Digital Antics

The Parliamentary Support System (PaSS) is but one example of our ability to create multi-screen presentation systems. PaSS was designed to be used to aid the viewing of evidence both for and against a case or petition. The system was originally designed for use on the Crossrail Private Members Bill, being heard by a select committee in the House of Commons throughout 2006-2007 and then the House of Lords in 2008.

PaSS was created by Digital Antics to make the collection, categorisation, storage and display of media quick and simple.

As evidence is requested a single operator can quickly search the database to find and display it. Multiple outputs from the system allow each person viewing to have their own individual high resolution TFT screen. For complex drawings and images, such as maps, the operator can zoom in to areas to show more detail. All this is displayed on every screen and projector simultaneously.

The operator controls the proceedings from one central touchscreen interface. PaSS automatically records every piece of media that is displayed and logs it to the database. The powerful search engine enables the proceedings and evidence that have been catalogued to be retrieved within seconds.

At the end of the day or session, the log is returned to the potentially offsite ingestion client and a record of all of the media shown is built automatically. This reduces the chances of human error where incorrect logs are made or incorrect references are given.

Using a distributed system of control and output, the system can be modified to include outputs in separate locations; PaSS can be observed in more than one room at the same time.

The system is also inherently portable, having been constructed to reside within two freewheeling flight cases. This manoeuvrability enables the bulk of the system to be kept hidden without infringing on its performance.

PaSS could be used for storing and retrieving legal evidence within courtrooms and could even assist officers in police briefing rooms.

Key Features:

• SQL database driven.
• Touch screen based search engine.
• Assets can be searched for by any of their attributes within the database.
• Multiple output screens, customizable for the venue.
• Separate output for a projector or public viewing gallery.
• Dual control and playback machines for redundancy / backup.
• External document camera input that can be additionally captured and stored within the currently exhibiting petition to allow for last minute evidence.
• High resolution for clear crisp display of complex images, for example maps.
• High speed colour laser printer for fast printing of evidence onsite as it is being given.
• Separate ingestion client to allow a separate operator to put evidence into the system from another location.
• Evidence can be collected into individual packages or petitions for easy location and retrieval.
• Display of any evidence is stored for an accurate record of what was shown when.
• Zoom in to any piece of evidence.
• Displays still images, videos, and PDF documents.
• Easy and fast to use (most assets can be found within a few seconds).
• Highlight pointer to mark out points of interest / reference.
• Integration with SnapMap for GIS linked video frame presentation.

For further information on the Crossrail PaSS implementation you can read about it in our Portfolio.