Recent Installations

The NEST DOME is our first geodesic dome. It’s 13.4M diameter, contains 555 steel bars and covered with a thick blackout cover for projecting day or night. This heavy-duty structure has toured across Canada and into the U.S.A. several times since 2015 and is still operational today. It’s equipped with eight HD projectors and a passive screen which hides the structure, delivering a crisp 4K fulldome resolution. You can see photos and videos in our Case Studies.

Specifications

⇒ Diameter: 13.4m (44ft); Height: 6.7m (22ft); Weight: 1800kg (3960lbs)
⇒ Floor surface: 141m² (1520ft²)
⇒ Capacity: 220 (standing); 120 (conference); 110 (Dinner)
⇒ Installation time: 20h with crew of 4 persons
⇒ Dismantling time: 10h with crew of 4 persons
⇒ Surface required: aprox 20m x 20m (66ft x 66ft)
⇒ Fire safety certificates available for all materials
⇒ Special equipment required: Telescopic forklift
⇒ Geodesic properties: Icosahedron Frequency 6V

The NEW DOME of the family is designed for a smaller installation footprint at 8M diameter. It contains 310 steel bars and covered with a thick blackout layer for projecting day or night. This dome can resist any outdoor conditions and is still compact enough for indoor installations. It’s equipped with three HD projectors and a tilted negative pressure screen creating a smooth projection surface.

Specifications

⇒ Diameter: 7.9m (26ft); Height: 5.2m (17ft); Weight: 1000kg (2200lbs)
⇒ Floor surface: 45m² (490ft²)
⇒ Capacity: 60 (standing); 45 (sit)
⇒ Installation time: 10h with crew of 2-4 persons
⇒ Dismantling time: 5h with crew of 2-4 persons
⇒ Surface required: aprox 11.5m x 11.5m (38ft x 38ft)
⇒ Fire safety certificates available for all materials
⇒ Special equipment required: 22ft scissor lift
⇒ Geodesic properties: Icosahedron Frequency 4V, 5/8

Our Expertise at your service

You have an idea and need some help to realize it? Our experience in dome projection, software development, engineering and computer science gives us a unique perspective when approaching custom projects big or small. We’ve designed custom cutting-edge immersive installations and software solutions for corporate clients such as the F1 Grand Prix and private galleries with impressive results. Contact us to discuss your vision and our reply may surprise you!

Examples

⇒ Planetarium upgrades including higher resolution video and real-time performance playback with our Fulldome 12K NEST video server
⇒ Custom immersive audio-visual space
⇒ Automatic-video mapping solutions for non-conventional screens
⇒ LED dome technologies
⇒ Turn-key mobile domes of any size and resolution

Camp Serotonin - 2020

A meditation dome in response to the stress of the pandemic. We installed our 8M dome inside the Telus Spark Science Center in Calgary, AB. The installation took 12 hours with two technicians (and a few more hands for the outer-cover installation). The experience was a real-time, generated three minute loop of NestDrop presets, running on a meditative soundtrack. The audience can stretch out on Yoga mats and capacity was limited to 12 persons at the time for social distancing purposes (normal capacity at 60 persons).

See the video here!

CHALLENGES

This was a month long installation without a NEST technician on-site operating the dome. The entire process was automated: the server boot sequence and customized versions of our software running the audio and visuals. We trained the local staff on projector calibration if needed and the server was accessible 24/7 for remote troubleshooting.

Statera upgrade - 2021

NEST was contacted to upgrade this 18m dome located in Sorel Tracy, QC. The dome operates as part of an audio-visual pathway telling the story of the 103 nearby islands. Originally, this dome plays content at 3K 30fps but without a proper projection screen the structure was exposed and with the semi-transparent outer-cover, day-time projections were not possible.

CHALLENGES

The objective was converting this dome to play 4K fulldome content at 60 fps, day or night, with a smooth projection surface (negative pressure system). We contracted a third party to fabricate a custom negative pressure screen system which also blocks the sunlight, allowing for day-time use of the dome. For the video server, we reused the existing components and installed NestMap with two Datapath FX4 video splitters to feed the eight Christie HD projectors. Project completion is estimated for early 2021.

Corporate Client - Multi-purpose venue - 2019

NEST was commissioned to install our 13.4M dome in Montreal for a weekend event. Our 4K, 13.4M dome alternated between a dynamic main entrance lobby with animated logos and names of sponsors, to a 110 person private conference, to a high-class immersive dining experience for VIP guests.

CHALLENGES

The client restricted the use of heavy equipment and telescopic forklifts for the installation to protect the terrain. A more manual installation method with some imagination was used to install the structure and outer cover. It was also the first time NestMap was used to auto-calibrate our eight projectors for a corporate event. Despite these challenges, we brought this installation to the highest standard possible, surpassing the client’s expectations.

Hubweek - 2017-2018

For two years in a row NEST was invited to Boston for Hubweek, a new festival sponsored by reputable institutions such as the MIT, Harvard, The Boston Globe and the Massachusetts General Hospital. The festival merges the best of new media arts, science and technology together (A perfect place for fulldome!). NEST Dome was host for the Switzerland Consulate of Boston and our dome programming was filled from morning to night with various activities like artistic fulldome shows, Yoga and meditation, interactive gaming, dance performance, conferences, and more.

CHALLENGES

Managing import/exports and transport of equipment, dome installation and operation, receiving, formatting and managing dome content, on-site technical assistance for artists, managing artists sound/video/hardware checks and ensuring the programming ran on schedule! This made for long working days and short nights. The Hubweek crew was awesome and very accommodating, and the Boston public was very receptive to the fulldome medium.

Beakerhead - 2016

Beakerhead festival is a smash-up of art, science and engineering, located in Calgary, AB. Instead of being hosted in one location, the festival’s installations are spread all throughout the city. NEST was mandated to operate not one, but two immersive domes. The first was a 7M dome installed downtown projecting our short-films throughout the day and evening for an entire week. During that time, the rest of the NEST’s crew installed our 13.4m dome at the main venue, ready for the Beaker Night party which saw over 60000 visitors in one night!

See the video here!

CHALLENGES

The main challenge of this event was managing the crowd at the Beaker Night main event. We saw an average of 1000 people/hour pass through our 13.4 dome. Instead of our 15 minute short film program we decided to rotate the audience after each 5 minute film to ensure the line up was not too lengthy for spectators. We finished the night with an open-door fulldome party with local DJ’s and two VJ’s playing visuals at the same time. This was an exciting event initiating many people to the fulldome medium through our punchy, high-energy immersive short-films.