August 16, 2011

By Jennifer Davis

Years ago, I remember sitting with my best friend Stacy and drafting a letter to Mattel®. In the letter we made a list, an impressive list if memory serves, of the kind of Barbies they should add to their line-up. Themed Barbies based on styles of clothing, hometowns, favorite sports teams and pets, and careers. I recall we received an encouraging, but non-committal form letter in response. Disappointed that we weren’t whisked off to Mattel’s headquarters to engineer their new holiday line-up, we went back our toys.

Now, I hear that there is a brand-new "I Can Be...™ Architect Barbie®" available from Mattel in partnership with the American Institute of Architects. Apparently “architect” is the 2011 Career of the Year, following the popular Computer Engineer Doll that Mattel introduced in this same line. Last month wrapped up a contest for AIA members to design Barbie’s Green Dream Home. The AIA reports that 17% of their ranks are female and they, together with Mattel, are hoping that this doll helps encourage more girls to become designers. I know my elementary-school self would have loved this doll and I am sure new generations of girls will as well. Even if Barbie is seen wearing heels to a construction site and has a scale model…in pink!

In the spirit of inspiring creative design ideas in retail and corporate spaces for girls and guys alike, Planar's "Designer Source eBook" includes innovative solutions for designers and architects using Planar's unique video wall, flat panel, touchscreen and kiosk product offerings within retail, hospitality, Institutional, corporate, sports venues, and many other project categories.

July 18, 2011

By James Wood

In kindergarten I learned the subtle art of getting in line. At the beginning of class, at the end of class, before lunch and recess getting in line was the rule. We were taught early and often about how important it is to stand in line. Don’t cut. Keep the lines straight. The same practice is applied throughout my life at the coffee shop or the movie theater. Lining up is still important.

Lining up is a metaphor for things working perfectly. If everything lines up then all the pieces necessary are exactly where they need to be. When it comes to a multi-panel display the phrase “lining up” is no metaphor for perfection, it’s the prerequisite. If every display isn’t perfectly aligned with all the other displays around it then whenever motion crosses the boundary between the two it will be glaringly obvious. Think of looking at the action on a football field through a glass of water. When you look through the water things will be lined up at one level, but at the boundary between the water and the air it will look like things are broken and offset. A poorly aligned display wall makes it seem like you’re looking through glasses of water and everything is broken up.

The lack of alignment destroys the illusion of one, large display and makes all the viewers acutely aware of the individual screens rather than the whole array. But with the Clarity Matrix Display Wall you can rely on the EasyAxis Mounting System to line up everything precisely. Each screen in the display wall can adjust in six directions with fine accuracy so that depth, height and width adjustments are all tuned perfectly.

The EasyAxis wall mounts are included with the Clarity Matrix Display at no extra charge so that your screens are exactly where they need to be. But lining up once isn’t the only thing that the Planar crew taught the EasyAxis mounting system. You can also tilt the individual screens from the front to be able to access the rear panel for connection and maintenance throughout the life of the Clarity Matrix Display Wall. My kindergarten teacher would be proud.

June 2, 2011

By James Wood

Glass has a reputation for being weak. When a boxer wants to talk about a foe who’s weak he might say: “He has a glass jaw.” Or there’s the old saying: “Those is glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.” We think of glass as being the weak link in our houses or cars. Wood and steel will protect us where polished glass will fail. Granted, the reputation of glass has been earned over a long time, but what glass is doing now is anything but weak.

Glass is used to stop bullets in armored cars, to protect astronauts in space and to cover the screen of your smartphone. The brittle analogy for weakness has come a long way through the coaxing of engineers to become a top-tier solution for protecting assets. Glass is essentially melted sand, but with the careful addition of other elements and control of the manufacturing process the result can be incredibly tough, yet still smooth and clear.

At Planar we tackled the challenge of putting vibrant digital signage at eye level through LCD displays and mounts that are 60% thinner than anyone else. So sports arenas, airports and shopping malls can mount gorgeous screens right were people are looking. But that leaves a new problem, what happens when the screens get touched. General access to the public also means general access to sticky toddler fingers, rough suitcase bumps and countless other touches.

