Control Your Video VIDEO WALLS VIDEO PROCESSORS VIDEO MATRIX SWITCHES EXTENDERS SPLITTERS WIRELESS CABLES & ACCESSORIES QUICK START GUIDE FOR AVSIGNCLOUD
QUICK START GUIDE FOR AVSIGNCLOUD ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT This document will outline the recommended steps to allow first time operation with your new AVSignPro Digital Signage Player hardware and AVSignCloud software. We have listed the latest software and firmware versions. Please verify the versions on the item you have acquired and update if necessary. Also, ensure that a valid internet connection is available before beginning. AVSignPro PC Software Version v3.0.3.117 AVSignCloud Version v1.0.1 MP-1080HDM Firmware Version v1.2.84 MP-1080HDMVL Firmware Version v1.2.84 MP-4KHDM Firmware Version v1.0.10 The firmware and software versions listed in this document have been tested as a single unit and are fully supported by Avenview. It is recommended that users read this entire document before starting to use the AVSignPro and AVSignCloud to fully understand all the steps and procedures outlined in this document. This document was last updated 2018.04.05 BEFORE YOU BEGIN Please make sure you have the following: Hardware requirements -AVSignPro Digital Sigange Player(s) MP-1080HDM, MP-1080HDMVL or MP-4KHDM -PC/Laptop Windows XP/Windows Vista /Windows 7/8 Windows 10 -Display device such as a Television or Monitor -Keyboard and Mouse Software requirements -AVSignPro PC control software -AVSignCloud Login Account -Latest Firmware Versions
RELEASE NOTES RELEASE NOTES This section specifies what updates, features and bug fixes Avenview has released to enhance the AVSignPro Digital Signage Players and AVSignCloud. What s new? - Custom Template Designer; create custom layouts - Fixed several bugs within Template Designer tool - Apply security patch to fix the potential threat from Stagefright vulnerability - Bug fix: Wifi channel number were shown incorrectly in system report - Several stability and performance improvements - Fixed several minor stability and playback issues - Improve device reboot reliability. - Increase browser cache size to match the default cache size of desktop browsers What features are planned to be added? - GPS Location Trigger Feature to be ported onto AVSignCloud - Google Map Integration for GPS Location Trigger Feature - Social Media & Other Widgets to be added - Dashboard implementation and functionality - Grouping Players - Players statistics and analytics - Timeline of scheduled playlists - On premise server hosting - Configure player hardware settings - Grid layout for template designer
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE...5 1.1 HOW TO PERFOM A FIRMWARE UPDATE...5 1.2 FIRST OPTION - LOAD FIRMWARE MANUALLY...5 1.3 SECOND OPTION - LOAD FIRMWARE OVER THE NETWORK...8 2. LETS GET STARTED...11 2.1 POWER ON AVSIGNPRO DIGITAL SIGNAGE PLAYER...11 3. CONNECTING AVSIGNPRO MEDIA PLAYER TO CLOUD...12 3.1 CONNECTING A SINGLE PLAYER TO THE CLOUD...12 4. CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS...14 4.1 CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS TO THE CLOUD...14 5. LOGIN TO THE CLOUD PORTAL...17 5.1 LOGGING IN...17 6. ADDING A PLAYER...18 6.1 REGISTERING A PLAYER...18 7. ADDING MEDIA TO THE CLOUD...20 7.1 UPLOADING MEDIA...20 8. CREATING A PLAYLIST...22 8.1 UPLOADING MEDIA...22 9. CREATING A PRESENTATIONS...24 9.1 CREATE A NEW PRESENTATION...24 9.1 ADDING CONTENT...25 10. PUBLISHING A PLAYLIST TO A PLAYER...26 10.1 PUBLISHING PLAYLISTS TO PLAYER...26 Rev.00 03/2018
1. FIRMWARE UPD ATE GUIDE 1.1 How to perform a firmware update There are two different options for performing a firmware update to the AVSignPro Digital Signage Players. The first option is to load the firmware file onto a USB Flash Drive and then manually perform the update within the on-screen GUI. The second option is to load the update over the LAN network by using the AVSignPro PC software. 1.2 First option - Load firmware manually: 1. First download the latest firmware file for the correct AVSignPro Model acquired. The download links can be found on the product website page under Software & Downloads, please click here to find the product pages. 2. Once downloaded, move the file to the root folder of a USB Flash Drive. *Note: Please ensure the USB Flash Drive is formatted to FAT32 file system and that it is empty. 3. Now connect a mouse and keyboard to the digital signage player and in the on-screen GUI click the Advanced button and go to System > Firmware Update. Please see the images below for reference. *To access the on-screen GUI simply move the mouse to any of the 4 corners and click and hold for ~10 seconds.
FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE 4. Now insert the USB Flash Drive with the firmware file into the digital signage player s USB port and click OK. You should see the following images on the next page while the update occurs. *Please make sure the power is not disconnected from the unit during upgrade otherwise the player may get damaged.
FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE 5. Once the firmware installs, the player will automatically reboot itself. To check if the update was successful go to Advanced > Information and the firmware version will be displayed.
FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE 1.3 Second option - Load firmware over the network 1. First download the latest firmware file for the correct AVSignPro Model acquired. The download links can be found on the product website page under Software & Downloads, please click here to find the product pages. 2. Open the AVSignPro PC Software and go to the Menu Bar > Help > Firmware Update. 3. Select the firmware file, which was downloaded in the previous step and click OK.
FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE 4. Next, select which players you would like update and click OK. The firmware version can be seen below the LAN IP Address. 5. Once the players are selected click OK to continue.
FIRMWARE UPDATE GUIDE 6. A progress bar will appear in the AVSignPro PC Software and the player will display a progress animation. Please allow a few minutes for the update process to complete. The player will reboot automatically.
2. LETS GET STARTED 2.1 Power On AVSignPro Digital Signage Players 1. Please first prepare the digital signage player by unboxing the unit, power supply, HDMI cables and any other accessories needed. 2. Connect an HDMI display or Television to the player using an HDMI cable. 3. Connect the power adapter to the unit and power it on. 4. Connect a CAT5e/6 cable to the AVSIGNPRO digital signage player to establish an internet connection. If you are using a Wi-Fi connection please see the step 4B below. 4B. If a Wi-Fi connection is needed for internet access, simply connect a mouse and keyboard to the digital signage player via the USB ports. Once the player is booted up you will see the menu below, click on Wireless LAN and connect to an available Wi-Fi network.
3. CONNECTING AVSIGNPRO MEDIA PLAYER TO CLOUD 3.1 Connecting a single player t o the Cloud If you are only setting up one AVSignPro Digital Signage Player, please follow the steps below to connect to the cloud. Otherwise, if you have multiple players to connect to the cloud, you may move onto page 14 4. CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS which will outline how to connect several players at once using the AVSignPro Windows PC Software. (Please note: you may also use the software to connect a single player) 1. Connect a mouse and keyboard to the player. 2. In the on-screen GUI click the Set Content button. 3. Select the SMIL/HTML5 Content URL field and type in the URL below and click Set. http://avcloud.avenview.com/api/playlist.ashx
CONNECTING A SINGLE PLAYER 4. The player will refresh and start communicating with our cloud portal. Once it has established a secure connection, it will provide you with a Hex verification code. This process will usually take a few minutes to complete. The confirmed registration code will be displayed as per this example. Please note: You must take note of your individualized code, as it will be needed for the next steps. 5. Once a Hex code is obtained, you may now continue to the next step on page 17 5. LOGIN TO THE CLOUD PORTAL.
4. CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS 4.1 Connecting multiple players t o the Cloud 1. Install the latest AVSignPro Windows PC Software which can be found on our product website page under Software & Downloads by clicking here. 2. When installed, start the software and click the Refresh button on the top right corner to detect all the AVSignPro digital signage players connected to the Local Area Network. *Please note: If you cannot see the device in the list, try restarting the software or adding the IP address manually on the bottom right. 3. Once the players are detected in the software, go to the Menu Bar > Tools > Configure Players
CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS 4. Once in the configuration menu, select the players you wish to connect to the cloud on left hand side. 5. When confirmed the number of players to connect, select the General tab setting and look for the field Content URL. 6. In the Content URL field, please copy and paste the link below: http://avcloud.avenview.com/api/playlist.ashx 1 2 7. Once the link is entered, you may change any other settings needed and click the Apply & Reboot button on the bottom right to save the changes.
CONNECTING MULTIPLE PLAYERS 8. When the player power cycles, it will start communicating with our cloud portal. Once it has established a secure connection, it will provide you with a Hex verification code. This process will usually take a few minutes to complete. The confirmed registration code will be displayed as per this example. Please note: You must take note of your individualized code, as it will be needed for the next steps. 9. Once a Hex code is obtained, you may now continue to the next step 5. LOGIN TO THE CLOUD PORTAL.
