The LFCA is an organization that is just over 8 years old.  It was founded in September of 1996 in Barcelona Spain. The LFCA formed from the remnants of the Cinema 360 group, which developed large format films for the planetarium industry.  Large Format Films refer to images shown on really large screens using large “negatives”.  The most well known version of this format is IMAX.  A number of new films were screened for the attendees and the film buyers for many of the large format theatres. Much of the break time talk was about how digital processing of films, the scanning and manipulation of the picture elements in a computer, has improved the story telling process.   At the closing gala, Steve Thorburn, Chris Reyna, and Kasho Furuya were honored as the Last Founding Board Members to serve out their terms.  From our point of view, we are looking forward to things picking up and more theaters built or refurbished.  Since our founding in 1992, Thorburn Associates has worked on more than 60 Large Format or Specialty Theatres.

For the first time ever, InfoComm is implementing a New Product Treasure Hunt and the Ultimate Boardroom/Classroom Giveaway.  Thorburn Associates is part of the team that provided engineering services to design the Boardroom systems around the showcased equipment; in addition we will be presenting a short course on selecting the correct image size for your room.  Be sure to participate – you could win a new boardroom or classroom system!

The Ultimate Boardroom/Classroom Giveaway
Envision what’s possible with a working application showcase of new products. The Ultimate Boardroom/Classroom Giveaway – combined with the New Product Treasure Hunt gives you the chance to win tens of thousands of dollars in new equipment!

The New Product Treasure Hunt
InfoComm makes it fun to find the latest new technologies! Sponsored by exhibiting companies, the New Product Treasure Hunt game guarantees you’ll learn the most in the shortest time – and have a chance to win. Registered attendees will receive a map of the new products to guide them around the Show floor. Get your map stamped by participating exhibitors to become eligible to win products. Drawings will take place in the afternoon of all three Show days, June 9-11.
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In our continuing support of the industry, Thorburn Associates, Inc. is presenting the following technical sessions.  If you are interested in additional information on any of these presentations please contact us. 

Facilities Design for Universities, June 5-7, 2004.  Speaker: Steve Thorburn, PE, CTS-D, CTS-I.  Level: Basic. Registration Code: IPD4

Do you work with design consultants and systems integrators to update old lecture halls, conference rooms or classrooms in current facilities to design new ones? If so, don't miss this course designed specifically for people from institutes of higher learning charged with making these decisions and seeing them through. An effective project takes a lot of communication between you, your customers, the designers, and the people who implement the final product.  If you have difficulty understanding AV terminology, this course is for you. You'll learn how to provide a preliminary analysis of an existing room's audiovisual/presentation needs based on client usage and demands; provide an AV "wish list" for a new space; explain the role of each player in the process; explain your audiovisual/presentation needs using terms both you and an AV professional can understand; and explain your decisions to top management in a way that helps them understand the whats and whys so you can get project approval. Also find out how to use tips to help you plan a budget and meet it, how to evaluate a proposal, how to explain what you have to look for during the implementation phase and how to provide a training strategy for users of the new, improved facility.

Project Management, June 8, 2004. Facilitator: Steve Thorburn, PE, CTS-D, CTS-I.
Level:  Intermediate.  Registration Code: ST3

Everyone talks about it and how the industry needs it. What is project management for audiovisual professionals, and how do you develop and implement it in your company? Chaired by Steve Thorburn, PE, CTS-I, CTS-D of Thorburn Associates, this six-hour program on the Tuesday preceding the show is divided into four key topics:
-     An Overview of Project Management provided by Management Concepts, Inc.
-     The Human Side of Audiovisual Project Management, Joe Bocchiaro, CTS-D of Electro-Media Design
-     Increasing Quality and Efficiency in AV Project Flow, Jim Maltese, CVE, CTS-I, CTS-D of Audio Visual
      Resources, Inc.
-     Project Management from a General Contractor’s Point of View.

This is not your generic project management course. It is designed to deal with issues specific to AV professionals. Don’t miss it.  

Defining the Perfect Teaching Station for Colleges and Universities, June 9, 2004.  Speaker: James A. Horn, CTS-D. Level:  Intermediate.  Registration Code: S11

How do we define and build the perfect teaching station for college and university classrooms, seminar rooms and auditoriums? Join this session and review the elements of the evolving station, share ideas with your colleagues and participate in designing your perfect teaching station. Course Objectives:
1.     Define elements of good teaching stations.
2.     Review the types and evolution of teaching stations.
3.     Participate in a small group to design and present your teaching station solution.

