Technology Showcase: Electronic White Boards
Mar 1, 2004 12:00 PM, By Bennett Liles
The Numonics Interactive Presentation Manager uses rechargeable and cabled multimedia pens.
The popularity of electronic and interactive white boards has skyrocketed, creating a huge and varied market for devices that take training to a new plateau in teacher mobility, student interactivity, and free-form collaboration over distances.
These new presentation tools allow efficient preparation, integration, and display of lessons that might include Web-based materials, photographs, video/sound clips, and videoconferencing. Students can have the white-board content printed out and distributed to them at the end of the class, freeing them to interact with the instructor instead of furiously scribbling notes. Many of these products enable teachers to control the display from anywhere in the classroom and even let them conduct a collaborative presentation with a student at the board. Tactile, auditory, and visual learners can all benefit from the way complex concepts can be demonstrated. Complete lectures can be saved and played, including the instructor's every word, stroke of writing, and touch of the board.
The plethora of models and variety of features make the first challenge one of determining the most appropriate blend of capability and cost. Electronic white boards, sometimes known as peripheral boards or copy boards, have the ability to detect continuously the position of various writing tools and to capture the contents of the board to a printer or electronic storage device incorporated into the product. No computer or projector is necessary. Interactive white boards, on the other hand, work with a computer and projector to allow control of the display from the board. These are available as front projection, rear projection, or plasma-screen overlay systems.
Smart Technologies SmartBoard
Electronic copy boards or peripheral boards, by sensing the position of the writing tool, capture what is written on the board with marking pens and allow it to be saved in digital form. Interactive white boards can display prepared presentations stored on the computer, allow annotations during class, and then save the modified presentation.
POSITION SENSING
There are several ways that peripheral and interactive white boards track the position of the instructor's hand or writing instrument. Capacitive sensing forms an electrical x-y axis on the surface by applying a voltage to the corners of the display. When a finger touches the board, its exact location is sensed by the disturbance in the otherwise evenly spread x-y voltage. The capacitive screen is sealed, thereby making it resistant to scratching and moisture.
Resistive-sensing systems employ a conductive polyester top sheet — one ten-thousandth of an inch thick — spread over a conductive, clear glass sensor. The contact is sensed on the glass substrate and can respond to touch by a finger, a stylus, a gloved hand, a credit card, or just about anything. That makes such resistive systems versatile. Most use a wire grid embedded under the touched surface in a substrate layer.
Manufacturers used infrared sensing in early models of white boards by incorporating an array of light-emitting diodes embedded in a bezel around the periphery of the screen. These use x-y coordinates to determine the position of the hand or writing instrument. Infrared systems proved to have some serious shortcomings in position sensing, with low resolution and premature touchdown detection. Infrared position sensing is therefore less popular today. Some models use a combination of infrared and ultrasonic position sensing. Infrared signaling has been assigned a more effective role: providing a wireless link between the board and the electronic writing tablet and other instruments that can be moved around the classroom, allowing a new level of instructor mobility.
Virtual Ink Mimio Xi
Surface Acoustic Wave sensing uses piezoelectric transducers to send ultrasonic waves through the glass screen. When the screen is touched, part of that signal is absorbed and the position is determined by reflectors along the sides of the screen.
Finally, some models use a battery-operated, transmitting pen or stylus whose x-y position is sensed by triangulation in tiny receivers located in two corners of the screen.
FEATURES
While electronic copy boards cut note taking by allowing presentations to be saved and distributed, interactive white boards use a computer to enable time savings in lesson preparation, as well. Instructors can prepare presentations and supporting media and then store them on the computer. The typical hard connection for feedback from the board to the computer is serial or USB. Once this connection is made and the projector is on, software included with each system walks you through a simple initial calibration procedure involving touching the screen with the writing pen on the projected calibration spots.
Most systems include character recognition software that enables you to change written words to printed text instantly. Then the word or phrase can be touched and “slid” (dragged and dropped) to any location on the display.
