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IHSE created the Draco OPS+ KVM to support the growing number of digital signage and command-and-control installers implementing displays equipped with Intel’s open pluggable specification (OPS+). It is based on IHSE’s Draco Ultra DisplayPort CON extender and features video and USB-HID display components for KVM.

The Draco OPS+ package design is based on OPS+, which Intel created to help standardize the design and development of ultra-high-definition digital signage devices and pluggable media players. It was launched as a way to bring standardization to a highly fragmented media player market. By utilizing an Intel-owned Arria processor and creating a simplified architecture, OPS+ has allowed for more cost-effective design, deployment and management of display devices such as IHSE’s OPS+ KVM.

As large video displays become more centralized to business operations, it becomes more critical that manufactures prioritize what works best for the end users. In many cases, users add a typical KVM extender module to connect the display back to the computer source over long distances. However, current remote extender concepts add an additional box, which increases the amount of cables and power connections needed. This adds an additional layer of hardware maintenance and more possibilities for a security breach. With the pluggable slot design of OPS+, a higher level of security is possible while reducing the need for additional power. By repackaging the Draco ultra console (CON) extender to fit the OPS+ slot, IHSE created a module design that effectively lowers the deployment and field maintenance costs associated with connecting workstations or digital signage over long distances.

From the OPS+ extender CON unit, a duplex fiber cable can increase the distance between the display and source by up to 10 kilometers. By incorporating a KVM matrix switch, multiple OPS+ extender modules can be easily managed over IHSE’s Tera Viewer GUI. The KVM switch’s built-in control methods allow permission-only access to touch-screen displays, podium presentation equipment, or an operator’s workstation before granting access to the CPU.
Normally system installers and users of large video walls are the ones who are looking for affordable and reliable extender solutions that support 4K video and KVM/touch-screen interfaces. Although many commercial enterprises are quickly moving to 4K resolutions, they are still strapped with limited bandwidth access and minimal budgets for upgrading to higher resolutions. However, new compression technologies, such as the Fraunhofer IIS lightweight image coding technology (Lici) used in IHSE’s OPS+ KVM extenders, yield higher color accuracy and improved image quality to overcome the limitations of traditional video compression techniques. IHSE’s new OPS+ Ultra DisplayPort extenders can manage up to full 4K (4:4:4) 60 hertz at 30 bits without latency.

With KVM systems like those from IHSE, it is not necessary to configure OPS+ extender endpoints on the network. Using IHSE’s flex-port technology, users simply connect OPS+ modules to the matrix switch, and the switch automatically configures them for the port assigned. There is no need to create IP-mapping structures, thus eliminating the need for IP addressing of each OPS+ device. As future displays are added, a technician can simply attach an OPS+ module to an open port on the KVM switch and be operational in minutes.