Technical
case study
Aurora
El Segundo, California, USA
This curved entryway uses iColor
Flex MX to display low-resolution
video, transforming a corporate
lobby into an interactive experience
ELECTROLAND
Aurora dazzles the eye
When DIRECTV, an American company that provides direct
broadcast satellite television, made the decision to move its
headquarters to El Segundo, California, the company wanted
to create a unique experience in the spacious lobby of an
office building. The company hired Electroland LLC, a design
and architecture firm that specializes in interactive public
media art, to create a one-of-a-kind entrance installation.
Philips and Electroland have a history of a successful
partnership in constructing original projects that immerses
users in interactive light.
Visitors to the DIRECTV lobby marvel at the Aurora installation. The
panels combine to create a smooth surface that displays dynamic light
and low-resolution video.
Mapping a 3D surface
required creative thinking
Electroland designed a 118 ft (36 m) long, 26 ft (8 m) tall curved
structure that would display low-resolution video using LED lighting.
The installation incorporates ambient sound and interactivity.
Because of tight time constraints, limited budget, and a crowded
work site, the design team did as much work as possible off-site,
then turned to Philips Color Kinetics for assistance in on-site
installation and commissioning. “Designing and creating the whole
installation ourselves streamlined the construction process, and cut
time and price,” said Cameron McNall, Principal at Electroland, LLC.
Electroland first had to find a material that would curve and diffuse
light correctly. “LEDs tend to produce a hotspot that requires
aggressive diffusion,” Electroland partner Damon Seeley explained.
The team identified Bayer’s Makrolon LD polycarbonate plastic. It
could be computer-printed and custom-fit like a puzzle, reducing
manufacturing costs and time. “It diffuses light evenly, is very
thin, lightweight, and fire-resistant, making it suitable for interior
environments,” Seeley said.
To account for the curves of the entryway, Electroland planned where the strands and nodes
would need to be placed to create a loose grid.
The 118 ft (35 m) long, 26 ft (8 m) tall structure was divided into
600 panels. Each panel was then mapped and addressed. The
end result fit together like a puzzle.
The manufacturing and placement of the Aurora skeleton
was the first step in completing the massive project.
This rendering illustrates the frame of the
Electroland calculated how many nodes each panel required, bringing over 1,800
strands of custom iColor Flex MX together into a functioning and colorful installation.
Aurora installation and the way in which it
would flow through the DIRECTV lobby.
Designers experience
hands-on installation
Electroland designers test the custom software and light
programming of Aurora in the midst of the installation process.
Electroland designers carefully install polycarbonate
panels with LED nodes into the metal frame of Aurora.
The team tackled the task of installing over 47,000 LED
nodes. They divided the seemingly gigantic installation into
600 panels. On each panel, they placed iColor Flex MX
nodes anywhere from 1.4 in (35.56 mm) to 2.1 in (53.34 mm)
apart on each grid. Intersection and spacer fasteners were
used to ensure the nodes were placed and secured the
proper distance from the polycarbonate surface for uniform
light diffusion.
Mapping the nodes was a learning and adapting process
requiring creative thinking. The Electroland design team
discovered that a simple mapping of the LED grids to
the three-dimensional curves of Aurora resulted in the
compressing and tearing of the grid at critical points.
Electroland designed and implemented a complex software
algorithm to distribute the LEDs across the structure’s
surface. The software generated a pixel address map from a
3D data model.
“
I’m excited about the level
of control our designers had.
This is the future of how
designers will work.”
Cameron McNall
Electroland, LLC Principal
An Electroland designer places iColor Flex MX nodes into
polycarbonate panels during the installation process.
Intersection and spacer fasteners were used to ensure
Bringing an
elegant balance
of content
and light
the LED nodes were placed and secured the proper
distance from the polycarbonate surface for uniform
light diffusion.
Philips Color Kinetics provided technical
support to Electroland during the entire
installation process. “We appreciated
all the support we received from Philips
Color Kinetics for their technical help,” said
Cameron McNall, Principal at Electroland,
LLC. Because of the unusual design
Electroland and Philips often encountered
obstacles and challenges during planning
and installation.
“In a complex system, such as what we
employed, we always ask many questions
about our options, and oftentimes our
questions are unique and new to the
manufacturer,” Seeley said. “Philips
understands that our questions are
important to success, and always tried hard
to accommodate us.”
Seeley calls the program an axial bias grid algorithm. The
algorithm helped the team map individual rows of iColor
Flex MX nodes into a 3D model axially across the narrower
dimensions of the sculpture. Each row could shift, expand,
and compress slightly, guided by a set of software rules. The
process was repeated to create a looser grid design that
accommodates the multiple, sometimes radical curvatures
of Aurora while maintaining the overall feel of an even grid,
making it possible to program and display content.
The algorithm also maximized efficiency in the design and
placement of over 1,000 leader cables and power supply
units across the enormous structure.
“We used a combination of software algorithms and
common sense to distribute the cables like a series of trees
with branches,” said Seeley. Over 4.7 miles (7.6 km) of leader
cables came together behind the panels. Efficiently and
evenly distributed leader cables were another key piece to a
thoughtful design.
With over 1,000 leader cables in use, it took a special algorithm and
common sense to appropriately distribute the cabling.
An Electroland designer tests the lights and movement
software on a section of the Aurora grid before it is installed
in the metal frame.
DIRECTV and Electroland wanted Aurora to have an interactive
element in addition to its illumination capabilities. Electroland
designed a custom software system specifically for tracking people
in the space.
“An industrial depth sensor scans the hallway for peaks of 3D
activity corresponding with people, which is then compared against
a reference state for the space,” Seeley explained. “This allows our
software to track people in all conditions regardless of ambient
lighting. Our software sends people location data over a network
interface to other software which renders interactive imagery. All
actions happen at 30 frames per second, keeping the interactive
imagery in sync with visitors’ movements.”
The end result elegantly compromises between the project’s
commercial and artistic goals.
Philips understands that our questions
are important to success, and always
tried hard to accommodate us.”
Damon Seeley
Electroland, LLC Partner
Product Overview
A DIRECTV visitor experiences Aurora’s illumination
and interactive elements. A custom software tracks her
movements at 30 frames per second.
Photography: Rich Marchewka
Electroland Team
Products
Quantity
Project Credits
iColor Flex MX with nodes
spaced 4.25 in
(107.95 mm) apart
1,289 strands
Electroland Principal
Cameron McNall
Electroland Partner
Damon Seeley
sPDs-480ca 24V
57
System Design
Ari Sachter-Zeltzer
David Glicksman
Video System Manager Pro
1
3D Design
Matthew Au,
Maysam Ghaffari
Production
Theresia Kleeman
Show Programmer
Maya Bartur
Site Supervisor
Matthew Au
Aaron Bocanegra
Zack Stadel
Production and
Installation
Jessica DeVries, Jess Harris, Karni
Hasidian, Jack Johnston, Andrea
Kamilaris, Brieanna MacDonald, Bao
Pham, Roxanna Salceda, Kyle Smith,
Shane Stritesky, Jeremy Waters,
Leandro Yuan
Photography Credit
Courtesy of Electroland LLC
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