Panasonic KX-BP800
Two specifications of particular interest in these products are resolution and tracking speed. The resolution spec plays a central role in determining the accuracy of handwriting recognition, and tracking speed determines the delay between physical actions on the board and their projected display. A resolution of 1,000 lines per inch is sufficient for most handwriting recognition applications, and a tracking speed of 200 inches per second will overcome any noticeable display lag. The products with resistive or capacitive sensing have generally held the advantage in this spec, but those using ultrasound position sensing have come to offer respectable tracking rates.
For the most part, the higher the tracking rate and resolution, the higher the cost of the board. Prices start at around $500 for a retrofit kit that converts a traditional white board to an interactive white board. Built-in systems with better specs and more features can run over $10,000. Some models use special pens or styli that can cost over $200 apiece. The more expensive writing instruments incorporate ultrasound transmission and run on AA or AAA batteries. Plasma screens with interactive overlays beat the pack as far as resolution, but they can cost several thousand dollars and are somewhat limited in size.
The various available features are largely a function of the software provided. Some models offer audio capture from built-in microphones and videoconferencing and data sharing for distance-learning applications. Some systems are not Mac compatible; those that are frequently offer fewer features for the Macintosh.
THE MARKET
At the bottom in price and at the top in portability are the conversion systems. These attach to a conventional white board and convert it to a full-featured, interactive white board or to an electronic copy board with capture ability. Conversion systems can be carried in a small briefcase or carry-on bag. They fit on the side or at the corner of the white board and frequently use ultrasound for sensing the pen's position on the board.
Virtual Ink produces the Mimio Xi (under $1,000), a conversion model for PC and Mac OS X that attaches to the existing white board (up to 4 by 8 feet) and uses ultrasound and infrared to track the position of pens and eraser. Expo dry-erase markers are inserted into a special holder that facilitates position sensing. The downside of that system is that it is indeed portable, requiring wire connections between the device, the computer, and the data projector on every setup. The unit offers four-color writing and recording/playback of presentations. The most frequently used commands are available through hardware buttons on the stick-on capture bar. Through its BoardCast software, the Mimio systems can use Microsoft NetMeeting for distance-learning applications. Also available is the mimioBoard, a fully assembled interactive white board (Windows/Mac OS X) for around $1,200.
PolyVision’s LTX multimedia white-board system
Sahara Presentation Systems offers the Mimio technology in a built-in scenario that is less portable but requires less setup and wire plugging. At around $2,700, the CleverBoard comes in a range of sizes all the way up to an 84-by-38-inch work area. The CleverBoard has all the features of the Mimio add-on, including record/playback and videoconferencing capability. The board surface is vitreous enamel, accepts magnets, and can be used with any dry-erase marker pen.
Luidia makes the eBeam System 3 and System 3 BT at around $750 and $1,200, respectively. System 3 is a conversion kit that can use a white board up to 8 by 4 feet. Attach the eBeam receiver to one corner and connect this by USB to a PC or Mac computer for interactive operation or with System 3 BT, transmitting using Bluetooth technology to a Palm or PocketPC. When used with the eBeam Presenter ($129), the instructor enables microphone voice capture so that the entire lecture, including the display, can be posted in the RealNetworks streaming format for viewing via the Web. With other accessories, the system can convert any white board into a copy board for immediate printout of the board's display without using a computer. Contents can be captured as EPS, JPEG, TIFF, HTML, PDF, BMP, or WBD files.
The 3M Visual Systems division Digital Wall Display is wallmounted and incorporates its own projector. A foldable projection arm at the top of the unit holds this projector in place. That convenient feature eliminates separate projector setup, interconnection, powering, and focusing. The screen has a viewable 60-inch diagonal area and contains a stereo speaker system. The optional Ideaboard can be operated in copy board or digital white-board mode to enable the presenter to write directly onto the board and capture notes in JPEG, PDF, Vector PDF, GIF, TIFF, HTML, PPT, ICO, EMF, WMF, Excel, Word, and clipboard files. That is done using ordinary dry-erase marker pens that slip into active-transmitting, battery-operated digital marker sleeves.
