Perimeter Institute

The Perimeter Institute is a private, not-for-profit theoretical physics research and outreach institute.

Novita designed AV systems for the original building as well as for the addition.

AV systems include a multimedia broadcast facility, fixed and mobile recording functionality to support the capture of lectures and presentations, HD infrastructure, camera and processing equipment, background music and live entertainment capabilities, room combining/dividing, and interactive panels for “interaction areas.”

An interesting component to this project is the 200-seat auditorium, which accommodates lectures and live music performances. Acoustic music requires a room designed with reverberation, which is not an optimal quality for the spoken word.

To aid speech intelligibility, speakers are concealed in the back of every other seat. The signal from the lecturer’s wireless microphone to every successive row is time delayed, to give the impression that all of the sound is travelling from the front of the room. The result is a very natural effect, and audience members are unaware that there is any artificial amplification at all.

Improvements underway in the auditorium include the addition of a motorized drape, to allow the room to be appropriately sized for smaller audiences.