25.04.24
Immersive & Interactive Space – Naostage
Integrated Systems Europe 2024 (ISE 2024) is one of the world’s leading trade shows for integrated systems and audiovisual technology.
For our second participation in this world-class trade show, we staged a complete immersive show on our booth, including sound, video and light, to demonstrate K SYSTEM’s ability to manage a complex ecosystem, making it an ideal tool for designing immersive spaces.
This project was built around technological partnerships with L-Acoustics for spatialized sound, SMODE for the media server, Ereimul for the Elidy Big, La FabSonic for sound design, and Cutback for the production of immersive video content.
Various Scenarios
-A forest where the foliage on the ground and the fireflies on the wall moved according to visitors’ movements
-A world of neural networks where people could connect to each other
-A galaxy whose asteroid field deviated according to positions
-A painting game on the LED floor
-A “Floor is Lava” game, in which the aim was to avoid certain areas depending on the different scenarios.
Video
For video, the space was equipped with a Kinesik LED wall and floor, broadcasting video content in real time from the SMODE media server.
K SYSTEM sent visitors’ positions in PSN to the media server, which was responsible for dressing the LED screens on the floor and wall, as well as controlling the 19 ELIDY BIG fixtures on the ceiling, so that tracking could also be used on the ceiling. For example, a circle of light can be created as a video element and follow a viewer as they enter the immersive space.
In the case of the little games created by the SMODE team, a symbol appeared on the spectator thanks to the ceiling when he lost.
A Stream Deck (Elgato) used in conjunction with Bitfocus Companion to send OSC messages to all systems (including Kratos) enabled dynamic switching from one set to another, all perfectly synchronized in real time.
Compositions and visual effects had already been created by Cutback.
Another feature of K SYSTEM was the ability to create scenarios for each piece of content.
Sound
The audio part of the immersive space was a collaboration between Naostage, La FabSonic and L acoustics. Alexis Reymond, sales manager with a background in sound design, worked out the audio mechanics and composed, with the help of his composer partner Jean-Philippe Lignier (SoftSound), a sound environment which was then reproduced and spatialized by an immersive diffusion system designed and implemented by La FabSonic. The aim was to create a harmonious, playful and surprising interactive sound environment/space.
Visitors to the immersive space were detected, tracked and associated with virtual musical instruments or sound effects generators. These could play musical notes in harmony with the background sound of the painting (static audio track) and the other visitors as if they were moving together on the keys of a keyboard, creating an interactive harmony that illustrated the dynamic video content. Visitors interacted physically and dynamically with sound and image, being the living subjects of these immersive poetic scenarios.
People detected and tracked by K SYSTEM could trigger musical notes or sound design elements according to their position in a space divided into nine zones. A total of 108 samples grouped into 3 sound banks corresponding to the 3 scenarios (Jungle, Roots, Space) were assigned to each target according to their position in the space and the played scenarios. Each sound source associated with a visitor was spatialized using an L-ISA system. These sound sources were thus spatially correlated to the visitors’ actual position in the space. At the same time, an audio bed (Nappes+Sound design, also spatialized) played statically to provide the harmonic base on which the visitors evolved. An overview of the audio mechanics is available below. Samples were randomly distributed on the timeline to modulate the operation of the immersive space.
Light
When it comes to spotlights we used:Ayrton Rivale spotlights (10), positioned all around the immersive space, which could be used in conjunction with the Naostage K SYSTEM, but also to create lighting moods.
Robe Spiider washlights (12), which can be used to create lighting moods to enhance the video’s immersive role.
Elidy Big (18), creating a ceiling of warm white LEDs, which can be used as a light or video source.
Elidy Strip and Ayrton Magic Blade projectors are used for immersive atmospheres in the immersive room.
The Ayrton and Robe projectors are controlled in ArtNet by a grandMA3 (used in grand MA2 mode).
Rivale projectors are used with the Naostage tracking system. They are therefore controlled in ArtNet by the console, and a PSN signal between the large MA and the Kore enables the tracking to work.
Operation in immersive space:
In the forest scenario, when a person went into a corner of the room, the leaves were reset (video), and the KORE also sent Telnet commands to the grandMA to control the dimmer and color of the Rivale spotlights.
In one of the game scenarios (The Killer), the spotlights were used as a tracker, enabling the killer to be followed in Red color thanks to tracking.
In the painting scenario, several spotlights tracked several spectators in different colors.
