Video Walls

A video wall is a group of displays that show synchronized content and convey a single, much larger screen. Cisco Vision Director supports different video wall design methods depending on the type of media player controlling the video wall. A common use for video walls is to vary the video wall layout and content over the course of an event.

Dual Video

Dual video regions allow you to overlay two video regions—a secondary local or multicast video region and a primary video region. The dual video template provides the following capabilities:

■Shows two video feeds at the same time.

■Places video-based advertisements.

■Promotes a moment of exclusivity during an event.

■Applies luminance (luma) keying to the secondary video region.

Video Synchronization

For display of synchronized local content (video or images) in your video wall, daisy-chain the DMPs. To support different types of content on each display in the video wall, such as four different TV channels, use a direct connection per TV display.

In this cabling method for local video synchronization, a single media player is connected to each TV display in the video wall using the HDMI Out and RS-232 connections, see Figure 1. It can be used for video walls playing local video that do not rely on the tile matrix capabilities of the TV.

Figure 1 Cabling Video Wall with One DMP Per TV Display

With this architecture, you can develop content at 3840x2160 resolution. Then, divide your video into four 1920x1080 pieces for synchronized playback. This method will use the maximum resolution for each display giving you the highest possible quality for your presentation.

Macroblocking

Macroblocking is a video artifact where areas of a video image appear as small blocks or squares. Video content that contains large IFrames can cause macroblocking during playback on DMPs, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 Macroblocking Video Content Example

Using constant bit rate (CBR) video is a requirement. Adhere closely to the content guidelines to reduce the issue. If you are using the Adobe Creative Cloud video encoding tool, you might have to use the special settings to work around a problem with non-standard H.264 support. The rendition settings include using VBR as detailed below.

Note : Please pay special attention to the Key Frame Distance setting below.

Render Settings

■VBR, 1 pass

■Target: 10 Mbps

■Max: 12 Mbps

■Key Frame Distance: 9

For more information, see CSCut02474 in the Release Notes for 6.1 Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director.

Multicast Video Scaling

Multicast video scaling means many video monitors can display formatted (scaled) content simultaneously. It is intended for use with video walls and allows scaling of a multicast video region across a video wall display for both portrait and landscape orientation.

Note : Content scaling works on multicast video and local video, as well as external URLs and HTML.

Supported Video and Audio Formats

The tables below define the supported video and audio formats for full-screen video stored locally on the media players and played through a video playlist.

Note : For best performance, we recommend constant bit rate (CBR) for local video playback on the media players. Variable bit rate (VBR) will also work but synchronized video playback could be compromised.

Note : Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director supports UHD/HD and video content with 4K resolution (local and streaming video) on the DMPs. Graphics with 4K resolution are not supported. DMP-2K media players only support HD/SD content.

Note : Test the devices that you plan to connect to the SV-4K HDMI-In port to stream content for support of HDCP. Most Mac OS and Windows laptops should work for HDMI-In video encoding for non-copy-protected content. It is up to the device manufacturer and OS whether or not HDCP pass-through is supported.

Static Graphic Formats

Static graphics are used for advertisements or informational messages that do not require motion. This could include Welcome messages for luxury suites or directional information after an event. Static graphics are stored locally on the media players. Table 5 lists the allowable formats for static graphics.

Note : Content scaling is supported for.png files, widgets, external URL content, and external URL channels. Content is scaled down so it will not bleed over the region sides. Aspect ratio is maintained for.png files and widgets. External URL (content and channel) will fill the region.

Event States and Event Scripts

Event states and event scripts control when and what content displays over the course of an event. For example, a Welcome message for Pre-game, a food promotion at halftime and an Exit message at the end of the game. An event state is a period of time in which the group of screens will exhibit the same behavior (e.g., the same screen template, playlists and channel). Event states can change over the course of time (Pre-Game, In-Game, Post-game, etc.).

Guidelines for Event States and Event Scripts

Consider the following guidelines when creating event states and event scripts:

■Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director displays the default video channel / non-event state on the media players when an event script is not running on it.

■When you use Proof of Play (PoP) content in your playlist, and especially when your PoP content is included near or up to the end of the playlist, define a final script state (without any PoP content) that runs for at least 60 seconds so that all PoP data has time to be captured by Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director. This last event state is commonly set up to turn off the displays in the venue.

■When you configure a script action for a zone, by default, all groups within that zone inherit the defined action. You can override this inheritance by configuring a script action for a particular group within that zone.

■When a zone contains multiple groups, and if you configure script actions for a particular group, those actions will apply only to that group.

■Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director supports only one RS-232 command per event state.

Table 6 describes some guidelines for general script support in Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director.

Note : While these limits have been tested with basic Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director operation, the combination of maximum values and complexity of your system and content can potentially impact the actual limit. Test your script content for expected behavior before using in production.

Guidelines for Video

Consider the following guidelines for deployment of video content in Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director:

■Video files can range in size. Release 5.0 and later releases support a maximum 4 GB file size.

■Be sure that your video content meets the requirements described in Supported Video and Audio Formats.

■Be sure to test the devices that you plan to connect to the SV-4K or CV-UHD HDMI-In port to stream content for support of HDCP. Most Mac OS and Windows laptops should work for HDMI-In video encoding for non-copy-protected content. It is up to the device manufacturer and OS whether or not this is supported.

