an introducƟon to the MIPS processors, use, and set up user’s guide MulƟ Image Processing System Designed and manufactured in Fredrikstad, Norway. www.projectiondesign.
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english Introduction Thank you Thank you for purchasing a MIPS processor. The MIPS WB2560 and WB1920 are state-of-the-art image processing engines for the combination and setup of multiple projectors in order to create one, large, seamless image. By combining multiple projectors, images with unprecedented resolution and fidelity can be created.
english Contents Introduction 3 Thank you 3 Features 3 SAFETY 9 GENERAL WARNINGS 9 WEEE INFORMATION 9 WARNING ABOUT SUBSTANCES What’s in the box? The MIPS processor comes with the following components: Installation and setup 10 11 11 14 System requirements 14 System overview 15 Network settings 15 Software 15 Mounting the MIPS processor in rack 16 Getting to know the GUI 18 ProNet.
Warping algorithms 29 29 Perspective Mesh Warp Smythe Mesh Warp Bezier english Geometry correction Warping user interface Scaling filters 30 Lanczos filter B-spline filter C-spline filter Linear interpolation filter Working with the perspective algorithm 32 Working with the Mesh Smythe algorithm 33 Working with Mesh Bezier algorithm 34 Fine tuning control points 35 Edge blending 37 Introduction 37 Edge blending algorithms 37 Basic edge blending Advanced edge blending User interface for basic
english Technical specifications 61 Electrical 61 Mechanical 62 Environmental 63 Table of figures 65 MIPS User’s Guide – Introduction 6
When setting up a MIPS based projection system, it is important to keep the following guidelines in mind: • A system is only as good as the weakest link - make sure cables, connectors, infrastructure and IG’s are top level. • A system’s performance can almost always be improved – and there is no substitute for experience in, and knowledge about the components in it english Best practice 7 www.projectiondesign.
english MIPS User’s Guide - What’s in the Box? 8
This device complies with safety regulations for Information Technology Equipment intended to operate in “normal” environments (offices and homes). Before using the device for the first time, please read the safety instructions thoroughly. english SAFETY GENERAL WARNINGS Use only the cables and cords supplied with the device or original replacement cables. Using other cables or cords may lead to malfunction and permanent damage of the device.
english WARNING ABOUT SUBSTANCES This product contains chemicals, including lead, known to the State of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm. Recycle properly, do not dispose of in ordinary waste!.
The MIPS processor comes with the following components: english What’s in the box? MIPS processing unit Power Cable (Country Dependant) 2x Dual Link DVI cables CD with software Network cable User Documentation Please verify that you have all compoents upon unpacking the unit, and its contents. Please save packaging materials for future use, should it be necessary to ship the unit. 11 www.projectiondesign.
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english Installation and setup The following section outlines the general requirements to supporting equipment in order to run the MIPS plugin, and successfully setting up a MIPS based projection system. System requirements ProNet 2.0 – required to set up and operate MIPS processors, works with Microsoft Windows® operating systems only. The following versions are supported: • Windows XP (32-bit only), SP xx or • Windows Vista (32- or 64-bit) • Windows 7 (32- or 64-bit) In addition, Microsoft .
A MIPS system contains the following main components: • An Image Generator (IG) with one or more channels (outputs) (not provided by projectiondesign). • One MIPS unit per channel • One projector per channel • A PC for setup and control • Optional camera or other auto-alignment tool (not provided by projectiondesign) • Optional CAD tool for designing systems (not provided by projectiondesign) english System overview Figure 5-1 shows a complete system overview of a MIPS setup. Figure 5-1.
english Mounting the MIPS processor in rack Each MIPS processor is half-width, 1U standard size, so two channels can be combined in a single standard 19” 1RU rack mounting plate, available from projectiondesign. Remove the upper and lower screws on each side of the MIPS processor, position the mounting plate and reenter the screws as shown in Figure 5-2 and Figure 5-3. Figure 5-2. Rack mount plate Figure 5-3.
