Projectors edging into digital signage applications

By Richard Ventura, Vice President of Product Marketing and Solutions Operations for NEC Display Solutions

From convention centers to other large venues like sports arenas, hotels and resorts, projectors are increasingly being deployed for digital signage applications. Industry estimates suggest projectors are now used in about 25 percent of all digital signage applications.

Projectors bring several advantages to digital signage. Cost per inch is one very attractive advantage. One gets a lot more screen space for less money. In addition, some venues can't support the sheer weight of digital screens, so projectors are a viable alternative. Moreover, there are designs in large venues that call for the display of content or images on odd shapes and angles which projectors are able to accommodate.

There also are some other applications in which projectors are the better solution. Be it for projection mapping, high ambient light applications, off-angles or weird surfaces or structures, projectors lend themselves to easier installations and achievement of objectives.

Let's consider storefront windows as one example. In many cases, storefront windows are subject to high ambient light that prevents large-format displays from being effective as signage. With the proper screen technology, projectors would provide a brighter image and could enhance the overall window experience. For example, an installation using projection can rear project onto a film appended to a window. This film can then be any size or shape, and due to brightness, will overcome ambient light issues. Further, the use of touch foil over the window enables an interactive canvas. Projectors give designers and installers capabilities and flexibility not always available with digital screens.

Projection mapping is a growing phenomenon, too. Using this technique, projectors convey images onto multiple types of surfaces (stone, ice, metal, etc.). Some are even looking at mapping content around digital displays, giving a multidimensional look and feel to the content being displayed.

At the Amsterdam RAI Convention Center, for example, projectors are used to projection map around a video wall. At Quicken Loans Arena, home to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 3D images are projected onto the basketball court for player introductions. And some hotels and resorts are projecting images onto their swimming pools at night.

The introduction of solid-state technology will only enhance the trend toward projectors in digital signage.

While conventional projector lamps can have a life expectancy of up to 10,000 hours, solid-state light-source projectors are capable of lifetimes at least two times greater. The extended-use capabilities of solid state meet many digital signage requirements. Further, the upcoming ability for solid-state light-source projectors to project 4K images also will play to certain applications.

One last major benefit that projectors supply for digital signage applications is ease for redundancy. Technologies such as projection stacking allow for the image to not only be projected at a higher brightness but also for backup in case one projector were to fail or shut down. Using multiple projectors overlapped on a screen guarantees an image is always displayed even in the case of one projector failing. If a flat panel display fails, then you do not have that redundancy.

Here are five pieces of advice to maximize the deployment of projectors in your digital signage projects:

• Make sure content is set to the right format;
• Select the right screen for the job and for the application;
• Make sure that the projectors are set correctly for the space they are projecting onto;
• Leverage the right type of projector for the application; and
• Consider projectors with option slots for easy PC integration to minimize installation costs.

For digital signage that requires extended use, make sure that you have the right technology and the right solution for the application. It is important to remember that displays aren't the answer to digital signage 100 percent of the time; and projectors aren't either. But projectors and displays together, or individually for certain applications, can solve your digital signage challenges 100 percent of the time. The key is the right solution for the right application.

Richard Ventura is vice president of product marketing and solutions operations for NEC Display Solutions (www.necdisplay.com). He can be reached at rventura@necdisplay.com.

Image courtesy of University of Salford Press Office.