We put on another pot of coffee for the Planar engineering team and they rewarded us with Extended Ruggedness and Optics glass, or ERO for short. This marvel of melted sand is incredibly strong and resistant to damage, so it protects the LCD screens behind it, which is fantastic. But our engineers weren’t satisfied with just that much. They added enhancements to boost the contrast of the image on the screen by 300 percent, so not only is it tough, but it’s also easier to see. Finally they threw in a bonding technique so that the glass fits over the Clarity Matrix LCD screens without any gap for moisture or dust to get in and degrade the image. That little gem earned the engineers a dozen donuts.

The reputation of glass may have been earned over centuries, but with innovations like ERO protecting your Clarity Matrix display wall you’ll begin to think of glass differently.

May 26, 2011

I saw this quote in a booth at ICFF. I thought it perfectly captured what Planar's approach is to the markets we serve:

"It is our mission to promote public discussion and provide leadership on the role that innovative display technology can play."

In the architecture and design community, we believe that video displays and media products can be more than "big black rectangles." They can be an integral part of the design of a space and used by creatives as they would other cladding, wall covering, or building materials. Products like the Clarity Matrix LCD Video Wall illustrate this well, as interior designers and architects use it to demand more of technology. As Jake Slevin wrote in his recent piece for the Huffington Post, the trend is digital surfaces. Planar is helping to prompt and participate in the conversation that might just transform spatial design.

The exhibit ‘Berlin Happens' on May 14 at the Relative Space showroom in New York City featured 10 designers’ individual custom creations and showcased the Clarity Matrix LCD Video Wall, displaying the creative work of award-winning German architect, Juergen Mayer H, recipient of the Audi Urban Future Award 2010, and Relative Space principal Tyler Greenberg.

On June 17, the exhibit will move to the Toronto showroom of Relative Space & Floorworks.

View videos of the Clarity Matrix from the Berlin Happens Exhibit in New York City:

Planar Clarity Matrix at Berlin Happens: An Exhibition & Product Launch

Clarity Matrix Video Wall at Berlin Happens Event in New York, NY

By Jennifer Davis

I had the privilege of participating in StudioDror’s launch of their new design geometry, QuaDror. It was held at the New Museum in Manhattan and an overview video was featured on the Planar ep55 flat panel, which was part of the display. At a press conference hosted by Linda Tischler from Fast Company and Kimberly Brooks from Huffington Post, Dror Benshetrit spoke about his inspiration.

He said that at the launch in South Africa the week before, he met a teacher who encouraged students to first love, then do, then create, and then share.

It seems to me that this is the formula for innovation. You have to first start with empathy and love for the people who you are working with or for. Often it starts as a problem that needs to be solved. But in order to understand the problem, you have to understand WHY it is a problem and really care enough about the problem to want to solve it.

Only then can work be done. The work of doing, experimenting, discussing, debating, creating, and designing can be highly individual or collaborative, but once it is done the innovation must be shared. It is the final step in the formula. Only then can it solve problems and inspire others.

The Clarity™ Matrix is an example of this type of innovation. After pioneering rear-projection video walls, we understood the challenges of designing for the depth of creating a large and impressive digital display. Sometimes that depth can be easily accommodated, in a control room setting for instance, but in digital signage and architectural implementations, designers and AV installers needed something that was closer to the light box that they were familiar with.

It is this empathy for the customer that led us to build the world’s thinnest LCD video wall system, with a total depth, including the mount, measuring less than 3.6”. It is the only video wall that meets the stringent Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements.

Our optional Extended Ruggedness and Optics™ (ERO™) option derives from our understanding of the toll that displays take when installed in public environments, especially touch-enabled interactive displays that are growing in popularity.

Of course the product also has the modular flexibility to make it a perfect fit for a variety of design applications from corporate lobbies to hospitality, from higher education student centers to retail merchandising applications that are changing the experience for consumers and the brands they love.

And we continue this process of innovation with hopes of delivering useful tools that will be a part of your designs and solutions.