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Aquarium netting new 'fish' with digital signage

Georgia Aquarium deploys digital signage to draw attention to reef exhibit and to interact and engage with visitors.

November 21, 2014 by Christopher Hall — w, t

Digital signage is netting new 'fish' for the Georgia Aquarium, helping it better interact with and engage visitors.

The aquarium has installed two 84-inch ultra-HD displays from LG Electronics USA and a two-by-two direct LED video wall using 55-inch slim-bezel displays from LG to add to the entertainment and educational experience of the 2 million visitors that pass through the aquarium annually.

"We were looking to improve the image quality of our screens and replace the antiquated equipment we were currently using," said Ryan Palley, the aquarium's senior manager of audio/visual in a case study from the display provider. "LG's video wall was a great aesthetic addition to the space, while the ultra-HD monitors were also able to vividly display the native 4K content that we capture from around the world."

The aquarium was looking for a way to grab the attention of passersby for its "Tropical Diver" gallery, one of the Aquarium's six galleries, to draw them in to see one of the largest living reef exhibits of any aquarium in the world. Boasting a resolution of 3840x2160 pixels – four times higher than standard 1920x1080 full-HD displays – the 84-inch UHD displays showcase the vivid colors and fluid movement of the living corals and thousands of colorful reef fish of the tropical Indo-Pacific.

According to the case study, the aquarium's in-house AV team installed two of the massive 84-inch displays overnight, fitting them into two custom-made kiosks designed to look just like coral to give visitors the experience of seeing the underwater world from eye-level. The displays feature native 4K content that Palley captured of marine life in Hawaii and the Philippines. It was essential that the displays chosen for this area were 4K capable in order to show the footage with the highest level of detail possible, LG said.

"The ... 4K displays are beautiful and our visitors are mesmerized by the content," Palley said in the case study. "It's a great way to grab visitor's attention and draw them in to explore the depth of the exhibits."

In addition to the two ultra-HD displays, the aquarium installed a video wall in "Ocean Voyager," an exhibit dedicated to the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System and the largest indoor aquatic habitat in the world, according to the case study. The video wall is part of "Deepo's Hideaway," a portion of the exhibit featuring an animated character, Deepo, who leads visitors through an interactive educational experience revealing the interconnected lives of underwater creatures.

"The full-HD resolution on the screens is beautiful, and the video wall allowed us to cover a very large space for not a lot of capital," Palley said in an email. "The experience allows the parents to sit and relax while the children are entertained. As a parent I know that it is very gratifying to see your children engaged and learning and not even really realize it because it is presented as entertainment."

And Palley said in the email that visitors have loved the digital signage additions to the aquarium. "One of my favorite comments from a guest was, 'Is this a real tank?' That's pretty gratifying." 

But the new screens and video wall haven't changed the aquarium experience, they've enhanced it, he said. "And that is a lot of what our department does … enhance the guest experience and give them the opportunity to see things they otherwise would never see."

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