Overview of the SOS Remote App

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The iOS Remote Control App for SOS is an alternative to using the Wii controller to control an SOS system. It is a universal app that runs on either the iPad or the iPhone or iPod Touch. It can do everything the Wii does, but in a different fashion. In addition, the SOS Remote app has some features that the Wii does not. For example, the app can display the current playlist, allowing the user to jump from any clip to another within the playlist. Unlike the Wii, which uses Bluetooth as its means of communicating with SOS, the SOS Remote app uses Wi-Fi Internet access.

System Requirements

To be useful, this app requires access to a Science On a Sphere (SOS) installation. For further information about SOS see our web site at http://sos.noaa.gov. The app does nothing interesting until it is connected to a running SOS system.

The app also requires Wi-Fi access to the SOS computer that is being controlled (specifically TCP port 2468). Simultaneous outbound Wi-Fi access from the device to the Internet at large (or at least to the SOS web servers at http://sos.noaa.gov) is also desirable for some features of the app, but it not required for basic remote control of SOS.

There are two basic approaches to getting that Wi-Fi access. The first is to use the existing Wi-Fi infrastructure at your site. The second is to add a Wi-Fi router to your SOS installation. In either case, you will want to consult with your network and security team, for advice on the best approach for Wi-Fi connectivity at your site. In extreme cases, Wi-Fi network security policies may entirely preclude the use of the SOS Remote app. A direct connection to a dedicated Wi-Fi router is preferred for performance reasons, since the remote control protocol is "chatty" and sends lots of messages back and forth between the device and the SOS computer.

Using Existing Wi-Fi Infrastructure

If your site has an existing Wi-Fi infrastructure, you may be able (or required by policy) to use it to connect to your SOS system. The details of this will be specific to your site, so you will need to consult with your networking team for the specifics at your site. Many sites have multiple Wi-Fi networks, typically a low-security one for visitors and casual access, and one or more high-security for access to internal computers at the site. You will want to use the one that provides network access to your active SOS computer (TCP port 2468). There will be network passwords and/or VPN instructions that are specific to your site. See your network team for the details.

Adding a Wi-Fi Router to SOS

For the most responsive control of your SOS system by the app, you can connect a Wi-Fi router directly to your SOS computer. Doing this in a secure way requires some network expertise, so be sure to consult with your network team before attempting this. You may need to select a Wi-Fi channel that doesn't conflict with other Wi-Fi networks, for example. Using the minimum transmitter power that you need is always a good idea. And WPA2 encryption is probably the minimum level of encryption you will want to use. You might want to turn off the beacon identifier for your Wi-Fi router to make it less obvious to casual visitors at your site. You might also consider limiting access to the specific MAC addresses of your portable devices. The details of router configuration are beyond the scope of this document, so consult with your network team when in doubt.

The SOS computer has two network interfaces: one to the external Internet, and one for a private subnet. For maximum functionality, connect the router between the external Internet and the SOS computer. This will allow your remote control to access both the SOS and to the Internet at large. The default NAT (Network Address Translation) of the router will allow both the SOS machine and the Wi-Fi devices to share the Internet connection. You may need to change the outward IP address configuration of your SOS system.

As an alternate but less desirable approach, you can connect the router to the private subnet. This provides maximum security in the event your router is compromised, since the private network doesn't allow connecting beyond the SOS computer. The downside is that a number of features of the app will not be available. But the basic remote control of the sphere will still work.

SOS Software Version Requirement

For full functionality of this app, please update your SOS computer to release version 3.4.2.

Configuring the App

In order to control Science On a Sphere from your iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch device, you must configure your device to communicate with your SOS computer. To get started, tap on the Settings app icon on the homepage of your device, and then tap on SOS Remote located under the Apps category. In the Name or IP field under SOS computer to control, enter the host name or IP address of your SOS computer.

Now, return to the homepage and tap on the SOS Remote app icon to open the application. Tap on the Settings icon located in the tab bar to open the SOS Settings page. The host name or IP address you just entered should appear under the section labeled Connection.

If the Connection switch is set to OFF, tap the ON/OFF slider to the ON position. This should initiate the connection between the device and the SOS computer. If at any point the device is unable to connect to the SOS machine, a red badge with a question mark will automatically appear on top of the Settings tab.

Using the App

Once a connection has been established between your device and the SOS computer, you are now ready to control the SOS display.

Orientation

Tap on the Presentation icon located in the tab bar. This will open the SOS Presentation page, which consists of orientation and playback controls.

