Interactive Market Wall.

Universities are always looking for new ways to engage students and to create a fun learning environment.

Business School Finance Labs are a specialty of ours, and over the past 2 years we have worked with several schools to design an interactive video wall that provides a way for professors to quickly reference trading activity across a variety of markets.

The following is a short 60 second video clip showing how a user can touch the screen to get different charts, news, and information for key market instruments.

Polymer Vision drops the ball on its flexible display, literally.

Flexible displays may well be the future, but it's not hard to see that they won't truly be practical unless they're also as durable as they are flexible. Polymer Vision is well aware of that fact, of course, and it's now gone to some "extreme" lengths to demonstrate the progress it's made on that front. See the results for yourself in the video.

Scan the world mit junaio 3.0.

Bron; www.invidis.de
Der Augmented Reality-Spezialist Metaio bringt eine neue Version seines Browsers junaio auf den Markt. Neu ist die Scan the World-Funktion, die es Nutzern ermöglicht, Bilder, QR-Codes oder Strichcodes auf Verpackungen mit der Kamera zu scannen, um Zusatzinformationen zu erhalten.
Möglich sind Produktbeschreibungen, Links zu Shops oder Rezeptdatenbanken, aber auch Bedienungsanleitungen oder Videoclips. “ “Wir nutzen die Objekte um uns herum als Trigger, um digitale Inhalte abzurufen. Einfach die Kamera darauf halten und scannen. Ein berühmtes Gemälde im Museum kann dem Betrachter ein Video über die Entstehung anzeigen. Oder über eine Müslischachtel können Kinder ein AR-Game starten“, erklärt Peter Meier, CTO von Metaio. “Wir nutzen die alltäglichen Gegenstände um uns herum als Marker, um virtuelle Informationen zu erhalten.“

Wenn junaio zum Beispiel einen Barcode erkennt, kombiniert der Browser Informationen von verschiedenen Partnerplattformen, um nützliche Verbraucherinformationen eines bestimmten Produktes anzubieten. Manche davon führen auf eine Website, eine Shopping Microsite oder zu anderen relevanten Datenquellen. Bei Nahrungsmitteln ist sogar möglich, nacheinander verschiedene Produkte mit Barcode aus dem Kühlschrank zu scannen, vielleicht noch einige andere Suchbegriffe wie “Tomaten oder Zwiebeln hinzuzufügen und ein Rezept für diese Kombination von Zutaten zu erhalten. Dieses Angebot soll in den kommenden Monaten noch erweitert werden.

Die Scan-Funktion steht ab sofort auch externen Entwicklern zur Verfügung. Marketer, Kreative und Werbungtreibende könnten ihre Zielgruppen mit Augmented-Reality-Inhalten ansprechen oder analog zu existierenden Scanner-Apps Zusatzinformationen anbieten.

Reisburo van de toekomst.

Bron www.invidis.de
Das Touristikunternehmen TVG Touristik Vertriebsgesellschaft hat für sein digitales Medienkonzept „Reisebüro der Zukunft“ den ersten Preis der POPAI Awards 2011 erhalten. Wesentlicher Bestandteil des zukunftsorientierten Projekts bildet der Themenbereich Digital Signage, für den das Ahrensburger Unternehmen Nordldand systems als Generalunternehmer verantwortlich ist.

Das Reisebüro der Zukunft verändert nicht nur das Gesicht der sonnenklar.TV-Reisebüros, sondern wird in den kommenden Jahren den Auftritt und die Präsentation einer gesamten Branche maßgeblich beeinflussen”, prognostiziert Andreas Pankow, Geschäftsführer von Nordland.

Im ”Reisebüro der Zukunft” werden ein neues und stylisches Möbelkonzept, Social Media Elemente, kreative Marketingideen und verschiedene Digital Signage-Elemente verbunden. Den Franchise-Partnern stehen unterschiedliche Shop-Module zur individuellen Ausstattung ihrer Reisbüros zur Verfügung. Sie reichen von 46 Zoll Sunlight-Angebotsstelen für die aktuellen Angebote und Werbung im Schaufensterbereich über TV-Wände mit einem 42 Zoll-Screen im Lounge-Bereich für den Reiseshoppingsender sonnenklar.TV bis hin zu imposanten Produktwänden mit bis zu fünf 42 Zoll-Screens zur Abbildung von Urlaubsangeboten und Impressionen der weltweiten Reiseziele.

Entertainment.

