Stairways to e-Signage Heaven

Hamburg, 5 June 2008 - Escalator users normally spend one to three minutes on the stairs, during which they like to be entertained as there is nothing else to do apart from allow oneself to be transported up or down. However, the time spent in front of individual posters on the side walls amounts to only a few seconds, too short to appreciate their content in any real sense. To provide efficient advertising alongside escalators and moving walkways, Esprit Digital now presents an e-Signage system where images are “passed on” from screen to screen and thereby allowing viewers to see a type of short film for the time they are on the walkway or stairs.

Innovative e-Signage solution combines high-quality hardware with novel software

The system consists of several special screens developed by Esprit Digital for this particular escalator application. At the core of the screens are e-signage LCD panels made by Sharp, which come in various sizes from 23" to 65". “We decided to work with Sharp as our partner as the Japanese manufacturer's e-Signage LCD panels are the most robust displays with the best image quality features on the market today,” says James Brenner, Esprit Digital's Director Screen Technology. In fact, the e-Signage TFT LCD panels by Sharp are designed for a continuous operating output of 50,000 hours at an ambient temperature of between 0°C and 50°C. Contrast ratios of up to 2,000:1 and a viewing angle of 176° in all directions create an optimum image representation of the panels.

The panels are contained in special housings, in accordance with the IP65 standard, which protect the display from vandalism. A powerful computer featuring a 1.66 GHz processor and 1 GB Solid State Flash memory has also been integrated to control the monitor unit and to provide the image content in digital video format. The individual screens are synchronised by the “Center Point Computer”. The ImageFlowä software developed by Esprit Digital synchronises the video loops on the individual displays with the escalator speed so that viewers see an advert running across the various monitors. In addition, the mainframe computer serves to update the content of the connected screens, regardless of the number of monitors used. Several hundreds or a thousand monitors may be controlled via the system.

First live tests successfully completed

The e-Signage escalator technology has already been tested in live applications. The first project was installed in 2005 at the Tottenham Court Road Underground Station along a 40-metre escalator shaft and featured 66 23" screens. The system has proven hugely reliable. Since its start-up three years ago, it has been offering a reliability rate of 99.97% and won the Campaign Outdoor Innovation of the Year Award in 2005. Since then, e-Signage escalator applications with a total of about 1,750 screens have been installed in the London Underground shafts. Transport contractors in Paris, Barcelona, Moscow, Shanghai and Hong Kong have already shown interest in digital escalator advertising.

Esprit Digital
Esprit Digital was founded in 2003 by James Brenner and Peter Livesey who has more than 25 years’ practical -experience of display technology. With about 15 employees and an annual turnover of 8-10 million euros, the London-based company ranks among the leading suppliers of complete e-Signage solutions for indoor and outdoor areas. There are no limits to the possible applications of the screens ranging in size from 23" to 82": underground networks, railway stations, bus stops, airports, shopping centres, sports stadiums etc., wherever moving images are required to attract attention, Esprit Digital's e-Signage systems provide an attractive, reliable solution. Flagship installations include London Underground Stations, (Embankment, Baker Street, Euston, Charing Cross, Bond Street, Green Park, Bank, Paddington, Knightsbridge, Leicester Square, Liverpool Street and Waterloo) have been operating almost entirely trouble-free since their installation.

For additional information, please visit: www.espritdigital.com

Contact
Sharp Microelectronics Europe
Service hotline: +49 (0)180 507 35 07 (0.14 €/min. from the fixed network of DTAG.)
Service e-mail:e-signage.europe@sharp.eu

About Sharp Microelectronics Europe
Sharp Microelectronics Europe, Hamburg, Germany, is a divisional company of Sharp Electronics (Europe) GmbH, which is a subsidiary of Sharp Corporation, Osaka, Japan. Sharp is a worldwide developer of core digital technologies that are playing an integral role in shaping the next generation of electronic products for consumer and business needs. Sharp Microelectronics Europe offers groundbreaking solutions in the areas of memory products, LCD, Opto Components, CCD, RF/IR, IC and LSI components, along with packaging and integration skills that help design engineers throughout Europe to bring their ambitious ideas to market. Sharp Microelectronics Europe is dedicated to improving people’s lives through the use of advanced technology and a commitment to innovation, quality, value and design.

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