Section View News

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EntertainmentEngineeringVOLUME 9 ISSUE 11

Persun & Wiebusch, Inc.

Publishers/Editors:

Terry Persun

P: 360-379-6885

E: [email protected]

Bruce Wiebusch

P: 440-503-3013

E: [email protected]

Design & Production:

Verv Creative

www.vervcreative.com

Editorial Contributors:

Dan Cook, Ph.D.,

Program Coordinator, Entertainment

Engineering and Design, UNLV

Gerald Braude

S. Korobeinik

Richard Mandel

Mark Persun

Editorial Board:

Greg Hale, VP Advanced Technology

Disney Parks and Resorts

Kevin Russelburg, Sr. Project Engineer

ITW Pancon

John Lewis, Sr. Writer, Cognex Corp.

Sales

Mark Wiebusch

Vice President, Media Solutions & Sales

P: 440-835-9733

[email protected]

Subscriptions:

www.EntertainmentEngineering.comwww.entertainmentengineering.com 3

We were happy to hear from Steve Wozniak for this special

100th issue of Entertainment Engineering. He has been a busy guy

in 2012. Im giving 60-70 speeches this year around the world, he

said to Entertainment Engineering editors in October of 2012. Its

up due to Apple prominence and Jobs death and book, I presume.

We asked Wozniak about his experience with Teamwork. Did

he feel engineering innovation and creative problem solving are

accomplished more by teams or more by individuals workingprimarily by themselves? Was the far-reaching and leap-frog

engineering innovation that gave rise to my Macbook and other

Apple products primarily the result of an idea that started with

him as an individual?

The thoughts on this particular subject are not easy for me

because I want to get everything so precise and because I did a lot

on my own, says Wozniak.

Wozniaks comments ran parallel to other people we interviewed

about Teamwork. First, there is an individual that does the

innovating and creates the idea, said Matt Lorono at Solidworks.But then, it takes a team to refine the idea and implement it.

Read Loronos story about Teamwork later in the pages that follow.

While there are exceptions where an individual working alone

can create a breakthrough innovation, I have definitely found that

teamwork drives taking a breakthrough innovation to the next

level, and is absolutely necessary to turn a good idea into a robust

product, says Greg Hale, Vice President and Chief Safety Officer

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Read how Disney, Softeq, and HP

teamed up to take a good idea and make it great.

Proto Labs CEO Brad Cleveland discussed Teamwork leadershipwith us and why thoughtful integration of new team members into

a growing team is important to remember. We also heard from

Mediamation and other engineering companies about Teamwork.

Check out all our Teamwork stories in this months issue.

TEAMWORK

100th ISSUE | TEAMWORK


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TECHNOLOGY. CREATIVITY. FUN. Volume 9 Issue 11

Entertainment Engineering

p.20

p.16

p.18

TEAMWORK IMPROVES OPTIONS IN SOLIDWORKSImproving creation of section viewsp.6

PROFESSIONAL WIRELESS SYSTEMS

Solid RF coverage for three-day eventp.8

EDITORIALTeamwork

p.3

BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIERWith graphic content for live streaming

p.9

TEAMWORK AS CRITICAL TO DESIGNCollaboration among colleagues

CREATIVITY ON A MONSTROUS SCALEHow Legacy Effects juggles its workload

p.10

p.14

TEAMWORK AMID RAPID GROWTHThoughtful integration of team members

p.12

GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE HONOREDWith recording for a live sound portrait

TEAMWORK AND PRODUCT EVOLUTIONGrowing and transforming Disney theme parks

SPECTACLES IN MONTREALCoordinated architectural projection installation



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machined and injection molded parts in as fast as one business day.

We manufacture parts every day for thousands of customers, many of

whom come to us at the last minute with dozens of designs they need

to test ASAP. Since 1999, weve produced tens of thousands of molds,

and shipped tens of millions parts to our customers all over the world.

Sure, its our technology that allows us to make your parts faster

than anyone else. We back it up with large-scale global manufacturing

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on three separate continents.

Whether your project calls for a few machined parts or thousands of

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Cool Parts calendar.Enter code EE12F.

