ISE 2017 preview: themes and issues
7 – 10 February 2017
Amsterdam RAI
Netherlands
Opening hours:
Tuesday, 7 February 2017 10:00 – 18:00 hrs
Wednesday, 8 February 2017 09:30 – 18:00 hrs
Thursday, 9 February 2017 09:30 – 18:00 hrs
Friday, 10 February 2017 09:30 – 16:00 hrs
Launched in 2004, ISE is the world’s largest tradeshow for the professional AV and electronic systems industry. ISE 2017 is expected to draw over 1,100 exhibitors and more than 65,000 registered attendees.
This year’s event kicks off on the 6th February with the Smart Building Conference, following an inaugural address by award-winning architect Ole Scheeren. The speech will provide the culmination to an exciting day of events that will include the Smart Building Conference and the launch of extensive education programmes delivered by leading trade associations CEDIA and InfoComm International. The Official Opening Reception for ISE 2017 will follow the conclusion of Scheeren’s speech.
Smart buildings
In his Opening Address Scheeren will share his vision of contemporary architectural and urban development and explore how technology and architectural design combine to influence the creativity of each discipline. Scheeren is principal of Buro Ole Scheeren, a firm with offices in Hong Kong, Beijing, Berlin and Bangkok. He is its chief designer and leads the company’s strategic development.
Previously Scheeren worked with Rem Koolhaas at OMA, as a Director and Partner to oversee the projects for Asia. His current projects include the Guardian Art Center, near the Forbidden City in Beijing, 1500 West Georgia in downtown Vancouver, and MahaNakhon, Bangkok’s tallest tower. He has been awarded numerous prizes, including the WAF 2015 World Building of the Year for The Interlace, Singapore, the CTBUH 2013 Best Tall Building award for CCTV and the 2014 inaugural Urban Habitat Award for The Interlace.
Integrated Systems Events Managing Director Mike Blackman commented: “We wanted to begin ISE 2017 with a statement of intent – and this combination achieves it perfectly. Our business is based around the design and construction of buildings incorporating the use of the latest products and solutions. Ole Scheeren represents the very best of modern architectural design and our Smart Building Conference will explore the cutting edge of smart building technology and business innovation.”
As well as setting the scene for ISE 2017, Scheeren will provide the climax to the Smart Building Conference. Each year, the one-day summit explores the latest commercial and residential smart building technologies, business strategies, market research and workflow case studies, featuring some of the world’s leading smart building experts and thought leaders.
This year, the Smart Building Conference will focus on how the IoT Makes Smart Buildings Even Smarter. Confirmed speakers from some of the world’s leading smart building companies include: Aglaia Kong and Kathy Farrington from Google; Bernhard Huessy from nomos system; Claus Lohse from a/c/t/ Beratungs & System; James McHale from Memoori; Matthew Marson from Accenture Connected Space and Paul Foulkes from Echohouse Energy.
Education programme
At ISE 2017, CEDIA and InfoComm International will be running their most comprehensive education and training programmes so far seen at this exhibition.
These will both begin on the pre-show day – the Monday 6th February. CEDIA will be producing an interactive Home Cinema Design Workshop with GuySingleton from Imagine This. In addition, there will be three full-day CEDIA courses taking place which will cover: Rack Building and Wiring Fundamentals with Nick Pidgeon from Visualization; Advanced Residential Networking with Geoff Meads from Presto AV, and Principles of Project Management with Simon Buddle from CEDIA.
InfoComm International will premiere its 2.5 day CTS Prep course with Marcus Yarborough, designed to prepare students for the CTS exam which students will be able to take on-site at the RAI during the show days of ISE 2017. It features test-taking skills designed to boost students’ confidence for an exam that can be taken on site at the RAI Amsterdam.