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english Getting to know the GUI ProNet.site Figure 6-4 gives an overview of ProNet.site. The application has four main areas of interest: • The File menu located in the top-left corner. • The “Site Devices” overview on the left hand side of the GUI. • Control, status, monitoring and timed operations overviews for one or more selected devices on the right hand side. • Status messaging window at the bottom. Figure 6-4. Overview of ProNet.
Figure 6-5 shows the “Device View” window that is displayed when the “MIPS Calibrator”plugin is started. The “Device View” window contains the following areas: • The File menu located in the top-left corner • The Device Pool window in the lower left corner. • A MIPS information window in the lower right corner. • A dedicated toolbar on the left hand side. • A Device View Desktop that is displayed in the center of the ProNet aapplication window.
english Figure 6-6. File menu, Device View. Adding MIPS units to a project To enable and add MIPS units to a project, simply drag and drop units from the tree view in the Device Pool (Figure 6-7) to the Device View Desktop. The MIPS units in the Device Pool are detected using ProNet’s built-in universal plug-n-play capability. Figure 6-7. The Device Tree in the Device Pool. MIPS units can also be added or deleted from the Device View Desktop by using the and icons in the toolbar.
english Figure 6-8. Toolbars, shown with and without help texts. Using the toolbar you can: • Add or remove MIPS units from a project. • Select or deselect all MIPS units on the Desktop. • Show an information window for a selected unit. The information window shows system status (temperature, fan operation, DVI signal detection in/out) and system versions for software, hardware, FPGA, and more. • Using the Configuration tool, Visual ID (on screen identification) and custom notes are configured.
english Clearing calibration To clear calibration from selected MIPS units, select Edit > Clear Calibration from the File menu. Under Clear Calibration, one can select to clear all or just parts of the calibration. See Figure 6-9. Figure 6-9. Clearing calibration Notifications and advanced network settings Under Settings > Application Settings, message notification levels and advanced network settings are configured, see Figure 6-10. Figure 6-10. Application and Network settings.
All MIPS units can easily be upgraded via the ProNet 2.0 user interface. System software is available from www.projectiondesign.com. Select Maintenance > MIPS Unit Software Update. The window shown in Figure 6-11 appears. Locate the system update file(s), and click “Select..”. After the file has loaded successfully into the update application, click “Start”. english Performing software upgrades IMPORTANT: This is just the first step in the upgrade process.
english Figure 6-12. EDID Administration. MIPS calibrator – Calibration View When all MIPS units are added to the project in the Device View, switch MIPS Calibrator to “Calibration View”. This is done by clicking the “Calibration View” button in the top-left corner. Clicking the same button in Calibration View mode will bring you back to Device View. See Figure 6-13. Figure 6-13. Switching views from Calibrator view to Device view and back.
english Figure 6-14. Calibration toolbar, without and with help texts. Selecting/deselecting MIPS units The MIPS Navigator is a window used to select MIPS units in a project, Figure 6-15. In this window, MIPS units can be selected or deselected either by clicking on them or using the assigned short cut key combination. Figure 6-15. MIPS Navigator 25 www.projectiondesign.
english Similar selection capabilities can be found in the top toolbar, Figure 6-16. In this toolbar automatic arrangement of open windows can also be done. Figure 6-16. Top toolbar window navigation Using the Calibration Panel Toolbar (CPT) The calibration panel has a set of tools on the left hand side of the window. This toolbar can be shown with or without help texts, Figure 6-17. Figure 6-17. Calibration Panel Toolbar, without and with help texts.
english Figure 6-18. Set colors control box • Layers. Calibration layers for warping, blending, test patterns and other can be turned on and off for easier setup. • Allow Bezier. When using the Mesh Bezier Warp or Bezier lines in the clipping (masking) or black level management feature, the Bezier functionality (control points) can be turned off. The selected line will have a linear behavior. • Up, down, left, right arrows. Used to move a selected control point 1 pixel in given direction.
english Auto state When a calibration is completed and the accepted calibration is stored in MIPS unit auto state will be used upon power up of the unit. If the MIPS find a stored calibration that matches the input resolution, the online will enter online state (image processing enabled). If no calibration is found, the unit will be in bypass state.