■Generally speaking, stretching a piece of content across multiple screens is not supported. However, scaling of multicast video is supported. See Content Scaling.

Note : Content scaling is supported for static graphics, widgets, local and multicast video, external URLs, and channels (multicast video and external URLs).

Best Practices for Video Walls

When implementing video walls, consider the following best practices:

■Use the same media player model (All SV-4Ks, or all DMP- 2Ks, and so on) throughout the video wall.

■Use the same TV model throughout the video wall with a uniform bezel size (ultra narrow bezel strongly recommended).

Note: TV screens with an ultra narrow bezel help ensure the best viewing experience without important text or data being cut off.

■While using multicast videos for both video regions is supported, we recommended using a combination of multicast and locally-stored videos for the video regions (or local video for both video regions).

■Create video to be the same size as the video region where it will be rendered. This avoids any unnecessary video scaling.

■Use consistent video aspect ratio.

■Design video regions so that they are consistent with the aspect ratio of video content.

■Use constant bit rate (CBR) for local video files for best performance in video walls.

Prerequisites for Video Walls

Before you deploy video walls and create the content for them, meet the following conditions:

To play local video or image content in a video wall:

1. First create the overall format of the video wall.

2. Edit the content into separate 1920x1080 files that contain the segment of content to be shown on each display.

For example, in a 2x2 SV-4K video wall (4 screens), the original content should be in 3840x2160 format (that is, 2 times 1920x1080).

3. Break the content into (in this example, four) individual files of 1920x1080 format to show the appropriate portion of the content for the 4-screen display.

For DMP content synchronization:

–Each media player must be in its own group.

–For each region, the playlists must have the same number of items, type of item, and duration of each item, or have no playlist at all in the region (empty).

Table 7 shows an example of playlist content for a 2x2 SV-4K video wall with a mix of local video and image content. Notice that all first items in each of the four playlists are of the same type (PNGs), with the same duration, but the content itself is not the same. Likewise, the second item in each playlist is video content with the same duration, but different files.

–Trim local video item duration to boundaries in seconds and not fractions of seconds.

Note: If your imported video content duration is in fractions of seconds, then the content screen shows the actual item duration for the video. However, the system actually rounds that content duration for the playlist to even time boundaries (in seconds). Also, if you manually change the item duration within the Cisco Vision Dynamic Signage Director UI, the content playback will be truncated.

For zone-based video wall synchronization:

■Put each media player in its own group.

■Collectively, place the groups that are part of the video wall in a zone.

■Select the “Use as Video Wall” checkbox when you create the zone for the DMP groups.

■Go to Tools > Management Dashboard > Dynamic Signage Director Configuration > System Configuration > Global DMP Settings (6) > Au dio/Video/Closed Caption > set Zone Based Video Wall Synchronization to "true."

Restrictions for Video Walls

Before you create video walls, consider the following restrictions:

■All screens in the video wall should use 1920x1080 format.

■Widgets, external URLs, and multicast video tuning synchronization are supported by the DMP-to-DMP content synchronization feature.

■When using zone-based content synchronization for video walls, one device controls synchronization. If that device stops showing video, then all displays in the video wall stop showing content.

Video Wall Design Examples

This section provides examples of some of the more common and currently deployed video wall designs in Cisco Vision Driector venues.

TIP : Be sure to consult with the video wall experts from the Cisco Creative Services team for any of your video wall ideas, including non-standard configurations. This team can help you with ideas, best practices, and wiring diagrams to ensure a successful deployment.

2x3 TV-Based Tile Matrix Video Wall Example

Figure 3 shows a video wall commonly used in a concourse area, with a larger game feed for groups of patrons to watch, along with rotating sponsor content displayed beside the game.

Figure 3 2x3 Video Wall Content Example

 

A 2x3 video wall is the most common video wall that Cisco recommends because in the left 2x2 group of displays, the game feed maintains the proper 16:9 aspect ratio of the HD game feed.

The right 2x1 group of displays can work independently from the game feed and show sponsor, social, or other content throughout the game. The user also can change the type of content that plays during the game. For example, during half-time or period break, when there is no game feed, the user can switch the 2x2 to play full screen sponsor content, while changing the 2x1 to show upcoming events or team branded content so that there are not any sponsor conflicts.

Figure 4 shows the cabling for the 2x3 video wall example, where two Cisco DMPs are used to break the wall into different display areas.

The first DMP provides the 2x2 game feed and the second DMP provides the 2x1 sponsor ads.

Figure 4 2x3 Video Wall Cabling Example Using TV Tile Matrix Functionality

 

These dedicated DMPs provide the video signal for the group of TVs that the DMP is connected to through the daisy-chain. Depending on the screen manufacturer, the RS- 232 connections can also be daisy-chained if this feature is available.

When operating in tile matrix mode, the TVs are fed the same video signal. Based on the TV’s tile matrix configuration, the TV knows to first scale input video to the size of the configured x,y dimensions, and then to display its “piece” of the overall display based on its configured position within the matrix.

Note : If you want to show multiple types of content, such as four different channels on each of the screens, connect a Cisco DMP behind each TV.

Other Video Wall Configurations

While the 2x3 video wall is the most commonly used video wall configuration, using the information and concepts for the video wall examples, you can create any number of different video wall configurations.

Figure 5 4x4 Video Wall Example

 

Figure 6 3x5 Video Wall Example

 

Figure 7 2x7 Video Wall Example