Bij Ledwalls met grotere afmeting wordt vaak gebruik maakt van deco Led display, ook wel LED lamellen of curtains genaamd. Deze zijn lichter, transparant (je kunt door de LED panelen heen kijken) en hebben vaak een resolutie van pitch 25 of pitch 40. De lagere resolutie maakt het paneel goedkoper te produceren en dus ook goedkoper in aanschaf en goedkoper in te huren. Het wordt vaak toegepast in grote decors. Hoe meer LED panelen gebruikt worden, hoe hoger de resolutie. Zie hieronder een voorbeeld van een Deco LED wall ontwerp als showdecor.
Bron www.avpoint.nl

Zapparel launches augmented reality clothing.

range of t-shirts that its makers believe is the world’s first line of augmented reality clothing is set to go on sale online later this year.

Technology company Zappar has teamed up with Hybrid Apparel to launch an initial range of 20 t-shirts, unveiled at this week’s Magic International Fashion Expo in Las Vegas. The range will go on sale from December, available online through Zapparel’s own website as well as other retailers.

Viewers of the t-shirts can see the design moving by downloading the Zappar app and viewing the t-shirt through their Apple or Android smartphone or tablet device.

Jarrod and Gavin Dogan, owners of Hybrid Apparel, said: “We are delighted to be involved with Zappar in this ground-breaking new venture. The concept of bringing our clothing range to life with Zappar’s pioneering technology is so exciting, and introduces a whole new dimension to the fashion industry.”

Caspar Thykier, managing director for Zappar, said: “We are thrilled to be working with Hybrid Apparel and furthering the Zappar brand into new realms of possibility. By expanding the Zappar technologies into the fashion industry and integrating augmented reality into clothing and apparel, it demonstrates the limitless opportunities for the brand.”

Martian Attack - Zapparel from Zappar on Vimeo.

Ricoh's solar powered 'eco-board' sets new standards for wide format digital signage.

The advertising and wide format print industries have been collaborating for years to try and make greener billboards, but no one has been able to master the trick – until now. With the unveiling of Europe's first 'eco-board' at a site next to the M4 motorway in London in late June, Ricoh has set the digital signage bar high for others to follow.


The eco-board, which Ricoh worked on with integrated outdoor services provider Rainmaker, is powered by 96 solar panels and five wind turbines and only lights up when sufficient power has been collected during the day.

It's not the first time the company has trialled this kind of digital signage technology. Last year it unveiled a 47ft high by 126ft long solar powered billboard on the corner of 7th Avenue and 42nd Street in New York's Times Square. The board is powered by 62 solar panels and 24 thin-film PV solar modules and illuminated by 16 LED floodlights
The launch of the Ricoh eco-board takes us one step further by reminding wider public audiences to act in a sustainable way and think beyond the obvious when it comes to protecting natural resources.”

Most billboards deliver a message but in this instance the billboard is itself the message.

ABN AMRO demonstreert app op straat.

Overal en altijd je saldo checken en geld overmaken: ABN AMRO maakt het mogelijk met haar mobiele app. Zij demonstreerde de werking van haar nieuwste softwareapplicatie voor smartphones in vijf Abri’s van JCDecaux


Bron; www.signtotaal.nl
Reizigers en voorbijgangers konden in de Abri’s op het Leidseplein, Rembrandtplein (Amsterdam), Potterstraat (Utrecht), Willemsplein (Arnhem) en Grote Markt (Groningen) kennis maken met de app Mobiel Bankieren. JCDecaux Innovate had touch sensoren geïntegreerd in de posterkast, zodat het publiek de applicatie als het ware in de Abri kon bedienen. Naast deze interactieve toepassing was de halte gedecoreerd in de stijl van de campagne. Het publiek werd onder meer uitgenodigd de app ter plaatse te downloaden door "mobiel" te sms’en naar 7500.

De vijf interactieve Spectaculars maakten deel uit van een brede mediacampagne en zijn mede mogelijk gemaakt door ABN AMRO, de mediabureaus Starcom en MbS, reclamebureau Selmore, Bitmove en JCDecaux Innovate.

Toekomst voor het televisiescherm in de kamer.

Figure 1: Relative Importance of Features in TV Purchase

There are larger shifts in the landscape of video consumption occurring than just a move to 3D. These threaten to push TV into the role of video monitor—though arguably, that has already happened in many markets. The main issue though is that the axis of competition is moving towards convenience, not greater picture performance.

Consumers are about to reach the “iPod moment” in which video consumption shifts towards mobile devices and personalization, just like it did for audio five years ago. When did you last hear anyone promoting sound quality in mainstream audio? TV sets will remain the screen of choice, but they are likely to become controlled by a tablet or smart phone that will search, recommend, and control access.

