Author: LG

 

A higher level of disinfection is going to become the new customer expectation in the new contactless economy where we now all live, work, learn and play. Accordingly, LG is developing an autonomous robot that is expected to enable a new standard of hygiene by using ultraviolet (UV-C)* light to disinfect high-touch, high-traffic areas. LG Business Solutions USA plans to offer the UV robot to U.S. hospitality, education, corporate, retail, restaurant and transportation customers in early 2021. The robot will help hotel guests, students in classrooms or patrons of restaurants and other businesses reduce their exposure to harmful bacteria and germs.

The UV Robot is engineered to be easy to operate, and can be integrated into established cleaning routines without requiring expensive staff training or specialists to operate it. Because of its autonomous design, the robot will be able to move easily around tables, chairs and other furniture, generally irradiating a room’s touchable surfaces.

Staff will be able to monitor progress via remote updates to smartphones or tablets. Employee exposure to UV rays will be limited through a built-in safety lock activated by human motion detection sensors, pressing of an emergency stop button or via the mobile application.

Combining LG’s core competencies in robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous vehicles with a deep understanding of customer needs, the UV robot is a new member of LG’s CLOi family of robots. It is the first in a series of LG CLOi autonomous robots planned for introduction in the United States during 2021, and will be officially unveiled at Digital CES^® 2021.

*UV-C covers wavelength spectrum between 100 and 280nm. Actual disinfecting time will be based on room size. Motion detection sensors are effective up to a 16-foot radius. 

The Growing Visual Communications Market

Most displays in the enterprise have traditionally been associated with desktops and workstations. However with growing demand to visually communicate and collaborate, use of large format displays and LED walls has increased across the enterprise. As companies scale their visual communication strategies the need for a cost-effective solution to manage all displays becomes critical. Total cost of ownership (TCO) is the best way to judge long-term costs as it includes both deployment and operating costs.

Most companies now run their core business applications in the cloud on a software as a service (SaaS) model that is optimized to take full advantage of on-demand CPU, bandwidth and storage tailored to the needs of the business. This has resulted in an optimized predictable cost model which delivers a lower TCO to IT departments.

Until recently, AV has been an outlier to this model with deployments often driven by proprietary AV hardware for single purpose video walls, digital signage, operational signage, mission-critical or executive dashboards or NOC/SOC video walls. Deployments of this kind live in an isolated pool, often lacking basic network features allowing for integration to the enterprise IT infrastructure. This approach has never been optimized for management by IT departments but rather by costly certified engineers of a particular solution. The IT department becomes wholly dependent on the vendor for any changes required as business requirements change. Simply put, AV hasn’t kept pace with the needs and operations of IT, resulting in costly legacy siloed AV pools across the enterprise, and a high TCO not sustainable as digital transformation initiatives continue to increase.

LG and Userful Lead the Evolution

LG and Userful offer a combined platform solution to solve this problem. Together we have introduced the first in industry managed solution leveraging Userful’s Visual Network Platform software and LG’s award-winning SOC displays embedded with LG webOS.

The result is a platform for AV applications that enables IT departments to run and manage all their displays and applications over the network. Unified communication has been widely adopted, built on the benefits and rapid technological advancements on switching and routing infrastructures. Support for Quality of Service, in the form of traffic classification, queueing or scheduling and bandwidth provisioning are now well understood, easy and cost-effective to implement. Visual content is just another source of traffic that is transported across the network with the appropriate quality of service. As a result of Userful and LG’s combined solution, enterprise IT departments can now deploy and manage AV deployments in a standards-based network service in line with best practices of IT.

The combined LG webOS and Userful solution reduces TCO in eight key ways:
1) Userful with LG webOS displays requires less hardware than visual display solutions of similar class (in fact sometimes no hardware at all), lowering initial CAPEX.
2) When hardware is required with Userful, it’s always commercially available and off the shelf. There are no black boxes, no specialized or proprietary AV devices.
3) Less hardware reduces the need for installation of additional power outlets, simplifying the installation process and reducing the need for system-wide electrical upgrades.
4) Less hardware also means less electricity used.
5) Most customers can simply use their existing network, saving the hefty costs related to network upgrades.
6) With flexible setup and training options, Userful also reduces deployment costs – getting you up and running quickly.
7) Userful reduces long-term costs for an enterprise by reducing the number of vendors needed to manage the various AV silos across the enterprise. Userful is a platform and can be used for any visual display application across the enterprise.
8) The Userful platform serves multiple use cases. For example, adding an executive dashboard to an existing NOC/SOC deployment or digital signage can be accomplished with the same Userful software. Scale limitlessly by adding servers and licenses, not new vendors with more products to learn.

