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ConnexSys


360 Overview

The Story of ConnexSys

This is the story of a mount that addresses the biggest video wall problems installers face. This is also the story of our customers, who help inspire our design with valuable feedback at every step of development. Connecting these stories is the ConnexSys™ Video Wall Mounting System – Chief’s latest solution designed to save time and solve installation problems. Here’s how we did it.

ConnexSys in Action

Watch a 3x2 video wall installation using the ConnexSys Video Wall Mounting System to see all the features work together.

The ConnexSys story started several years ago. Installers were having trouble with large video wall installations. Since no wall is perfectly straight, small imperfections get multiplied over space, and most mounts simply don’t adjust enough to compensate. A new solution was needed.

The first step was to collect information from installers.

“We spent an immense amount of time on customer empathy. It’s not that we didn’t do it in the past, but we did so much of it this time around it felt like what we did in the past was almost nothing,” said Greg Rupp, engineering supervisor. 

Gathering_Feedback

Gathering Feedback

Kathryn Gaskell and Greg Rupp talk about gathering customer feedback and gaining empathy.

Research revealed the four most common problems with video wall installations: Speed, Alignment, Serviceability, Rigidity.

Armed with feedback from dozens of installers, the engineering team was assembled, including Mathew Schuh, design engineer, and Jay Dittmer, engineer.

They started with a clean piece of paper.

Drawing after drawing.

I think my favorite part is empathizing. Having empathy for the problem or the challenge. You put yourself in a person’s shoes who is going to be using it and what would they like to see.

- Jay Dittmer

Solving one challenge at a time as they worked through the solution.

Early on, the idea to use strut channel as an anchor entered the design and stuck. It provided a strong, flat base for quick leveling of a single row.

For several days in a secret room at InfoComm 2013, Rupp and Kathryn Gaskell, product manager, met with 20 firms to gather feedback on the rough prototype they brought.

“The nice thing about the June prototype is it was clearly a prototype,” Gaskell said. “When you have something at that level, people are more willing to honestly say what’s good and what isn’t.” 

Exploring_The_Design

Evolving The Design

Mathew Schuh, Jay Dittmer and Justin Nicolay discuss their biggest challenges and successes in designing ConnexSys.

Gaskell says the meetings at InfoComm helped guide the next design stages and clarified other decisions. It was clear a new release system and more stability were needed.

Justin Nicolay, a mechanical designer who started at Chief in June 2013, was tasked with devising a new release system. His bike restoration hobby came in handy at this point by leading him to a system that uses a bike brake mechanism for consistent, controlled display access.

At the end of the summer, it was time once again to return to customers for a fresh look at the solution. One such person was Vince DiStasio, vice president of Video Visions, Inc. in Trevose, Penn. 

I want it to be simple to install … If it can make someone’s job easier, make their install quicker, make life easier – that’s the main goal right there.

- Mathew Schuh

“It should be a game changer in leveling your video wall,” he said. “Any wall that you go to hang a video wall, the contractor says it’s straight, but there’s always some flexion in the wall. The one beam will help alot to run everything on the same level plane.”

The reaction was the same wherever the Chief team took it. The last customers who saw the new system asked when they could order it.

It is Chief’s mission to dramatically enhance your experience with technology. The ConnexSys Video Wall Mounting System is just the latest example of that mission at work – and the name is as much about connecting with customers as it is connecting displays. We hope you find ConnexSys as valuable to your video wall projects as we valued your feedback in creating it 

Message From The President

Steve Durkee talks about the power of customer collaboration in developing ConnexSys.

  • DSC_0723View a slideshow of images taken throughout the development of Connexsys
  • Meet The Development Team Behind ConnexSys
    Greg
    Meet Greg
    Greg Rupp
    Rupp started at Chief out of college 10 years ago and worked his way up to his current supervisory role. He has always been “a tinkerer and builder.” He helps oversee 4-6 large-scale projects a year along with dozens of smaller solutions.
    Greg Rupp
    Product Development Manager
  • Jay
    Meet Jay
    Jay Dittmer
    Dittmer is Chief’s first employee. He started in 1977 at the age of 15 working for his friend’s father, the founder of Chief. Dittmer has a competitive appreciation for design and pushes himself with every new solution. In his years at Chief, his name has been listed with more than 75 patents.
    Jay Dittmer
    Principle Engineer
  • Justin
    Meet Justin
    Justin Nicolay
    Nicolay joined the project team over the summer. A constant tinkerer who builds arcade games and restores bicycles in his spare time, he previously worked for a door manufacturer.
    Justin Nicolay
    Mechanical Designer
  • Matt
    Meet Mathew
    Mathew Schuh
    Schuh has worked at Chief for six years, working on large solutions and their accompanying accessories. Schuh enjoys the creative problem solving inherent in design – to narrow the infinite possibilities down to a finished project to see how efficient he can be while best addressing the problem.
    Mathew Schuh
    Sr. Design Engineer
  • Kathryn
    Meet Kathryn
    Kathryn Gaskell
    Prior to Chief, Gaskell worked at a commercial humidification company that made systems for hospitals and museums. As a product manager, she fits into the Chief design thinking ethos well – she loves working with customers to understand their pain points.
    Kathryn Gaskell
    Sr. Product Manager
  • Related Products
  • Features
  • Resources
  • Videos

Related Products

Features

Speed

  • Hang units on a single strut channel for quick row leveling
    • No need for horizontal spacers
    • Vertical measurement is simply the height of the display to the next rail
    • Compatible with most 1-5/8" sizes of channel strut
  • Reduces installation time - especially for XL and recessed configurations
  • Tool-free ClickConnect™ latching secures displays
  • PowerZone™ provides 6 points of adjustment in one easy-to-access location at the top of the mount

Alignment

  • PowerZone™ Adjustments
    • Height adjustment ±1" on each interface
    • Tilt adjustment at single pivot point, protects displays from twisting
    • Depth can be set between 4" and 7.4" from the wall, providing a range of "home positions" ideal for recessed installations
      • Both sides adjust independently, compensating for imperfections in the wall
      • Walls can be out of alignment by up to 2" (horizontally)
    • 3 levels of lateral adjustment
  1. Mount left/right along rail
  2. Interface left/right along mount
  3. Lock in lateral guide for fine-tune adjustment using turn knobs, protecting screens from potential collisions

Serviceability

  • RapidDraw™ Display Release
    • Cord release system gently and remotely pops any screen out for easy access and can be extended 13.4" for service
    • Protects displays by not requiring an aggressive push to release/pop-out
    • Releases only on demand, preventing accidental pop-outs
    • The 10' (304.8 cm) cord can be set up to pull for release from any 90 degree angle
  • Kickstand provides 20 degrees of bottom tilt access

Rigidity

  • Rigid frame keeps displays where you set them, even after extending for service
  • KAdjustable home depth position locks screens in place to maintain alignment despite accidental bumps/pushes

Miscellaneous

  • Security - pad lock ¼" shank diameter
  • Safety tested
  • Universal interface
  • Each mount comes out of the box with adjustments set in the exact same position

Videos

ConnexSys Video Wall Mounting System

Gathering Feedback

Evolving the Design

Message from the President