Awards presentation
Immediately before ISE 2017 opens its doors to the expected 65000 visitors, AV News marks the achievements of those individuals and companies that achieved excellence in the year preceding the show. At a gourmet breakfast staged in the RAI’s Diamond Lounge, adjacent to Hall 2 of ISE 3017, the AV News Awards will be presented to those outstanding individuals who set the standard in innovation, engineering, sales, support and marketing in the AV industry. Also honoured are those responsible for benchmark projects in the commercial and education sectors, together with those making a notable contribution to developing the market for AV technology.
Award winners will be presented with their trophies at a breakfast ceremony while benefitting from thought provoking addresses from Nancy Knowlton, co-founder of SMART Technologies and Nureva, and Oliver Mack of German technology consultants, Macom.
ISE 2017: technologies and innovations
This year promises to be outstanding for innovation in AV technology, with even more demands on the time of ISE visitors. To try to impose some structure on an even bigger and more diverse event, AV News has partnered with leading technology market research firm Futuresource to help you plan your visit.
Corporate solutions
The co-location of ISE and the Smart Buildings Conference is more than a happy coincidence. But to what extent are integrated end-user solutions dependent on smart building adoption? What do corporate end-users want their smart buildings to do? Is it all about technology asset management?
Futuresource: “In terms of the buildings themselves, we are really just at the beginning of understanding the benefits smart buildings can have. Until relatively recently, smart building discussions have tended to focus on more operational areas i.e. illumination, thermal comfort, air quality, access and security, etc. The ROI benefits are usually more easily measured and feedback into the business as clear financial savings.”
“In our world of AV, the big trend has come in the form of AV over IP. Driving this trend has been a shift in decision making, with AV budgets increasingly wrapped into (far) larger IT budgets. Only a few years hence, the thought of hanging an AV on an IT network was the stuff of nightmares – but the increasing convergence of AV and IT, at product level through to decision making, has changed this situation dramatically in recent times. As a result, we are beginning to see a more connected building, in terms of the range of devices that can be recognised, controlled and which are capable of returning a range of information/data points in the other direction.”
“Right now, asset management is probably the leading consideration, the key point being across a range of devices, asset management in itself is nothing new. However, new use cases are starting to pop up, seemingly on a weekly basis. Take for example a meeting room that is booked every week by the same person for a six-person team meeting.”
“There is no way of understanding the actual utilisation of that room. Now that room might have lighting sensors which, with a little tweaking, could feedback a basic set of metrics (i.e. when was the meeting room accessed, if at all). Take that a step further, and deploy a relatively inexpensive heat mapping solution, and now it’s possible to see how many people actually attend that meeting each week. Crunching that data can tell a business a great deal and with office space in major metropolitan areas at such a premium, potentially make significant savings. There are also other HR related implications. This is an extremely simple concept but has the power to shape multiple business decisions.”
“Whilst smart buildings can certainly be an enabler of integrated end user solutions, perhaps the bigger topic and industry focus for corporate AV/IT solutions is providing access to the same range of tools/functions anytime, anywhere and completely seamlessly. We are seeing an increasingly nomadic workforce with a recent study from Futuresource showing 7.7% of staff surveyed are home workers and a further 2% expected to join them by 2018. In many instances, this will be a mixed with 2-3 days spent in the office. This is why we see such a keen focus on UC&C solutions in recent times.”
Related ISE 2017 announcements
Crestron (2-C24) will be presenting its new Skype Room System in partnership with Microsoft. A powerful, professional solution built for Skype for Business, it brings an HD audio video experience to small and midsize meeting rooms and spaces, as well as conference rooms. Work like you’re in one place; quickly and easily join meetings, make phone calls, instantly share content in room and remotely, all from an elegant touch screen console device. “At ISE visitors will be able to see just how we have natively integrated Skype for Business with our AV and room control technology to make a collaboration system that can be easily deployed in huddle rooms and conference rooms across the enterprise. This system can be managed on the network, and provides the seamless, intuitive Skype for Business experience to any meeting space,” says Fred Bargetzi, Crestron Chief Technology Officer.”
