Lighttoys Visual Poi Mini User manual

Visual Poi V4
User manual
V2.1

Content
Introduction............................................................................................................................................. 3
What’s included....................................................................................................................................... 3
Getting started ........................................................................................................................................ 4
Software installation ............................................................................................................................... 6
Windows PC......................................................................................................................................... 6
MAC OS X............................................................................................................................................. 7
Using Lighttoys Composer....................................................................................................................... 8
Overview.............................................................................................................................................. 8
Menu options ...................................................................................................................................... 9
Working with the timeline................................................................................................................... 9
Visualization ...................................................................................................................................... 11
Image tuning...................................................................................................................................... 11
Uploading your first image sequence.................................................................................................... 13
Using the FT remote controller ............................................................................................................. 14
Powering on / off............................................................................................................................... 14
LED indicator ..................................................................................................................................... 15
Pairing procedure .............................................................................................................................. 15
Perfect sync feature .............................................................................................................................. 16
How it works...................................................................................................................................... 16
Assembling the staff connector............................................................................................................. 17
Available staff sizes ........................................................................................................................... 18
How to spin Visual Poi ........................................................................................................................... 19
Tips & Tricks........................................................................................................................................... 19
Ideal image design............................................................................................................................. 19
FAQ ........................................................................................................................................................ 20
Taking photos & videos of Visual Poi .................................................................................................... 20
Taking photos .................................................................................................................................... 20
Taking videos..................................................................................................................................... 20
Maintenance ......................................................................................................................................... 21
Charging............................................................................................................................................. 21
Afterword .............................................................................................................................................. 22

Introduction
Dear customer, thank you very much for your purchase of the Visual Poi V4 product. Before you
start using your new equipment, please dedicate a few minutes to the contents of this manual.
Even though we strived to make the Visual Poi as durable as possible, please keep in mind that it is a
sensitive electronic device and so appropriate caution is needed.
The first part of this manual is devoted to the usage of Visual Poi, the second part is devoted to the
creation of graphic sequences for your Visual Poi – so that your shows always look the best!
“With proper use, Visual Poi will bring
you and your audience great visual amazement.”
What’s included
The Visual Poi V4 comes with the following parts and accessories:
•2x Visual Poi V4
•1x FT remote controller
•1x USB wall charger
•2x USB cable
•1x USB flash drive with the user software
•1x transport case
•*Staff connector (optional accessory)
Content of the package
Visual Poi
Charger
Flash
drive
FT remote
Staff
connector

Getting started
Visual Poi V4 is very easy to operate. All functions of the device are controlled by pressing a single
button located at the end of the poi, in the handle:
Location of the main button on the Visual Poi
Visual Poi is turned ON/OFF by pressing the main button for 2 seconds. It’s indicated by a quick
double blink of one LED on the device, which also serves as a battery level indicator. Green color –
battery is full, orange color – battery is getting empty, red color – battery is empty and needs
recharge.
Visual Poi battery level indicator
If you leave Visual Poi unattended for 20 minutes, it automatically turns off. Also when the battery level drops too low, the Visual
Poi turns itself OFF to protect the battery and you need to charge the Visual Poi to use it again.
After turning on, the Visual Poi enters a so called “standby mode”. In this mode, 8 LEDs closest to the
main button will shine in either blue or pink color, indicating communication with the FT remote:
FT remote is answering, signal quality is good.
FT remote is turned off or signal quality is poor.
Press the main button once (or any button on the FT remote) to quit the standby mode.
Main button

Now Visual Poi enters the memory bank selection menu, where you can select which image
sequence to play. It is indicated by 4 LEDs closest to the main button:
Bank 1 Bank 2 Bank 3 Bank 4
There are up to 4 memory banks available, each indicated by a different LED color. Press the main
button repeatedly to make your selection, currently selected bank will shine with a brighter color on
the LEDs:
Bank 3 selected
To confirm your selection, make a longer press of the main button – the Visual Poi will enter a
“prelaunch mode”, ready to start your image sequence at will. This is indicated by only a single LED
shining in the color of the memory bank:
Bank 3 ready to be started
When you are ready to start your Visual Poi show, press the main button and the image sequence
will start to play immediately.
The running image sequence can be stopped at any time by a successive combination of a long press (2 sec) + short press of the
main button. This prevents any accidental interruptions of your show. More details in the description of the Perfect sync feature.

