Over the past few days, we've discussed the integration and operation of smaller screens and how boothless is creating a paradigm shift in cinema design. We've also set the world's projectionists free, placing them in nice office spaces, with coffee. Shangri la!


Still, the observant reader will have noticed that the picture we've drawn is too rosy. One aspect of running a digital cinema is the main factor hindering full automation: lamp swaps.

As we explained in the post from last Monday, digital cinema projector lamps all use an arc between two electrodes to generate light. This arc is so powerful that even the strongest electrode material is degraded over time: your light weakens or the arc becomes unstable.

Time for a lamp swap. As projectionists know, this also means: time to put on safety goggles and gloves and shut down the projector for something like 15-45 minutes (unless, of course, you have a spare lamp house).

Enter UHP

The best, most effective solution is to use laser light sources (which is the topic of another series of blog posts). Another way to improve the situation, is to use a different lamp technology: Xenon lamps, for example, the incumbent technology in cinema. But these are high-pressure glass bulbs - and the risk of explosion is what dictates handling them so carefully and observing the critical safety measures.

There's a third lamp technology that is not only much easier to use, it also fits perfectly with compact projectors: UHP (ultra-high performance).

This lamp technology has long been under the cinema industry's radar: since Xenon was used in the 35 mm days (when UHP had not yet been invented), it was only natural for the industry to continue to use it when going digital. However, the maturation of the UHP technology, the requirement for compact projection, and the trend to more automation have combined to usher UHP into cinema.

In your next conversations - commercial or technical, informal or training - be sure to familiarize yourself with this new lamp technology.

Visit Barco at CineEurope

Come and see us at CineEurope 2015, from 22 - 25 June in Barcelona, Spain. You'll find Barco at Suite A.

distributed by