NEC Display Solutions Europe (5-R24) will feature a range of technologies appropriate for huddle spaces. Huddle spaces which facilitate spontaneity between meeting participants. They enable seamless collaboration and benefit from the synergy of collective talent, by connecting people whether they are in the same room or located across the world. Users of the huddle space need to create and share ideas in an environment which facilitates their needs with technology designed for interactivity, collaboration, BYOD (Bring your own Device) and video conferencing. These must be easy and intuitive to set up and operate. Typically, huddle rooms are designed for meetings of up to 5 people, often a smaller meeting room where a display size of 65” is ideal. Mid-sized meeting rooms with 5-15 participants can also be utilised as a huddle room, where a display size of 84” would be better. Increased productivity is one of the key criteria by which companies are measured and this will become increasingly important in the future.
NEC’s booth will feature, among many other things, technology for huddle spaces.
Vivitek (5-R55), a brand of Delta, offers an extensive line of visual display and presentation products. Vivitek´s line of digital projection and display products incorporates the latest innovations and technologies to meet the market demands for education, business, home theatre and large venue. At ISE2017, Vivitek will show its commitment to delivering projection and visual solutions and displays that aid collaboration and boost productivity for both private and public sector organisations. At the same time, it will reinforce its ambition to provide solutions for meeting rooms and venues of all sizes and for every budget with a raft of products that combine advanced technology, reliability, generous warranties and eco-friendliness. A broad range of Vivitek’s solutions, including NovoConnect collaboration and NovoDS digital signage, along with 4K laser projection will be displayed on its booth.
Flat screen display technologies
If fine pitch LED for indoor applications was one of the stars of last year’s ISE, what can we expect this year? Or is it a case of what won’t we see? Our colleagues at Futuresource are pretty about OLED, for example, although it’s a technology that has popped up at just about every major AV event over the last couple of years.
Futuresource: “We see very little genuine demand for OLED generally in professional applications. There is, of course, interest but the extremely high price point means the conversation rarely progresses to anything tangible. Coupled with this, the LCD supply chain has made significant advancements in recent times, cutting power consumption (historically a key attribute for OLED) significantly, improving picture quality/performance with HDR, QDOT, etc. whilst maintaining strong erosion. Not great for the supply chain but most certainly for the end user.”
But is there any immediate prospect of cost-effective commercial supplies?
“We don’t see any immediate opportunity. The majority of OLED suppliers are focused on small screen opportunities in wearable and portable devices. Billions of R&D dollars have been spent, thousands of patents registered and yet we find the major supplier pulling away from large screen production. Consistently poor yield rates make a business case almost impossible to justify. Link this to LCD development and it seems reasonable to assume we won’t see price points that disrupt volume large screen LCD segments.”
And for the long term?
“We believe that the future of OLED lies in its ability to create flexible displays, something LCD is unable to replicate. This is an exciting area for the display industry with the potential to impact existing technologies and create completely new segments. We are currently at a stage where flexible displays are driving innovation in the manufacturing process (for example, the Samsung Galaxy Edge mobile phone) but an end user is not able to manipulate the display surface. We are now entering the second generation of devices where we are beginning to see bendable, foldable and rollable prototypes publicly demonstrated. The applications and use cases for flexible displays in the pro AV space are fascinating but should be tempered with the fact we are likely someway from major adoption.”
Related ISE 2017 announcements
Sony: visitors to Sony (1-N20) will see the company’s
“ultimate big-screen display solution” CLEDIS. This delivers ultra-real 8K visual experiences by combining a high-contrast image (more than 1,000,000:1) with a 1000 nit brightness, with no artefacts due to uniform brightness intensity. Unique pixel drive circuitry achieves an ultra-fast video response time with a frame rate of 120fps – said to be perfect for fast-moving content across a nearly 180 degree viewing angle. The company will also show its BRAVIA corporate and touchscreen solutions. These include TDM Digital Signage software that makes it quick and easy to create eye-catching multimedia experiences, great for reception areas, school sports halls and cafeterias. Our new touchscreen solution turns BRAVIA into a super-size touch display – said to be great for engaging customers at offices, universities, retail stores and visitor attractions.
