by Thomas Vertommen, Panasonic Connect Europe
As the appetite for immersive experiences grows, audiences are seeking ever more engaging and exciting attractions. However, creating immersive experiences that are both cost-effective and sustainable to tour has been challenging.
Historically, the logistical and financial hurdles of setting up, running, and transporting these experiences have been significant. But with the advent of new technologies from Hive and Panasonic’s SDM-enabled projectors, there’s a revolutionary shift towards making these experiences more sustainable.
Current challenges
Traditionally, creating an immersive touring experience requires extensive cabling and central media control rooms. These setups involve a central hub where the core computing and processing equipment is located.
This central hub manages all aspects of the immersive experience, from processing complex visual and audio content to ensuring synchronized playback across various displays and speakers. Peripheral devices such as projectors, screens, speakers, and lighting systems are networked around this hub. This requires a complex arrangement of cabling and hardware.
This centralized architecture poses significant logistical challenges. Transporting the central hub and its associated equipment can be costly and require careful planning. Additionally, setting up at a new location involves re-establishing the central system and ensuring all peripherals are correctly networked and synchronized. This can be time-consuming and labour-intensive.
The needed infrastructure, including dedicated rooms for equipment and extensive cabling for data and power transmission, further complicates and increases the expense.
More sustainable immersive experiences with distributed architecture
Technology leaders Intel, Panasonic, and Hive have collaborated to create a new distributed architecture powered by Intel Smart Display Module (SDM) to address these challenges.
This innovative approach decentralizes the processing power from a single distanced hub and distributes it across multiple nodes at the display units. By integrating the processing capabilities directly within the projectors or displays, this new architecture reduces the need for extensive central processing equipment.
The benefits of this distributed architecture are manifold. It significantly reduces the bulk and complexity of the equipment. This is because it removes the need for a central media hub and reduces cabling. This makes touring shows more agile and easier to transport, directly translating to reduced logistical costs and shorter setup times.
In addition, this approach offers enhanced flexibility in design and deployment. The modular and scalable system allows elements to be added, removed, or reconfigured easily. This means it can adapt to different venues’ varying constraints and opportunities.
The BBC Earth Experience
A prime example of this new sustainable approach to immersive experiences in action is the BBC Earth Experience in Melbourne. The organisers chose a distributed architecture solution for its major deployment. For the first time, leading Australian video technology and production supplier TDC utilized Hive’s BeeBlade media server on a board in Panasonic Intel SDM-enabled projectors.
The Melbourne exhibit features 70 Panasonic projectors, 49 of which are powered by BeeBlade. Hive’s proprietary BeeSync software delivers the content, ensuring perfect synchronization of all imagery. In the main room, visitors experience a 360-degree environment with over 127 million pixels, all synchronized to provide an immersive and seamless experience. This setup eliminated the need for a central hub, saving time on setup, reducing costs on cabling, and minimizing the installation’s overall space and environmental impact.
Dave Green at Hive says:
“The distributed approach has less impact on the environment in a number of ways. First, the power consumption is only 65 watts per device, compared to the significantly higher consumption of traditional media servers. Then there are additional benefits such as the reduced weight in the transportation of the equipment and the elimination of big racks. The systems are easily supported remotely and are designed in a modern, compact, and efficient manner.”
Michael Hassett, managing director at TDC, adds:
“The approach doesn’t just represent technological advancement; it heralds a new greener and more efficient era in digital art installations. This transformative approach is not just a disruption in the media server space; it’s an evolutionary leap, helping to save time, money, and the planet.”
Sustainability benefits
The sustainability benefits of this distributed architecture are significant. The devices’ reduced power consumption, lower transportation costs due to the elimination of bulky central hubs, and the streamlined setup process all contribute to a greener and more sustainable operation. Furthermore, the system’s modular nature means it is easy to scale and adapt to different venues without substantial infrastructure changes.
In conclusion, the new distributed architecture powered by Hive and Panasonic’s SDM-enabled projectors is revolutionizing immersive experience creation and touring. This approach offers a more sustainable, cost-effective, and flexible solution for immersive experiences by addressing the historical challenges of central media control rooms and extensive cabling.
The BBC Earth Experience shows the potential of this technology. It demonstrates that it is possible to deliver high-quality immersive experiences while also being mindful of environmental and logistical impacts. The demand for immersive experiences is growing. So, this innovative approach will undoubtedly play a crucial role in shaping the industry’s future.
Find out more  about sustainable immersive experiences
Discover more about the projection technology behind some of the most remarkable immersive experiences in the world and what might be best for your location. Immerse yourself in new experiences | Panasonic Connect
