Production software company Renewed Vision and projection specialist PointCloud Media have been hired by The Sheraton Waikiki in Honolulu to develop its 3D pool mapping shows. The shows are part of the hotel’s two-part Helumoa Playground Superpool series. They feature graphic figures and images projected onto the nearly 200,000-gallon, 7,503sqft pool and have been billed as the world’s first permanent installation of its kind.
The PointCloud solution integrates its core Raylight4D mapping system responsible for superimposing visual content on the pool with seven ultra-bright projectors and playback software from Renewed Vision.
The integration of Renewed Vision’s ProVideoPlayer 2 (PVP2) software drives playback for all seven projectors from two Mac Pro computers. “Over the years, we have used many different servers to augment video projections on large buildings, and they were all very complicated to operate, requiring real experts,” said Jack Hattingh, president, PointCloud Media.
“The Renewed Vision PVP2 software reliably plays out all content from a stable platform, without the expense of purchasing or renting a system and hiring a full-time operator. I can purchase PVP2 software and a Mac Pro for the price of a three-week rental of most competing products. Being a permanent installation, the return on investment with PVPV2 is nearly immediate.”
The end-to-end architecture includes five rooftop Barco HDQ-2K40 40,000 lumen projectors positioned 320ft in the air to project visual content onto the pool, along with two 20,000-lumen projectors at ground level to project visuals onto adjacent rock formations.
“PVP2 allows us to fine-tune the mappings on the fly to create the best convergence between the projected images,” said Hattingh. “Its advanced rending engine, coupled with the power and reliability of the Mac Pro, enables smooth playback of the massive video file across all five outputs. PVP2 is also allowing us to create some unusual projections, as we’re blending from four corners geometrically rather than top to bottom or left to right. PVP2’s flexibility has made it easy to create a unique mosaic map with plenty of light that audiences can enjoy.”
The master system on the roof is connected to the second rock projection system 31 stories below via a fibre-optic connection, with all content triggered simultaneously from both PVP2 servers. As each show begins, PVP2 triggers a contact closure relay to change the sound system from the standard background music service to the PVP2 audio feed. A third Mac Pro system outfitted with PVP2 supports a hotel broadcast on Channel 37, with viewers able to enjoy a live cut of the pool projections at the moment the light show music begins.