Sony CLEDIS is said to deliver ultra-real 8K visual experiences.
Crestron (2-C24) will be showing its latest touchscreens for the home and commercial settings alongside the latest audio products, presentation solutions and Crestron’s new Network AV solutions and next generation of DM. Both Amazon at Home and Sonos products will be on the show floor and functioning as part of a Crestron home automation system. At the booth, Crestron will provide dealers, integrators, AV managers, customers and prospective clients with a tour demonstrating technology for every space and visitors will also be able to engage in a hands-on demonstration of just how the Amazon and Sonos partnerships work.
Seloy Live (14-M270) launches ‘supercharged’ interactive glass: Intended primarily for retail, corporate and public usage, the company’s interactive portfolio embeds touch technology securely inside glass, enabling it to function as a regular window when switched off. Seloy Live’s SENSE is a state-of-the-art combination of a transparent insulating glass unit and interactive touch surface. Available in any size up to 3m x 6m for indoor and outdoor use, with ‘true zero’ bezels SENSE boasts a touch response rate of 5-20ms. SENSE is said to be ideal for use within corporate buildings – boardrooms, meeting rooms, lobbies, foyers – and is also said to be a cost-competitive alternative to expensive interactive LCD/OLED/LED videowalls.
Clevertouch (13-B85) will show the latest Clevertouch models, with a host of new features, including dual-slot PC/Android modules, the new Lynx app, a new version of the Cleverstore, a state-of-the-art MMD solution, web based Snowflake MultiTeach® Lessons, and the newly launched Lynx5. An extended distribution agreement with NUITEQ will see all of Sahara’s Clevertouch interactive touchscreens shipping with a Snowflake Business or Snowflake MultiTeach licence, enabling users to download the Snowflake version of their choice at no cost. NUITEQ’s Snowflake Business collaborative touchscreen software includes business tools that drive information sharing and collaboration. Used in corporate meeting rooms, lobbies, and presentation and training environments, Snowflake Business comes preloaded with a variety of customisable apps, which improve work flow and time management
Interactive Scape (8-K325) launches new tangible recognition touch table: the new Scape Pro 55 UHD multi-touch table supports the Ventuz software suite and industry standard TUIO protocol. The 55” Scape Pro 55 UHD also features Interactive Scape’s innovative Capore technology for tangible object recognition on capacitive touch. With up to 80 simultaneous touch points and a waterproof surface, the touchscreen is said to be perfectly suited for servicing several users at once without a host or staff member to oversee operations.
The 55” Scape Pro 55 UHD touch table.
Zytronic (8-E350) will be demonstrating its force sensing technology for large format interactive touch screens for the first time at ISE. Zytronic is seeing significant growth and interest in interactive video walls and large touch tables. Ian Crosby, Sales and Marketing Director at Zytronic, said, “Force or pressure sensing is a whole new way of interacting with a touch screen, and we are a pioneer in bringing it to financial, retail, gaming, industrial and other commercial touch screen applications, giving developers a fantastic opportunity to innovate. It is particularly powerful when used in combination with Zytronic multi touch technology, exceeding what is possible on all but the most advanced tablets and smartphones today. The technology used in consumer electronic devices doesn’t scale to large screens. We’ve developed our own, completely separate technology to implement this functionality.”
Daktronics (8-N263)70-square-meter stand will feature ultra-high definition (UHD) displays with Daktronics controllers that allow for smooth HDR and 4K content transmission. “This year, in addition to an extensive product showing, we will showcase some of the unique benefits available to Daktronics customers including: display versatility, highest image quality and durability,” says Pete Egart, Daktronics VP of EMEA. Using Daktronics’ proprietary control equipment, screen owners can take full advantage of the HDR colour space. The company’s UHD product line uses Daktronics Precision Current Control (PCC) to control the differing power needs of each LED die. The company’s stand will present some of Daktronics’ iconic worldwide installations and demonstrate how multiple LED technologies can be used together to create unique experiences. A new rendering of “forced perspective” will crown Daktronics stand.
