While most businesses that decide to use an outdoor screen, whether for outdoor digital signage, information or entertainment, realise the need to protect the screen from the elements, all too often, one aspect of outdoor screen use gets forgotten—the sun.

The sun can cause several problems with an outdoor screen, which lead to viewing problems. And any screen where the audience can’t see the content is not accomplishing the intended requirements. Coping with the problems caused by the sun is not easy, and requires different methods depending on the problems caused:

Screen Glare

Screen glare is something that may be familiar to most people. If you’ve ever had to shut the curtains whist trying to watch TV at home during the day, then the reason was probably due to screen glare. Screen glare is when the sun is reflected off the surface of the screen face and can make it impossible to see the content.

The simples cure for screen glare is to make sure the screen is not facing the direct path of the sun; however, this is not always possible especially for south facing screens (or north facing in the southern hemisphere).

Using an anti-reflective glass is one of the only solutions to prevent screen glare, but this has the drawback of tinting and dimming the screen, so a screen of higher brightness is needed.

Brightness

High brightness screens are a prerequisite for outdoor use. Because of the sun’s brightness and the problems caused by screen glare, standard indoor screens often struggle when it comes to readability.

Screen brightness is measured in candelas (sometimes called nits) and an indoor screen typically has a candela value of around 500. For outdoor digital signage, to ensure the screen can cope against the brightness levels of the sun, candela values of at least 1,200 are needed—the higher the better.

Screen Heat

Another problem caused by the sun, especially when the screen faces the sun’s path, is overheating of the screen face. Continuous sunlight bearing down on a screen may result in the hotspots developing, which in turn can lead to permanent burn marks appearing on the screen. While tints and anti-reflective glass can alleviate this problem to some degree, often the only solution is to provide a curtain of cool air across the screen face, transferring any heat build-up away.

With such rapid growth in the use of outdoor screens, getting your message across is no longer easy. Because of the digital competition, an outdoor screen can easily get lost in the crowd, but one way of ensuring people pay attention to your display, is to make sure it’s interactive.

Various methods of interactivity are available such as touchscreens, but even standard outdoor LCD screens can be used interactively, thanks to a brand new app, available for smartphones.

Screach is a new and unique interactive digital media platform, which allows real-time, two-way interactive experiences between a smartphone and any screen. Using Screach, content developers can build interactive experiences for customers at no cost and in a matter of hours, such as live polling, gaming or quizzes.

Screach is cross-platform and available on most smart phone devices, iPhone and Android, with Blackberry, Symbian and Windows 7 coming in 2011.

An example of Screach interactivity can be seen below, with the large outdoor digital signage display outside the Westfield shopping centre in London being used to provide an interactive driving game, helping to promote car insurers Swift Cover.

Screach is available to download for smartphones at the usually app store locations, and for content developers, more information can be found at: http://www.screenreach.com/the-platform/

More and more firms are looking to becoming more environmentally aware. With climate change and CO2 emissions a factor in many industrial and business decisions, providing an eco friendly platform for communications is becoming increasingly important to many businesses.

Digital signage does have some eco-friendly benefits. Compared to static signage, which has to be printed, delivered and manually posted up, content delivered on to digital signage screens has none of these environmental costs. It also saves paper, reducing the need to cut down trees; however, with the energy required to run a screen, digital signage certainly can’t call itself eco-friendly.

The energy consumed by an LCD screen can be quite high; this is due to the energy requirements of the backlight, which is necessary to ensure the image is visible. For outdoor digital signage that relies on high brightness screens, this energy consumption is even higher.

Fortunately, a new generation of LCD screens has arrived, which use alternative technologies to generate backlights, saving energy and providing a eco-friendlier solution. LED TVs, use an array of power-saving LED bulbs to backlight an LCD screen, saving energy whilst still producing just as bright an image. LED technology is even being deployed in high brightness screens, commonly used for outdoor digital signage, providing energy saving alternatives.

And LED technology is not the only methods being used in LCD screens to save energy. One of the biggest wastes of energy in LCD TV use is when the screens are in stand-by mode. During stand-by mode, while the screen may look off, it is still using energy—sometimes up to 15% of the power used when screen is on.

Now, modern LCD TV systems are becoming equipped with “eco chips” that enable the TV to be left on stand-by mode, while consuming absolutely no power. Essentially, these “eco chips” store power when the TV is on, releasing it slowly to provide enough energy to power the stand-by mode.

With more and more flat panel TVs built with energy saving in mind, combined with the paper and print saving benefits, digital signage is fast-becoming an eco friendly solution for communication.

We are living in a technically advanced world. Computers, mobile phones and other technology have infiltrated nearly all aspects of our daily lives and technology shows no sign of abating.

Digital signage enclosure--looks matter

And it’s not only the younger generation that use Twitter, social networking, iPads and other modern phenomenon, the technology is now ubiquitous in almost all demographics. Modern business is also reliant on utilising modern technology and communication methods, from regular Tweeting, blogging and have social networking presence, providing existing and potential customers with a technically savvy image is essential for maintaining a modern corporate reputation.

