Electrosonic Systems Inc.(Electrosonic) teamed with Hunt Design of Pasadena, California to create a media wall welcoming visitors and patients to the new 100,000-square-foot Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA. The “Welcome Wall” is a dynamic and colorful entry statement in keeping with the warm, people-friendly spirit of the facility, which was designed by celebrated architect I.M. Pei. The stunning hospital incorporates graceful curving forms and features an openness echoed in the curved Welcome Wall housed in the airy, light-filled lobby.
Electrosonic provided and installed audio, video, and control systems for the Welcome Wall, which features an elegant array of plasma, LCD, and rear- projection screens and moving projectors utilizing Electrosonic MS9200 MPEG-2 players as sources.
The principal video show, featuring testimonials from patients, is displayed on two 65-inch HD plasma screens. Three small LCD screens and three rear-projection screens show images of staff and patients. The trio of rear-projection screens also has an interactive application: video cameras embedded at child height in an etched glass column facing the wall feed snapshots of the young patients to the screens as they arrive. “It keeps them entertained while their parents sign them in,” says Electrosonic project manager Marcelo Videla.
In addition, the moving projectors display inspiring words, such as “Healing” and “Hope,” and beautiful graphic images on the media wall and the lobby floor.
Electrosonic worked closely with an independent film producer to shoot much of the wall’s content in the hospital interviewing patients, nurses, and doctors alike. Much of the projected material was contributed by patients themselves in the form of letters and drawings. All post-production editing and encoding was done by the Electrosonic Studio services division.
Creative programming enables the wall to shift into different modes for special occasions and mute audio as necessary.
Electrosonic’s Benjamin Lein was the technical designer for the project while Les Hill served as systems sales engineer for the project.