Daktronics to show smooth HDR and 4K content.
Laser projection showcase
ISE 2017 will feature the widest showcase to date of laser projection technology – with arguably a far greater presence than the current market penetration of the technology merits. But ISE is all about the future, and most pundits have little doubt about where the future will eventually lead.
Related ISE 2017 announcements
Panasonic (1-H20) will launch a new 20,000 lumens laser projector at ISE 2017 which will serve as a replacement for the PT-DZ21K, Europe’s best selling high-brightness projector. The company plans to demonstrate its live events capability, with a show combining laser projection technology, 3D mapping and performers interacting with moving projection, courtesy of the newly launched PT-RZ31K, a 31,000 lumens laser projector developed for the live market. The show will also see the launch of LinkRay, introduced as a concept at ISE 2016, the 1-2-1 marketing solution uses individual codes within LED light sources as a source of information. LinkRay will be embedded inside a new display line up and, in addition, visitors to the stand will have the option to download product information, direct to their smartphones, from light plates throughout the stand.
Canon Europe (1-F42.) will collaborate with a variety of partners to showcase a range of installations across industry sectors including education, entertainment and digital signage, demonstrating the latest developments in Canon’s 4K projection technology. This includes an immersive domed 4K projection area, a creative blend installation, as well as “touch and try” demonstrations for visitors. For the first time, Canon’s XEED 4K600STZ laser projector will be on display, projecting content on a panorama dome screen from Elumenati. The demonstration will show how the XEED 4K600STZ, with native 4K (4096 x 2400) resolution and Canon’s long-life 6,000-lumen solid-state light source technology, can project outstanding 4K image quality onto curved or domed surfaces with consistent focus.
Optoma (1-H120) is to unveil new laser, 4K UHD and gaming projectors
along with innovative mapping solutions at ISE 2017. Visitors to stand 1-H120 in Hall 1 will be among the first to see and experience unique projection demonstrations including ultra-bright lamp-less laser, 4K DLP projection and mapping solutions for both professional AV applications and home users. The latest product range will be on display for the business, education, professional installation, retail and home entertainment markets. Optoma’s Head of Marketing, Joe Ahmed, said: “We are excited to showcase the benefits of projection over flat panels with our latest developments in projection technology. Our professional AV business has seen dramatic growth and we look forward to unveiling even more innovative solutions which will demonstrate the breadth of our range.” The stand will be organised into zones with demonstrations taking place throughout the show. Experts from Optoma’s Product Management team and European Sales regions will be on hand to provide technical knowledge and one-to-one demonstrations.
Augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR)
Surely two of the highlights of the show and the forthcoming generation of AV solutions. The question of whether AR is just a stepping-stone to VR will be answered in the negative this year, with ISE exhibits showing that the use cases for VR and AR are unique in their own right.
Futuresource: “The business case for AR is often easily made, but who, outside of entertainment really needs VR? VR is gaining traction across a broad range of industry applications – notably CAD, training (including the medical and military sectors) and education. Google has developed a strong position in the education sector with its free apps (G-Suite for education and Google Classroom) being widely used (especially in the US market). It has launched its Google Expeditions app in over 120 countries and 40 languages and has been trialled by over one million students worldwide. Publishers like Pearson and Evo Books are also trialling VR. Virtual Reality is also being adopted for sports performance analysis.”
“At present, VR costs are lower and availability is higher resulting in greater traction – both in B2B and consumer applications. The full immersion component of VR means that it disengages users from the real-world. The ability of platforms like HoloLens for users to still have human interaction and use of their physical surroundings will result in greater uptake in professional applications, However, the roadmap to launch and uptake is lengthier than VR and it may be the end of the decade before we see full commercial roll out of AR headsets. Therefore. It could well into the next decade before the AR market takes off. In the shorter term, mobile AR will help introduce the concept to consumers with Googles Project Tango playing a key role.”
Digital signage / content creation
Content might be king but it’s a monarch that has suffered from a lack of innovation when compared to its hardware partner. Let’s hope that this year’s ISE does something to redress the balance.