Digital signage plays a part in this scenario too. While so much business is conducted online, many companies still rely on visits from purchasers and customers, especially in retail and mid-sized manufacturing.

Presenting the right image is essential as impressions can make all the difference. Think of when you are shopping for a quality garment; how much time would you linger in a store where the clothing wasn’t folded and ordered properly, and it resembled a discount store?

The same is true of marketing and corporate messages. While traditional static signs, noticeboards and posters provide a simple and effective means of communication, they don’t offer any appearance of modernity. An outdoor digital signage display, with well-crafted content and housed in a stylish, functional and quality enclosure, looks more modern and helps generate a much better impression.

Too many digitals signage systems and integrators concentrate on the logistics of content delivery, which of course is important; however, a cheap-looking screen housed in a cheap-looking enclosure will give the impression of cheapness and not provide the aesthetic boost that may help improve a business’ reputation.

Digital signage is a visual medium so looks are important. A poorly presented screen will not get the same attention as a screen that looks more presentable, and therefore, won’t be as effective in achieving the goals set out for the screen.

There has been an increase in the amount of outdoor waterproof TVs that are being manufactured in recent years. Driven by the rise of outdoor digital signage, perhaps the fastest growing sector in the out of home advertising industry, these outdoor screens are becoming the display of choice for those embarking on outdoor digital signage for the first time.

Outdoor LCD screens come with a high price tag, and they mark a significant investment for any purchaser, especially considering that it’s nearly impossible to calculate an accurate ROI (Return on Investment) for outdoor digital signage.

Quite often, these screens while well-suited for operation in all sorts of weather systems, being waterproof and with wide temperature ranges, can fall short of other protection that is just as necessary for use in outdoor locations.

Brightness

High brightness screens are essential for outdoor use. Sunlight can very easily overpower a screen’s brightness making it virtually unreadable, so any outdoor screen needs the ability to counteract the sun’s brightness. Typically, a standard LCD or plasma screen comes with a nit rating (measure of luminance) of around 500, and many LCD displays built for outdoor use have similar nit ratings; however, for outdoor readability, a screen should really have a nit rating above 1,200 otherwise on a bright, sunny day the screen will become unreadable.

Temperature

While many outdoor screens have a wide temperature range, often it is not adequate to cope with extreme variations some locations experience during the different seasons. Temperatures exceeding 30 degrees in summer and falling below zero in winter can easily disable an outdoor screen. Any screen placed outdoors needs to cope with the extremes that a location may have to endure, no matter how rare.

Physical protection

One aspect of protection often not afforded by outdoor screens is physical protection. Because outdoor digital signage is often left out overnight in unsupervised locations, the risk of vandalism and accidental damage mean the screen is incredibly vulnerable. Housing the screen in a protective digital signage enclosure is, therefore, essential; however, as outdoor digital signage, enclosures provide all the weather and temperature protection a screen needs for outdoor use, there is little need to invest in an expensive outdoor screen at all. Simply place a standard screen in an outdoor enclosure and ensure protection whilst saving money.

Timetabling and the concept of trains running on time is perhaps a British obsession. When the railways rose to prominence during the nineteenth century, train scheduling and timetables became an essential part of life. So much so, the first national timescale was developed, known as Railway Time, which eventually became Greenwich Meantime.

Keeping railway customers informed about delays and scheduled changes is a challenging task. Public address systems have traditionally been the communication system of choice with the familiar announcer calls a common sound in most railway stations.

LCD screens provide railway and station operators an ideal platform for keeping customers informed and displaying timetable information, news of delays and scheduling changes.

The great advantage of using a screen network around a railway station or platform is the immediacy. As soon as the station hears of train delays, this information can be uploaded to the screens for the customers to see.

This immediacy drastically reduces the number of complaints from disgruntled passengers, as customers can see for themselves, how long the delay is and when the train is now due to arrive, rather than standing around not knowing what is going on.

Traditionally, information screens were only ever placed inside the station itself, or on platforms on larger, central railway stations; however, increasingly, due to the falling cost of delivering information screens, more and more smaller stations are implementing them too.

Part of the challenge and costs of implementing information screens on railway platforms comes in protecting them. Many rail operators are now turning to LCD enclosures as a means of protection for their information screens as they enable the use of standard LCD TV hardware.

While most platform information screens are under cover, there is still a need for protection as rain and other elements get blown onto the display. Furthermore, without temperature control, the heat of summer or sub zero temperatures of winter could lead to the display failing. Another advantage that many railways stations have found using the LCD enclosure system is that when the screens eventual expire—as all screens will—they are easy and cheap to replace and install in the same enclosure, as opposed to buying specific outdoor hardware that will only last the same amount of time.

Signage in public spaces such as libraries, museums and galleries, plays an integral role in communication and improving the experience of customers. Finding your way around a museum, or learning about upcoming events at a gallery is an essential aspect of the whole experience and increasingly, more and more of these public buildings are implementing digital signage.