The old axes of competition (screen size, price, and picture quality) are on the point of being swapped for convenience, access to content, and ease of use. Consumers seem as interested in things like power consumption as they are in shiny new features. Set makers who fail to respond will risk ending up in the monitor business.

Eyevis präsentiert flexible Projektionsmodule.

Die Entwicklungsabteilung von eyevis hat auf der InfoComm 2011 ihr neuestes Produkt vorgestellt: Die omniSHAPES. Das sind kleine Rückprojektions-Display-Module in ganz unterschiedlichen Formen, von quadratisch bis sechseckig. Mit dem System sollen sich zukünftig Projektionsflächen in verschiedensten Formen realisieren lassen.
Klassische Formate, aber auch geschwungene oder gebogene Wände sollen mit den omniSHAPES möglich sein. Auch selbsttragende oder fliegende Aufbauten sollen ohne weiteres Material realisiert werden können, da laut eyevis die Verschraubung der Shapes untereinander die nötige Stabilität gewährleistet.

Die Displays funktionieren sowohl als Stand-Alone Einheit als auch im Verbund mit größeren Projektionswänden, da jedes Modul über eine eigenständige interne Signalverarbeitung für die geometrische Anpassung des Eingangsbildes auf den darzustellenden Teil verfügt.

Aufgrund seiner LED-Technologie verspricht eyevis hervorragende Bildqualität, dauerhafte Farbtreue und erweiterte Farbabstimmungsmöglichkeiten. Die neu entwickelte Multi-Cube Colour-Brightness-Adjustment-Option ermöglicht die vollautomatische Anpassung und den Abgleich aller omniSHAPES einer Videowand.

Die Wartung der Geräte ist sowohl von vorn als auch von hinten möglich. Außerdem müsse bei Wartungs- oder Reparaturfällen, die nicht direkt vor Ort erledigt werden können, nicht gleich das ganze Gerät ausgetauscht werden, sondern meist nur die Projektor-Einheit.

Einen Eindruck der omniShapes liefert dieses Video:

BMW Vision ConnectedDrive Jewellery Spot.

Fraaie reclame van BMW
Erg gewaagd...en let op de merkwaardige draai die er op het einde aan gegeven is.
Ons gaat het hier natuurlijk om de toepassing / gebruik van de beeldschermen in deze byzonder mooie bolide.

The roadways of the future.

Stateside -- Idaho-based Solar Roadways has been given a $750,000 grant from the Federal Highway Administration. Company founders Scott and Julie Brusaw had the idea of creating "roads that would pay for themselves" after reading about the rising cost of asphalt.

They have designed a 12 by 12 foot prototype of a road surface that is made from solar panels with 6000 LED lights embedded within it that could be used to delineate the road markings. He says in a video introducing the technology: "There are 25 square miles of road surface, parking lots and driveways in the lower 48 States. If we covered these with solar panels working at just a50 percent efficiency, we would produce three times as much electricity as this country uses on an annual basis."

However, first they had to find a glass that would offer the same vehicle traction as asphalt but would also not cause glare and be able to withstand weight, fire and everything the elements could throw as it without losing its transparency. This they have found but, as the video explains, the roadways will also use rubbish pulled from landfills to provide the internal support system for the solar panels.

The Brusaws claim that their Solar Roadway prototype can generate 7.6 kilowatt hours of electricity per day, and this power could be sent into the grid or, if on private land, could be used to power heaters to melt the snow and ice on a driveway to save shovelling. It could even be used to charge electric vehicles, adds Digital Trends.
Volledige artikel kunt u hier vinden.

World’s largest 3D digital cinema projection.

Bro; www.avinteractive.co.uk
Christie helped set a world record when it displayed the French 3D premiere of Warner Bros Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows – Part Two on a 29.9m wide by 12.33m high (98 ft by 40 ft) screen at the Palais Ominisports de Paris-Bercyon 12 July. Guinness World Records has certified the event.

Using six Christie Solaria Series CP2230 DLP Cinema projectors, configured in two clusters of three, with each projector’s output rated at 32,000 lumens, an audience of 8,500 were thrilled to witness the epic finale between good and evil in full stereoscopic 3D.

As each cluster projected the image for one eye, the system achieved passive 3D projection with light conditions exceeding the Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI) recommended standard. The Christie CP2230 features Brilliant3D 2K technology and is Christie’s brightest digital cinema projector for screens nearly 100 ft wide.

