Metro City’s “Crystal Ball” is a famous landmark in Xujiahui, Shanghai. Since its establishment in 1998, the giant crystal ball with a diameter of 41.2 meters in Metro City can be said to carry the precious memories of generations of Shanghainese. Recently, this “crystal ball” has been upgraded again. The original light strip particles have been replaced by 3888 4K high-definition displays, making this crystal ball the world’s first naked-eye 3D dome screen. The Prologue of Luo Yuan Universe”.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1… With the end of the countdown, the naked-eye 3D dome screen of Metro City officially lights up! This means that the landmark “Meiro Ball” in Xujiahui will bring more fantastic and eye-catching vision to the business district experience, and more nighttime economic vibrancy. At the screen-brightening ceremony, a splendid naked-eye 3D laser show instantly attracted the attention of the entire business district. Citizens in the past stopped to watch this splendid light and shadow show.
Some citizens believe that Metro Ball is like a shining pearl in the Xujiahui business district. The upgraded visual impact is stronger, and the post-viewing experience is even more shocking. Watching the dome is like watching a show.
Some citizens feel that the charm of the Xujiahui business district is getting bigger and bigger. The bright neon lights are the source of the charm. Shopping in Xujiahui is a kind of enjoyment.
In fact, since last year’s New Year’s Eve, citizens passing through the intersection of Caoxi North Road, Zhaojiabang Road, as long as they pay a little attention, it should not be difficult to notice the new Metro City Crystal Ball that has been re-launched for trial operation. The color of the whole crystal ball is more bright and transparent, full of science fiction, and the light and shadow switch is like a dream against the background of the night. At the end of October last year, Crystal Ball quietly launched a new upgrade. From the earliest LED light particles to light strips, to today’s fully upgraded high-definition display. This update has entered “Version 3.0” of Crystal Ball.
Although the crystal ball is a sphere, it has a total of 3888 facets. There are a total of 3888 pieces of glass inside, providing a wonderful refraction halo for the entire sphere. After this upgrade, a 4K high-definition display is installed behind each section. Now, the changing pictures that citizens can see outside are actually presented by nearly 4,000 displays.
Compared with before the upgrade, the clarity of the dome screen has been increased by 20 times, achieving the effect of showing naked eye 3D. The transformation process is also full of challenges, successfully overcoming multiple difficulties such as laser equipment installation location, reflection angle, technical synchronization, load-bearing transmission, etc. Six equipments were installed inside the Metropolis sphere. Transform Metro City into the center of the stage, allowing passersby to immerse themselves in a visual feast. The interactive presentation of the laser and the sphere screen is the first in China.
After the hardware equipment is in place, the software supporting must also keep up. Unlike flat and corner large screens, there is almost no precedent for 3D visual presentation on a spherical screen in the world. In order to prevent deformation during display, all footage needs to be specially processed frame by frame. Since the design and production team is still in the initial stage of running-in, the production cycle of each 3D modeling video is 2 to 3 months, and the processing of flat images also takes 7 to 10 working days. At present, Metro City has prepared nearly 10 short videos that can be scrolled and played, and the whole process will continue to accelerate in the future.
The original main function of the large screens on the facades of shopping malls and shopping centers has always been “advertisement”. With the development of the Internet and the progress of the times, this functional attribute is constantly being weakened.
With the upgraded appearance of the “version 3.0” crystal ball, Metro City also intends to explore and create a brand-new “Mero Metaverse” by combining various IPs that young people love on the basis of continuing to base itself on the genes of science and technology.
The deputy general manager of Shanghai Metro City revealed to reporters that although “Metaverse” is currently not widely used in the field of physical business, if it is simpler to understand, it may still be based on an interactive experience that integrates virtual and real. For Metro City, which has successively introduced well-known IPs, as well as the first store and experience store of trendy brands in recent years, the starting line of “Metaverse” has been slightly moved forward.
In the initial planning, how to combine the existing IP with the crystal dome screen for better visual and even interactive experiential promotion and presentation is the ongoing brainstorm of Metro City. For example, if a citizen stands at a certain point in the outdoor corridor on the second floor, he can reach out and interact with the virtual cartoon characters displayed on the dome screen, which can be achieved through technology.
If the “brain hole” is opened a little bigger, with the help of holographic projection and portrait capture technology, the consumer’s character image can be copied to the surface of the dome screen in real time for display and interaction. More topical interactive game experiences. Through imagination, the “impossible” of the present becomes the “possible” of the future, which is the “Mero Metaverse”.
At present, we are stepping up the debugging of the screen interaction and laser interaction between Metro City and the Pacific dual-screen. At the same time, this time, the outdoor and new media industry gathered together to conduct in-depth discussions and research on the combination of outdoor advertising industry and urban landmark aesthetics under the rise of new media forces in the market. Information and the diversified market needs of multiple brand customers have provided multi-dimensional new ideas and heated discussions.
In 2021, Metro City won the title of “the first batch of national-level nighttime culture and tourism consumption gathering areas”. In the future, Metro City will develop more virtual and real scenes, explore more application presentation modes, and truly “play” crystal Sphere, unlock the “metaverse”, help the economic prosperity of Xujiahui business district at night, and build Metro Sphere into a unique Shanghai landmark!