As the number of visual display applications across the enterprise mushrooms, this final point is one of the most important. Organizations can no longer afford to evaluate, deploy, learn and train their teams on multiple point solutions for every display application required. A single platform which can be used for everything from a video wall in a control room to digital signs for customer or employee engagement, offers a compelling long-term reduction in total cost of ownership.

To make it easy for LG customers to get started with Userful’s Visual Networking Platform, Userful is offering free 1 year subscriptions to Userful Standard with purchases of select LG webOS displays, until December 31, 2020. 

To learn more about Userful and this special offer, visit userful.com/lg

 

LG has expanded its All-in-One LED display category with the addition of a new 136-inch model (LAEB015) that is easy to install and portable when integrated with an optional mobile stand. The display delivers high-quality images with Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) resolution, a 1.56mm pixel pitch and a 3,000:1 contrast ratio. It operates at 800 nits of brightness so it can be used in spaces with ambient light, and is viewable up to 160 degrees off-axis both horizontally and vertically, making it ideal for communicating with viewers spaced throughout a room.

The LG LED All-in-One 136-inch display comes ready to assemble in a professional, wheeled flight case, making for uncomplicated delivery and installation in a conference room, classroom, lobby or other location.

Assembly is straightforward. The display itself comprises two mounting cabinets with an embedded controller. After these are secured together, the installer attaches 72 individual LED modules. Having the modules attached to just two cabinet mounts helps minimize variation within the display – the user sees a large, bezel-free, uniform display for presenting, collaborating, communicating information and much more.

The All-in-One 136-inch can be wall-mounted in landscape orientation, which provides a slim form factor and is ADA compliant. The landscape wall mount and tools for installation are included in the display’s flight case.

For mobility, a motorized stand on wheels is available as an option. With it, the LED display can be placed where it is needed and re-placed as desired. The optional stand offers motorized height adjustment for an optimal viewing experience.

Once assembled and installed, simply plug in the display’s power cable, turn on the screen with a remote control, and you’re ready to add massive impact to your content. No additional controller connections or module configuration is required. And should the display ever need servicing, modules are easily detachable from the front of the display using a provided mounting tool, and replaced quickly without cabling.

The LG LED All-in-One 136-inch display comes with three HDMI inputs, audio out and a variety of input ports on the side of the display.

Direct View LED display technology has improved significantly over the past several years to the point where they can now be used cost effectively in enterprise settings as a bright, immersive alternative to other display technologies like projectors or flat-panel video walls. This new LED All-in-One 136-inch display is a great solution to help elevate your presentations to an impressive new level.

Learn more about the LG LED All-in-One 136-inch display LAEB015 here.

The worlds of AV and IT are converging. More and more IT departments are taking responsibility for the strategic planning, deployment and management of audio and visual applications. The industry is also seeing a growing trend of products for AV applications relying on the network for their delivery.

This has created disruption in the AV world and occasional confusion amongst AV pros who have had to learn about IP networks, bandwidth, network security and more. At the same time it has given IT departments a learning curve as they enter the world of codecs, video resolution, compression related issues and more.

While many in the AV world have been discussing the various potential standards to be employed for AV-over-IP, the reality is that the important architecture has already been implemented by the enterprise using the IP standards that govern network traffic. All AV delivered using the network must work within the well-established IP networking infrastructure. For both system integrators and for operation leaders in enterprise organizations this means that if you’re going to deploy an AV application over the network, your IT team needs to be part of the conversation.

LG and Userful offer a combined solution for delivery of AV applications using an IT-familiar architecture: software, the network, standard commercially available off-the-shelf hardware and (optionally) servers in the cloud. By offering a solution with corporate IT standards in mind, Userful and LG make it virtually seamless for IT teams to deploy AV applications and easy for AV pros to integrate their applications onto departmental networks.

Userful is a software solution that is run either on a local server, inside the LAN, or from a server in the cloud. The server connects over the network to LG webOS displays, each of which runs the Userful uClient app. This eliminates the need for a PC or media player behind each screen. It also addresses key security concerns by minimizing hardware on site and eliminating proprietary or black box hardware. When run on premise, customers can use hardware from a variety of approved vendors such as Lenovo, HP and Dell and the Userful software appliance. Built on CentOS it allows IT departments to run all their standards security measures on the server.