Call 877.479.3680or visit www.protolabs.com

2012 Proto Labs, Inc
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Matthew Lorono (CSWP)is a Definition Product

Manager at Solidworks and

a self-proclaimed introvert

when it comes to engineering

innovation. First, there is

an individual that does the

innovating and creates the

idea, he says. But then, it

takes a team to refine the

idea and implement it.Lorono recalls that one

idea he had was for a new

and better way to create sec-

tion views for engineering

drawings. I noticed other

software vendors required

users to create sketches

for section views, and I

thought it would be faster

and easier to create a newuser interface that pro-

duces section views without

sketches.

Instead of sketches, users of Solidworks 2013 can

manipulate a cutting plane tool that helps produce

the needed section views from an existing rendering.

But getting to the point where now the idea is a reality

required obtaining input from not just the product

definition team, of which Lorono is a member but

also user experience team members and a team ofSolidworks developers.

My original idea got balanced against reality, says

Lorono. We had to sit down together and work out the

details, which made the idea work better. There were

lots of discussions, organizational sessions, and then

testing with customers who helped us make further

refinements to the end result.

The evolution of the section view idea to the reality

of its inclusion in Solidworks 2013 has gone beyond

just the creation of section views. Users now create sec-

tion views in compliance with ASME, ISO, and other

standards within a single tool. The tool allows for docu-

menting the interface between internal components.

There are also specialized functionality to create aligned

section views and half-section views. With the benefit of

input from numerous team members, Loronos originalidea now goes beyond his original concept and speeds

the creation of production drawings for faster and more

consistent section views.

For More Information Click Below: Solidworks Home >

Solidworks Launch >

Solidworks >

6 www.entertainmentengineering.com

TEAMWORK IMPROVES SECTION-VIEW OPTIONS

IN SOLIDWORKS 2013Matt Lorono tells how Solidworks took an idea for improving creation of section views from

concept to implementation with teamwork.

We had to sit down together and work out the

details, which made the idea work better. There

were lots of discussions, organizational sessions,

and then testing with customers who helped us

make further refinements to the end result.

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Responsible for managing 350 frequencies per dayacross eight stages for artists and the media, PWS

(Professional Wireless Systems) four-person crew

worked closely with the festivals producer, C3 Presents,

to ensure all wireless microphones, in-ear monitors and

show communications were properly coordinated and

operating flawlessly.

When dealing with a festival of this size, and with

so many artists and media bringing their own equip-

ment, pre-planning is essential, says Jimmy Van Winkle,

general manager, PWS. We do our homework ahead

of time so that when we arrive at the location, we know

what we are walking into and are prepared for it. You

always have to expect last-minute challenges, but our

team has worked hard to earn the reputation we have

and does a fantastic job.

In order to ensure proper frequency coordination,

PWS sent out coordination forms to stage managers and

media representatives attending the event. These forms

detail the frequencies and model numbers of the micro-

phones, in-ear monitors, and communications devices

that would be used at the festival, to help eliminate thepotential for signal interference. Once on site, PWS

actively searched for users who hadnt submitted their

RF needs ahead of time, providing them with available

frequencies.

In addition to managing frequency coordination,

PWS lent two of its Domed Helical Antennas to the

music festival. The Domed Helical Antenna boasts the

highly successful circular polarization configuration,

pioneered by the companys original Helical, but with theunit sealed within a compact domed design. Thanks in

part to its characteristics and ability to offer flexibility of

use, the Domed Helical Antenna has become the indus-

try standard for multi-channel wireless microphone,

in-ear, and intercom systems. With an inherent boost in

gain, greater bandwidth and dropout-free polarization,

it outshines the performance of traditional antenna

designs. Inconspicuous and robust, it is ideal when the

requirements of aesthetics and function cant be com-

promised. It also holds up to considerable road-related

abuse.

Founded in 2001, The Austin City Limits Music

Festival is a yearly event that brings together more than

130 acts from all over the world to play rock, indie,

country, folk, electronic, and more on eight stages. It

hosts more than 200,000 people and has featured a

diverse range of bands. This year, it presented such art-

ists as The Black Keys, Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Jack

White, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer and The Roots.