Advanced Acoustics, June 10, 2004. Speaker: Steve Thorburn, PE, CTS-D, CTS-I.
Level:  Advanced.  Registration Code: S60

This advanced class is aimed at individuals that have been working in the industry for a number of years and have been forced to give acoustical advice that you were not quite sure of, it is not a basic class -- the fundamentals of acoustics will not be covered.  The participants should have a strong working knowledge of the basics.

During the session we will develop the acoustical design for a large boardroom, and a 300 seat auditorium / lecture room.  Upon completing the session, the participants will be exposed to:

-       How to design rooms for even distribution of low frequency room modes.
-       Selection of wall constructions to control noise transfer from adjacent rooms.
-       Calculation methods of air system duct noise control.
-       Why some room finish materials are more efficient at reverberation and echo
        control than others.
-       How to determine if absorption or diffusion is required.
-       How to specify the type of diffusion required.

The FCC mandated conversion from analog to digital broadcasts (but not necessarily high definition) is scheduled for completion by January 2007.  At that time all 1500+ pubic and non-profit TV stations should be broadcasting digital signals.  Four years ago, the feeling in the Industry was that the conversion “could not be physically completed by 2007.”  There would not be enough bodies and equipment to do the actual work.  Well, the Industry was wrong.  According to the National Association of Broadcasters, 1175 stations are already broadcasting digital information. 

First, lets look at the equipment components.  Eventually you will need to replace the television with one that supports digital signals.  In the meantime, you can get a conversion box (such as a Sony’s SATHD200 HDTV & DirecTV Receivers / Decoders) that will convert a digital TV signal to the analog NTSC standard, then display that signal on your existing TV.  Most audiovisual manufacturers have already begun manufacturing equipment (projectors, switchers, and other video routing products) that support HDTV signals as well as traditional NTSC and computer signals.  The conversion process will take time, with most analog components being replaced through obsolescence as old equipment is replaced and new equipment (that supports both formats) is installed. 

Next, lets look at the issue of aspect ratios.  As mentioned above, until now, video signals (NTSC) and most computer signals typically used the same aspect ratio of 4 to 3.  So a video or computer image on a projection screen or TV monitor in a 4 to 3 ratio will “fill” the screen without any distortion or stretching.  Of course when motion picture films (which use a wide screen format – typically 1.85 to 1) are converted to NTSC, they are compressed horizontally or each side is cut off in a “pan and scan” conversion process. 

With the advent of HDTV screens, in the 16 to 9 format, there is a closer correlation between HDTV images and motion picture images.  The issue is that there is less of a correlation between HDTV/Motion picture and Computer images.  One solution is to size the screen or display device for the largest dimension in both directions then leave blank “bars” on the top and bottom of the display or blank “pillars” on each side of the image, thus maintaining the correct aspect ratio of the original image. 

Alternatively, the image can be electronically expanded or compressed to fill the screen.  Unfortunately this distorts the image. While not a significant problem for video images, this is noticeable when text or computer images with text are displayed.  The best solution may be found in solving another problem with mixing various aspect ratios through the video input/display process.  A drawback with current video projectors is that very few, to date, use an HDTV native resolution or wide screen aspect ratio LCD chip inside the projector. They still use a 4 to 3 aspect ratio display chip.

Pixel based displays (e.g. LCD chips) provide the best image when they use the same resolution from signal input to signal display.  On the consumer side where most projectors only display video data (but this is quickly changing!) there are already a number of projectors that have LCD chips in wide screen resolutions.  These projectors display the image at its native resolution and do not distort or manipulate the image to fit a particular aspect ratio.  Unfortunately they don’t display computer resolutions very well nor are these chips found in higher brightness projectors needed for larger AV presentation spaces.  It is only a matter of time before this consumer trend is pushed into professional AV projectors with native wide screen aspect ratio chips.  These projectors will fill an HDTV format projection screen when displaying HDTV signals and show pillars on each side when displaying lower resolution 4 by 3 aspect ratio images.

