"IT Group Otkritie" has built a media portal for the "Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Moscow"

2025: Building a Media Station

On January 10, 2025, the IT group OTKRITIE announced that it had built a media portal for the Department of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Moscow.

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Фото: IT Group Opening

According to the company, the media station of the Moscow Department of Labor and Social Protection is a multifunctional communication center, which is not just a set of modern equipment, but a comprehensive solution that allows holding closed video sessions, negotiations and meetings of various formats, including offline meetings, during which everyone hears each other, regardless of the size of the room. Plus, organize video conferencing, not only using pre-installed equipment, but also with user devices that are easily embedded in the system. The implementation of the project required IT specialists to OPEN the use of custom engineering solutions. The distinctive features of the project were: integral interior design, sound and video quality, as well as centralized management of the entire complex of equipment, which also includes integrated lighting and a climate system.

The media station project was developed to provide three main use cases: a video conferencing session at a large table, a video conferencing session at small tables in the lounge area, plus an offline meeting. To implement the first scenario, three main devices are used: two PTZ cameras with the ability to point at pre-saved presets, as well as a Polycom camera for closed communication sessions. The lounge area also has equipment for video conferencing, but in a narrower circle of participants: a 360-degree camera located in the center of the table is used. The device can determine the sectors in which the VKS participants are located by sound, and automatically generate video streams.

It is also possible to visualize video streams - for this the main LED-screen is installed, as well as several additional ones. To create an enhanced visual effect, it was decided to install contour lighting around the main screen.

However, we examined the solutions on the market, and concluded that none of them meets all our requirements. Some options did not have sufficient functionality, others did not provide for external control, which was critical for integration into our system. As a result, it was decided to develop its own software that provides all the necessary functionality. Our software is characterized by the depth of image analysis, accurate color correction and elimination of visual noise. It is also integrated with the user interface of the centralized media management system, which allows you to change the brightness of the backlight or turn it off in certain use cases. told Dmitry Erokhin, project manager from IT group OTKRITIE

The main task of any speaker system is to provide high-quality and clear sound transmission, which is especially important in video conferencing systems. One of the challenges of the project, the media station was the most invisible placement of acoustics: it should not have violated the aesthetics of the interior. The psychoacoustic component is also important - the sound must come from the screen area, and the listeners are located quite far away, on the opposite side of the room.

To solve this engineering problem, MX LAB STELLA 803 acoustic systems were chosen. These sound columns have an optimal direction, their design allows you to limit the vertical opening to 30 degrees, which makes it possible to deliver sound to the far part of the room practically without loss and distortion. To minimize the impact of reverberation (re-reflections of sound from hard surfaces in the room), the company's specialists took a set of measures to ensure sound absorption: they installed special acoustic panels on the ceiling, cellular structures on the walls and a carpet on the floor.

{{quote 'author
= told Dmitry Erokhin' However, the narrow vertical opening of the columns created a problem: sound coverage was insufficient for sitting and standing participants due to the limited height of the columns (745 mm). After consulting with the manufacturer, it was decided to install two columns in a vertical array, placing them in upper faces to each other and fixing them on standard fasteners. This allowed to expand the coverage area without loss of directivity and quality sound.}}

A separate task was to install a subwoofer. Initially, it was planned to be placed in a sweat-covering space next to acoustic systems. However, during the work, the ceiling height was increased, which eliminated this possibility. The open installation was also not suitable due to aesthetic limitations. As a result, the subwoofer was placed inside the main table. Its massive design minimizes resonance, and the internal volume ensures the correct operation of low frequencies. For the output of low-frequency sound, additional large cutouts were made in the table.

The entire set of equipment was configured using the MX LAB TDA500Q amplifier - it has a wide range of tools for processing and adjusting sound. Audio is transmitted via the DANTE digital protocol, which eliminates line loss and aiming. For additional reliability, a backup analog connection channel was also implemented.

Another feature of the system: since the room is large enough, participants, being at a distance from each other, can hear speech poorly. To solve this problem, a special offline meeting mode was provided. When activated, additional compact acoustic systems are turned on, secretly installed between the lamellae. These columns transmit voice participants from the opposite side. At the same time, the voice of the participants at the end of the room with a small volume is output through the main speaker systems. This ensured audibility anywhere in the hall.

The system provides two scenarios for using microphones. The first is the classic version with near-field wireless microphones like "goose neck" with a narrow sensitive zone for each videoconference participant. Second, more than technological - with microphones providing wide coverage of zones.

Goose neck microphones are equipped with a button to activate the microphone, which allows you to turn it on only if necessary.

We deliberately abandoned the system with the chairman and moderator, which is implemented in another room. Here it was important to create a simple and intuitive system that allows you to activate microphones only for those participants whose voice needs to be heard. told Mikhail Basyuk, sound and light engineer of IT group OTKRITIE

The second scenario is more complex, it involves the free placement of participants. For its implementation, desktop microphones SHURE MXA310 (3 pcs) were chosen. Two of them are installed on a large table in the main zone for conducting VKS, and the third - in the lounge zone. All microphones are connected to a dedicated to the processor SHURE P300, which performs sound processing, including echo cancellation, noise reduction, equalization and automatic signal mixing - this is important for video conferencing.

A feature of SHURE MXA310 microphones is the presence of four controlled sensitivity "beams." Each such "ray" tracks activity in its zone and is activated only when a person begins to speak. This allows the system to automatically adjust the volume level, with quiet voices amplified and loud ones muted. The chairman has a separate priority: when he speaks, the volume of the rest of the participants automatically decreases. The same microphones participate in the system of additional sound of offline meetings, which allows you to clearly hear interlocutors from opposite ends of the room.

The entire complex is centrally controlled using a tablet connected via Wi-Fi to the control processor - this is the only way to provide the necessary level of ease of use of the system for the customer. The control software provides several scenarios with preset parameters, as well as the ability to manually configure.

We combined all control into a single, intuitive interface, with which you can quickly select the source of the video stream and display the image on the main or auxiliary screens, configure cameras, control microphones, adjust the volume, lighting, climate and curtains. narrated by Mikhail Basyuk

Separate words deserve the chairman control panel, which is implemented on the basis of the Sonoff desktop controller, in which the standard firmware has been removed and replaced by a unique program written from scratch for the needs of the project. The panel interface allows the chairman to quickly turn on and off the microphones, both his own and other participants, see their state on the screen, as well as adjust the volume of the speaker system.

The heart of the control system is the iRidi processor, which supports many control and synchronization protocols. However, not all functions were solved exclusively with a single processor. Some tasks required additional equipment, others required expansion modules for iRidi, the delivery of which was impossible in a short time for the project. To solve these issues, several additional controllers were integrated with custom software, which was written by Otkritie programmers.

For example, 35 mixer channels are used to control audio streams, not including 12 separate microphone ray processing channels in the SHURE P300 processor. Automation was also implemented - the chairman's microphone is automatically turned off if he leaves the chair.

Lighting control is performed using the Dali protocol. With it, it turned out to implement not only lighting control within the framework of the selected scenario (for example, for different modes of hall operation), but also add spectacular animations for turning on and off the light, which impress visitors. At the same time, the usual controls also remained in their places: a standard switch is installed next to each door, which is actually a button. It allows you to turn on the lighting, mute it or turn it off completely.

To save equipment life, the system automatically disconnects the devices at the end of the working day.