RC4 Wireless and Stage Directions Team Up for Automation Contest

Automation is the biggest trend in staging right now, and RC4 Wireless and Stage Directions are teaming up to offer one big automation prize. The grand prize winner of the Stage Directions and RC4 Wireless Automation Challenge will receive a complete RC6 Wireless Motion kit from RC4 Wireless, a prize package of wireless motion control equipment worth around $10,000.
"I am ecstatic to be able to present this new contest," said Jacob Coakley, editor of Stage Directions magazine. "And I'm thrilled that one very lucky school will win such a tremendous prize."
"After years of careful development and testing, we wanted to officially launch the RC6 system with a bang," said RC4 Wireless President and CEO Jim Smith. "Getting our gear into the hands of the next generation of theatre designers and engineers, and letting them see how easy it is to create astonishing effects with the RC6 system, was too exciting an idea to pass up."
The Stage Directions and RC4 Wireless Automation Challenge is open to all colleges and universities in the USA, and will culminate in a winner being chosen at the USITT Show Expo in Fort Worth, Texas on March 29, 2014. To enter the Challenge, schools must design a 4-foot-by-4-foot automated platform that uses the RC6 system to move and submit their engineering drawings of the platform as well as a build plan by Monday, Dec. 9. The panel of judges will decide on the three best designs-and ship a complete RC6 Wireless Motion kit to each of the finalists. The finalists will then build their design and bring it to the USITT Show Expo where a panel of judges will choose the winner. The winner will get to keep the RC6 kit.
"Having spent many years working closely with educational programs, I know financial limitations often prevent schools from obtaining cutting-edge technology. With this challenge we are able to provide universities the chance to implement new technology, and for one hard working school, a complete automation system. Seeing young minds realize the possibilities available to them with wireless is our ultimate goal and we could not be more excited for the challenge" said Sean Dane, sales director for RC4 Wireless.
"Stage Directions prides itself on presenting the cutting edge of technology and design," added Coakley. "With this Challenge we're happy to present one lucky school with the gear to realize the cutting edge of scenic technology in their own presentations."
The full rules of the contest are available online at www.stage-directions.com/SDRC4Challenge.

About the RC6 Wireless Motion System
The RC6 Wireless Motion System is a safe, reliable, powerful, modular, and versatile motion control framework. The core of RC6 is a secure data structure that accommodates eight axes of control, plus numerous global control channels. Not only do RC6 controllers send commands to remote motor drivers, those same drivers return a slew of high-resolution status information to the controller. This includes the position of numerous limit switches and rotary encoders, as well as power supply voltage, current draw, and temperature for every driver in the system. Motor drivers can operate in simple speed/direction mode, servo-based speed/direction for precise speed even when loads change, and full servo positioning. Multiple motor drivers can be grouped together and deployed in several different motion modes, including tank drive, drive and steer, and four-wheel mecanum. RC6 hardware consists of four primary building blocks: two different transmitter types, a data receiver, and a motor driver. These can be combined, along with custom hardware and software, to accomplish any remote control motion task. For more info, visit www.theatrewireless.com/product-category/rc6-wireless-motion

About RC4 Wireless
RC4 Wireless/RC4 Wireless provides wireless lighting and motion technology for theatre, film, and television. The company was founded by James David Smith in 1991, after several years of providing custom wireless lighting systems for some of the largest theatrical productions in the world, including two productions of The Phantom of the Opera. Customers include Cirque du Soleil, Disney, and Blue Man Group. RC4 systems are used at The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, The Metropolitan Opera House, The American Airlines Center / Roundabout Theater, and Radio City Music Hall in New York City; The Sydney Opera House in Australia; the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Canada; Disneyland in Anaheim, California; and many other performance facilities large and small. For more info, visit www.theatrewireless.com

About Stage Directions
Founded in 1988, Stage Directions is a 25-year-old magazine the covers the art and technology of making theatre. It is the nation's only monthly, year-round magazine on creating theatre. With close to 20,000 subscribers, it covers all aspects of theatre (onstage and off) and all levels of theatre, from educational theatre up to Broadway. For more info and the latest news, visit www.stage-directions.com http://www.stage-directions.com/industry-news/5468-stage-directions-and-rc4-wireless-team-up-for-automation-challenge.html

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