Image Geometry Correction (often referred to as Image Warping) is the process of digitally manipulating image data so that the image’s projection precisely matches a specific projection surface or shape. Image Geometry Correction compensates for the distortion created by off-axis projector or screen placement or non-flat screen surfaces by applying a compensating inverse distortion to the image in the digital domain.
english Figure 7-19. Warping algorithm setup Algorithms can be added or removed. If the perspective transform is added first, Mesh Warp Smythe can be used in addition. If Mesh Warp Smythe or Mesh Warp Bezier is added first, a combination of algorithms is not allowed. In this window, grid size is also configured. For the control points of an algorithm to be visible, the grid size is must be at least 1x1. Increasing grid size during calibration is very convenient.
english Figure 7-20. Scaling filters Lanczos filter The Lanczos filter is using a 4x4 kernel. This filter is recommended for use with images that contains large amounts of fine detail, for example text with small fonts. On thin, diagonal or curved lines, some ripple may be encountered. B-spline filter The B-spline filter available in MIPS is of the type Cubic B-spline. This filter is slightly softer than the Lanczos filter, but has better quality on curved and straight lines.
english Working with the perspective algorithm To start working with the perspective algorithm, click the “Warp” icon, add the perspective algorithm and set grid size to 1x1. To map the geometry to the surface being projected on by draging the control points with the mouse. Figure 7-21 shows basic usage of the Perspective algorithm. Figure 7-21.
To start working with Mesh Smythe algorithm, click the “Warp” icon, add the Mesh Smythe algorithm and start with setting the grid size to 1x1. First map the four corners to their desired location. As required, increase the grid size. This will add more rows, columns and control points to the mesh and enable the possibility to map the grid correctly onto the surface. Figure 7-22 is showing a simple 3x3 grid using the Mesh Smythe algorithm.
english Working with Mesh Bezier algorithm To start working with Mesh Bezier algorithm, click the “Warp” icon, add the Mesh Bezier algorithm and start with setting the grid size to 1x1. The grid you see now will contain four control points – one in each corner. In addition all control point will have 2-4 additional, white control points for controlling the Bezier vectors in a given point, Figure 7-23. Figure 7-23.
english Figure 7-24. Working with Mesh Bezier, simple mapping Fine tuning control points To fine tune the position of a warping control point, first click on the control point. Then press and hold Ctrl while using the arrow keys on the keyboard to move the control point. 35 www.projectiondesign.
english Edge blending Introduction Edge Blending is a companion feature to Image Geometry Correction. Edge Blending enables the seamless projection of a large image using several overlapping projectors. Since geometry correction for projection on non-flat surfaces is a built-in requirement in almost all Edge Blending systems, the pairing of Edge Blending and Image Geometry Correction in the same video signal processor is a natural one.
english Figure 8-25. Basic edge blending. In the Basic Blend setup window, overlapping pixels (or percent) can be specified. The blend drop-off curve of can also be tuned. Tuning the blend drop off curve is also possible when the unit is in Online state, for a visual fine tuning of the curve. User interface for advanced edge blending To apply advanced edge blending to an image, select “Blend” from the actions toolbar, and select Advanced Blend Setup. All blend zones will now have to be added manually.
english Figure 8-26. Adding a blend zone. The “Add Blend Zone” window in Figure 8-27 will appear. Configure the initial parameters for the blend zone and click “Add Blend Zone” to add it to the UI. “White” means the location of the full on side of the blend zone (white line). “Black” means the location of the full off side of the blend zone (black line). These blend zone will be completely disconnected from the warping and should hence be applied after the geometry correction is complete. 39 www.
english Figure 8-27. Add blend zone window. Adjusting the shape of advanced edge blending zones Working with the advanced edge blending zones is very similar to the controls of Mesh Warp Bezier. All control points and Bezier points can be used to create the correct shape for the blend zones. Figure 8-28 shows two blend zone, top and left, where adjustments for perfect fit have been done. Figure 8-28. Working with advanced edge blending.