Hitachi Software Engineering presents the StarBoard F-75 (just under $2,800), using infrared and ultrasound tracking. The StarBoard white boards can connect to a computer through the serial port or use wireless transmission for greater instructor mobility. They are available in wallmount or standmount configurations. The StarBoard software enables collaborative presentations among up to 42 sites or persons. Written words are translated to printed text, and drawn objects such as circles and triangles can also be converted to draft-quality symbols. Also featured is a spotlight tool that can be used to draw immediate attention to one specific area. Normal functions include undo, redo, cut, copy, paste, color, and adjust line width.
GTCO CalComp offers the InterWrite MeetingBoard. It features electromagnetic position sensing, a screen resolution of 1,000 lines per inch, as well as the ability to use buttons on the writing pen to initiate mouse clicks when using the product as an interactive white board. The product may be used in either Whiteboard mode for capturing notes or in Interactive mode for control of a computer from the board. The InterWrite software generates an intuitive toolbar from which the various writing colors and many functions can be selected. Hard connection to the computer is through RS-232 serial and USB in addition to wireless Bluetooth. The InterWrite MeetingBoard can use wireless communication with the MeetingPad on its 6-by-8-inch writing surface and display an area up to 70 inches on the diagonal.
Panasonic has developed the KX-BP800 Interactive Panaboard. It operates as an electronic copy board with built-in plain paper printer — or as a fully interactive white board capable of computer control from the board and videoconferencing through the use of Microsoft NetMeeting. Priced as low as $2,100, the unit uses ultrasonic and infrared tracking, has a built-in printer speed of about 15 seconds per sheet, and has a display size of 35 by 55 inches. The computer connection for interactivity uses the RS-232 serial port, and desktop images can be saved in JPEG, BMP, TIFF, and HTML.
Plus Vision Corp. of America offers the Pointech interactive white boards. These products use ultrasound for tracking and an RS-232 serial or a USB connection for interactive computer control. The software enables handwriting recognition and audio recording/playback as optional plug-ins. The 72-inch diagonal screen is standmounted and mobile. Entire white-board sessions can be saved as .ink files and edited or updated later, all for under $2,000. Writing tools include four-color capability and both wide and narrow erase pads.
PolyVision Corp. presents the Impulse LTX multimedia white-board system, with walk-up-and-use simplicity. These wallmounted units, featuring Ceramicsteel writing surface areas up to 5 feet by 12 feet, have a built-in Web server capable of storing a thousand Web pages and the ability to capture, store, and redisplay presentations and meeting notes. A single hardware button allows instant capture to wireless, Bluetooth-enabled color ink-jet printer, diskette, or internal archive, all of which are included and built into the display structure. The unit is instantly ready to use after a touch of the surface. With all these features, the largest unit sells for around $11,000. In addition, Polyvision makes interactive plasma screen overlays.
Smart Technologies offers the SmartBoard in wallmounted or standmounted configurations and in front projection, rear projection, and flat-panel display conversions. The SmartBoard front-projection units, using resistive position sensing, range up to a 72-inch diagonal display for under $2,800; the in-wall, rear-projection models are available in sizes up to 84-inch diagonal. On the flat-panel overlay system, the Display Control Strip allows input source switching and selection of screen width and remote-control options. Optical sensing in the pen tray notes which of the colored pens or eraser is being used. The SmartBoard software facilitates record/playback of presentations as AVI or MOV files, writing over stills and video (for Windows), and handwriting recognition (for Windows), as well as offers an onscreen keyboard, a spotlight, a floating tool palette, and videoconferencing with Bridgit software and Microsoft NetMeeting.
Promethean makes the Activboard 75 (around $2,100) with a 75-inch diagonal Formica surface for durability. Using infrared and radio transmission, the Activboard can communicate with a number of accessory devices such as Activote voting devices, Activslate for wireless remote operation from anywhere in a classroom, and Activtablet for advance authoring of presentations. It can operate with Activprimary, a toolkit for primary class instructors that contains snap-to-background and scalable grids, color tools, clip art, and shape/symbol libraries.