Professional Wireless Systems (PWS), a Masque Sound

company were backstage when the 11th annual AustinCity Limits Music Festival took place in the eclectic citys

Zilker Park.

For More Information Click Below: MasqueSound Home >

Professional Wireless Systems Home >

PROFESSIONAL WIRELESS SYSTEMS

Frequency coordination rocks out at 2012 Austin City Limits Music Festivalas on-site experts ensure solid RF coverage for the three-day event.

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www.entertainmentengineering.com 9

The edge of space was where Felix Baumgartner stood

Sunday, October 14, 2012. At 39km or 128,100 feet, already

setting a world record for highest manned balloon flight,

Baumgartner leaned forward and rapidly disappeared from

camera view. 9 minutes later Felix Baumgartner was on the

New Mexico desert ground, fists in the air in triumph. His

decent set additional world records for becoming the firstskydiver to break the speed of sound, reaching a maximum

velocity of 1,342km/h (833.9mph), and the record for high-

est ever freefall.

The entire event was broadcast live on youtube where

another record was broken for simultaneous views. More

than eight million viewers watched the descent through

youtubes streaming service. The event was broadcasted

by 77 stations across 48 countries around the world.

All the graphic content for TV and for live stream was

provided by Vizrt Technology. The joint team of Vizrtand netventure personnel, represented on site by Yan

Heydlauf of Vizrt South West Europe and Stefan Meyer

of netventure Germany, gathered live data from capsule

telemetry, mission clocks, chest pack information, bio-

meds, and other mission information in Red Bull Stratos

Mission Control in Roswell, New Mexico. All data for

several websites were fed by web services provided by

netventure using data centers in Germany, Austria,

Ireland, and the US.

The team used Viz Graphic Hubs shared memory

to distribute content simultaneously between New

Mexico and the Red Bull Stratos studio at Servus TV

in Salzburg, Austria. A Viz|Trio operator simply called

up pages in a Viz|Trio show while the content was

constantly being updated live using scripting and VizGraphics Hub shared memory maps. Three Viz Engines,

Vizrts real-time 3D compositing engine, were used to

display the on-air graphics and video compositing. At

Servus TV, netventure film Austria, which has been in

charge of live graphics services for two years, used the

same Viz|Trio show to broadcast this successful event.

The several Viz|Trio systems were used to display on air

graphics and all the studio monitors.

Red Bull has been an exciting partner for us to

work with over the last few years. From the Red BullX-Fighters to this amazing jump, they are constantly

pushing the limit and bringing us fun new challenges,

said Petter Ole Jakobsen, CTO Vizrt. We congratulate

Felix for this landmark accomplishment.

For More Information Click Below:Vizrt Home > Netventure Home >

FELIX BAUMGARTNER BREAKS SOUND BARRIER

Graphic content for live streaming was provided by Vizrt Technology.
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10/20


Richard C. Klein from NASTEC is a designer and manu-

facturer of specialty transmissions and bearings. NASTEC

designs, fabricates, and manufactures traction drives, roller-

gear drives, and wave bearings.

He says that without teamwork in our organization,

his company would have little to show. The ideas would

remain as ideas only, he explains. Each of our projectshas taken work and input from everyone who draws a pay-

check. My guys are all part timers and the number involved

varies with the project.

At NASTEC, whoever espouses an idea has it reviewed

by a group. If it collectively is determined to have merit,

they all join in the writing and submission of an SBIR or an

STTR.

We have been fortunate to have had a number of pro-

posals accepted through the years, says Klein. The hardest

part, at times, seems to be to find large companies to teamwith who provide us with the use of certain hardware and

or proprietary information from which we can develop

devices that are the heart of our proposals. We have a

talented group of people who are both academics and expe-

rienced in the work of the subject matter, and who are also

able to think outside of the box.

Alison Jamele is the President MediaMation, Inc. At her

company, she feels that engineering innovation and creative

problem solving are accomplished more by teams than

individuals.MediaMation, Inc. is an entertainment systems integrator

providing creative solutions for complex interactive exhib-

its, shows, attractions, rides, interactive fountain shows, and

4D/5D theater environments, worldwide. Theme parks,

museums, themed environments, cinema chains, interactive

exhibits, motion pictures and entertainment retail venues

rely on MediaMation, Inc.s creative ingenuity to design,

implement, and install interactive attraction and entertain-

ment technology.

