Matrix Switching to follow the Student
Figure: 0 -1
In Figure 0–1, you see the two programs that you will use to control an OSCE; The DVR Control Program called “CMS Lite”, and the Matrix Switcher Control Program called “Matrix Switcher”. In this section, we will only cover the matrix program. To begin, double click on the CMS Lite icon to open it.
Figure: 0-2
When the program opens, you will see what we have illustrated in Figure 0-2. You will have to select the “IP (LAN)” option and press OK to continue. You will then see what we have in Figure 0-3, make sure that the IP address is set on 192.168.1.254, if it isn’t you will need to type this number as it appears into the Matrix IP Address field. The password field is left Blank, and then click Connect.
Figure: 0-3
Section 2.1: Making Connections
Figure: 0-4
When you connect to the Switcher, you will see this interface featured in Figure 0-4. There are two sections, one for Video and one for Audio. The program is set to automatically switch the audio when you switch the video so you will NOT need to worry about the Audio section. You will however need to use it for reference to make sure that the connection is made. In the video section, you will see on the left side is the column called IN (Short for INPUT). This represents the Room and is labeled accordingly and has a camera Icon. On the right side is the column called OUT (Short for OUTPUT). This represents the Student being followed and is labeled accordingly and also has a VCR icon. Right now as you see it, there are no connections made yet.
Figure: 0-5
To send video from a room to the appropriate DVD recorder,
you will need to make a connection. To make a connection, you will need to
click and drag the camera icon on the IN side, and drag it to the VCR icon on the OUT side. When you do this, you will see a dashed line appear. This means that the
connection from Room 1 to Student 1 is set but you will need to click on the button “Take” under the green word Changes,
in order for the connection to be switched. When it is switched, the dashed
line will turn into a solid line like seen for Room 2 to Student 2. As you also see on the Audio side, the same
connection has been made automatically. When you scroll over the camera icon,
you will see a yellow box appear, letting you know where the Input or Room will
go to what Student or Destination.
Section 2.2: Creating an Encounter
To create a new Encounter for a OSCE, you will need to load the template configuration file already saved on the switcher, by clicking “File” then going to “Restore Matrix Settings from..” as seen in Figure 0-6.
Figure: 0-6
Figure: 0-7
A window will pop-up as seen in Figure 0-7, and you will need to
open the file named “Basic_file_START_HERE.mtx”.
Once the file is open, you will see that is it a blank connection template for
a OSCE. You will need to read the Blue Print of the OSCE and make the
appropriate connections as outlined in Section 2.1. Once you have made
all of the connections and have clicked Take,
you will need to save this as a preset. Each encounter has a preset with the
way the rooms are connected, and you will need to save the connection for each
encounter using a preset.
Section 2.3: Using Presets
Once you have all the connections you want to make for an Encounter (lines are solid) you will need to save this Encounter as a Preset so you can just recall the preset when the previous encounter is over and you need to load a new encounter. To save a Preset, you will need to click “Save As..”, under the green word Presets as seen in Figure 0-8.
Figure: 0-8
You will then need to enter the Encounter number for which you are saving this preset for (Ex. Encounter 1, put “1”) as seen in Figure 0-9, and then press OK.
Figure: 0-9
You will then need to name the preset according to the Encounter you are saving as seen in Figure 0-10.
Figure: 0-10
You will then see your saved preset, under the green Presets word as seen in Figure 0-11. To load the preset, just click on the preset number and click “Go”.
Figure: 0-11
When you have saved all of the encounters of the OSCE into presets, you will need to save the configuration file in case of a power outage or if you are doing this before the OSCE to open at a later time. You will need to click on “File” and then go to “Save Matrix Settings As..” as seen in Figure 0-6. You will need to enter a name for the file you are saving; it will usually go by “NameofOSCE-Date”, as seen in Figure 0-12.
Figure: 0-12