Here is what Runco is doing.
Runco Institutes Cinema Standards Measurement System (CSMS)
Union City, CA…October 2002….In a brash move from the norm, Runco International has abandoned the ANSI-lumen specification and has adapted the foot-Lambert measurement procedure for measuring the light of output of their projectors.
Runco International is once again striving to enhance and broaden the Home TheaterÔ video market by changing the technical specifications of its video displays. Runco is doing this to more realistically reflect the needs of sophisticated consumers concerned with high fidelity HDTV and Digital Film reproduction.
The specification standards that Runco has used in the past were designed for industrial video displays and by default, have been universally used to describe Home Theater products as well. The objectives of good Home Theater video are different than that of Industrial presentations, therefore the specifications that we currently employ, do not convey the proper performance characteristics of what makes a good movie picture or realistic HDTV image.
Why this is necessary:
“We feel that the measurement criteria associated with light output of fixed-pixel technology specifications is inappropriate for Home Theater applications,†says Sam Runco, CEO and found of Runco International. “The traditional ANSI lumen method for measuring brightness can be an accurate quantitative measurement but does not describe the quality of an image for Home Theater. We have decided to use a measurement system that is a true representation of how bright an image is in reference to something everyone can understand—a movie theater.â€
Runco further stated that, “By using the foot-Lambert measurement specification, we can communicate to customers that the image in their Home Theater will be 1.5 times brighter than the image at their local cinema, which is more meaningful than trying to explain how bright 1000 ANSI lumens will appear on a 8‘ wide screen.â€
Over please
About foot-Lamberts:
This method of measurement, called foot-Lambert, is a measurement related to the brightness of a particular image and is equal to 1 lumen per square foot of screen surface. A Spectral Radiometer is required to perform this measurement. The SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) specification for a film-type movie theater is 16 foot-Lamberts of brightness. Movie theaters typically even with their very large screen surfaces and high wattage lamps in their film projectors, struggle to achieve this brightness specification. Since the screen size is much smaller for Home Theater, it is possible to achieve 16 foot-Lamberts and most of the time much higher brightness level with Runco projectors.
How this affects the consumer:
The purpose for this change in specifications standard is to make the information on our spec sheets relatable to the consumer. The change to foot-Lamberts will make for an easy comparison between how bright the average movie screen is in relation to our projectors. We will include the color temperature at which our light output was measured. This is critical because increasing color temperature increases brightness and contrast ratio. Unfortunately an over exaggerated color temperature ruins color fidelity in the type of picture necessary for Home Theater. Runco’s changes in video display specifications makes it possible for the consumer to easily relate the picture performance of our products to that of the local film cinema.
Home Theater is still evolving:
When asked about their departure from the ANSI Lumen method adopted by the industry, Chuck Turigliatto, Vice President of Sales and Marketing answered, “The Home Theater industry is still a ‘work in progress’ and as one of its creators, we at Runco view ourselves as the guardians of this industry. When we feel strongly that something is incorrect or needs a more appropriate direction, we will actually use Runco as a platform to initiate that change for the whole industry. The testing methods that have been used came from an entirely different industry and were used in Home Theater more by default than by adoption.â€
Projection light output basics:
n The projector outputs a fixed amount of light
n As screen size increases, foot-Lamberts decrease
n Gain on the screen will increase the foot-Lambert reading
n Negative-gain screens used for better black levels will decrease foot-Lambert value
n Doubling the screen diagonal will result in 1/4 the brightness of the smaller sized screen
n A formula can be assigned to every projector to calculate the true foot-Lambert measurement for any screen