Engineering innovation and creative problem solving is

most definitely accomplished more by teams than by indi-

viduals working primarily by themselves, she says. Our

company is an interaction attraction technology company

in which we are in constant research and development of

new products and software. It is essential that our engi-

neers and technical design team work hand in hand whendesigning an interactive system as well as work together in

producing solutions to technically challenged projects.

When asked of advice on the appropriate mindset needed

for being a successful team player, she made an analogy.

One piece of advice I would like to share on the appropri-

ate mindset needed for being a successful team player,

would be for each team member to understand that they

are like an egg, sayd Jamele. An egg has three parts, the

TEAMWORKAS CRITICAL

TO DESIGN

Design often benefits from the interaction andcollaboration among colleagues, according todesign engineers interviewed for this story.

Engineering innovation and

creative problem solving is

most definitely accomplished

more by teams than by

individuals working primarilyby themselves,



11/20


shell, the whites, and the yolk. Without the three together

it would not be an egg. The mindset that no one can do it

alone, shows that it takes a team to become a whole.

Dr. Grant Henson is the Chief Scientist at Invariant

Laboratories LLC. Invariant Laboratories LLC provides

engineering consulting services for the design, develop-

ment, and manufacturing of high-performance aerospace

structural systems. He acknowledges that teamwork is

important to product design, he recognizes that individual

effort is important too.

We offer advanced modeling and simulation capabilities

in strength and dynamics, primarily using the finite element

method but also other classical or proprietary methods.

We offer extensive experience with mission assurance,

test planning, failure analysis and structural research and

development. Company staff has many years of experience

interacting with military and other government technical

personnel in developing timely, useful solutions to critical

problems.

I think individuals and teams both have a role to play.

Teams cant generate ideas, only people can. So people need

time to think by themselves without immediately having to

expose their ideas to the scrutiny of others. However, even-

tually the ideas need to be brought forward because team-

mates can provide a critical perspective that the individual

cannot apply to his own ideas.

For example, during the early Apollo program, John

Houbolt came up with lunar orbit rendezvous on his own,

or at least, he did the work to prove it was feasible. But ithad to be shopped around to all the different engineering

disciplines in order to make sure it wouldnt sabotage some

vital objective. No single engineer had a mastery of all the

different subsystems and functions, not even von Braun.

My advice on being a successful team player is to help the

team reach consensus but avoid groupthink. When a team

falls into groupthink, it defeats the whole purpose of having

a team, which is to bring out a variety of ideas.

Rob Clippard from Clippard Instrument Lab believes

one key to a successful team is leadership. A successfulteam needs that point person to keep the group on track

and hold the group accountable to that common purpose,

he says. He explains that teams can suffer from missing the

mark and straying off course. Team is defined by a group

with a common purpose and leadership is defined by influ-

ence. Ask the question, how does this activity or discus-

sion help to accomplish our goal?

Although the words team and individual seem to

counter each other, he believes that behind any successful

team is a good leader. Team success hinges on a cohesive

group working together to determine how their efforts can

excel the group to the finish line, says Clippard. The fluid

groups that just seem to gel are those groups who know the

goal as well as their individual contribution on the team

towards that goal.

For More Information Click Below: ClippardInstrumentLab > Invariant Laboratories >

Mediamation > NASTEC >
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12/20


Brad Cleveland understands what it takes to bring

together and manage successful teams. As the Presidentand CEO of Proto Labs, Inc. since 2001, his team has

taken the company from $1 million in annual revenue

when he joined the company to $100 million last year in

2011.

Several things contribute to the companys growth,

including a constant drive to find new customers while

simultaneously expanding the types of parts and services

Proto Labs offers. Bigger parts. More complex geom-

etries. New processes and accelerated manufacturing

services like CNC and injection molding. New materi-

als, including molded metal parts. It all helps grow the

company. But for Cleveland, it has meant supporting a

greater number of people with diverse backgrounds, all

the while making sure that they all have what they need

to get their increasing amounts of work done.