With this IT-compliant infrastructure, Userful and LG support a wide variety of applications from video walls for operation centers and control rooms, to displays for digital signage and corporate communication, from data dashboards to customer demo walls. As long as content can be sent down or streamed via network, Userful and LG enable administrators to display any content source anywhere on any display at any time and in real time. The solution enables video walls of virtually unlimited size and resolution.

To make it easy for LG customers to get started with Userful’s Visual Networking Platform, Userful is offering free 1 year subscriptions to Userful Standard with purchases of select LG webOS displays, until December 31, 2020. 

To learn more about Userful and this special offer, visit userful.com/lg

 

There’s no plane to catch. No waiting in lines. And best of all, this show is open whenever you want. It’s the new LG DigiTour – an immersive 3D virtual platform with realistic environments and cutting-edge technology to explore. Here you can discover and interact with the latest LG commercial displays and IT solutions, instantly pull up features and specs, connect with LG reps and much more. It’s a great place to spend some time and reimagine what’s possible for your business, or your client’s business.

Powered by Unreal Engine, an advanced real-time 3D creation tool, the LG DigiTour encourages visitors to discover LG Business Solutions products while “walking” through virtual commercial showrooms including Corporate, Education, Control Room and Innovation, with more to come.

The LG DigiTour will also host live chats where you can inquire about the products and speak with an LG representative in real time to address questions. In addition to the interactive online showrooms, LG will be hosting webinars, educational seminars and other events where industry leaders can interact and communicate during the pandemic and beyond.

The cancellation of in-person events this year challenged LG Business Solutions to find new innovative ways to connect with customers. And now, the LG DigiTour will likely be a permanent staple, as it’s a powerfully effective means to reach audiences remotely, even audiences that may not have been at a physical tradeshow. LG DigiTour is a future-proof way to ensure that we can serve our customers remotely, now and in the years to come.

With its always-on access, and desktop, mobile and tablet compatibility, you don’t need to leave home to reimagine the future of LG commercial displays and IT solutions. Enter the LG DigiTour now.

AV-over-IP is a hot topic these days and AV pros and IT departments around the world are embracing it as the solution to drive display applications of all kinds – from digital signage to corporate meeting rooms, from operation center video walls to immersive video experiences. Despite the increasing demand for AV-over-IP, there has been no one unifying protocol or even one unifying technological approach. AV-over-IP quite literally means the transmission of audio-visual information via data packets over an Internet Protocol, or put more simply, using the network rather than using traditional audio-visual signal transmission.

That definition of AV-over-IP is generic enough that it fits a lot of different applications and differentiating among them is the first step in choosing the right approach for any particular topic.

To differentiate among AV-over-IP offerings it’s important to understand how AV-over-IP came about. Traditional AV solutions used circuit-switched networks and that involved various proprietary cables and connectors and resulted in a cumbersome solution that was often proprietary and offered limited scalability.

As the use of networks rose and more video was deployed over the network some AV companies began to replace their AV connectors with specialized encoders and decoders to allow AV signals to be sent over an IP network.

We’ll call this conventional AV-over-IP: it’s using the network but isn’t using the server, switch and computer infrastructure that most people associate with IP networks. Instead it’s using proprietary or specialized hardware and codecs that aren’t interoperable and have no universally agreed upon standards. In essence the encoder and decoder infrastructure that so many AV-over-IP solutions promote is still reliant on cumbersome proprietary and specialized hardware.

In contrast to this is a Software based approach to AV-over-IP that relies only on commercially available off-the-shelf hardware, rejecting the use of encoders and decoders and fully embracing existing IP standards. This approach relies exclusively on a tech stack that would be familiar to any IT department and is standard in the enterprise.

Userful software runs either on an on-premise Server (standard commercially available off-the-shelf hardware from HP, Lenovo, Dell, etc.) or a cloud server that then connects through a standard IP network directly to LG webOS smart displays compatible with Userful’s uClient app. Those smart displays all run Userful’s uClient app which allows them to sync across displays for video walls and allows them to connect back to the Userful server (either in the cloud or on-premise).

The result is an AV-over-IP platform that allows customers to stream any content source to any display in any location, at any time and in real time. Customers can deploy content of unlimited resolution onto video walls of unlimited size, using a cloud based server for public display and digital signage applications. Using an on-premise server, customers can deploy real-time content and interact with it in real time for a control room or operation center video wall. The combined Userful and LG webOS solution offers a visual networking platform that takes an AV-over-IP approach and allows IT teams to easily stream content anytime and anywhere for customer engagement, employee communication, process automation, rapid decision-making and more.

