A significant installation of tvONE CORIOmaster video processors at the Virginia Tech State University has transformed how students learn, and lessons are taught.
Four distinct areas within the institution’s Alexandria campus now feature LED screens, projections, or displays driven by a range of CORIOmaster2, CORIOmaster mini, and CORIOmaster micro units. The project is part of a wider upgrade of projector screens, LED video walls, and TVs.
Virginia Tech’s AB1 AV manager Diego Romero worked closely with the tvONE’s Mid-Atlantic regional sales manager Mitch Klein to find solutions for all four spaces at the Alexandria campus’s Academic Building One. This building includes 300,000 square feet of academic space and cutting-edge research and development facilities, across 11-floors.
“The overall aim was to provide users with a smooth experience when sharing their content on displays that have non-standard aspect ratios and where multiple pieces of content could be shown at the same time,” explained Romero. “Prior experience with tvONE in other installations led us to selecting the company again, and by understanding the capabilities and relevant successes we’ve had with tvONE products, we knew selecting tvONE would help us reach the desired functionality at Academic Building One’s data-driven spaces.”
The four areas that were the focus of the installation are the AI & Machine Learning Lab, the Boeing Auditorium, the K-12 Gaming Lab, and the Lobby video wall.
“In the AI & Machine Learning Lab, we installed a tvONE CORIOmaster micro, opting for a CORIOmaster mini in the Boeing Auditorium,” explained Romero. “We specified a CORIOmaster2 in the K-12 Gaming Lab and a second CORIOmaster micro to cover the Lobby video wall. Each of the devices provides the right amount of processing and features. For example, AI & Machine Learning Lab and Lobby video wall are basic applications with a small number of inputs/outputs, meaning that the CORIOmaster micro was just enough for those spaces."
Inside the AI & Machine Learning Lab, LED video walls allow users to share content from a laptop while comparing results of AI or ML models that are being generated by a more powerful computer, side by side.
Over in the Boeing Auditorium, users can use five windows for content on a 60-foot-wide projection screen and select the content for each window individually.
At the K-12 Gaming Lab, users can drive a six-display video wall or display one large image spanning four different displays, as well as break up the image being displayed on the 98" displays into four smaller windows.
Down in the Lobby, the video wall is a display where the marketing team can create and play impressive content on a non-standard aspect ratio, as well as use it for regular digital signage and presentations when needed.
“I didn't have prior experience of using the CORIOmaster range of video processors but managed to figure out the basics on my own,” added Romero. “Most of the initial setup and programming was done by our main programmer and I fine-tuned the devices to match what we wanted to see on the screens.”
AVI-SPL supplied the tvONE equipment for AI&ML, Boeing, and Lobby video wall. RTW supplied the CORIOmaster 2 in the K-12 Gaming Lab.
“We mainly focus on using different layouts and recalling them depending on the desired use case for that moment,” concluded Romero. “Once we figured out how the windows in the CORIOmaster interacted with the general output of the system, it was a matter of just lining them all up with fine corrections. This made the process of aligning and setting up all the images for the K-12 Gaming Lab a much smoother process."