Multifunctional Council Chamber for the Municipality of Mierlo

In late 2021, the municipality of Geldrop-Mierlo revealed the Netherlands' most adaptable council chamber. Collaborating with Backline, the municipality designed an innovative audiovisual solution for the new lunch/work café and council chamber. A key requirement was seamlessly integrating nearly invisible and easily adjustable technology into the space.

Discussion System
The discussion system needed to meet specific criteria: it had to be a wired system and be seamlessly integrated into the furniture, ensuring minimal visibility when the space is utilised as a lunch/work café. Additionally, a connection was needed to broadcast meetings online through the camera system.

To address these needs, a Televic system was implemented with microphone posts discreetly incorporated into the top of the furniture. These removable microphones are only visible during council meetings. The discussion system comprises 31 delegate units and one chairman unit.

Camera Tracking System
Our camera tracking system focuses solely on the speaker who is currently addressing the audience. This is achieved through the use of multiple Pan, Tilt, and Zoom (PTZ) cameras. The PTZ function allows for seamless visualisation of the active speaker, while displaying an overview image when no speakers are present. Camera movements are concealed by briefly showing an overview image during position changes.

Four HD cameras were selected for this project. These cameras are controlled by a dedicated processor that translates commands from the Televic discussion system to the cameras.

User-Friendly Operation
Given the complexity and versatility of the overall system, we ensured easy operation through the implementation of an operating system equipped with multiple touchscreens. A fixed touchscreen is available within the room, offering various settings such as lunch/work café, presentation, or council meeting modes.

In addition to the fixed touchscreen, we incorporated a wireless touchscreen for ushers, providing control options during meetings. They can adjust camera positions, select video sources, and manage audio levels, just to give some examples. Lighting control is also integrated into the presets. With this user-friendly system, even a complex installation becomes effortless to operate.