Advanced Control
Resolution, the acoustic and mechanical modeling software first released with the KF740 that is now supporting dozens of EAW products, also underwent a complete and purposeful upgrade. Many of the implemented features are only possible given advances in PC technology.
In order to support the 3D Adaptive capabilities of Anya, the algorithms at play would need a full understanding of the three-dimensional characteristics of the space. Resolution was re-written from a 2D to 3D modeling program, and moreover, it serves as the communication center for Anya – all parameters are monitored and sent to the array(s) via Resolution.
Within minutes, the software is simultaneously assessing the venue, calculating the ideal wave front, deriving the DSP parameters for the transducers in the defined array, and communicating those parameters to the modules.
The precision offered by Anya requires that reality exactly match the virtual model. Rather than a user having to worry about assigning cabinets to a virtual module in Resolution, infrared transceivers were included on each surface of each module to allow arrays to be constructed automatically and accurately within Resolution.
The selected amplifier platform allows transducer impedance, amplifier temperatures, voltages, and currents to be continuously monitored in each module and recorded in a “live” status log that can be downloaded from Resolution. If a failure occurs, Resolution was designed to (with user acceptance) revise the coverage to compensate for the failed component.
Because we realize that sometimes shop “QC” happens as the gear is rolled onto the truck, a battery-operated status feature included, triggered by any failure, allowing one to instantly verify the state of a module (good/bad) simply by pressing a button that lights an LED (green/red) – even when A/C power is unavailable.
A high-accuracy microphone capsule was added to the face of each module, its purpose to record a snapshot of every transducer’s transfer function when it leaves the factory. This reference is stored in memory on the power module and can be used, through a user-accessible diagnostics feature within Resolution, to further verify the state of the module by repeating the same factory measurements anywhere, any time.
With Resolution and a licensed copy of (Rational Acoustics) Smaart 7, a user can utilize a measurement microphone to define or refine the shape of their venue. Similar to GPS, bursts of noise are generated from a calculated set of discrete transducers within the Anya arrays (whose precise locations are known) allowing Resolution to locate a microphone in 3D space.
All of these features combine into a complex yet easy-to-use and elegant system that positively answers the questions we asked ourselves over a decade ago. This is Anya.
From the author: Anya’s technical achievements represent an enormous collaboration effort from many talented individuals within and outside of EAW. In my 15-plus years with EAW working in a variety of roles within the engineering organization, no other project has proven this complex or this fulfilling. I hope that everyone who has already touched Anya, or is reaching out now, feels a similar sense of satisfaction.
Nathan Butler is director of engineering for EAW. Be sure to check the company’s newly redesigned website here.