Titan-X is a newer LED panel with 8mm pixel pitch, NovaStar processing, a viewing angle of 160˚ both vertically and horizontally, 4,000 nits brightness, an IP65 rating, no shaders, and a high transparency of 70%. It is well-suited for blow through screen applications where designers can layer lighting, effects, and even audio behind the LED screen. The Titan-X LED panel was developed collaboratively between production and rental solutions provider, PRG and LED manufacturer, INFiLED. With PRG’s experience in the concert touring market coupled with INFiLED’s expertise manufacturing LED display products, the Titan-X has been specially tailored to the needs of today’s touring market. Titan-X is poised to live up to its name among LED panels.
Titan-X addresses concert and large-scale events designers’ desire to safely build larger LED screen surfaces that are sturdy, handle wind, reduce truck space, and be swiftly installed as well as quickly taken down. With an already strong existing relationship with INFiLED, PRG felt confident that a co-development approach would lead to the best LED video product to fulfill the specification PRG established. Among the strengths PRG saw in INFiLED was their ability to meet a price point, go from design acceptance to shipping in a quick timeframe, and be collaborative as they together evaluated and tested several designs before signing off on the final product. In return, INFiLED trusted PRG’s expertise in large outdoor concerts and events so they trusted the specs and thorough scope of work. PRG was able to bring their extensive real-world experience to the process and request low-cost, high value enhancements that may have otherwise been overlooked. The relationship between the two companies also allowed for more testing of the product at earlier stages in the development to ensure the features they wanted to build-in to Titan-X were viable.
When INFiLED introduced Titan-X, Michael Hao, CEO of INFiLED, commented, “To accomplish this challenging task, we built an international R&D team of 15 engineers from both Europe and China. The beauty of Titan-X lies in how our team combined high transparency with a super load capacity into one. The average outdoor stage screen construction needs a stage truss for every two meters of screen to protect against wind over 20m/s for two-tiers. However, Titan-X needs a stage truss for every 9.6 meters of eight tiers, thanks to an elaborate built-in foldable subframe inside the Titan-X frame. Moreover, the overall system remains around 22kg/m2 making it lightweight and strong which is absolutely mind-blowing!”
Titan-X’s development for PRG was led by Frederic Opsomer, CEO of PRG Projects and his team. Opsomer explains, “We partnered with INFiLED, so that we could co-design with the Chinese manufacturing process in mind. PRG Projects’ headquarters is European-based; we think about how to manufacture in Europe. For example, take a connection piece. In Europe, we would be thinking about making a CNC part, but the Chinese manufacturer will think about making a mold for the part because in China, making molds is much more common and much more cost-effective than it is in Europe. They also know, if we make a mold out of it, how does that piece need to look, what is the maximum size of it? That is why partnering up with the INFiLED team on the development was really a benefit in this process. That led to less machining time, and more cost-effective manufacturing, which is what we were looking for in this co-design relationship.”
Integrated Stability
Opsomer continues, “We brought to the relationship not only our decades of concert touring knowledge but the PRG SpaceFrame™ technology. The SpaceFrame was originally developed by us in 2017 as a rental solution, where several different LED products could attach to it, but we knew that we wanted to incorporate it into a complete product package; bringing the frame and LED panel together. That is now realized in Titan-X.”
An important benefit of the 70% transparency of Titan-X is the reduced wind-load, and for that, stability was of high importance. The physical integration of the SpaceFrame into the LED panels themselves provides industry-changing operational efficiencies. The incorporated touring frame is ultra-lightweight, collapsible, and fully wind braced creating an intensive built-in structural strength to the Titan-X. The integrated and unique rear triangular foldable wind bracing system makes it safer to build screens taller by reducing the concern about windy conditions. Opsomer states “The PRG SpaceFrame is a system that takes care of wind load in the vertical direction, but at the same time, you have to think about the horizontal bracing. So, we developed what we call a cassette system that is a part of the total package.” Leveraging the incorporated SpaceFrame, the Titan-X panels offer extensive load capacity and advanced overall stability, resisting wind speed of 20m/sec. for outdoor events, while the screen can be built to heights up to 79’ (24m).
Realizing Efficiencies
By the numbers, the Titan-X, with the incorporated Space Frame, is 10 times stronger when compared to conventional fabrication; it has a 15% overall weight reduction, which goes up to 35% weight reduction when you factor in its built-in wind bracing, able to withstand winds up to 72 kph (45 mph). The profile reduction in size and integrated wind bracing results in up to 50% savings in shipping costs. Truck loads are reduced from seven trucks to three trucks when compared to conventional LED frames reducing the shipping footprint/weight and carbon emissions. The compact, lightweight design offers up to a 30% reduction of installation/dismantle time and a 25% reduction in overall labor cost.
Regarding improving load-in times, the Titan-X LED panels can be assembled quicker due to each panel measuring 1,200 x 1,200mm (47.24” x 47.24”). The larger panels reduce the installation time by requiring less panels. Each panel weighs 66.14 lbs. The frame design also allows for climbing the LED wall for servicing. An additional benefit of the Titan-X’s use of the SpaceFrame technology is that there’s no need for an external truss structure to support the LED wall, thus saving more truck space and cutting back on truss rental costs. The Titan-X system also includes a co-developed dedicated cart and dolly that has a built-in lifting system which helps further shorten the installation time. The Titan-X can be customized and assembled in angles of +/- 15˚, which makes it able to adapt to almost any stage and creative design requirements.
Another benefit of the 70% transparency of the Titan-X LED panels, is the ability to layer behind the screen. That includes audio, for which the panels were extensively tested during development to be, and in fact are, transparent to sound waves. You can place line arrays and speaker systems behind the LED screen and not have it affect the audio output. “Sound transparency was a really important part of the Titan-X concept when we started developing it,” states Opsomer. “Now sound can be mounted behind the screen as opposed to needing to be in front of the screens.” What PRG calls the SoundBlast solution opens up another creative freedom for designers.
Sustainable Ideals
Today, sustainability is always top of mind when developing products. Reducing truck space, reducing truck weight, and reducing the load-in / load-out times are essential considerations. “The savings in time was something we had already realized with SpaceFrame,” comments Opsomer. “The fact that you don’t have to put big trussing systems behind the screens to support them. With Titan-X that is taken further since the support system is incorporated into the LED product. That is a huge savings in load-in / load-out times, weight and trucking space and then carbon emissions. At PRG, we always look at developing things that can be very easily transported, easily set up, etc. We understand that tours are trying to move projects around the world in a very cost-effective and efficient way. With everything we develop and bring to market, we try to push further the technology; but also to take up less truck space, make for faster load-ins and outs, easier in and out of airplanes. This is all key to how PRG thinks when PRG develops products.” PRG and INFiLED’s joint efforts have certainly resulted in an innovative roadworthy LED video product with the INFiLED Titan-X, which has the potential to change the approach to large-scale video builds for tours, festivals, and global events.
INFiLED’s Titan-X is available for purchase from INFiLED and for rental from PRG.