Home » Technology » AV Tech Innovations that Transform Higher Education

AV Tech Innovations that Transform Higher Education

The use of 4K displays in classrooms, student centers, and e-sports venues is one of the biggest technology trends in higher learning. They transform a normal classroom, student centre, or esports arena into an immersive experience for students.

According to a survey conducted by WGU Labs According to the College Innovation Network (CIN), two thirds of instructors in higher education anticipate using more technology within the next three year. This trend indicates the expansion of high-end audiovisual (AV), technology in classrooms. The report revealed that 82% respondents thought that the availability of technology directly affects student engagement.

For example, professors can envelop their students in the day’s lesson with 360° projections of vibrant imagery. Imagine sitting at your desk as an art history student and being surrounded by Picasso’s portfolio.

The quality of surround visual immersiveness is not just reserved for entertainment and high-end academic venues. This technology is now being used in dynamic corporate worship services and corporate settings.

In order to meet these needs, Panasonic Connect The company has announced a new expansion of the AV Solution suite at InfoComm 2024. The company intends to create innovative and engaging visuals across industries.

Jared Darensbourg is the director of sales at Panasonic Connect for Visual Systems. He said: “As industries look to create immersive visual experiences, it’s important that they adopt powerful, reliable solutions to give flexibility to content creators and production team members.”

The latest additions of its AV ecosystem respond directly this industry need. These solutions let customers focus less on the technology and more on the creativity of their audience and how to take it to the next step.

Panasonic Connect AV Solutions for Higher Education

Panasonic’s commercial audio-visual division has been selling PTZ cameras and high-end displays to the higher education sector for more than 50 years. These robotic cameras offer enhanced graphic features, such as the ability to pan horizontally, tilt up and down, and zoom into a subject, all without digital distortion.

Panasonic Connect has announced new models that do not require remote control. When integrated with other software for recording and streaming, they make broadcasting quality affordable and simple to use.

Panasonic Connect was the first to introduce wireless microphones in 2004, as the need for better audio and visual technology in lecture halls and college classrooms grew. Petro Shimonishi is the director of Panasonic Connect’s product management. This year, they will be adding a ceiling microphone.

“We developed the Ceiling Microphone with input from over 80 universities. She told TechNewsWorld that they visited many universities to learn what people liked and disliked about ceiling mics.

Panasonic Connect has a strong relationship with many higher-educational organizations in order to provide the best possible education. These organizations include The Edtech Collective, the Higher Ed Technology Managers Association and the Edtech Collective. Instructure. EduCause.

Shimonishi said, “We use our relationships with higher-education to understand their needs, particularly in terms of classroom technologies, and then create products that are tailored for the demands of higher education.”

Post-Covid Enhancements Transforming Instructional Imagery

Shimonishi claims that Covid’s impact in the classroom drives the adoption and use of new technology by higher education. The ceiling-mounted speakers and projectors create more room for other products.

College students expect hybrid remote education to be a priority in post-Covid educational systems. The audio-visual technologies used in K-12 education and higher education are vastly different.

We are now seeing that college and university students want to keep this capability. Shimonishi noted that students want to be able to take classes anywhere and at any time.

Some universities told me that their hybrid classes were still in use. She said that some students will take classes remotely from outside the classrooms on the grass in the quad, about 200 feet away.

The hybrid approach to higher education will continue, so better cameras and mics are needed to capture teachers and students. Panasonic’s software allows the teacher to enter the classroom, press a button, and then the system will automatically recognize the teacher.

High tech has many benefits

Tech items like high-quality 4K cameras and ceiling microphones can help engage audiences in cases where AV reliability is important. Ceiling cameras, for instance, will not become confused if, while distributing materials to students or assistants, they walk in front the teacher. This clarity allows remote students to have a more engaging experience.

“It’s just a carryover of Covid for higher education.” Shimonishi noted that “we see more universities installing this equipment, even at the community college level.” Maybe it’s an unexpected outcome. One of them is better student recruitment.

Parents are interested in learning about the college’s education program when they visit. She suggested that since so many people use technology every day, having a good technology suite in the classroom is a great way to attract students.

Kairos, as an example, is a live-production platform that offers unlimited control for delivering rich content to broadcast, large screens, and live streams with 4K HDR. It also adds ST 2110 baseband and streaming connectivity to increase input/output versatility. This feature allows both local and distant contributions to content creation.

Upgrade your audio-visual experiences

Kairos is now enhanced with several new projectors for an improved level of presentation success. They include:

The PT-REQ15/REZ15 series 1-Chip 4K DLPTM Projectors

Produce smooth and deep 4K images, in any environment. The optical engine and laser module are dust-proofed to IP5X standard. Backup inputs and multi-laser drives allow them operate reliably even in extreme conditions. These are now available.


PT RQ7 Series 1 Chip DLPTM Projectors

Visuals that are rich and vivid can cover a space from floor to ceiling. It is anticipated to be available by the second half 2024.


Media Production Suite

Centralize camera management in small teams. Media Production Suite provides many features for high-quality video production. It streamlines the camera setup. The suite adds production value to PTZ cameras by adding paid plug-ins such as AI Keying, auto-tracking and other features. Available now in a free download.


ET-FMP50 series media processor

Designed to streamline workflows while supporting enhanced performance, the ET-FMP50  features camera-based warping, blending adjustment, and 4K media playback capability. The ET-FMP50 is expected to be available during the second half 2024.


Shimonishi stated that “the RQ7 projector was the first 4K model in a very compact form factor, with really high performance on this market”.

The innovative design shrunk the size of a 4K projector — usually around 48 inches — to a much more reasonable size — about 19 inches wide, 17 inches deep, and seven inches tall. She said that this is ideal for classrooms and does not interfere ceiling microphones or speakers.

Editor’s Note – The images used in this post are credited as being from Panasonic Connect North America.