Case Study: AREC Hits a Homerun with WBSC

Dear ADENA Partners, our case study this time focuses on the headquarters of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Completed in collaboration with our distributor Prase and system integrator Tecnovox, this project exemplifies the seamless integration capabilities of the AREC Media Capture System with other leading professional AV brands, including Atlona, Shure, Biamp, and Genelec.

The WBSC functions as the global governing body for baseball and softball, overseeing 191 national federations and numerous associate members across 136 countries worldwide. Responsible for managing international competitions involving national teams, eSports, Olympic Games, and similar events, effective communication with this extensive network of organizations necessitates high-quality conferencing hardware. Hence, the organization recently decided to renovate and enhance their headquarters in Pully, Switzerland. Thanks to our partners' efforts and the features of our products, AREC cameras and tracking solutions were selected to make this upgrade possible.

DS-4CU Speaker Tracking Statio

CI-21H PTZ Camera

At the core of the WBSC conference room lies the DS-4CU Speaker Tracking Station. This station, equipped with four channels, is designed to automatically track and display active speakers. It is compatible with AREC and third-party cameras, and supports RTP/RTSP/RTMP network streams, alongside HDMI and VGA as video inputs. Integrated with a number of popular discussion system brands such as Shure, Televic, Bosch, Audio-Technica, and others, this station can efficiently track up to 99 speakers. Each speaker can have unique layouts, overlays, and backgrounds made specifically for them. In the WBSC's case, it operates in conjunction with a Shure push-to-talk discussion system. When a speaker activates the talk button, the station commands the cameras to focus on the speaker's position, adjusting the video layout accordingly to ensure the speaker remains in focus.

For capturing meeting participants, AREC CI-21H PTZ cameras are utilised. These professional network cameras function in Full HD at 60 frames per second and are connected to the DS-4CU via the network. Additionally, they offer HDMI and USB outputs for flexibility. The DS-4CU creates a mixed video output, incorporating speaker titles, logos, and custom backgrounds, and through other brands participating in this installation, sends it into video conferencing applications, effectively becoming a webcam. This ensures that the remote attendees consistently see the active speaker and effortlessly promotes the organisation's branding.

The WBSC’s headquarters are now equipped with user-friendly and efficient conferencing solutions, significantly enhancing the organisation's meeting experiences. Is your company ready for an upgrade? Contact us at www.a-dena.com and discover how AREC solutions can benefit your business.

Text: Anastasia Yakimenko

Case Study: Teams Rooms With Comfort - AREC and Televic in the UK

Dear ADENA Partners, our new case study this month highlights the integration between AREC speaker tracking solutions and Televic discussion systems. In an effort to create a modern and user-friendly Teams room, the end-user relied on the expertise of our UK distributor Tukans / CUK Group and system integrator Xuper.

AREC DS-4CU Speaker Tracking Station + Televic Confidea Microphones

The end-user company is one of the largest transport partnerships in the northern UK. Its objectives include uniting local authorities and other significant stakeholders in the region, as well as enhancing the coordination and implementation of regional transport services. Achieving these objectives requires an organisation to have a robust and functional conferencing infrastructure, and so the company invested in a new generation Teams Room that would make communication effortless. Building a solution using AREC, Televic, Audac, and other brands, Tukans provided the company with just that kind of room.

Mixing all the cameras and coordinating their PTZ presets with activated Televic Confidea microphones is the DS-4CU, our speaker tracking station. This station can work with up to 4 video sources simultaneously and display custom layouts, backgrounds, and overlays for up to 99 different participants. The station automatically shows the right cameras and moves them to designated positions as soon as a speaker activates. Its integration with Televic Confidea makes the setup process and follow-up configuration elementary - users simply need to write in the number of the graphical element they wish to use, which video sources and which presets to trigger on them. Moreover, the station ensures that speakers are always in focus by providing different tracking modes, including multiple speaker, override, and FIFO modes. The combined image from the DS-4CU and an audio output from the Televic microphones through Confidea, is connected to an Audac amplifier, which is then sent to an HDMI-USB converter to be used as a video and audio source in Teams. Audio from the amplifier is also used for the room speakers, for near and far end audio reinforcement. Lastly, AREC KL-3T Media Station with a built-in touchscreen was also used to enable professional recording and streaming of the meetings, and also remote user control of the meeting recordings utilising the station’s web interface.

With this solution in place, the company’s employees only need to press the push-to-talk button on microphones to be immediately shown on the screen and deliver their talking points. We demonstrated the simplicity of this approach in our AREC-Televic webinar, which you can watch here if you missed it.

Are you looking for a reliable and easy-to-set-up conferencing solution? Contact us at www.a-dena.com and we will be happy to discuss your requirements.

Text: Anastasia Yakimenko

Case Study: Improving Meeting Quality with AREC and Shure Tracking Integration in Chile

Dear ADENA Partners, this time we have a corporate case study from Chile. Our partners Tecso and System Integrator Adaptor created a professional yet simple solution for a training room, combining AREC auto-tracking with Shure ceiling microphones. Find out how this solution works below.

CI-21H+MXA 710

CI-21H+MXA 920

DS-4CU+IPCP Pro 555

The training room has two distinct areas: one for the presenter and another for attendees, both covered by Shure MXA ceiling microphone systems. Training sessions are held in multiple rooms in other locations at the same time through video conferencing. Given the size and layout of the room, it is difficult to show every attendee and the presenter with a single camera. Therefore, the company decided to enhance the room with professional AV technology. Thanks to the efforts of our partners, the company settled on AREC DS-4CU Speaker Tracking Station and CI-21H PTZ cameras to automatically track and show active speakers.

DS-4CU Speaker Tracking

CI-21H PTZ Camera

The presenter’s area is covered by one CI-21H and MXA 710, whereas the other CI-21H and MXA 920 are covering the attendee area. Both cameras are connected to the DS-4CU, and they switch according to the active microphone lobe on Shure. If it is the presenter speaking, then the system displays only the CI-21H aimed at them. If someone from the audience starts talking, the system displays that audience member. The switching is fully automatic and swift, ensuring that the active speaker is always visible, and the users don’t need to press any buttons to make the system work. Thanks to the latest firmware update of the station, it is now possible to switch between two MXA systems, and a single DS-4CU can accommodate up to 4 MXA systems simultaneously (read more about it here). The DS-4CU’s video output is converted into USB and is sent into a Teams video conferencing app as a webcam for other meeting rooms to see.

The company is very satisfied with their new high-tech training room and is planning to set up this solution in more rooms in the future. Is your conferencing room lacking tracking for speakers? Let us know at www.a-dena.com, and we will find the right solution for you.

Text: Anastasia Yakimenko