Userful with LG WebOS compared with traditional AV-over-IP solutions:

To make it easy for LG customers to get started with Userful’s Visual Networking Platform, Userful is offering free 1 year subscriptions to Userful Standard with purchases of select LG webOS displays, until December 31, 2020. 

To learn more about Userful and this special offer, visit userful.com/lg

Userful is a powerful AV-over-IP software solution that works directly with LG’s webOS displays enabling users to stream any content source onto any display globally in real time with no additional hardware involved.

Userful’s uClient App installs directly on LG webOS displays certified by Userful and leverages the System on a Chip inside those smart displays. Each display connects back to either an on-premise server or a Userful server in the cloud running Userful software. That single server, either on-premise or in the cloud, allows customers to do remarkable things with LG displays.

 

The combined Userful and LG webOS solution supports video walls for control rooms and operation centers, data and dashboard walls, LED walls, displays for corporate communication, digital signs, screens used for factory and process automation and more, all with the same lower hardware footprint.

By eliminating as much proprietary hardware as possible from deployments, Userful and LG are able to significantly reduce customers’ Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Less hardware means less upfront costs, less hardware to maintain and replace, less electricity used, less likelihood that a customer needs to add plugs and upgrade its electrical panels. And of course less hardware means reduced support and maintenance over the life cycle of the deployment.

The combined Userful and LG webOS solution delivers an AV solution using an IT familiar stack: the key components are the network, software and a server. It is also a platform rather than a point solution. While many customers adopt Userful with LG displays for a specific single need, they are able to easily add displays and video walls for new applications using the same system and toolset. This ensures long-term scalability and allows for an even lower total cost of ownership as IT teams no longer need to learn to support new hardware or software for every new manufacturer each time they roll out a new visual display application.

When customers are investing in smart displays one of the concerns is often whether the System on a Chip processor built into the display is going to be capable of supporting their new applications and requirements in the future. The combination of Userful and LG webOS can address this concern as Userful’s server (either on-premise or in the cloud) performs as middleware. Should the customer require new or more demanding content or applications in the future, the Userful server which handles all the processing and the application layer can be relied on to handle those more demanding requirements.

There is no need to replace all the displays. If the Userful server needs to be upgraded, that’s a far lower cost than replacing all the displays. In this way Userful future proofs a customer’s investment in smart displays.

The Userful-webOS Solution is leading the way in bringing AV deployments onto the IP network.  The combined solution makes it easy to deploy complex AV applications without the burden of complex and expensive AV hardware.

To make it easy for LG customers to get started with Userful’s Visual Networking Platform, Userful is offering free 1 year subscriptions to Userful Standard with purchases of select LG webOS displays, until December 31, 2020. 

To learn more about Userful and this special offer, visit userful.com/lg

 

By Dan Smith
Head of Business Development
LG Business Solutions USA

LED Signage display technology is a constantly evolving area in the tech world, with historical obstacles (things like cost, ordering complexity, visual performance and user experience) being changed through design innovations. In our previous post we addressed cost and ordering complexity. Today we’ll cover how recent advancements have elevated visual performance and the user experience.

VISUAL PERFORMANCE – The core of the video wall experience is visual impact, and LED Signage walls now have higher resolutions, ever-widening color gamuts and better contrast capabilities. With the advent of mass-produced sub-1mm pixels, LED Signage can now achieve the same pixel pitch as an 86-inch Full HD display. With color gamuts now capable of exceeding 100 percent of the sRGB standard, some LED Signage displays are even outperforming LCDs. And LED Signage has a critical contrast advantage over LCD screens.

Deep blacks and good gradation of dark tones is what allows the human eye to see shape or edges, so without good visual contrast, an image loses much of what we experience in the real world and can fail to appear lifelike. Although early LED Signage displays struggled with contrast because the individual pixel lenses were large enough to actually reflect ambient light back at the viewer, today’s much smaller LEDs can exceed LCD black levels thanks to more inherent black space between pixels and the use of smaller dual lenses on the LED itself.

USER EXPERIENCE – The days of public or commercial LED Signage video walls appearing, connecting and being controlled differently than traditional home or office displays are quickly vanishing. Due to differences in thickness, bezels and installation processes, general customers were often dismissive of LED Signage displays. New LED Signage walls feature a much slimmer profile, with some product families even meeting ADA regulations that limit wall displays to a 4-inch thickness. Additionally, newer more-attractive bezels can finish the look of the edges, eliminating the traditional rough industrial feel that often left mounts, cables and other inner workings exposed.