Numonics Corp. introduces the front-projection Interactive Presentation Manager with available display surfaces from 47-inch to 77-inch diagonal size for Windows and Mac. It offers picture resolution of 1,000 lines per inch on a Formica surface. The largest runs about $2,000. The IPM software provides an array of functions through 20 soft keys and 17 user-definable soft keys. Optional extras include a mobile stand, a USB adapter, and an 802.11b-compliant wireless adapter. The product comes with a choice of either a rechargeable multimedia pen with a detachable 100-foot cable or a multimedia pen with a permanently attached 100-foot cable.
Imago Micro offers its Diamond line of interactive white boards in diagonal sizes from 47 inches to 77 inches, with the largest units costing just over $2,800. Each unit comes with a rechargeable multimedia pen with a 100-foot cable and a 21-foot serial power cable. There are 20 user-definable soft keys located on each side of the board that can unlock functions such as Internet access, system software, and playback of AVI files, all at 1,000 lines of screen resolution. A selection of background images includes graph paper, exercise lines, and blackboard. One interesting display feature is ticker-tape messaging for greater visual impact and a countdown clock that can be used in a testing environment. Using the pack-and-go facility, presentations and class notes can be saved, edited offline, and e-mailed to students. This underlines one of the greatest advantages enabled by such products: the freedom from constant note taking. The Diamond interactive white boards can be stand- or wallmounted and use a rechargeable multimedia pen. Optional extras include a USB adapter and floor stand.
Displaymate Touchscreens makes the Displaymate interactive white boards, available in front and rear projection and interactive plasma overlays. The Displaymate products use resistive membrane position tracking and thus require no special pens or styli. Users can write with their fingers. Front-projection models may be used with marking pens as ordinary white boards, and the rear-projection units can be wall- or cabinet-mounted. Plasma overlays are available up to 60 inches diagonal, and the rear-projection models range up to 60 inches for cabinet mount and 80 inches for in-wall configurations. Front-projection units can be special-ordered up to 90 inches diagonal. The Annotate Live software allows several modes of operation, including Whiteboard, Presentation, Slide Sorter, Paintbox, and Annotation. The 72-inch front-projection models cost around $2,600, and the comparable rear-screen unit tops $13,000.
Egan Visual offers its TeamBoard interactive white board with several modes of operation. The board can capture anything written on it by using its touch-resistive technology. The touch-sensitive surface consists of a rigid layer of film under a flexible layer of film. As the board surface is touched, the gap between the two layers is closed and x-y coordinates are sent to the TeamBoard controller. This eliminates the need for a special stylus. A finger will do, or dry-erase markers may be used. In Electronic Whiteboard mode, the display can be captured and saved or printed. The board connects to a computer by USB. As a data projector shows a computer application on the board, the application can be controlled — as with a mouse — by touching the board's surface. This information can also be transmitted live through a data-conferencing solution such as Microsoft NetMeeting. In Egan Visual's PowerSoft mode, a PowerPoint presentation can be controlled using display buttons for any PowerPoint function. The 60-by-48-inch model retails for about $1,700.
Clearly, there is a huge range of products in this realm, but some careful consideration about the individual use and intended environment can easily draw out the proper combination of features and cost.
For More Information
3M Visual Systems
www.3m.com/meetings
Displaymate Touchscreens
www.displaymate.co.uk
Egan Visual
www.egan.com
GTCO CalComp
www.gtcocalcomp.com
Hitachi Software Engineering
www.hitachi-soft.com
Imago Micro
www.imagomicro.co.uk
Luidia
www.luidia.com
Numonics Corp.
www.numonics.com
Panasonic
http://panasonic-panaboards-electronic-whiteboards.com
Plus Vision Corp. of America
www.plus-america.com/pointech
PolyVision Corp.
www.polyvision.com
Promethean
www.promethean.co.uk
Sahara Presentation Systems
www.sahara-products.com
Smart Technologies
www.smarttech.com
Virtual Ink
www.mimio.com
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