RTI is shipping its new collaboration system, Intelligent Meetings, to enhance hybrid working experiences.
The automation and control manufacturer’s new, scalable solution caters to environments of every size, from huddle rooms to large conference spaces and empowers the advanced audio, video and collaboration demands of effective hybrid working.
Intelligent Meetings seamlessly integrates with leading video conferencing platforms. It also natively integrates with RTI systems and functions independently and with other control systems.
Neal Ellsworth, RTI Director of Product Management, commented:
The Intelligent Meetings ecosystem is designed to work seamlessly with the customer’s collaboration platform of choice, including Zoom and Teams. It integrates seamlessly into RTI control systems, combining essential room control with an exceptional meeting room experience in a single-brand solution.”
The intuitive meeting room experience kicks off meetings promptly, including clear instructions on a customisable welcome screen for presenters and guests. It grants Wi-Fi connectivity details and multiple connection options for seamless transitions between collaborators. The ecosystem centres around the UC-IVB-50 4K Intelligent Video Bar and includes the UC-MXT Media Xchange Transmitter, UC-IVB-EXM Expansion Microphone, and UC-IVB-TM Display Mount.
More Details on the Technology
The Intelligent Video Bar, designed for 4K collaboration, simultaneously displays up to two sources. Its AI-enabled, 120-degree field-of-view camera facilitates autoframing, presenter tracking, and speaker tracking. The four-MEMS linear microphone array precisely captures audio, and full-range speakers ensure room-filling sound.
This setup allows remote attendees to experience a more immersive meeting, seeing and hearing speakers with great clarity. In-room participants benefit from stereo speakers with bass radiators for an enhanced audio experience.
The UC-IVB-50 offers wired BYOM connectivity with a 4K UHD HDMI input and USB 3.0 or USB-C ports. For wireless Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) connectivity, it supports AirPlay and Miracast with soft AP for internet sharing. The UC-MXT Media Xchange Transmitter enables plug-and-present content sharing, supporting up to two transmitters simultaneously for ultralow-latency 1080p 30Hz video transmission.
Users connect their laptops or mobile devices without extra software or configuration through USB-C. A privacy button allows quick screen pausing.
For larger spaces, the UC-IVB-EXM Expansion Microphone enhances the audio experience. Featuring four-MEMS linear microphones, each UC-IVB-EXM affords a 360-degree pickup pattern within its 5-metre range. Up to five expansion microphones can connect to the UC-IVB-50, extending participant audio pickup.
Integrated DSP provides advanced capabilities like Acoustic Echo Cancellation and background noise reduction for crystal-clear audio to remote attendees. A microphone muting button ensures privacy, synchronising all devices for a unified experience.
2024 – The Year of New Collaboration?
If 2023 was the year of AI, 2024 might be a banner year for meeting room devices that foster not only smooth conferencing but new avenues to collaborate.
For example, in January, Crestron announced the new AI-powered PTZ camera series, the 1 Beyond, designed to address the challenges of modern hybrid meetings. The 1 Beyond series comprises four new cameras, each equipped with advanced optical zoom technology to ensure image integrity and pixel quality preservation.
In January, ClearOne revealed its innovative low-latency wireless microphone system, the DIALOG 20 USB. The vendor said the flexible two-channel mic features less than four milliseconds of audio latency to enable hybrid meetings with local sound reinforcement effectively.
Designed for hybrid meetings requiring both a dedicated presenter microphone and a shared audience mic for simultaneous sound reinforcement, the DIALOG 20 USB is suitable for various settings, such as hybrid training or presentation sessions.
Meanwhile, last month, Cisco, Microsoft and Samsung jointly announced a set of meeting room solutions involving Cisco devices, powered by its RoomOS software, integrated with Samsung smart signage displays featuring Microsoft Teams with Front Row. The focal point of the collaboration is the integration of video collaboration solutions into the Cisco Room Series. These solutions include Front Row, an inclusive content layout specifically designed for Microsoft Teams Rooms.
Lastly, Sennheiser and Q-SYS’s combined solution — their audio, video, and control (AV&C) Platform — has been certified for Cisco Collaboration Devices.
This certification indicates the successful integration of Cisco’s Collaboration Devices with Sennheiser’s TCC 2 and the Q-SYS Core Nano processor, boosting audio connectivity and intelligent control functionalities in modern meeting and learning spaces. Cisco Collaboration Devices serves as the video conferencing service, providing robust computing power to support diverse collaboration scenarios.
