August 9, 2011

By James Wood

The description of digital signage might compete with the military for the EUA award (Excessive Use of Acronyms). You can look at getting an LCD with HDMI and DVI input so the PC content is in HD. Add to the list CCFL and LED when referring to the way the screen is lit. Since liquid crystal displays (LCDs) don’t produce any light, they need to be lit from behind. The old standard has been to use cold compact florescent lights (CCFL) because it produces a uniform light across the whole screen for an affordable price.

But light emitting diodes (LEDs) have improved to the point where they are taking over for the CCFLs. The Planar ep46L and ep55L are leading the way with bright, efficient LED lighted LCD displays. They are 46 and 55 inches in diagonal respectively. Chris Connery, of DisplaySearch, reflected on his time at InfoComm 2011. He points out that LED backlights are a growing trend in digital signage because they are bright, efficient and long-lasting.

The Planar EP-Series displays are perfect examples of where the industry is going. They shine with 450 candela per square meter, which is about twice the brightness of a typical LCD monitor and on par with home theater displays. But to keep the brightness under control there’s a built in sensor that can adjust the brightness of the backlight to match the ambient light, automatically. Electricity usage drops by 30 to 50 percent when using an LED backlight versus the CCFLs. In addition, there’s no mercury used in producing the LEDs while the CCFLs won’t function without it. And LEDs last for years – the EP-Series can run, 24/7 for nearly six years before the LEDs wear out (and that’s only dropping to half-brightness, not burning out altogether).

Once again, Planar is ahead of the trends in digital signage.

There’s growing scientific research that shows mood lighting isn’t just a saying, it’s a physiological effect. In one study it’s shown that exposure to high levels of light in the time before sleeping reduces the depth and restfulness of sleep. Turning the lights down low signals our bodies to start unwinding and producing the melatonin necessary for restful slumber. But lots of times we’re in places where the lights are bright and shining in our faces.

There’s also research that shows the major component of energy consumption on LCD screens is the brightness. According to CNET, “brightness trumps every other setting for saving power,” meaning that no other change to the settings of an LCD display has as much impact as changing the brightness. This is especially important at night and in low-light situations where the screens just don’t need to be as bright. The power is being used for no reason at all and the money is being wasted to run LCD screens at full brightness in dim light environments.

So, not only is it good for you to reduce the light coming into your eyes so you can get better sleep, but it’s also good for the wallet to drop the brightness. The Planar EP-Series displays have built in ambient light sensors that detect what’s going on outside so that the backlight can respond accordingly. So when it’s time to say, “Goodnight Moon” and the world is dark, the EP-Series will respond by dropping the brightness. This saves your eyes and melatonin so you can enjoy a restful night of sleep.

Since the EP-Series is designed to run 24 hours a day, it needs to be flexible with the day-night cycle. Bright sunlight means that the screen needs to be brighter to be seen. Dark night means the monitors need to do less work (and use less power) to be seen clearly. In addition to automatically adjusting the backlight’s brightness to respond to the ambient light, the EP-Series uses the ultra-efficient and reliable light emitting diodes to produce the backlight. Unlike the fluorescent tubes used in older displays, LEDs use a fraction of the power to produce the same amount of light and since there’s no mercury used to make Planar’s LEDs, the screens are even more environmentally conscious. That’s enough to put anyone in a good mood.

July 14, 2011

By James Wood

Conference rooms need video. With the ubiquity of PowerPoint, Keynote and Skype it’s unthinkable that any modern business conference room would be without the ability to use these tools. And the typical response is to install a projector and screen, however, a whole host of considerations need to be addressed when installing a projector: the ambient light, the screen placement, the projector location and the ability for everyone in the room to see what’s going on. In large settings with controlled lighting and a dedicated audience, a projector is an ideal solution. Most business meetings, however, don’t take place in such an environment.

Conference rooms are more suited to a dozen or so people connecting over ideas in a conversational manner. That conversation is limited when the lights dim for the projector to fire up. Then the screen can be difficult to see when the blinds are open. The orientation of the screen at one end means that people need to adjust where they’re facing and it immediately generates a divide between the perceived audience and speaker roles. Coworkers sit around the conference table and when the lights flip off they are tempted to zone out like they did when they were students in Biology 101.

Instead of installing a projector, install the Planar EP-Series displays in your conference rooms. Choose either a 46-inch or 55-inch screen, which is as large as a projector could produce in most moderately sized conference rooms anyway. The back-lit liquid crystal displays produce their own illumination so turning down the lights won’t be necessary to see your presentation clearly. There’s no chance that you’ll get in the way of the projector beam and block out half of the screen when the image is all up on the wall. The EP-Series displays are light and thin so there’s very little of the room’s valuable space sacrificed to display.

Rather than dividing the presenter from the audience in a conference room, you can use the efficient, cost effective EP-Series displays on two or more walls of the room so everyone in the conference room can see the important information without having to adjust where they’re sitting or looking. This means the group dynamic remains intact, which leads to better brainstorming and problem-solving.

So, instead of turning your conference rooms into nap-inducers, create spaces where your team can collaborate and connect. Reclaim your conference room.

Scientists have been busy unlocking the secrets of the human brain: how it works, how it fails and what all that means. The field of neuroscience is making new discoveries daily, but who’s to explain the science to the rest of us? John Medina (Dr. Medina, that is) is a neuroscientist at the University of Washington. He’s not only a researcher but also an educator training up young scientists-to-be. But what you really need to know about him is that he’s been able to translate the obtuse language of the academy into a few simple statements. The research on the human brain can be summed up and applied to daily life and Medina writes about it in his book, Brain Rules.

It’s not an option to ignore what’s being gleaned from this research. Cognitive function affects literally everything that happens so it’s recklessly irresponsible to remain uninformed. Rule number ten (of 12) says that “Vision trumps all other senses.” This means that the brain weights what is seen more than what’s heard, tasted, touched or smelled. Every other sense acts as a supporting character to sight, like Diana Ross and the Supremes (or not).

Visual dominance isn’t just what comes in through our eyes, but what our eyes expect to see. Written language is still words and requires the brain to access the secondary language center rather than the primary visual center. Each letter is dissected by the brain into its constituent shapes then matched against patterns for recognition before being recombined into words that have meaning.

“Little Billy was sad because his ice cream cone fell on the ground.” We think about the situation. We process the language and we have a logical understanding of the situation. But all that is communicated with a wordless picture showing an ice cream cone slowly melting on the pavement or the tears welling up in the eyes of a child. Signage isn’t just about conveying information to people but connecting with human beings. Connections are made through vision and image.

Instead of showing streams of text on a billboard, install a Planar EP-Series display that can show full, high-definition video in a light, durable, energy-efficient package. The EP-Series uses edge-lit LED backlight technology to reduce energy cost and high quality LCD components to increase reliability so you can run them all day and night for years.

Or choose the Clarity Matrix™ display wall that marries a grid of displays into one giant screen or into a screen with multiple, independent sections. The slim mounting EasyAxis system means the LCD screens will stick out just four inches into the room. The remote power and video processing mean that the wall will be quiet, cool and won’t require any electrical outlets for the screens.

Take advantage of the primacy of vision. Connect with people in the most powerful way possible.