5. LOGIN TO THE CLOUD PORTAL 5.1 Logging In 1. Please login into your AVSignCloud account. If you have not yet registered for an account, please click the link below and fill out the form. Once the form is submitted, the account will go into review to be activated. Please allow 24 hours for the revision process to be completed. http://avsigncloud.com/signup.html 2. Once logged in, select the Players tab on the left hand navigation bar and click the Add Player button.
6. ADDING A PLAYER 6.1 Registering a player 1. Enter the HEX code, which was acquired in the previous steps, and fill out the details in the form. Please remember to select the correct Time Zone and leave Connection Interval to 1 min (default). Click Save to register the player. 2. The player that is being registered will display a successful message (see sample below).
ADDING A PLAYER 3. All registered players will be listed in the Players tab. It will also display the current status of the player: whether the player is offline or online. 4. Click on the Edit icon under the Action column to edit the player's setting. The Published Date will show you when the last playlist was pushed to the player from the portal. The Last Contact field will show when the last heartbeat message was received from the player. The Playlist Generated will show when the player has pulled the playlist from the cloud and has started to play content.
7. ADDING MEDIA TO THE CLOUD 7.1 Uploading media 1. Click the Media tab on the navigation bar to enter the media gallery; here you will be able to upload content to the cloud. 2. To upload media content to the cloud simply click the Add Media button. If you wish to upload static images or videos select Media and if you wish to add a web URL such as an HTTP stream select Media URL. 3. Either click the plus button on the bottom left to open the computer's file explorer, or drag and drop the files you wish to upload.
ADDING MEDIA TO THE CLOUD 4. Click the Start Upload button to begin uploading; A progress bar will be displayed on the bottom right. * Please note that trial accounts will be limited to 2GB of online cloud storage. 5. After successfully uploading the content, it will appear in the media gallery as seen below.
8. CREATING A PLAYLIST 8.1 Create a new playlist A playlist is a set of multi-media content presentations which the user creates and customizes by adding their media files, widgets, HTML5 web pages and scheduling. Users can then publish the playlist to their connected players remotely. See 9.1 Create a new presentation 1. To get started, click the Playlist tab on the navigation bar. This tab will show a list of all created playlists. 2. Click the Create Playlist button on the top right to start making a playlist. Enter a name for the playlist.
CREATING A PLAYLIST 3. Select the playlist you wish to edit or click the Edit button on the right. 4. Once selected, you may start adding presentations to the playlist. Use the schedule bar on the left to create specific times and dates for playback.
9. CREATING PRESENTATIONS 9.1 Create a new presentation Presentations are pre-defined templates or custom templates that the user has created using the Template Designer tool. The presentation is then loaded with media content such as images, videos or widgets and then these presentations are added into a playlist. 1. Click the Add button and choose a presentation layout. 2. Once a presentation is added to the playlist, click on the Edit button or the presentation itself to start adding content.
CREATING PRESENTATIONS 9.2 Adding Content 3. Select a zone for which area you want to add media content to. The selected zone will be highlighted in yellow borders. Click the Add button and select Media. The media gallery will open - simply choose the content to be added. Widgets can also be added at this point. 2 1 4. When the content has loaded, the presentation will display a thumbnail image on each zone.
10. PUBLISHING A PLAYLIST TO A PLAYER 10.1 Publishing playlists to players 1. Go back to the Playlist tab and click the Attach button to assign this playlist to a player. 2. All players that are not attached to a playlist will be displayed on the right hand side, simply drag and drop the player you wish to attach to the playlist.
PUBLISHING A PLAYLIST TO A PLAYER 3. Once players are assigned, click the Publish button to push the playlist to the player. *Please note: depending on the size of video/pictures loaded into the presentation and the network connection speed, the player publish times may vary. 4. Once the player has finished pulling the data from the cloud, the output screen should now show the content from the created playlist. Please see the example output image below.
Control Your Video TECHNICAL SUPPORT Disclaimer While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this document, Avenview Inc. assumes no liability with respect to the operation or use of Avenview hardware, software or other products and documentation described herein, for any act or omission of Avenview concerning such products or this documentation, for any interruption of service, loss or interruption of business, loss of anticipatory profits, or for punitive, incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of the Avenview hardware, software, or other products and documentation provided herein. Avenview Inc. reserves the right to make changes without further notice to a product or system described herein to improve reliability, function or design. With respect to Avenview products which this document relates, Avenview disclaims all express or implied warranties regarding such products, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.