Test of TripleHead2Go and 3 projectors

[NicD]

Yes I think its got something to do with the contrast that the samera sets up when taking the pic. However ... the 3 pj's did not light up the room like daylight. The lights were off, it was night, but with the 3 pj's running the light level was still reasonably low. Part of the reason may be that the screen was reflecting back onto fairly dark/complex surfaces (behind where the camera was) and the screen had a slight angle down so not much light was reflecting up to the white ceiling.

Sorry I can't ease you're pain on this... but there are no tricks or expensive stuff involved.

[Hans Krohn]

Hi,

there are different projectors out there. Those ment for videos (but also handle PC graphics) usually have much lower lumen output than projectors built for presentations. These are so bright they can even be used in a room lit by daylight.

I found that the most expensive, luxury type video projectors often output no more than 700 lumen!

That should be perfect for a 3 projectors setup (the 700 lumen, not the $$$ you need to spend for the high end stuff )

Regards,
Hans

[Paul Thomas]

I found this very impressive and it looked just great. Thank's a lot for the great info.

[visualchaosfx]

That looks sweet! You could watch an inflight movie on the left screen while you keep track of whats goin on in the center and right screen on those long flights lol.

[Hans Krohn]

Hi Matt - when the view is pulled back to 0.31 zoom I estimate a view range of about 130 - 140 degrees.

I measured it:
in FS9 at max zoom of 0.31 the field of view is exactly 109 degrees.

Hans

[Matt Olieman]

Sounds about right Hans, thanks for the confirmation. Also sounds like 5 projectors to get 160 degrees.

Regarding type projectors, just my opinion... 700 lumens is not much, I'm finding most have medium range projectors having double that.

Also, what I would be looking for is the ability to manipulate the framing of the image, so it would line up with other projected images. That's what's going to make it expensive.

Any suggestions?

[Hans Krohn]

Hi Matt,

for image manipulation a projector should have at least these two things:

- manual zoom
- electronic keystone correction

The first is useful (and most projectors have it) so that small placement errors of the projector can be corrected. Important for ceiling mounts, where you can't just keep drilling holes until you get it right

The latter in case several projectors need to be mounted close to each other (that will be my case). I will vertically stack them so the ventilation of one does not suck in the hot air from it's neighbour... That's were keystone correction comes in handy.

About the lumens: I finally went for Benq DPL presentation projectors that output 2200 lumens in Eco-Mode. That's a lot, but it means my room will not have to be completetly dark. It will not be dark anyway, with 3 projectors putting out so much light! The 700 lumen projectors I wrote about earlier are usually very high end home cinema projectors, often based on tubes, not DPL.

I will start putting my first thoughts on the issue (and some sketches) on my website shortly and I will post a link here.

Have a good weekend,
Hans

[PaulEMB]

Hi Hans & Matt,

I added a few pics to my site today (New Pics), which show my efforts with the 3 projector setup - first I would say thanks to Nic for his posts and ideas- I still do not havemy ideal setup, but so far it's far better than a desktop.

I think in my case the key will be a ceiling mount - this will give better alignment,and no vibration, but I am currently thinking of turning the whole sim thru 180 degrees to make better use if the space available.

My current setup is 3 screens of 1.5m across 3.6m of room width, with each image 1.5 wide by 1.1 high (m) - This gives 3.6m wide image, but with some distorsion due to the screen angles.

Really this is not noticeable in use, except when an AI aircraft passes across the join in the screens - in flight it is not noticable.

My ideal would be 5 projectors, but I currently do not have the space to do that - also the shell causes problems with shadows - currently in the lower corners, but with the side views, I could not get the distances correct due to the room height.

[Hans Krohn]

Hi Paul,

do you have the screens angled?

Hans

[PaulEMB]

Hans,

I added a sketch to show dimensions of my current setup.

http://www.mycockpit.org/photopost/s...php?photo=1012

However - limitations are : I am using the screens which came free (1.5x1.5m), and the full width of the room (3.3m).

The projectors are mounted on the shell, and so move with vibration, and are difficult to line up exactly, due to varying keystone and angles.

My original idea was a 3m flat screen running in front of the windshields, using back projection - this would eliminate any "external influence", by closing the views from the room. - I still need to find the right material for the screen, but my tests with sheet where promising.

Having said that, the current view is quite OK - you don't notice the angles from the seat, and the view on the ground is quite acceptable, where you have more visual clues - straight lines on taxy and runways. In the air there is no difference, and the views are good - the monitor side view is really good on turns on descent/ascent, where you get views of the scenery on the downward side.

The best test (as we always so self critical), was a friend came over yesterday to fly, and was blown away by the views - no complaints at all!

Let us know how you get on with your tests.