The drop-off curves can be configured individually for all blend zones. Click on a control point in the blend zone you would like to adjust, or select multiple points or blend zones with by dragging a selection rectangle over the areas of interest. Then select “Drop-off Curve” in the Calibration panel toolbar. Adjust the drop-off curve with the vertical and horizontal sliders, as illustrated in Figure 8-29. english Adjusting the blend drop-off curve Figure 8-29. Adjusting the blend drop off curve.
MIPS has several built-in test patterns for easier setup. This tool can be used to tune the geometry (warping) in a setup to match reference points, aspect ratio, ensure visual correctness and to configure 3D image generators for shapes like cylinders and domes. The test patterns are: • Circles. Add circle to your calibration view to visually configure for aspect ratio. • Grid (Pixel). Specify a grid with height and width (in pixels) of all cells in the grid. • Grid (Angle).
english Circle test pattern Circles can be added to calibration area to ease the setup. The position (x, y pixel coordinates) and the radius (pixels) can be specified. Figure 9-32 shows the Test Image Setup window with two circles added. Figure 9-32.
A grid with much smaller cells than the calibration grid can be really convenient for setup. Especially when using the Mesh Bezier Warp where it calibration can be done with very few control point. english Grid (Pixel) test pattern To add a Grid (Pixel) select the “Grid (Pixel)” tab and specify your parameters (). The parameters are: offset (x, y in pixels for top, left corner) and height and width of the cells in the grid. Use the offset function to make grids in multiple MIPS units to overlap.
english Grid (Angle) test pattern The last test pattern available in the MIPS unit is the Grid (Angle) test pattern. This is used to create a reference grid in a dome or a cylinder. Parameters to specify for this grid are ‘to’ and ‘from’ angles (in degrees) in horizontal and vertical direction. The frequency of the reference points can also be specified, as seen in Figure 9-34. Figure 9-34.
Black Level Management (BLM) is a feature patented by projectiondesign for adjusting offset (brightness) in selected areas to compensate for non-perfect black levels in projectors. This enables the possibility to have seamless images in all the gradients of all colors. english Black Level Management To start the black level management tool, click on “Black Level” in the Calibration View Toolbar, Figure 10-36. Figure 10-36. Start BLM tool.
english Figure 10-37. Adding Black Level Management lines. Figure 10-38. Multiple Black Level Management lines added.
english To create the next side in the zone, click on one of the control points in the first line created (not the Bezier points) and then click “+” (Add) again (Figure 10-38). This will add other line to the calibration panel. Continue to add lines as needed. All these lines have the same controls as Bezier lines in the Mesh Bezier Warp and the Advanced Edge Blending. Figure 10-39. Connecting the first and last Black Level Management points.
english Adjusting black level in a defined zone To adjust the black level of a zone, select the one or many control points in the zone. Click “Black Level” in the Calibration Panel Toolbar. The window in Figure 10-40 appears. Adjust the 8 bit value (256 steps) as needed. You must enter online mode to see the results. Figure 10-40. Adjusting black level.
