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Projection Server
This module controls Fulldome.pro Projection Servers.
Target IP: Enter the target IP of the Fulldome.pro Projection Server to control. This will almost always be 192.168.10.10 and the device running Companion must be on the same subnet. Listen for Feedback Listen for OSC messages broadcast by Fulldome.pro Projection Server. This is required for updating variables which keep server state. If not using this option server state must be managed manually.
Thes actions have been created to allow the user to configure buttons without needing to know the underlying OSC paths and in many cases without knowing the parameters or parameter types.
The volume level is represented in the interface as an integer from 0 (minimum) to 100 (maximum), but it is actually stored on the server as a float between 0 and 1.0.
Showing and hiding the stagelight does not stop or restart playback. Consider adding multiple actions to a button to pause playback when the stagelight is switched on and resume playback when it is stopped.
*Note the projector on/off commands will only work when the Fulldome.pro server is on and server application is running. It requires a network or serial connection between the Fulldome.pro server and each projector. Many projector makes and models have their own Companion modules. To turn projectors on and off independently of the Fulldome.pro server, try using a dedicated module for your projectors.
If equiped with Fulldome Live, the Projection Server can capture external video via HDMI. Source can be Fisheye, Planar or Equirectangular format.
Showing and hiding test patterns does not stop or restart playback. Consider adding multiple actions to a button to pause playback when a test pattern is shown and resume playback when it is hidden.
This is the list of variables currentlly used to track the state of the server. The OSC listener sets the variables based on messages broadcast from the server. This allows for some simple feedbacks to be created and change the appearance of buttons to reflect the state.<br />
| variableID | Description |
|---|---|
| playlist | The name of the current playlist<hr /> |
| playlistItem | The position of the current item in the current playlist<br />(0 = first, 1 = second, etc.)<hr /> |
| position | The playback position of the current item<br />(0.0 = start ... 1.0 = end)<hr /> |
| projectorsPower | Whether projectors are on (1) or off (0)<br />Used to track state of projector power<hr /> |
| soundMute | Whether volume is muted (1) or not (0)<br />Used to track state of muting |
| soundVolume | The current system volume<br />(Internally stored as float from 0.0 to 1.0 but represented in the interface as an integer from 0 to 100)<br /> |
| stagelight | Whether stagelight is on (1) or off (0)<br />Used to track state of stagelight<hr /> |
| status | The status of the Media Player<br />(0=Inital, 1=Play, 2=Stop, 3=Pause, 4=FadeIn2Play, 5=FadeOutToPause, 6=FadeOut2Stop, 7=FadeToNextLoop)<hr /> |
Fulldome.pro Projection Servers use OSC to show their status to external devices. The Projection Server also responds to OSC commands from external sources such as Companion.
There are no special methods for actively polling available servers. Instead, each server periodically (every 1 second) sends a broadcast alive packet with information about itself. Thus, any willing client can "listen to the broadcast" on this port for a while, determine which servers are available, choose one of them and work with it. In theory the send and receive ports for OSC messages could change, but in practice they don't, and are not configurable by the user. So for the time being cannot be set in this module.
All subsequent messages from the server are received on another port, which can be received from the alive packet. No semblance of a connection to the server is established. The server does NOT communicate personally with a particular client - it always sends broadcast messages, receives, and processes any suitable OSC messages - without understanding where and from whom they are. There may be (rare) situations when several servers are available on the network. All of them send broadcast messages: responses to requests, a description of the current state, events, etc. Therefore, to avoid glitches, the client application needs to ignore messages that are not received from the selected server. That is, the client must focus on the IP address of the sender of the packet.
The more likely situation is that there are several clients on the same network as a single Projection Server. For example, in a planetarium the control desk will have a desktop client, there may be an science communicator in the audience with an iPad client and a Streamdeck with Companion client at a presenters podium. The server is independent of the client application and is always in some state. The client application must determine at startup what state the server is currently in and make changes to its interface. When the server state changes, whether due to an event ending (e.g. a movie has finished playing) or a command from another client (e.g. turning on the Stagelight) clients must make changes to their own interfaces accordingly.
Because OSC runs over UDP, the client needs to be prepared for messages to disappear, rearrange their order, and other UDP 'features'.
Future releases may use the Alive packet to detect multiple servers on the network, select which server to use and to set the ports for sending and receiving OSC messages.
For reference the module sends OSC messages to port 8000 of the Projection server and listens for broadcast messages from the Projection Server on port 8001.
Founded in 2010 to introduce easy-to-use and cost-effective digital technology and dynamic programming to the planetarium industry, Fulldome.pro has emerged as a global leader in the immersive dome marketplace.
Our revolutionary patented hardware and software integration and auto-calibration technologies allow for fast, efficient, and highly reliable project production and set up.
For more information go to <www.fulldome.pro>