Artificial intelligence (AI) Brings Flex Learning Spaces to Life with Auto-framing Cameras
Like it or not, we are living in an unpredictable time where our post-pandemic policies are as cloudy as politicians directions for the country. One such area that has seen significant change over the past several years has been the way we approach designing training rooms.
In the corporate world, we are often dealing with remote participants as many resist requests to “return to the office” or agree to a hybrid approach several days a week.
In the classroom, there is the challenge of being prepared so that there is a balance of in-person and remote instruction just in case we have another outbreak. Instructors, students, workers and IT staff must prepare for both approaches which is resulting in analysis paralysis (or no action).
By now most instructors have had experience in teaching remotely with a plethora of video conferencing platforms available ranging from Zoom to Google Meet and everything in between. With a basic webcam, microphone, and speakers an instructor can emulate a physical presence for their remote audience from a personal meeting space.
But as we return to the office and classroom in what used to be a more traditional environment, we see a new challenge – not all employees and students are buying into the request. This presents an entirely new dilemma – how to serve both in-office and at-home audiences.
In a flex (also known as a hybrid or blended) learning environment, the instructor can’t simply sit in front of a computer to focus on the remote audience – they must simultaneously interact with and stay connected to physical attendees. Suddenly, everything we learned and practiced with remote instruction was no longer true. We needed to make sure we looked presentable from the waist down, sitting at a desk all day wouldn’t work and a camera to track our movement was required to effectively stay in front of the remote participants.
Remote folks participate from wherever they want – at home, a coffee shop, a flex space, etc. In order to accommodate the employee or student we must be able to “flex” our learning model so that it really doesn’t matter where anyone is physically located; so as long as the material and learning experience remains consistent.
Over the past year, the industry has seen a shift from mechanical PTZ cameras to those without any moving parts that can perform the same function. This has been largely due in part to the development of intelligent cameras. The latest AI-based camera design has reshaped the meeting and classroom while eliminating the need for complex tracking systems or dedicated camera operators. Thanks to AI, cameras can now automatically frame an area and keep the person (or persons) in front of the camera perfectly centered. This is very helpful when teaching in a hybrid/blended teaching environment.
VDO360 provides Natural Vision™ auto-framing capability in our NavAI camera to reduce video conferencing fatigue and keep the remote meeting participants engaged. This auto-framing functionality makes it appear as if a physical camera operator were present and adjusting the camera position based on teacher movement. Designed for teaching and training environments, this camera provides up to 4K HD quality, USB for simple connectivity and has 120º FOV (Field of View) for exceptional subject coverage in the classroom.
The NavAI is also small enough to be mounted anywhere and remain unobtrusive. It’s the world’s smallest 4K auto-framing camera at just 1.75” cubed and easily mounts on a monitor, laptop or even a tri-pod using it’s flexible mount design. It’s embedded dual microphone is extremely sensitive and can accurately pick up the presenter as they move around the instructional area. If a room already has audio (mics and speakers) simply use the NavAI camera functionality and you will have an inexpensive Flex-learning room.
Hybrid/Blended instruction has been a major challenge during the pandemic and providing an affordable auto-framing camera in every classroom will help schools around the world stay prepared for handling any learning environment. To learn more visit www.vdo360.com/camera/navai