At Proto Labs, a key to successful teamwork has been

to be as clear as possible about priorities. Cleveland says

he tries to play the part of the servant leader much of

the time, doing his best to be supportive in any way pos-

sible by providing guidance and resources even before

they are requested at times.

Entertainment Engineering interviewed Cleveland

and a few of his teammates at Proto Labs in September

of 2012 about Teamwork at the company. Following are

excerpts from those interviews.

BC: I think weve done two things really well when

TEAMWORK AMID RAPID GROWTH

Proto Labs CEO Brad Cleveland discusses how growing the company required clear goals,new customers, better products, and thoughtful integration of new team members.



13/20


it comes to bringing our management team together,

says Cleveland. The first was to be very thoughtful

about bringing on board one person at a time, and then

absorbing them into the mix before making any deci-

sions about what additional sort of talent we need to

seek. This has provided us with the ability to fully uti-

lize the array of skills each individual brings to the team

and minimize the overlaps, thereby increasing both thebreadth of our skills and our ability to obtain different

points of view on complex challenges. The second thing

was to recognize the fact that sometimes the best person

to add to the team is someone you really werent looking

for, but they are just so great that you simply need to

build a position around them.

EE: What are the challenges?

BC: The main challenge to supporting a group of

high-caliber individuals with different mindsets and

skills is in balancing the desire to have a collaborative

environment with the need to get decisions made and

move things ahead. Weve adopted a surprises are for

birthdays mentality, which essentially means that while

we are not necessarily waiting for someone elses approv-

al, we are doing our best to make sure that everyone is

informed as much as possible along the way so that they

have the opportunity to object, advise, etc. if they wish.

Its as much based on respect as anything else.

EE: What are the qualities that make for a good team

manager?

BC: Domain expertise, communications skills, organi-

zational skills, a supportive personality, a strong intellect

and self-knowledge.

EE: Although teamwork is important to most any

business, do you feel that innovation and creative prob-

lem solving are accomplished more by teams or more by

individuals working primarily by themselves?

BC: I feel that the greatest breakthrough ideas tend

to come from individuals that use their colleagues as

sounding boards to think things through. But when it

is time to move from idea to implementation, it is more

about a collaborative team that is coordinated based onclear priorities and an action plan. So its both, but at

different points in the process.

EE: Example?

BC: Our entire business model was created around the

core idea that it should be possible to automate most of

the engineering normally associated with CNC machin-

ing and injection molding. Our software development

team is another example. When we have a major techni-

cal challenge, such as a complex 3D analysis problem

that needs to be solved, it falls to one of our super-smartsoftware engineers to pose a solution. But then it goes

to a larger group to work through the details and get it

coded, tested, and released.

For More Information Click Below: Proto Labs Home > Proto Labs Blog >

Protomold Service > Firstcut Service >

Chris Walls-Manning is a Software Development

Manager at Proto Labs who believes that innovation

and creative problem solving are accomplished mostly

by teamwork.

Often innovation and problem solving is a journey

that involves creating design concepts, experimenta-

tion and prototyping, and iterations of tweaking or

polishing before reaching a successful destination.

Your steps along such a journey are sped up by col-

laborating with team members. Collaboration pro-

vides different, unique perspectives on innovations

and solutions that an individual may otherwise miss.

It allows team members to share ideas and thoughts,

as well as mentor and teach each other. Collaboration

amongst the members of the team of engineers I work

with is vital to our innovation. Learn to communicate

your ideas clearly and intelligently, but also learn to

listen thoughtfully. Sometimes, the best idea might

not be your own.

Kevin Crystal is a Proto Labs Process Development

Engineer who designs tooling and processes for pro-

ducing machined plastic and metal parts. He believes

teams are important, but so is individual effort:

You need a creative person to sit down and createstuff and solutions. Creative people benefit from other

people reviewing their designs and offering creative

criticism or answers to questions. Design by com-

mittee is doomed to failure because its too easy for a

team member to kill an idea or quash enthusiasm. Its

too hard for good ideas to get past all the objections.

Get on a team that has good participants and is well

managed.
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14/20


This month, Entertainment Engineering talks with thebest-known and most highly respected special effects

companies in the film business to discuss creativity,

freedom, and herding cats. Dave Merritt is Model Shop

Supervisor at Legacy Effects, and took time out of a very

busy day to speak with us. Here is part of that conversa-

tion.

