Networked Classroom & Conference Cameras

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many classrooms and conference rooms have been upgraded with cameras and other functionality to make it possible to broadcast lectures from those spaces to overflow rooms or remote participants.

A feature of these cameras as they have been installed is that they are networked for support purposes. The feed from those cameras can be viewed and in limited ways controlled remotely. This use is limited to service of the classroom technology.

Background

In the last quarter of 2020, we had an opportunity to add technology to many of our master classrooms around campus. These upgrades were designed to make it possible to teach from a classroom to an audience that includes remote students – students sitting in an overflow room at another location on campus, or students participating from home. 

Since that time, many other classrooms and conference rooms have also been upgraded with conferencing cameras to allow for this new hybrid learning environment and workforce.

Network Support for AV-Enabled Spaces

In general, audiovisual technology is increasingly designed with their technology networked so that the devices in the rooms can be supported and in some cases controlled remotely. This is an important efficiency for the Campus Media Services team, making it possible for a very small staff to support AV-enabled spaces all over campus quickly and efficiently. As older spaces get updated, they are also receiving enhancements to their abilities to be supported remotely via the campus network.

The addition of cameras to the suite of tools that are networked for support means that it is possible for a technician in the Campus Media Services office to see through that camera if they bring it up on their computer. 

This is an important tool for the support team – if they’re on the phone with someone who is having problems in a classroom or conference room, they can bring up the camera and have the ability to see what the person is doing or what is showing on the display, and often help troubleshoot the problem the users are having. 

However, the presence of these cameras could be perceived as unwelcome monitoring of the spaces.  We have implemented these standards and limits to avoid that issue:

• No audio is transmitted with the camera signal – so while someone looking at the image might be able to see the room, they can’t hear anything going on in the room.
• No recording is made of activity in the rooms
• No one in CMS actively monitors these cameras in an ongoing way. The cameras are reviewed periodically throughout the day for the following purposes:
  • To try to identify AV systems in rooms that have been left on for the purpose of dispatching a technician to shut down the equipment
  • To aid in troubleshooting if the monitoring systems alert CMS of technical issues in the room

New training on this technology is available through the Media Resources Center.  Email cms@wichita.edu or submit a ticket for support.