Related IDE 2017 announcements
Cabletime (10-P116) will give its content creation software, Creator, its first major public demos at the show. Creator enables corporate livery, text, full HD images and live video streams to be incorporated into unique digital signage designs. Visitors can also see the full range of digital signage templates, inspiration galleries, backgrounds, RSS feeds, web clips and ideas that enhance this rich software solution. Creator works hand-in-hand with the MediaStar 782 DS media player, which delivers rich HTML support, live IPTV streams or video playout as well as full multizone digital signage capabilities.
Signagelive (8-K232) will use ISE 2017 to launch its new Content Marketplace and suite of developer APIs at ISE 2017. The new Content Marketplace, comprises 500 plus pre-built digital signage pieces of content (ranging from layout backgrounds, and pre-built applications to Widgets). Signagelive will also be revealing a suite of developer APIs for network and content management, bespoke player development and real time content triggering, as well as a new User Interface (UI) accessible via tablets and comprising a wealth of new features. Signagelive’s new suite of developer APIs and associated software development tools will allow customers and partners alike to incorporate greater functionality into their digital signage networks, while facilitating the development of new, purpose-built applications to meet the needs of specific real world scenarios – quick serve restaurants (QSR), corporate communications or retail, for example.
Accessories and infrastructure
A generic display can be often be used for many things – it is often the accessories and infrastructure products sold alongside that determines its final application. This ISE expect to see a vast array of specialist installation and infrastructure tools for environments as diverse at sports and entertainment venues, healthcare and emergency services.
Related ISE 2017 announcements
Peerless-AV (12-E57) will be showcasing numerous new product innovations including: the SmartMount Universal Full Service and Flat Wall LED Mounting System; a 75″ indoor digital signage kiosk; and a 49″ High-bright Xtreme Outdoor Display. For recessed LED video wall applications or those requiring convenient rear access, Peerless-AV’s new SmartMount Universal Full Service LED Mounting System features robust, smooth-gliding scissor arms that allow the entire wall to pop out safely and effortlessly, giving enough space for the installer to get behind and manage cabling or tile replacement. The new 49″ Xtreme Outdoor Display features a 1500 nit high-brightness panel capable of producing clear, sunlight readable images in any outdoor environment. CE approved and delivering the highest level of environmental protection in the industry (IP68 and NEMA 6 rated), the 49″ Xtreme is fully-sealed, highly impact resistant and offers optimum readability in direct sunlight.
Peerless-AV’s new LED wall mount solution.
B-Tech AV Mounts (5-R60) will exhibit with the theme of versatility and accessibility. Stand visitors will be able to see B-Tech’s latest LED wall mounting solution which will be displaying a 3×4, 4mm pixel LED wall supplied by Retail AV specialists Handy AV and will demonstrate the added value a pull-out mechanism brings to the installation and servicing process. Mark Walker, business development manager for B-Tech, explains: “The growth in LED signage is showing no signs of slowing down, with vertical markets such as retail and leisure still displaying particularly strong growth. With our LED solution, we offer retailers mounting options that are flexible to their needs. We know that panel access is a key concern for integrators from the popularity of our proven screen pop-out mounts. We have, once again, responded promptly to our customers’ demands and engineered a solution that now allows LED panels to have individual access when required.
AV networks and electronics
With the variety of formats, protocols and connections used in today’s AV networks and installations, it is often the ‘black boxes’ that enable designers and installers to realise their client’s ambitions. ISE 2017 will be black box central and so AV News will pick out some of the more compelling in this issue and the February show issue, published just before the show opens.
Related ISE 2017 announcements
Calibre (12-N45) will demonstrate the broad capabilities of their HQUltra 4K presentation scaler-switchers and led screen scalers: “The market has adopted HQUltra because of its ability to switch in under ¼ second and its outstanding low latency halo-free image scaling to produce future-proof, reliable and outstanding image quality,” said Tim Brooksbank, CEO at Calibre. “Our technology outperforms the competition in terms of visual information and performance.”