EE: First of all, how many men and women do you

typically employ, and what are their specialties?

Dave Merritt: Legacy Effects operates from

a core group of about 45 people, and we can quicklyramp up to 150 people as more projects come in. We

staff all types of specialists, but we separate them by

departments; some departments include more than one

specialist. The Departments are broken up into Art,

3D Modeling, Mechanical, Fabrication (which includes

hair and fur), Electronics, Molding and Casting, and the

Model Shop.

EE: Creativity is an important aspect of Legacys

production. How often do you start with one design and

end up with something completely different based oninputs from different departments?

Dave: We strive to create exactly what our clients

desire, but there are times when our staff collaboration

may change our approach to the final project. Typically

our timeframes are short so a great deal of collaboration

needs to happen during the project. For example, we

may use materials and processes from one department

to replace a more time consuming method in another

department.

EE: What percentage of your projects have some sort

of motion involved? And do your designers typically use

electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic components for the

motion?

Dave: About 50 percent of our work involves some

sort of motion. That motion can incorporate everything

from simple rod puppets to large hydraulic systems

depending on the individual project. In Real Steel,

the robot Atom was built with rod puppet arms and a

hydraulic head which allowed for a smoother and more

fluid operation.

EE: For any single project, how many different

designers are involved?

Dave: Each department has input on the design

of a project. For instance, 5 key designers from various

CREATIVITY ON A MONSTROUS SCALE

How one company juggles its workload while fabricating monsters, robots, and aliensfor a number of projects at once.



15/20


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Your Virtual 3D Printe

departments were involved with the Iron Man suit. Our

Fabrication Dept. dealt with how the materials would work

together as a whole; Mechanical worked out hinge points

and fasteners, while the Model Shop and Mold Dept. focused

on the patterns and casting process. Then, Electronics

followed up with the lighting and wiring harness. Now for

something like the aliens in Cowboys and Aliens, the same

process applied, but the puppet was more organic, so theDigital and Real World Sculptors, Mechanics and Mold

Dept. were more predominate in the build.

EE: How do you use the computers you have in-house,

since you dont provide CGI to your clients?

Dave: We utilize 3D modeling in order to visualize what

we are going to build and to identify specific elements that

may go through the rapid prototyping process. We use our

in-house system to produce maquettes for clients as well as

small detail components.

EE: How many projects do you work on at any one time?Dave: We typically run four to six television commercials

and two to four feature films at one time.

EE:If you had only a few words to explain how it is to

work with such a diverse and talented group, what would

you say?

Dave: Its a very rewarding experience to be able to work

in a creative environment with such talented people.

EE: Thank you for taking the time to answer our ques-

tions.

Dave:Thank you.

For More Information Click Below:Legacy Effects Home >

Legacy Effects Feature Films >

Legacy Effects Commercials >

Legacy Effects Design and Development >
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16/20


With teamwork, what started nearly ten years ago as

a wireless technology for helping hearing- and sight-

impaired people enjoy Disney theme parks has grown

and transformed into a flexible, multi-functional device

now used in transportation, forestry, food processing,

and other non-entertainment applications

In Volume 1, issue 3 of Entertainment Engineering,

editors wrote about a wireless technology that Disney

had just started using to provide text and visual prompts

for people visiting Disney theme parks who had hearingand visual disabilities. The hand-held wireless device was

simply a PDA in a bulky plastic case back then http://

www.entertainmentengineering.com/issue03/.

The original device combined assistive listening,

audio description, and closed captioning activation

into a small, easy-to-use platform. The assistive system

provided captioning, which enabled guests to read cap-

tions while enjoying specific theme park attractions and

shows. The device also provided audio description for

guests who are blind or have poor vision. The service

provided narrated information about key visual elements

in attractions, scene description for shows, and way find-

ing.

Now, fast forward nearly a decade to November of

2012 and issue 100 of this magazine. Today, that same

core wireless technology is used in a small, sleek device,

which fits in your pocket. Todays version of the device

still relies on the wireless technology, but it now acceptsa GPS module, a barcode scanner, a magnetic card

reader, and other helpful attachments, so it can do about

100 other helpful things for people visiting Disney theme

parks, traveling on Disney cruise ships, and other appli-

cations, many of which are outside assistive services.