The new English edition of the Guinness Book of Records will be available on 15 September 2011.

iPad head girl spotted in New York.

Cosmopolitan, one of the most popular magazines for women, is taking one step further in their way of thinking. And we are not just talking about their new idea of creating “CFG: Cosmo For Guys”, but also their way of launching it.

Thinkmodo Agency and Clockwork Apple Company came out with this innovative campaign. They decided to have a girl walking in Bryant Park, New York City. But…here comes the catch, she was wearing 4 iPads on her head. Crazy, right? She drew attention from those around her - some of the people just look at her; others approach her. Overall, it was definitely an eye-catching experience and an effective experiental campaign since, as of today, the video has already received more than 900,000 views on Youtube.

So, go ahead and take a look at it. I included the viral promotional video, and the making of the video, just in case you wanted to learn a little more about this original idea. Check it out!

Interactive Top Demo

There are a lot of new developments being displayed this year at SIGGRAPH. Today, the University of Electro-Communications unveiled a new version of an old game. The demo is called Interactive Top Demo and it is a battle top game. Users can control the speed of the top by placing controllers over their respective top as it crashes into opponents’ tops. The game board is a touch screen that is powered by a projector and a camera that can record which tops collide and where they are located. A player looses when their health is reduced to 0. Check the video above to see this game in action.
Bron; www.engadget.com

Dalende kosten voor Digital Signage.

De totale kosten van Digital Signage systemen zullen de komende jaren nog flink dalen. overeenkomstig bovenstaande grafiek van € 3.800,= (aug 2011 ) naar €2.800,= (aug. 2015)
Bron; Digital Signage Markt 2010 - www.invidis.de

Wonderbaarlijke boekenlegger.

De Electronic Dictionary Bookmark is een superplatte elektronische boekenlegger met ingebouwd Engels woordenboek. Hoewel hij maar twee millimeter dik is, zitten er 38.000 woorden in opgeborgen. En je kunt ook nog eens kiezen uit drie kleuren.
Importeur Cortina.

Veel Nederlanders overschatten hun talenkennis een beetje, dat heb je al snel in de gaten als je een Nederlandse toerist in het buitenland iets hoort bestellen. Toch worden er in Nederland veel Engelse boeken gelezen. Samen met Luxemburg staat Nederland in de Europese top wat betreft tweetaligheid. Maar, goede taalkennis of niet, als je een Engels boek leest zal het regelmatig gebeuren dat je een woord tegenkomt waarvan je de betekenis niet kent of vergeten bent. Steeds het woordenboek erbij pakken leidt maar af van het plot. Gelukkig is er nu de Dictionary Bookmark. Een superplatte elektronische boekenlegger met ingebouwd Engels woordenboek.

Mirror piece

Mirror_Piece is a mirror version of Marnix de Nijs’ previous work Physiognomic Scrutinizer. Equipped with biometric video analyzing software, the installation scans facial features and characteristics of anyone looking into its mirror, and compares them to those of more than 250 preselected people in a database. The database includes a variety of famous individuals and contributors to our contemporary culture, all chosen because of their controversial or infamous acts. A computerized voice publicly announces the name of the person each viewer has been identified as, in a confrontational reminder that the steady increase in the use of biometric technology in public space should be viewed with a healthy skepticism.

Mirror Piece from marnix de nijs on Vimeo.

Hitachi stopt met maken van televisies.

Bron; www.avblog.nl
De strijd om de gunst van de televisie-koper is hard – en daarbij vallen slachtoffers. Pioneer stopte twee jaar geleden, eerder dit jaar maakte Philips bekend zich terug te trekken, en nu heeft Hitachi bekend gemaakt geen televisies meer te gaan maken, maar dit door anderen te laten doen.
De Japanese fabrikant heeft slechte cijfers over het laatste kwartaal laten zien, en wil zich meer gaan richten op winstgevende producten.

Problemen bij alle fabrikanten
En Hitachi staat niet alleen. De combinatie van een harde concurrentie-strijd in de afgelopen jaren met een tegenvallende vraag naar nieuwe tv’s doet de winstgevendheid van fabrikanten niet goed. En de Japanse bedrijven zijn bovendien hard getroffen door de zware aardbeving.

Zo heeft Sony bekend gemaakt dat het haar verliesgevende tv-divisie zal gaan herstructureren. Ook met marktleider Samsung gaat het niet lekker – hun televisie-afdeling is al twee kwartalen verliesgevend – en ook bij andere Koreaanse tv grootmacht LG valt de winstgevendheid tegen.

