Moreton Bay Council is situated in between the Brisbane and Sunshine Coast areas and serves roughly 500,000 people in the community. It is one of the fastest and largest growing Councils in Australia. Videopro started working with Moreton Bay Council in 2022 to discuss options to upgrade their Council Chambers at Strathpine.
The main challenge Moreton Bay Council was facing was the advanced age of the existing technology in their Council Chambers. There were a lot of operational issues during important Council meetings, to the point that a technician would have to be present just to get the system started. The ICT team engaged Videopro to offer a new, simplified solution.
The Council had invested in video conferencing equipment which was still current, therefore, the design moving forward ensured that Videopro utilised the functional equipment that was already in place, while offering the best outcome with the new technology added. The user interface and programming design of the system it’s quite impressive.
The Council wanted a one-touch solution where you could walk in, start up the system and then not think about it again. Videopro’s programming team were able to allow for auto camera tracking and switching based on who the active speaker is. There are 26 microphone positions, one for each Councillor. When they select their microphone to talk, the camera will focus in on them and then switch so that you never see the camera swing into position. There are four cameras in the space that cover all 26 positions. The system will always show the best camera angle for the active speaker. If a better camera angle becomes available, the system will switch to that camera without having to be looked after by the user.
The system is very agnostic and doesn’t require any proprietary hardware. Any commercial-level cameras, DSPs, microphones, etc. can be implemented for this type of system functionality. Videopro have installed Televic conferencing microphones, additional Shure microphones, Panasonic PTZ cameras, Bose speakers and AMX control and SVSI.
Videopro have added a one-touch livestream functionality to the system, including a confidential mode that will pause the stream. That function is not currently being used but is there to future-proof the system.
The initial feedback from the Councillors has been very positive, especially surrounding the sound quality. Moreton Bay Council were happy with Videopro’s suggestions throughout the design and are pleased with the final outcome. The new system is simple and intuitive. Videopro are very proud of the completed project and are excited to continue working with Moreton Bay Council in upcoming engagements.
