Today’s control room environments are increasingly complex—and integrators, contractors, and consultants are expected to offer design and deployment of solutions comprising a wide range of sources, data, devices, and tasks while ensuring both efficiency and reliability. To do so, AV-over-IP (AVoIP) partnered with IP-based KVM technologies is becoming a go-to combination for optimizing control rooms.
VoIP and KVM technologies have historically been deployed as separate systems, each with its own infrastructure and management requirements. Today, control room systems that integrate KVM and AVoIP into a single solution not only boost efficiency but also simplify management.
To differentiate their offerings, integrators are now not only recommending, implementing, and integrating best-in-class solutions, but they are also accompanying customers with their expanding and future control room needs, offering support for their technology roadmaps/upgrades. This can include a full range of post-implementation services, from offering basic service contracts to full-service support or new technology upgrades. In doing so, service and solutions providers are becoming integral to their clients’ control room build and operations.
Clean Up This Mess
KVM-over-IP together with AVoIP technologies allow control room operators to deploy and smoothly switch between physical and virtual systems, monitor the systems across several desktop displays, and work more collaboratively by sharing ultra-high-resolution visuals on a video wall. Additionally, these technologies allow operators to streamline control room operations and reduce response times in critical situations.
Integrating video wall management features within KVM systems enables more flexible display control minus the complexity and costs. And, when they are equipped to monitor and manage multiple sources efficiently, operators can focus on critical tasks and collaborate more effectively with colleagues, boosting control room efficiency and responsiveness.
As the year progresses, it’s likely we'll continue to see a reduction of hardware at the operator workstation, along with centralized monitoring platforms, virtualization, and more migration to IP-based solutions. We're already seeing movement around replacing legacy hardware to reduce clutter. IP KVM can replace many devices and “clean up” the area around the operators.
Loud and clunky workstations are now being moved into a server room away from the operators’ desk and being replaced by a single desktop receiver that handles many (if not all) operator tasks. This also protects valuable computer hardware and software assets, keeps physical computers free of dust and debris, and guards them against hacker threats. Command and control operators can now keep a clean and secure workspace without the extra heat or noise generated by computers.
Centralized Monitoring Demands
The command and control room solutions market will continue to be driven by the increasing demand for centralized monitoring systems across various industries. Advanced IP KVM solutions now have features that consolidate access to multiple systems, applications, and data sources into a single interface, whereas legacy systems rely on direct hardware connections requiring many additional devices.
With centralized monitoring, control room operators can now access the same systems in different locations for real-time collaboration and quickly hand off tasks without having to physically relocate. This also allows multiple operators to monitor different aspects from a centralized interface.
Fully scalable KVM systems are core to the future demands of a control room.
For example, many clinical lab customers are seeing significant improvements in the ability to monitor and collect data. KVM innovations have improved real-time data collection from analyzers and other pre-analytical instruments. The importance here is that KVM systems can centralize outpatient blood sampling and the integration of the various 24/7 laboratory units giving both patient research and scientific research easy facilitation using the same infrastructure—all with a workable, uniform, and standardized solution.
We will continue to see the combination of various technology components in the control room, such as systems control and video wall processing, under a single KVM solution. This is particularly true in the control room solutions market that may have multiple distributed systems, multi-monitor setups, and video wall connectivity. As these systems scale, becoming more diverse and complex, they must have a simplified user experience.
When developing a KVM solution for command and control, designers must build in real-time responsiveness to support high-resolution multi-displays. Fully scalable KVM systems are core to the future demands of a control room.
Plus, a reliable 24/7 environment requires redundancy and failover alternatives. The control room system needs to easily integrate with legacy hardware, offer user-friendly interfaces, and consider ergonomics to optimize operator efficiency and situational awareness. Most importantly, command and control centers must be carefully designed with ergonomics in mind to reduce human error incidents.
Evolution and AI
In essence, as control room operations evolve, organizations working with advanced IP-based KVM technology will have the ability to easily scale up connectivity, add systems and AV sources, and extend the scope of monitoring and control to address changing requirements and stay flexible. It is incumbent on Pro AV designers and integrators to consider critical elements including bandwidth requirements, monitor specifications, video resolutions, users and sources, cabling, and unique or specialized connection requirements.
In modern control rooms, ultra-low latency is crucial, as latency delays can be disastrous. Advanced KVM solutions must allow tailored configurations that enable complete operator control of all these various technologies at their console.
The interesting aspect in KVM technology is how AI will fit into the picture. There is a lot of talk around the integration of AI with KVM, but at this point it seems to just be investigative in nature. However, there is a world of possibilities around AI through analytics, automation around decision making, and potentially remote monitoring capabilities.
From system log data to video screen data, mouse, and keyboard interactions, there are tons of data flowing through an IP KVM matrix system. It’s feasible that AI can aggregate real-time data from the multiple sources connected to the matrix. This data could possibly be utilized to improve latency, strengthen security, even further automate workflows.
[The Integration Guide to KVM 2025]
otentially, AI could analyze network traffic data to identify latency in connected video streams, monitor data packet flows in networks, and further optimize routing efficiency in control room solutions. From there, AI could not only analyze the data, but detect anomalies, trigger alerts through automation, and even predict system failures based on switching delays, network usage, or hardware performance trends. AI is shaping the future in ways we are only beginning to understand, and this is especially true in KVM.