Hitachi tv’s blijven bestaan
Hoewel Hitachi geen tv’s meer gaat maken, trekt het merk zich zeker niet terug uit de sector. “We blijven tv’s verkopen, maar laten deze maken door onze partners”, laat Hitachi duidelijk weten aan de BBC.

The mystery obelisk.

Dover Street Market is currently hosting an new interactive project, a collaboration with jewellery designer Hannah Martin, to showcase her new collection "The man who knows everything". The jewellery and the installation are inspired by the mysterious character of an alchemist who appears at different points in time and space. The mystery is reflected in the materials and the design language, bridging ancient past with sci-fi, terrestrial with alien. The polished column is made from black Corian, perfect for this sculpture thanks to its rich finish and seamless construction.

The obelisk is surround by a cage of laser beams, playing with the notion of protection for invaluable pieces of jewellery. However in this installation we invite visitors to play with the lasers, each of which triggers a different alarm-derived electronic sound that are then repeated in a loop to create a mysterious sound scape.

The Hannah Martin installation, designed by Moritz Waldemeyer, at London's Dover Street Market, 17 March 2011

SHOWstudio: Installation - The Man Who Knows Everything, by Hannah Martin from SHOWstudio on Vimeo.

Touchscreens roll up after graphene breakthrough.

Flexible, transparent touchscreens could be cost-effectively produced in the future as graphene rears its head again. We last reported on the carbon based substance as the key to developing flexible OLED displays. Now, researchers from Texas’ Rice University have combined graphene with a fine grid of metal nanowire to create robust, transparent, flexible and highly conductive touchscreens.

The development is heralded as a cost-effective alternative to indium tin oxide (ITO). The substance is used in most touch-screens but is also found in photovoltaic solar cells. As that market grows ITO is becoming increasingly expensive.

Rice researchers at the lab of chemist James Tour have already created thin films that demonstrate flexible touch screens could be hitting the market soon.

Dr Yh Zhu, a postdoctoral researcher, originally combined the pure graphene with fine metal meshes, noting massive conductivity benefits over using pure graphene.

A paper on the development was published here.

Pixels Motel Mozaique‘ by Dutch designers Jonas Vorwerk and Yoren Schriever. These indeed are (huge) pixels ! I’m used to thinking about pixel sizes in fractions of a millimeter —these ones are fractions of a meter. In a world of megapixels, this site had decapixels (I understand they used just 50 pixels).

There’s a brief description of how the pixels work here. Each pixel’s color and brightness can be changed by tilting it (there is an accelerometer in each one). It certainly looks like people are having a lot of fun and it is pretty.

Pixels Motel Mozaique 2011 from JonasVorwerk on Vimeo.

Now, if the pixels could self-detect and if we could get content to them… Hmmmm…

Yoren Schriever on his site mentions that each cube has a data port and “…this port can also be used to communicate with the firmware, making it possible to send color commands to the cube, or read the accelerometer values from it“. Maybe it is possible.

Interactive Digital Fireworks.

Digital Fireworks in Brighton

Digital Fireworks in Brighton from Seb Lee-Delisle on Vimeo.

AMX aims to change the face of control.

AMX says the traditional shape of a touchpanel is irrelevant, and has introduced a new series of wide aspect ratio, 19” panels called the Modero X-Series, featuring multi-touch control.

Bron; www.inavateonthenet.net

iPads Used to Feed Hungry Travelers.

Thankfully, the folks from OTG Management--an airport catering company that works behind the scenes in terminals across the country--have implemented a few changes to how they do business to make your journey into the wild blue yonder more efficient and ever-so-much more geeky. In an effort to provide the patrons of their airport lounge locations with a restaurant quality dining experience, the company has unveiled a program that will streamline the meal selection process for hundreds of hungry travelers a day, thanks in part to the ingenious use of a built-to-order iPad menu system.

By offering the winning combination of world-class cuisine from a wide variety of restaurants, expedient service, and slathering it all up in the awesome sauce of Apple technology, OTG Management has set the stage for our expectations of what an airport dining experience can be on its ear. Travelers can order their meals from a wide selection of cuisine advertised on the catering company’s custom-developed iPad menu application. While they wait for their orders to arrive, the diners are encouraged to use their table’s iPad to check on the status of their flights, play a game or browse through a periodical or two. In no time at all, the meal the diner selected is delivered to their table. Not too shabby at all!

Currently, the iPad-enhanced dining experience is only available at New York’s John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports, but if the service is the success that it appears it could very well become, you could have the opportunity to enjoy the same slick dining experience at an airport near you in the not too distant future.