Classroom Demonstration Video System

[ndl1993]

Hi,

 

I'm looking to create a video system for doing classroom demonstrations, where the students do not have to gather around a desk to see the work and I have got a bit lost looking at kit!

 

Ideally I'd like a couple of cameras - one zoomed in and one more of a wide shot. Where the lecturer (who might not be technically competent) will be able to switch simply between the two.

 

I'd like to distribute the video to 2 or 3 screens around the class room.

 

Can anyone help with what cameras to go for and what distribution kit I'd need? Budget isn't huge but the kit will be installed and left alone.

 

Thanks in advance!!

[mac.calder]

Without knowing your exact situation. Wolfvision basically make the gold standard in camera systems for classroom/demo spaces - their ceiling visualiser is designed specifically to mount in the ceiling and capture documents etc on a desk. I would then pair it with a desktop gooseneck visualiser - for the closeup/angled views.

 

I would be looking at using Crestron MPC3-101 for control - it is a glass fronted capacitive touch button panel with control system built in - which means it is very easy to disinfect. It is also very cost effective. I would then look at using a Crestron HD-TX-101-C-E for a ceiling camera, running to a Crestron HD-RX-201-C-E located near a desktop camera (this gives you a 2x1 switch with extension to a ceiling camera for a pretty reasonable cost), then the output of the 201 into an HDMI Distribution amplifier and appropriate cabling/extenders to your screens. Will need a Crestron programmer to install/program the control panel.

 

Option B is a manual HDMI switch - I like the Extron SW2 personally - because you can wire this to a toggle switch or a pair of arcade buttons (or if you can do basic electronics, you can wire it to capacitive buttons - these are a lot more tolerant to being washed down than mechanical buttons but require power). You can then go with a couple of HDMI CCTV cameras or similar above the desk (or mounted to a boom arm). If they are statically mounted you can mask out a "zoom" area on the desk with some tape so that instructors know that items placed in that area will be visible on the closeup camera.

Edited July 13, 2020 by mac.calder

[bruce]

+1 for wolfvision. We’ve installed a lot of their desktop and ceiling mounted cameras and visualisers, and I’m always impressed how good the image from the ceiling cameras is, even when mounted 8m in the air.

 

In that situation, I’d suggest using something high-contrast to mark out the “display area” on the bench. As Mac says, this tells the instructors where to put their experiments, but equally importantly, it gives the camera autofocus something to lock on to.

 

If you want to save some money on the controls, the desktop-mounted visualisers also have a HDMI input and basic switcher, so you can connect laptop to visualiser then visualiser to projector, and switch using the button on the vis.

[ninjadingle]

Another Wolfvision user here. Eye 14 camera in the ceiling (they do a nice tile bridge mount that fits a standard 600 x 600mm grid tile) would do nicely. And as Mac said a desk based visualiser on the desk is always good too - I've used the Lumens PS752 visualiser to good effect for this in dental labs, it has a flip feature to ensure the image is always the correct way up.

 

I would avoid using PTZ cameras as by their nature they require control, one more thing for the user to worry about.

 

For the rest of the system I recommend using a scaling switcher, I imagine they'd also want to connect other devices to the screens at some point (laptop, PC, Blu-Ray etc), and then a control panel. Our go-to is the Extron IN1606 switcher, and MLC Plus 200 panel. This allows simple operation to turn the system on and off, source selection (cameras or otherwise) and also space for blanking and audio mute for future expansion. It also has 2 HDMI outputs which can be blanked individually, so you could blank 1 output to the audience and have a confidence monitor live to set up a shot. We use this setup in most of our lecture rooms / theatres across campus (approx 220 rooms with this setup) with minimal issues.

Edited July 14, 2020 by ninjadingle

[Charlotte_R]

If you're looking for something cheaper, I've set something similar up for my mum for Skype. She's a piano teacher, so she has a forward facing camera, document camera (just a webcam on a gooseneck), a camera for her piano keyboard and a window capture. It's all run on a windows desktop through OBS.

OBS is mainly designed for streaming, but I'm sure that there will be a plug-in that does pretty much exactly what you want.