system back to an administrative software tool. The following are some examples of how such a tool can be used:
· Real-time status of all classrooms can be monitored, showing rack power, projector on/off, current selected source, room lighting, and projector lamp hours for each room.
· With such tools, technicians have the ability to change any of these parameters directly over the converged network from a help desk position, without the technician needing to be dispatched to the room.
· User activity can be logged, so that IT/AV staffers can determine whether people actually use (for example), document cameras, and can see how often they are used (and which instructors and departments use them). Log information helps direct better decisions regarding purchase of new or replacement equipment, since priorities can reflect actual usage patterns.
Examples of classroom integratedtechnology systems that tie back to an AV resource management system include AMX (www.amx.com), Crestron (www.crestron.com), Dukane (www.mediaconva.com), Extron (www.extron.com), and SP Controls (www.spcontrols.com).
Classroom video streaming. Storing and distributing video and audio from classrooms can be an effective way to reach students not able to attend in person, and to provide a handy means to review lectures and class sessions. Camera servers permit the transport of video from a classroom to a control room, where video can be monitored and recorded, cameras controlled, and titles added.
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