AV Tools

Central Queensland U Outfits Learning Spaces for High-Def Streaming

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 08/26/20

A university in Australia with multiple campuses has upgraded its approach to audio and video management. Central Queensland University, with 25 campuses, has installed media systems from Harman Professional Solutions, to facilitate high-definition streaming into classrooms from lecturers who may be situated anywhere in the university system.

The institution worked with Videopro, an Australia-based audiovisual integrator, on design of the AV platform. "A primary requirement was that the solution be able to provide application-level visibility, monitoring and traffic control to the IT team," explained Scott Maunsell, account manager and programmer for Videopro, in a press release.

The system uses AMX SVSi N1000 series encoders and decoders, which include a VLAN tagging feature. VLAN tagging allows for labelling packets of AV data with a specific VLAN number or ID, thereby allowing network administrators to regulate switches to allow or disallow traffic flow from one VLAN to other ports. The outcome, according to Maunsell, is better content distribution and remote management of AV data from various VLANs across multiple campuses. AMX is a division of Harman, which is itself a division of Samsung.

The AMX gear was integrated with the company's NetLinx NX Central Controllers and Modero G5 Touch Panels. The controllers provide secure machine-to-machine communication and automation; the touch panels offer a simple user interface for the faculty working in the learning spaces.

"It was essential for CQUniversity to bring content closer to students, and provide our IT team full visibility, execute remote configuration, track performance and troubleshoot issues remotely. We wanted a simple-to-deploy digital media distribution and switching solution that has the ability to direct any source stream to any display," said Phil Greig, a university teaching space technology coordinator. "We've been able to make significant strides in advancing our efforts to establish a flexible, functional, feature-rich AV system."