Before manipulating the orientation of the sphere, first use the User Position slider bar to set your desired viewing position relative to the sphere. When you tap on the slider, a red dot will appear along the equator of the sphere (the default position places the red dot on the default positive x-axis of the sphere). Move the slider left or right until you see the red dot in front of you or at any other desired location on the sphere. Now, all future orientation adjustments will occur relative to this view position.

To adjust the orientation of the sphere, simply slide one finger over the arrows indicated on the track pad. With the default User Position, the up-down arrows tilt the sphere around the y-axis (pitch), the left-right arrows rotate the sphere around the z-axis (yaw), and the two arrows on either end of the track pad tilt the sphere around the x-axis (roll). Again, all rotations are relative to the User Position you selected using the slider bar.

To automatically rotate a time-series dataset around the z-axis (the axis that passes through the north and south poles), tap the Z-Rot button. Note that the automatic z-rotation will only be active when a time-series dataset is animating.

To reset the orientation of the sphere back to its default position, tap the Reset button.

Playback

Tap on the Presentation icon located in the tab bar to open the SOS Presentation page. To pause or play a dataset, tap the Pause/Play button.

To step forward or backward frame-by-frame, tap the forward and backward buttons, respectively. To fast forward or fast backward quickly, tap and hold the forward and backward buttons, respectively. Note that tapping the forward or backward buttons will automatically pause the dataset if it was previously animating.

To go to the next or previous clip in the playlist, tap the Next or Prev buttons, respectively.

Datasets

To access the current playlist or the SOS library of datasets, tap on the Dataset icon located in the tab bar.

Tap on the Playlist button to view the current playlist that is loaded on the SOS system. To load a particular dataset from the playlist onto the sphere, simply tap on the name of the dataset.

To load a new playlist from disk onto the SOS system, tap on the Load button. This will display a list of all playlists in the sosrc directory. Select a playlist and tap Done.

To view other datasets in the SOS library, tap on the Library button and then select a library from the list. This will bring up a list of all the datasets in the selected library. To load a dataset from the selected library onto the sphere, simply tap on the name of the dataset. Note that selecting a library category and/or a library dataset does not erase or alter the playlist that was originally loaded onto the system. You can always go back to the original playlist by tapping the Playlist button.

On the iPad when in Presentation mode, you can view the current playlist without having to jump over to the Datasets tab. Note that the datasets shown in the playlist will reflect the datasets that are shown in the Datasets tab. For example, in the Datasets tab, if you have selected the astronomy library, the astronomy playlist will show up in the Playlist section of the Presentation tab. On the other hand, if you have tapped the Playlist button in the Datasets tab, the datasets of the currently loaded playlist will show up in the Playlist section of the Presentation tab.

Web Page

To view the Science On a Sphere Data Catalog and the rest of the SOS website, tap on the Web Page icon located in the tab bar.

Alignment

Note that the Alignment interface is easily accessible to all users of the SOS Remote app. Using the alignment controls without understanding how alignment works, or accidentally tapping on alignment controls can cause the sphere to become completely unaligned. In the future, the Alignment interface will be more hidden or even created as a separate SOS app accessible only to authorized users.

To perform alignment of the projectors on the sphere, tap on the Settings icon located in the tab bar, and then tap on the Alignment section. The sphere will automatically display the red grid dataset.

The Alignment interface has been divided into three clearly labeled sections (Red Ball, Grid, and Vertex Tweaking) to facilitate greater ease in stepping through the alignment procedure. The buttons and controls on the alignment interface are labeled and are for the most part synonymous with the controls used on the Wii Remote. Please refer to the Science On a Sphere Training Manual for more information on these alignment controls. Note that all actions (translation, scale, rotation, vertex selection, show/hide projector) are performed on the currently selected projector.

Auto Run

To run Science On a Sphere in automatic presentation mode, tap on the Settings icon located in the tab bar, and then tap the ON/OFF switch in the Auto Run section to ON. If you choose to turn Auto Run mode on or off via your portable device, please make sure that Auto Run mode is not already running on the main SOS Stream GUI.

Troubleshooting

If you are experiencing problems with the Wi-Fi connection, try tapping on Settings > Wi-Fi and turn Wi-Fi off and then on again. Then, try to reconnect to the SOS computer via the SOS Settings page as detailed above.

For more tips on troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks and connections with iOS devices, please see: http://support.apple.com/kb/ts1398