Softeq is the Houston-based company that did soft-

ware development, hardware design, and other product

development for the new device, which is now called

TEAMWORK AND PRODUCT EVOLUTION



17/20


the Durateq. Softeq specializes in technical software

development, hardware interfacing, system integration,project management, and product development.

Disney has licensed the wireless technology to Softeq.

Softeq markets the device and the capabilities to custom-

ize the device for applications in other markets under the

Durateq brand. Softeq has already developed special-

duty devices for the National Forestry Service, oil- and

gas-processing industries, food processing, transporta-

tion, and others applications.

The SyncLink wireless system from Disney within

the Durateq handheld uses wireless signals throughoutparticipating Disney attractions to automatically trigger

synchronized captions and audio on the handheld device

in real time. If the application is outdoors, our devices

allow use of GPS to trigger the device, says Softeq VP

of Engineering, Paul Fruia. If the application is indoors,

we can switch to using infrared.

In addition to writing the code for the Durateqs

software, Softeq designed a daughter card and developed

firmware for the component that supports infrared

receivers required for triggering content in the parks,as well as an FM receiver, an audio amplifier, and a

modular serial port. The modular serial port is used to

provide additional functionality and capabilities beyond

the assistive technology solution.

Softeqs CEO, Chris Howard, worked with Hewlett-

Packard and Disney when the first versions of the

handheld were manufactured. Nearly ten years later, he

is still part of the team involved with helping create new

applications for the technology, the devices, and support

ing systems.While there are exceptions where an individual work

ing alone can create a breakthrough innovation, I have

definitely found that teamwork drives taking a break-

through innovation to the next level, and is absolutely

necessary to turn a good idea into a robust product, say

Greg Hale, Vice President and Chief Safety Officer

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. According to him,

SyncLink technology for location based triggering and

synchronization is a good example of the importance of

teamwork.This core technology was developed to provide

synchronized captioning on our rides and attractions

for guests with hearing disabilities, but has been utilized

by numerous teams in R&D, merchandising, market-

ing, engineering, safety, as well as services for guests

with disabilities to spur a multitude of inventions and

innovations, ranging from Pal Mickey to personal audio

language translation devices to Glow with the Show

Ears to audio descriptions for the blind, says Hale. All

of these innovations have been enabled by teams thattook the core technology into new products and inven-

tions beyond what the original individual inventors ever

imagined.

For More Information Click Below:Durateq > Durateq Handheld >

Softeq > Softeq Services >

If the application is outdoors, our devices allow use of GPS to

trigger the device, says Softeq VP of Engineering, Paul Fruia.

If the application is indoors, we can switch to using infrared.


18/20

The Quartier des Spectacles covers almost one square

kilometer of downtown Montreal. Historically filledwith theatres and cabarets, this area of the city had fallen

into blight and become an unfavorable, and sometimes

dangerous, area. The Quartier des Spectacles Partnership

was formed to revitalize this once vibrant cultural heart

of Montreal. Now, it is the home of not only theatres and

cabarets, but restaurants, shopping centers, and many

outdoor music and art festivals every year.

Eight main sites and many more to come have

transformed buildings into canvases for architectural

projection artwork. One of the rules of the Quartier desSpectacles Partnership is that the artistic projects should

only be used for public art, not for commercialism,

so advertising and logos are not allowed as part of the

building projections. Many businesses have joined in the

fun and added architectural lighting elements of their

own to really make the neighborhood lively.

The projection installations are not all simply playback

of rendered content. In some cases, interactive elements

QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES IN MONTREAL

The worlds largest coordinated architectural projection installation ever made uses MedialonShow Control Technology to operate every night, year round.


One of the rules of the Quartier

des Spectacles Partnership is

that the artistic projects should

only be used for public art, not

for commercialism...



19/20


allow the public to interact with the projections, using

game technology and sensors of various types to make

the projections truly unique.

