Video Wall
A video wall is a single screen assembled from several displays. Allows you to display video from different sources, as well as work in multi-window mode. This solution is used to equip dispatching and situation centers, monitoring points, and conference rooms, and is often used for advertising in shopping centers.
Classification
They are classified according to
Elements that make up the screen
- LCD displays or LCD panels. A professional LCD video wall can be used to display information in high definition.
- LED screens (based on LEDs). Models with LED screens are ideal for outdoor advertising. They are bright enough.
- Rear projection video cubes (including those with laser illumination). Solutions based on video cubes are less sensitive to the illumination of the installation site.
- Split screens of projector images stitched together. Usually, these walls are not too bright. However, they need more space for installation.
On-screen size
- Small (from 4 to 8 panels) – for control rooms and conference rooms of small sizes.
- Medium (from 9 to 16 panels) – for control rooms, situational and monitoring centers, concerts, and TV studios.
- Large (from 17 panels) – for large monitoring centers.
Type of Installation
- Mobile – video walls that can be rolled on a special track with a chassis.
- Stationary – video walls mounted on a wall, on a rack, or on the floor, but not designed to be moved. When installing such a solution, you will have to decide in advance where the video wall controller and another switching will be located.
Video walls are also classified depending on the thickness of the inner panel seam. The picture will look more coherent if the panels are with a narrow frame or almost without it. The top solutions have a seam of 0.5 -1.5 mm (seamless). However, they are less affordable.
Where are video walls used?
The main difference between video wall displays and a simple screen or a picture from a projector is the high resolution, clarity, and expressiveness of colors. Video wall screens are capable of receiving and transmitting signals simultaneously from several sources.
Therefore, they are suitable for working in rooms with a large number of people as the most practical. Video complexes are installed in:
- Dispatch centers;
- Situational centers;
- Simulators;
- Conference rooms;
- Lecture halls, etc.;
- Museums, theaters, galleries;
- Medical institutions;
- Railway stations, airports;
- Shopping centers and shops;
- Television studios;
- Clubs, restaurants, bars;
- Advertising industry.
The main purpose of the video wall
- Broadcasting information in high resolution and brightness over a large video area. The transmitted content can be in any format – audio, video, photo, etc. The main task: the availability of delivering information to an audience of different sizes (billboards or media screens at the stadium).
- Combining a large number of information sources into one video field. The main task: to quickly convey information in the shortest possible time with the least amount of time and effort.
- Carefully monitor data on a large screen with high accuracy and scale. The main task: detailing the transmitted information.
- Live broadcast of what is happening at mass events (concerts, conferences, performances, sports competitions, etc.) The main task: informing the masses about what is happening.
- Video walls are an integral part of communication centers (commercial and state media), whose work is aimed at informing the population. The main task: the transfer of information in recording or real-time within the region/country/continent/world.
How a video wall works
Monitors
Most often, special LCD monitors with a thin frame are used as a module for a video wall, which makes it possible to make the video wall visually homogeneous. Plasma screens are currently almost never used on video walls.
Video wall monitors usually have a built-in image control module that allows you to program the image to work in video wall mode. The video signal from the external source is fed to the monitor connected to all other wires. Each monitor is programmed to display a certain part of the image, which gives an overall holistic picture.
Video Wall frame
The purpose of this frame is to assemble and support video wall modules as a single structure. The frame itself is a supporting structure and is attached to the floor, wall, or ceiling.
As a rule, it is manufactured separately, its design depends on the number of modules and the location of the video wall (floor, wall, etc.) Some video wall models in the frame have built-in mounts that allow monitors to be easily connected to each other without an additional installation.
Video Cube
The video cube (or projection module) is the main component of a video wall. The video cube is a rear projection video system module equipped with an intensifying screen.
The main indicator of the capabilities of a video cube is its resolution, which determines its ability to display a different amount of visual information.
The resolution of a video wall is determined by the number and resolution of the projection modules it consists of. Cubes can have different base resolutions: XGA (1024×768) or SXGA (1280×1024), SXGA+ (1400×1050) or UXGA (1600×1200).
The brightness and contrast of the cubes are virtually independent of ambient light, and the modular design principle allows you to create the optimal configuration for each room.
Controllers
Through special control controllers on the video wall, various scenarios for displaying information (for example, moving an image around the screen, “picture in picture”, etc.) from different sources can be displayed: personal computers, video surveillance cameras, video conferencing channels, etc.
Video wall controllers can be software or hardware.
- The software controller is an industrial computer running Windows or Linux. The advantage of software controllers is the ability to output widescreen materials in a resolution that matches the resolution of the video wall.
- In hardware controllers, the image is formed using a set of specialized microprocessors. It is impossible to run application programs on such a controller, and its main function is the task of visualizing information from various external sources connected to its input ports.