Masking (also called clipping) is used to cut out areas of the image which should be blanked out. An example of this is overshooting of the image in a dome. english Masking To start the masking tool, click “Clip” in the Calibration View Toolbar (Figure 11-41). Figure 11-41. Starting the clip tool 51 www.projectiondesign.
english Adding areas to clip Start with clicking (Add) in the Calibration View Toolbar. This will create the first line in the area to mask out (Figure 11-42). Figure 11-42. Adding the first line in a clip area.
english To create the next side in the zone, click on one of the control points in the first line created (not the Bezier points) and then click (Add) again (Figure 11-43). This will add other line to the calibration panel. Continue to add lines as needed. All these lines have the same controls as Bezier lines in the Mesh Bezier Warp and the Advanced Edge Blending. Figure 11-43. Adding multiple side in a clip area. 53 www.projectiondesign.
english Note! To add the last line connecting the first and last control point, it is important select both of the control points required to encapsulate the calibration area (Figure 11-44). To select multiple points, either press and hold Ctrl while using the mouse point to select (Add) again points or drag and drop a selection rectangle over the points. Finally click to add the last line. Figure 11-44. Clipping area complete. Finally, go to online mode to see the results.
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english Storing and recalling data The MIPS system has powerful and flexible features for storing and recalling calibration data. When a calibration is a stored, the user can recall all calibration parameters at any given time or on any given control PC. Calibration can be stored: • In the MIPS unit. • On the control PC. This is a copy of the data stored in the MIPS unit. • Both.
english Figure 12-45. Save current calibration to the MIPS unit If you want to recall your last saved calibration, click “Load Calibration” in the Calibration view toolbar (Figure 32). Storing/recalling data to/from the control PC Before you can save a calibration to the control PC, you first have to save your calibration to MIPS unit. When performing a backup to the control PC, the last data stored in the MIPS unit will be copied to the control PC. To backup your data, select “Backup Calibration files..
english Figure 12-46. Backup up calibration data. Figure 12-47.
To restore the calibration files to the MIPS unit, select “Restore Calibration files..” from the file menu. The window in Figure 12-48 appears. english Select the target folder to which the data should be saved and press “Start”. When all files are copied to the control PC, click “Done”. Each unit the system will have to be upgraded separately. For revision tracking of the calibration data, each new backup folder should contain the date and time of the backup. Figure 12-48.
english Technical specifications Electrical versions 101-0301-00 (WB2560) 101-0302-00 (WB1920) functionality Geometry Correction, Blending, Colour Correction and matching, Uniformity Correction and matching scalability Unlimited channels latency Zero with blended set up, rotation dependent with geometry correction internal colour depth 12 bits per colour I/O Dual Link DVI in / out Ethernet (control) IEC power connector colour correction PLM™ – Pixel Level Matching™; individual RGB channel on pi
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Operating tests Description Vibration random 5 - 500Hz Operating Min Nom g2/Hz Max 0,00052 0.5grms Sine sweep vibration 10-1000Hz 2oct/min 3g Shock Operating 5g/11ms Humidity Operating 10% 80% Temperature, operating Altitude, operating 10°C 0 40°C 3000m Criteria Conlusion english Environmental 30 min each axis, No mechanical or functional failures after test. One sweep, all axis. No mechanical or functional failures after test. 1500 shocks each side, total 9000shocks.
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Figure 5-1. MIPS system overview 15 Figure 5-2. Rack mount plate 16 Figure 5-3. Rack mounted 16 Figure 6-4. Overview of ProNet.site 18 Figure 6-5. MIPS Calibrator, Device View. 19 Figure 6-6. File menu, Device View. 20 Figure 6-7. The Device Tree in the Device Pool. 20 Figure 6-8. Toolbars, shown with and without help texts. 21 Figure 6-9. Clearing calibration 22 Figure 6-10. Application and Network settings. 22 Figure 6-11. MIPS software upgrade window. 23 Figure 6-12.
english Figure 12-48.
projectiondesign locations head office authorised distribution in projectiondesign as Habornveien 53 N-1630 Gamle Fredrikstad, Norway ph +47 69 30 45 50 fx +47 69 30 45 80 sales@projectiondesign.com United Kingdom and Ireland Regus House, Herons Way, Chester Business Park, Chester, CH4 9QR, United Kingdom ph +44 (0)1244 893 231 fx +47 69 30 45 80 uk_sales@projectiondesign.