Each architectural projection installation has custom

made projector housings sitting on rooftops of adja-

cent buildings that contain not only the high powered

projectors but also the media servers, networking gear,

show controllers, IP cameras, temperature and humidity

sensors, and climate control (for heating, air condition-

ing, dehumidifying, etc.) The projections run every

night year round, so the equipment inside the projector

housings must be in a climate-controlled environment

for optimum performance. The local show controller

(Medialon Showmaster ST) controls and supervises the

equipment, schedules playback of shows, controls the

temperature and humidity inside the projector housing,

manages remote reboot of unresponsive devices, and

sends e-mail alarms of any malfunctions, failures, or

unusual humidity or temperature readings.

The larger buildings require multiple projector hous-

ings all linked together. These linked housings are

managed by a single Showmaster ST, plus each housing

contains a local media server connected to the projectors

in that housing.

The technical production team of Quartier des

Spectacles has devised a standard set of equipment used

in all of the projection installations. This allows for

easier stocking of spare parts, easier maintenance, and

faster installation of new sites or changes to shows at the

permanent sites. Some of the installations are temporary

and the equipment is only installed on a temporary basis

allowing flexibility to add new sites for special events.

The Showmasters at each site are connected to the

main Quartier des Spectacles headquarters at the Place

des Festivals by dedicated fiber optics, microwave radio

transmission, or through a virtual private network on

the Internet. The main system can control and monitor

all the remote sites and even pull up camera views from

each sites IP cameras. The system can even be controlled

and monitored remotely from system administrators

iPhones.

The main installation at the heart of Quartier des

Spectacles is the Place des Festivals. This square is where

the many festivals take place in the Quartier. There are

fountains and lights embedded into the sidewalk. In the

summer, fountain and lighting shows accompany the

adjacent building projections. The streetlights can even

be turned off by the show control system during the

shows. Since all the systems are tied to the main control

system, all sites can be coordinated and synchronized

together.

For More Information Click Below:Medialon Home >

Medialon Video-Parcours Numerique >

Medialon Video-Luminous Pathway >

Quartier des Spectacles Home >


20/20

Pl i i CONTENT SPONS

EntertainmentEngineeringContent Sponsors

Vol. 9 issue 11

IFC: SOLIDWORKS

P5: PROTO LABS

P7: GEOMAGIC

P9: CONCEPT OVERDRIVE

P15: ZOOMRP.COM

With a video camera and seven DPA Reference

Standard 4006A microphones affixed to the bridge,

Fontana is streaming and capturing six months worth

of sound and footage for a live video and sound portrait

titled Acoustical Visions of the Golden Gate. He also

relies on a Sound Devices 788T multi-track digital audio

recorder to capture the audio.

Fontana selected the highly praised DPA Reference

Standard 4006A for the 75th anniversary project for

its true-to-life sound reproduction and its ability to

withstand all San Francisco weather conditions. One

of the reasons I chose the 4006A is that it is one of the

only great studio condenser microphones that can also

live out on the Golden Gate Bridge for half a year. It is

a pretty robust microphone and has a great sound, he

said.

The versatile DPA 4006A is the most popular DPA

microphone available and is used worldwide as a record-ing standard. The unit boasts total transparency in any

recording situation, and can pick up incredible detail and

depth of sound. With the 4006A, everyone from broad-

casters to musical engineers can use the microphone,

which produces a clean, natural and precise reproduc-

tion in a variety of applications. These features made

the 4006A an ideal option for Fontana, who needed

to simultaneously stream and record the audio for

Acoustical Visions of the Golden Gate.

For the times when Fontana is recording, he utilizes a

Sound Devices 788T, which is the perfect partner to any

DPA microphone for on-location recording. The record-

ers plug-and-play capabilities are the ultimate pairing

with the DPA 4006A, as each of the DPA microphones

multi-pin connectors break into clearly labeled XLRs,

which can be simply plugged into the Sound Devices

788T. With the different monitoring functions on the

788T, Fontana can pinpoint what channel he wants to

listen to while still recording.

For More Information Click Below:DPA Microphones > DPA Microphones Products >

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GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE

HONORED

For the 75th Anniversary of the bridge,

San Francisco Artist Bill Fontana uses

DPA 4006A omni-directional microphones torecord a live sound portrait.

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