Ruskin Gallery's digital exhibition

Wayfinding

Many museum and galleries, especially national and municipal ones, are large buildings, often in old, majestic buildings, and commonly are like labyrinths inside. The difficulty museums and galleries have with wayfinding signage is that exhibitions are continually in flux and the signage soon becomes obsolete.

Digital signage is ideal for wayfinding because of the ability to change the content when required. Digital signage is also multipurpose allowing the interlacing of other content such as important announcements, along with the signage content.

Information

Displaying exhibits is only part of the purview of museums and galleries. Providing information about exhibits is also an essential part of the whole learning experience. Here too, digital signage can play a role. Not limited by space, digital signage can relay far more information than static signs, giving visitors a more in-depth learning experience.

With touchscreens and other interactive media, museums and galleries can provide visitors with a more detailed exposure to information allowing the visitor to choose how much information they want to view, and exactly what they want to learn. Interactivity also boosts the experience of the visitor, helping them feel more involved.

News and Events

Libraries, museums and galleries are continually holding events and learning programmes. Getting the information to visitors about what’s on can be difficult, however. With digital signage, a clear massaging system provides all visitors with ready access to what’s happening. Event organisers are also able to promote their events in an engaging and appealing way, displaying images, video footage and other media to generate public interest.

Exhibits

A PYE television, one of the first commercial televisions ever produced, is still operating after 65 years. TV collector Steve Farley, is still using the television, which has, in its lifetime, shown events such as Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, the moon landings and the assassination of JFK.

Cathode Ray Tube televisions (CRTs) like this, while bulky and heavier than modern flat screen LCD or plasmas, certainly had longevity that modern TVs do not.

The lifespan of a modern television is measured by its half-life, when the screen fades to half its potency and, therefore, needs replacing. Most consumer-grade screens used around the home have a half-life of about five years. For digital signage, things are a little different. While most digital signage applications use commercial-grade screens, which are designed to last longer than consumer-grade screen, the conditions in which they operate is more demanding.

The backlight of an LCD governs its half-life, and a commercial grade backlight usually lasts for about 60,000 hours. Because digital signage displays tend to run continuously, 24-hours-a-day, this means that most commercial-grade screens will need replacing after about six years; however, in outdoor locations, this length of time is greatly reduced.

To function outdoors, outdoor digital signage needs a high brightness screen. As the backlight of an LCD generates its brightness, this means a more powerful lighting system, which reduces the lifespan of the display. Furthermore, because outdoor environments have variable temperatures and conditions, this further reduces the lifespan of the LCD, requiring the screen to be replaced more often.

Outdoor digital signage displays are expensive commodities. Because of the waterproof and weatherisation requirements, outdoor LCDs can cost five to ten times the price of indoor screens, making replacing the screens an expensive prospect.

By using protective outdoor enclosures, the cost of screen replacement is dramatically reduced. As they allow standard screens and the same protective enclosure can be reused time-and-time again with several generations of screen, the savings can be substantial, even when using high brightness screens. As screen replacement is an ongoing cost of running outdoor digital signage, over time, the cost of an LCD enclosure soon pays for itself.

The UK has Government has announced new rules affecting outdoor advertisers, including outdoor digital signage, effectively banning sexually provocative content and restricting outdoor content placed close to schools.

The new rules, aimed at combating the sexualisation of children, means that any outdoor advertisement placed within 100 yards of a school will have to adhere to strict new guidelines enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).

Wonderbra's Eva Herzigova advert, now too raunchy for outdoor advertisers

Even those outdoor adverts located nowhere near schools face tough new rules, with explicit imagery banned altogether. While outdoor adverts and outdoor digital signage will be allowed to show models wearing bikinis, they will not be allowed to show them in sexual poses or even use couples engaged in a “passionate clinch.”

The new rules mean many famous adverts, such as Wonderbra’s “Hello boys” campaign featuring Eva Herzigova in a bra, would be unlikely to pass the new ASA rules.

Industries particularly affected by the new rules will include clothing, perfume companies, celebrity magazines and companies that sell underwear who may have to change the way they promote their products.

The changes follow recommendations made in May by Christian charity the Mothers’ Union and will affect all types of outdoor adverts from static billboards to outdoor digital signage and those adverts located in public buildings such as airports, train stations and subways.

Critics of the new rules suggest that as children are just as exposed to other forms of media such as the internet and TV, restricting outdoor advertising is not only ineffective at reducing the sexualisation of children, but unfairly discriminates against outdoor advertisers

Provocative imagery has long been utilised by outdoor advertisers, but what is and what isn’t acceptable varies from country to country. In Eastern Europe, naked forms are a common sight on outdoor advertisements, while conservative countries such as the Middle East prohibit any imagery that is perceived as sexual.

When using outdoor screens for outdoor digital signage or information, once choice that requires some thought is the orientation of the screen. When using television at home to watch regular programming or DVDs, the screen is in landscape mode, with most screens implementing widescreen to provide a 16:9 aspect ratio (16 units wide, 9 high) Read the rest of this entry »