[Lex Computer & Tech Group/LCTG] Friday Aug 6 @ 1:30 pm test of a Meeting Owl Pro-based Hybrid Meeting

[Harry Forsdick]

Folks,

I have been experimenting with an interesting device, the Meeting Owl Pro,
that may provide most of the capabilities required to run Hybrid Meetings
in conjunction with a conferencing application such as Zoom.  Here is a
picture of the device:

[image: image.png]

This device connects to a laptop and provides a replacement for the camera,
microphone, and speaker used in a Zoom conference.  The components of this
device are:

   1. A *360º camera* that can pick out from the 360º image the people in a
   meeting room who are speaking based on the sounds picked up from 8
   unidirectional microphones arranged around the Meeting Owl Pro cylinder.
   The complete 360º video image is combined with the identified speakers
   is one of the outputs of the device.  The 8 separate unidirectional
   microphone signals are combined into one omnidirectional audio signal which
   is another output of the device.

   [image: image.png]

   The acoustic energy from each of the 8 unidirectional microphones is
   analyzed to determine the portions of the 360º image that ought to be shown
   as active speakers.  These two parts (the 360º image and the identified
   speakers) are combined into the output video stream from the device:

   [image: image.png]
   2. The audio picked up by the *omnidirectional microphone* is another
   one of the outputs of the Owl device.
   3. The device also contains an array of *speakers *so that everybody in
   the room can hear an audio signal received by the device.

When used with an Internet Conferencing System such as Zoom, the video and
audio output of the Owl can be shown as one participant of Zooms multiple
participants.  The normal shared presentation capability can still be used
to show the content of a talk, shown on a large screen in the meeting room
or on a computer screen to a remote participant of the conference.

The following video shows the Meeting Owl Pro being used with Zoom and
connected to remote participants over Zoom:

   - https://forsdick.com/MeetingOwl/MeetingOwlPro.mp4

On Friday, we will attempt to try out this experimental setup.  Although at
one point I thought of having a group of us gather at the Community Center,
Jerry Slate provided some convincing evidence why we shouldn't do this
because of the fierceness of the Delta variant of COVID-19 in an indoor
setting.

At 1:30 pm we will start the meeting using the normal LC&T URL:

   - https://zoom.us/j/97261460830

We will record the meeting so that anyone who can't attend can see what
transpired.

My wife Marsha and I will simulate the audience in the Meeting Room where
we will use the Owl Device.  Everyone else will join as remote members of
the meeting.

I think that is it for now.  Please let me know if you have any questions
or I have forgotten something.

Regards,

-- Harry




Harry Forsdick <http://www.forsdick.com/resume/>
Lexington Photo Scanning <http://lexingtonphotoscan.com/>
Town Meeting Member Precinct 7 <http://lexingtontmma.org/>
harry at forsdick.com
www.forsdick.com
  46 Burlington St.
Lexington, MA 02420 <https://goo.gl/xZXT2F>
(781) 799-6002 (mobile) <callto:17817996002>
meet.jit.si/HarryForsdick (video)
Click <http://forsdick.weebly.com/home/my-websites> to see my other websites
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