There are several manufacturers of resilient channels.  The original manufacturer US Gypsum (USG), created and tested the first resilient channel USG RC-1, but as is often the case the copies are not a good as the original.  When competitor resilient channels are tested side by side against the USG RC-1 channel, the RC-1 always outperforms the others.  For example, when we were called in as an expert for a multifamily housing project and had a wall or ceiling opened up for inspection, in every problem case a non–USG RC-1 channel was used.  When the USG RC-1 was installed and the ceiling was refinished, the problems almost always went away.  The installation of the correct channel and even the proper installation of channels seem to be a challenge in the field at a job site.  There was one project that had three different channels installed on one wall and none of them were the specified USG RC-1.  

The basic design of a resilient channel is a metal channel bent into three sections: a flange about 40 cm wide (where the gypsum board is attached); a section about 12 cm tall (with long slots routed into it to provide some spring); and the third flange about 15 cm wide where the channel is attached to the joist or stud. (Go to http://www.ta-inc.com/newshtml/rc.htm for more information.)  USG has sold their product to Unimast, which then sold it to Worthington Industries.  Worthington Industries’ Dietrich Division now manufacturers two versions of resilient channels, the RC Deluxe and the URC, yes it is confusing.  The RC Deluxe is very similar to the original USG RC-1 but the URC version has smaller slots and if tested would not perform as well. 

The restoration brought the cathedral into full conformance with contemporary Catholic liturgical standards.  The altar table was moved forward into the center of the nave on a raised platform and surrounded by new pews and moveable chairs.  A new marble baptismal font, incorporating the old altar railing and font, was added near the main entrance.  Old acoustical tiles were removed and the central dome was rebuilt to improve the acoustics.  The balcony was reconfigured to provide additional seating.  The east transept was reconfigured for an expanded choir.  The west transept features a new sky lite Eucharistic Reservation Chapel.

The main challenge for TA was all of the curved surfaces in the altar area.  For example, parishioners complained that they could not hear the priest but could hear a whispered conversation from the other side of the transept (this was due to the focusing of sound by the curved ceiling and walls).  The original design architect used segments of spheres, columns, and circles that created a significant problem with focusing of sound in many different locations within the nave.  Sound absorptive material and coffers were introduced into these surfaces to help minimize the focusing of sound. 

The reverberation time was adjusted to support a new electronic pipe organ.   The longer reverberation time required for the pipe organ and the relocated choir area created a challenge for the design team in selecting acoustical finishes.  Both paper and computer modeling of the acoutical enviorment confirmed this.

The original sound system was loudspeakers located on the columns.  Parishioners complained that the old loudspeakers did not work and there were spots that they could not understand what was being said.  Our solution was to design a pew back sound system.  The philosophy of a pew back loudspeaker system is a hybrid of what is called a distributed audio system.  Distributed audio systems use many low powered loudspeakers located close to the listeners versus a central cluster loudspeaker system which has one large loudspeaker system located in a central area, in this case over the altar, to distribute audio throughout the sanctuary.  A lighting analogy would be to consider the difference between numerous down lights providing uniform illumination of the floor/seating area versus a single high light output floodlight providing the same illumination from a pole.

The electronic portion of the audio system is automated.  The system uses several mixing components, which provides two primary formats.  The first format is speech reinforcement, or in this case, the spoken word.  The second format is for choir and music; the choir may be accompanied by organ music.  Both formats are routed through a main mixer and can be heard throughout the sanctuary.

The spoken word is heard through the pew back distributed loudspeaker system.  This provides even coverage throughout the sanctuary.  The loudspeaker system is divided into six zones.  This allows the church to control each zone as required per worship event.  The music audio system is also heard through the pew back loudspeaker system.  The loudspeaker system is capable of supporting choir vocals and other music sources but is supplemented with two larger format column mounted loudspeakers.  These loudspeakers are “time aligned” with electronic delay to improve the speech intelligibility of the sound heard naturally from the choir and electronically from the column and pew back loudspeaker systems.  The choir and music sources are routed through a local choir mixer, then into the speech audio system.

The RSIC-1 clips can be attached to wood, steel, concrete, or CMU; have been tested in acoustical laboratories; and are "Classified by Underwriters Laboratory (UL)" for use in over 150 UL Fire Resistive Design Assemblies.  It can be used to support other lightweight items such as Bathroom Fans and Light fixtures as well as garage door openers from the floor on the unit above.