Installation and setup used to be troublesome, too, because the inputs for traditional LED Signage displays didn’t match the standard “jack pack” most users and even integrators are accustomed to seeing on the back of a video display. Newer models have solved this by including more standard connectivity options, making setup similar to other types of modern displays.

And what about control? Typical installations rely on an equipment rack in a separate room, which can require a technical support person to physically walk to in order to make content changes or troubleshoot. That’s no longer an issue, at least in LG’s case, as the latest generation of LED Signage products use a standard TV / display remote and have the same user interface and on-screen menus as home and office displays. Now the LED Signage wall can look, connect and be controlled in the same manner as a standard display, vastly simplifying both installations and use, and speeding user adoption.

On Friday we’ll conclude with Part 3, covering LED Signage scalability, applications, and durability. See you then.

Screens and the content displayed on them are a vital part of every company’s infrastructure today. Whether that’s for customer engagement with digital signage displays, for internal corporate communication or for screens used to enhance company productivity–digital displays and video are the new communication medium for employees and customers.

Userful and LG have worked together to provide a new class of solution for managing displays and deploying and interacting with content of all kinds.  Userful is software based visual networking platform that runs on a commercially available off the shelf Server or PC, or can be powered from the cloud. The Userful software runs directly on LG webOS Signage™ displays, eliminating the need for any additional hardware. With this powerful combination, customers can eliminate unnecessary and expensive proprietary hardware from any display deployment whether for digital signs, video walls, control room applications or corporate communication and collaboration.

Userful’s deep integration with LG webOS Signage enables customers to send any content to any display in any location, at any time and in real time.  It’s easy to add more displays, and no additional hardware is needed. Just add Userful’s uClient app to a LG smart display compatible with Userful’s uClient and connect it back to the Userful server either on site or in the cloud. This solution displays content in the native resolution of the display and brings all the powerful features of the Userful solution to your project. Customers also receive updates from Userful as new features are added.

By adopting Userful as the middleware between content and display, customers can be assured they can add new apps and content onto their smart displays into the future: Userful runs in the middle and takes care of compatibility.  And by eliminating unnecessary hardware, customers reduce their Total Cost of Ownership: fewer devices to purchase, less hardware to deploy and support, less electricity used and a streamlined architecture all add up to lower initial CAPEX and TCO.

While the Userful and LG webOS combination can be used for wide variety of visual display applications from video walls in NOCs, SOCs and control rooms, to digital signs, to video walls of any size and resolution for public display, Userful and LG have teamed up to offer $1,000,000 worth of free software licenses for digital signage and video wall deployments. LG customers who purchase select LG displays up until December 31, 2020 are eligible for this free offer.

To take advantage of this unique opportunity and to learn more about Userful and LG webOS, visit userful.com/lg.

 

By Dan Smith
Head of Business Development
LG Business Solutions USA

LED Signage display technology is a constantly evolving area in the tech world, with historical obstacles (things like cost, ordering complexity, visual performance and user experience) being changed through design innovations. At the same time, LED Signage is finally getting the attention it deserves for scalability, application diversity and durability.

Over the next three to five years, the combination of technological advances and affordable solutions is expected to make LED Signage more competitive with video walls using flat-panel displays at all sizes. According to Allied Market Research, the global outdoor LED Signage market should exceed $17 billion by 2027.* Just as LCD and OLED TVs changed the TV game by providing a larger, brighter, better-looking canvas for video programming, LED Signage will transform how companies, venues, governments, schools and private organizations think about their digital messaging and design. So much is changing in the world of LED Signage technologies, it’s important to stop and recognize how far we’ve come, and what it means for the future.

COST – Until now, cost has always been one of the top deterrents to LED Signage adoption. Today, however, some LED Signage displays have actually reached points of price parity, with the initial investment necessary for a mid-range LCD video wall getting closer to the cost of a 1.9mm LED Signage wall of the similar size. Since the price point is often so close, but the technologies still have different benefits and appearance, it’s becoming more common today for customers evaluating video wall options to ask for quotes on both technologies.

ORDERING COMPLEXITY: THE RISE OF PACKAGED SOLUTIONS – While custom solutions can distinguish a brand or location, integrators may see a big business boost from the launch of packaged LED Signage display solutions. These packages come with just about everything needed for installation, from LED Signage tiles to mounting brackets and screws, and they help eliminate the need for complex steps such as tile-by-tile calibration. For the first time, integrators can easily dive into LED Signage without requiring extensive product training, creating new revenue opportunities.

Stay tuned. In the next post we’ll address visual performance and the user experience.

* https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/outdoor-LED-display-market