Crestron and DLP for LAN Control

  • More digital signage using projectors instead of flat panels? It could happen with products like this one announced today at InfoComm.
  • Crestron Electronics, provider of advanced enterprise control solutions, and Texas Instruments (TI) DLP® products, have announced that they have joined efforts to further interactivity by directly connecting and controlling DLP projectors via the LAN using RoomView® Express software. The latest projectors built on DLP technology offer standard Ethernet connectivity, and Crestron RoomView provides the power and flexibility of complete management and control of all projectors remotely and globally on the network. Crestron control is built into DLP projectors to deliver direct network management without a control system or programming.
  • Owners of Crestron “direct connect” DLP projectors from brands such as Dell, BenQ, 3M and many more, simply register and download the free RoomView software to get real time, enterprise-wide monitoring and control of up to 250 projectors, with instant status and control notifications, including projector presence, power status and lamp life.
  • “DLP is proud to collaborate with Crestron, the industry’s integration leader, to add native network control and management capabilities to projectors powered by DLP technology,” said Roger Carver, manager of TI DLP front projection business. “The combination of our solutions is a differentiator to our manufacturers and a significant value to end users.”

Crestron RoomView enables administrators and support staff to perform remote system diagnostics, track projector usage and lamp life, log network activity, and automate tasks, such as turning projectors off at a preset time to save energy. With built-in logging, report, and chart generation, RoomView also provides data that empowers managers to make informed purchasing and resource allocation decisions.

“Crestron RoomView is the most open and mature network management and control software available,” Carver continued. “We evaluated several options and it was immediately clear that RoomView provides the most powerful, flexible network control possible. You can put an Ethernet port on a projector, but without the right software it’s like a bridge to nowhere. RoomView integrates any brand of projector seamlessly and gives users a simple, easy-to-use interface.”

“With thousands of installations of Crestron RoomView worldwide, it was the natural choice to take network device management to the next level by embedding the program into the latest DLP projectors with Ethernet connectivity,” explains Josh Stene, Product Line Manager, Crestron.

Every direct connect RoomView-DLP projector has new Crestron Flash® based e-Control embedded to allow cross platform control via MAC, PC or mobile device. Connect legacy and other installed projectors to the network simply by adding a Crestron control processor, such as the low cost, compact QM-RMC. Every projector, and other AV devices, in every room within a building, across a campus and throughout a global enterprise can be managed and controlled by RoomView.

Crestron provides an easy upgrade path to RoomView Server Edition, delivering a Web-based, cross-platform solution that adds the ability to manage and monitor room scheduling, and provides enhanced customization of attributes, contacts, logs and reports as well as advanced plug-in modules for calendars, hot lists, Instant Messaging and Web cameras.

For more information about the Crestron RoomView/Texas Instruments DLP direct connect solution contact your local Crestron representative. For details about Crestron RoomView Express and RoomView Server Edition software go to www.crestron.com/roomview or visit InfoComm Booth 5301.

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