# Presentation: 312141

## Access Grid Node Management

- Now that you have this bull, how you going to steer it?

## Why Manage Nodes?

*The GOAL:  To make an AG Node a natural part of collaborative problem solving environments.*
- Sometimes you need to...
-  turn down someone's audio at THE OTHER END
-  turn the camera OVER THERE
-  check the status of the OTHER NODE
-  help debug a problem that’s local TO THEM
-  bring up an application, and have it everywhere
-  know who can see and hear you
-  know when the next break in the meeting is

- AG Node Management

## Information Needed

- The state of local and remote AG Nodes needs to be immediately discoverable.
- The state of an AG Meeting needs to be immediately discoverable.
- The software and hardware on local and remote nodes needs to be controllable in a simple and straightforward way.
- Node Ops, Event Producers, Technical Directors, and Emcees need a private back channel, distinct from the Venue Mud, for dealing with technical situations
- The back channel may be audio or need to transcode from audio to and from text

- AG Node Management

## Access Grid Entities

- AG Node Management

## The AG Node Control ServiceLocal and Remote access to AG Node Controls

- Static Configuration
- Node Information
- Graphics Capabilities
- Network Connection
- Video Capture Cards
- Audio Capture Cards
- Software Versions
- Resource Labeling Data
- Presenter Camera is control:/dev/ttyS0

- Dynamic Configuration
- Current Node Operator
- Current Venue
- Current Docked Users
- Current Audio Levels
- Window Layout
- Multicast connectivity quality among nodes in the same Venue

- AG Node Management

## Node ControlService

- Node ControlService

- Security
- Server

- Virtual Venue

- Venues Server

- Access Grid Node

- AG Node Management

## AG Node Object Modelcomposable, extensible

- Cameras
- Presenter Camera
- Pan
- Tilt
- Zoom
- Audience Camera Left
- Audience Camera Right
- Overview Camera
- Audio
- Presenter Mic
- Volume
- Mute
- Table Mic A
- Table Mic B
- Matrix Switch
- Connect input A to output B
- Set Gate Level to 4 on input 3

- Display surface
- by Application
- Video (“VIC”)
- Audio (“RAT”)
- Slideshow (“PPT”)
- BROWSER
- by Window
- ANL-A215 AUDIENCE
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- by Node
- SDSC
- Presenter Camera
- Move left
- Docked Participant
- Share Document
- Private Text Message

- AG Node Management

## Things We Want to Use

- BlueTooth – RF Data Transfer, Ad-Hoc Networks
- IR Scurry – Infrared Data Transfer, Ad-Hoc Networks
- Sound Based Interaction – Voice to/from Text, Private communication
- Vision Based Interaction – User Identification, Laser Pointer Interfacing, Projector Geometry/Color Calibration and Setup
- Laptop Based Interaction – Data Wormholes, Application Control

- AG Node Management

## Objects to Interfaces

- Simple Extensible API:
- Hierarchical scopes, e.g.:
- node.camera.presenter.move(left)
- App(“PPT”).window.slave(dppt spec)
- Glue Framework
- Message Bus – http://www.mbus.org/
- Designed for inter-application communication via local multicast groups.
- Code already incorporated into vic/rat, separate library also available from UCL.

- AG Node Management

## Interfaces we already have but don’t fully exploit

- Vic*, Rat*– Tcl send, Message Bus, RTCP
- Projectors, Gentner – Custom Serial Protocols
- Cameras – Sony VISCA
- GNOME, KDE, Star Office – CORBA
- MS Windows, MS Office* – COM/DCOM
- Crestron Control System – Web Server, Custom Touch Panels, TCP/IP Server
- Projectors
- Cameras
- Gentner
-          * software partially controlled thru one or more of the listed interfaces.

- AG Node Management

## The Next Steps

- Node Configuration Work
- Write configuration specification version 1.0.
- Implement configuration database, based on 1.0 spec.
- Write tools to dynamically keep the configuration database up-to-date.
- Service Objects – Implement service objects (v1.0) for
- Cameras
- Audio
- Display Surface

- AG Node Management

## Other Observations

- Every Venue needs a “Technical Back Room”
- Node Operators hang out here during meetings
- A room attached to the venue
- Performance and Monitoring Information should be present in this room
- Venues Services and Control are a big issue
- The Venues Service Model could be similar in architecture to the Node Control Service Model

- AG Node Management

## References

- Service Location Protocol --_[http://www.ietf.org/html.charters/svrloc-charter.html](http://www.ietf.org/html.charters/svrloc-charter.html)_
- Crestron Control Systems – _[http://www.crestron.com/](http://www.crestron.com/)_
- Panja – _[http://www.panja.com/](http://www.panja.com/)_
- Message Bus – _[http://www.mbus.org/](http://www.mbus.org/)_
- Internet Tool Survey – http://www.objs.com/survey/survey.htm
- ToolTalk – Sun Microsystems software that predated OMG CORBA
- CORBA – OMG Specification, http://www.omg.org/
- MICO – Open Source CORBA ORB, OMG Certified Compliant, http://www.mico.org/
- Sony EVI-D30 Documents/Software – http://www.world.sony.com/Electronics/ISP/dtp/index.html
- Vic,Rat,libcommon – http://www-mice.cs.ucl.ac.uk/multimedia/software/
- DevServ – http://www-itg.lbl.gov/mbone/devserv/

- AG Node Management