{"id":3477,"date":"2019-04-29T13:38:44","date_gmt":"2019-04-29T12:38:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/?p=3477"},"modified":"2019-11-22T14:50:07","modified_gmt":"2019-11-22T14:50:07","slug":"immersaspace-supporting-paramedical-training-in-western-sydney-university","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/type\/featured-articles\/immersaspace-supporting-paramedical-training-in-western-sydney-university\/","title":{"rendered":"ImmersaSpace supporting Paramedical training in Western Sydney University –"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Western Sydney University (WSU) is the 11<\/em>th<\/em><\/sup> largest University in Australia with over 40,000 students. Over the last 3 years they have been building a highly innovative, virtual learning environment for their paramedical students. We asked design leader, Peter Coman of InDesign to tell the story of how this space came about.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter – <\/strong>InDesign was invited to the project in late 2015 after representatives from Western Sydney University visited the University of the Sunshine Coast and experienced the immersive space that we created back in 2014.  This immersive space was square; however Western Sydney University wanted a 360-degree circular environment. The objective for WSU was to
t<\/b><\/span>create a cost-effective, immersive, virtual learning environment which will afford Paramedic students the freedom to make their own decisions and learn from their own failures, yet at the same time protecting them and others from danger by keeping them in a controlled situation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We consulted extensively with the University about the various options available, detailing the complexity of creating a circular (versus square) space along with the associated costs; the University decided on the round space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We provided a proposal for a 6 meter (diameter), customized solution including eight, high-brightness, Full HD, ultra-short-throw projectors, complete with immersive sound. The advantage of using the ultra-short throw projectors is that the projector can be located incredibly close to the screen.  This allows people within the room to stand close to the screen without casting a shadow and the projectors shining directly into their eyes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first challenge that we faced was\ntrying to find someone to manufacture the 360-degree projection screen. We\ncontacted the local Australian manufacturer, but they believed that it would be\ntoo difficult to manufacture. Searching for other options, I came across a\nscreen manufacturer at ISE 2017, who happened to have a curved screen on\ndisplay, and were able to provide a number of examples of curved projection\nscreens that they had previously created.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On returning to Australia, detailed\nrequirements were sent to the Spanish manufacturer, and we continued to work\nclosely with them for the next 5 months, further developing the design and\nfeatures. In June 2017, I flew to Spain to inspect the prototype screen and it\nwas exactly what we were after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the design process, we decided to\nincrease the size of the screen from 6 to 7 meters in diameter, to assist with\nthe projection image warping and blending. \nThe increase in size no longer allowed access behind the screen, so the\ndesign was re-engineered to give access underneath the structure. Ongoing\nconsultation with the University lead to the addition of a circular bar at the\nbase of the screen to help protect it from any equipment accidently getting too\nclose, and causing costly rips and tears to the projection screen material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Screen and projectors<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Once the screen design was complete,\nattention was turned to the custom, 360-degree truss required to mount all\neight projectors evenly around the room. After calculating the required\nprojector throw distance, the truss and projector mounting brackets were designed\nand manufactured locally in Sydney. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final design aspect was the\nacoustics.  The walls and ceiling were\nlined with acoustic foam to reduce and reverbing audio and maintain sound\nquality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Installation\n– <\/strong>Next came the installation and configuration of\nthe space.  In mid-December 2017, the\nscreen was air freighted from Spain to Sydney. \nIt took a further 4 weeks to install and configure the projectors and\naudio, setup the software and load the content. \nDuring this time, we worked closely with the University who was able to\neasily create their own content with the use of costly specialised equipment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The end result was amazing! Students are\nnow able to be transported into life-like, stressful, simulated, emergency\nenvironments without the risk of danger or injury. The reality is that often\nstudents learn best by making mistakes, however, making mistakes in a real\nworking environment will come with negative consequences and may then\nnegatively impact learning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Completed scenario<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Technical\nSpecifications \u2013<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

8 x Epson Full HD ultra-short throw\nprojectors, providing an overall image of 13,400 x 1,200 pixels, spanning a\nwidth of 22 meters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8 x Yamaha speakers (one per projector)\nthat provide an immersive, surround sound experience<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4 x Panasonic Full HD cameras allow for\nrecording of the students via the B-Line Medical recorder, as well as providing\nthe control with a bird\u2019s eye view of what\u2019s happening in the space. The\ncameras are connected to central Crestron 32×32 audio visual matrix that allow\nthe cameras to be viewed on any of the LCD screens within the building.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The room also has fixed 360-degree ceiling\nmicrophone that provides the control room with quality two-way communication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adjacent to the 360-degree immersive space\nis the control room, that houses the non-proprietary PC with an 8-output\ngraphics card that\u2019s connected directly to each of the 8 x Epson ultra-short\nthrow projectors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are 8 x LCD monitors in the control\nroom (one per projector) that allows the operator to see exactly what\u2019s on the\nprojectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A large LCD screen is mounted to the wall\nthat allows for the viewing of all four cameras all at the same time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The control has a push-to-talk desktop\nmicrophone, in-ceiling speakers, and headphones for two communication with the\nimmersive space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s also an equipment room that houses\nall of the larger equipment, including the Crestron 32×32 audio visual matrix,\nthe QSC Core 510 Digital Signal Processor, Yamaha amplifiers and the B-Line\nMedical recorder.\n\nControl of all of these spaces is provided by a\nCrestron wireless touch screen and controller.\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
\n

Author
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pete Coman <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managing Director |
RCDD,  CTS,  ESS,  CDCDP,  AssocIES,  Dip.Tel.Eng,  DMC-E,  DMC-S, DM-NVX<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Western Sydney University (WSU) is the 11th largest University in Australia with over 40,000 students. Over the last 3 years they have been building a highly innovative, virtual learning environment for their paramedical students. We asked design leader, Peter Coman of InDesign to tell the story of how this space came about. Peter – InDesign […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3512,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[271,4],"tags":[141,140],"class_list":["post-3477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ar-vr","category-featured-articles","tag-360-video","tag-immersive-learning"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/files\/2019\/04\/0003_jaseimages_25092014-800x533.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Sally Reynolds","author_link":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/author\/sally-reynolds\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3477"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5074,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3477\/revisions\/5074"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media-and-learning.eu\/api-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}