Software installation
After you play with the preloaded sequences we put into Visual Poi, surely you want to try some
graphics of your own, don’t you? To do so, you need to install the software which is used to prepare
your image sequences and upload them into the device.
The software comes with the included USB flash drive. It runs on both Windows PC and MAC OS X. To
download the latest version, please visit Lighttoys support page at: www.lighttoys.cz/support/.
The user software consists of the following:
•Visual Poi driver (for Windows only)
•Lighttoys Composer application
Windows PC
The first step is to install the Visual Poi driver. Connect one Visual Poi with the provided Micro USB
cable to the PC and power it ON with a long press of the main button.
On Windows 7, click the Start button, type “Device manager“ into the search bar and hit Enter. On
Windows 8 and 10, press Windows Key + X to open the Start menu, then select Device manager from
the list.
Device manager showing connected Visual Poi on Windows 7 and 10
In the new window you should see your connected Visual Poi in the list. It should be listed under
“Other devices” or “Ports (COM & LPT)“. In some rare cases, Visual Poi can also be listed under
“Portable Devices”.
If you cannot find Visual Poi listed in Device Manager like shown above, try disconnecting and reconnecting Visual Poi to your PC
and watch for any new item appearing on the list. The newly appeared item is Visual Poi device.
Right click on the item and select ”Update Driver Software…”. In the next window, select “Browse
my computer for driver software”.

Driver installation process #1
In the next window, select “Browse…” and locate the folder called “driver” on the included USB flash
drive, click OK and Next.
Driver installation process #2
A new window appears, asking you for permission to install the driver, click “Install”. Visual Poi driver
should be now successfully installed:
Successful installation of the driver
MAC OS X
Running Lighttoys Composer on MAC is straightforward, no driver installation is needed.

Using Lighttoys Composer
After the driver installation, open the Lighttoys Composer – an application for preparation of your
graphic sequences for Visual Poi device. The program is also included on the USB flash drive.
If you wish to copy the program to some place on your PC – so you can easily find it next time – please copy the whole folder
LtComposer with its contents.
Lighttoys Composer on the USB flash drive
Overview
Lighttoys Composer is a simple to use, yet powerful program to open your images, arrange their
position in the image sequence, set timing, size and repetition parameters and then upload your final
image sequence into the VisualPoi device.
Lighttoys composer main window
Lighttoys composer follows similar logic like video editing software. The main features are:
Image tuning
Image/music
Library
Timeline
Visualization

•Image/music library – catalogue of all available images/music in the current folder. By
clicking & dragging with your mouse you move the images to the timeline.
•Timeline – used to prepare your image sequence. You can move the images around, change
their order or length.
•Image tuning – allows you fine tuning of the images on the timeline. You can change the
scale or spacing of each image
•Visualization – shows a nice preview how your images will look on Visual Poi when spinned.
Menu options
All your media files (including their settings) form a so called “project”. You can
save your project for future use and then open it to continue with your work
from the Project menu on the left.
When you save your project called i.e. MyShow, a new folder with the same name will be created.
Inside it will be stored source media like images, music and project file MyShow.vpp. To open the
project, you navigate to this Myshow.vpp file.
Library menu is used to select the source folder with your images and music.
Images must be high 200 pixels or less, otherwise the application won’t show
them.
When the application starts, default libraries are loaded from destinations:
LT_Composer/library/images/default and LT_Composer/library/music/default. It’s good idea to save
your favorite images and music there, so they are automatically loaded.
Import menu helps you import pictures from your hard drive, whose format is
not suitable for Visual Poi (i.e. more than 200 pixels). You can import a single
picture or a whole folder with pictures. The pictures will be saved into your
actively selected library.
Device menu lets you select the target Visual Poi type for which you will be
creating the image sequence. This setting can be changed during the
composition at any time.
When you connect the Visual Poi to the PC and turn it on, Lighttoys Composer automatically detects it
and changes the device type accordingly.
Upload menu is used to upload your prepared image
sequences into the device. To begin upload, click
“Upload Sequence” and select one of the 4 memory
banks.
Working with the timeline
After you select your favorite source folders with images and music from the Library menu, it’s time
to build your first image sequence on the timeline.

First select your music from the Music tab. A nice waveform of your song appears on the timeline.
Then switch back to the Images tab. Start clicking & dragging image thumbnails with your mouse
from Image Library to the timeline. When you release the mouse button, a start point is set, when
you move the mouse and click again, an end point of the image is set.
Moving images on the timeline
You can change the position and length of any image on the timeline, in two ways:
•Using your mouse – first make sure the image is selected (click on it). Then click & drag one
of the edges to change the image duration as needed. By clicking inside the image and
dragging you can also reposition the whole image.
•From keyboard – it is possible to input precise timing values from the keyboard into one of
the pink boxes above the timeline. The format of the data is MINUTES : SECONDS :
MILLISECONDS. The first box is used to set the image start time, the second box is used to
set the image duration (length):
“Image start” and “Duration” input fields
You can preview your sequence at any time by pressing the button or spacebar key.
It is possible to move the cursor (white vertical line) along the timeline by dragging the blue
diamond, by clicking into the black stripe above the timeline or by inputting a precise value into the
blue box.
click & drag
change size
move

It’s vital to set the moment the Visual Poi starts playing the sequence and the moment it ends. This is
represented by the pink line above the image track. The start/end points can be moved by dragging
the little pink triangles:
Beginning and end of the image sequence
The start/end points can be used to great power. Most of the time the left pink triangle will begin with the first note of the music,
but sometimes your Visual Poi act might begin in the middle of the song, then it’s very handy.
Visualization
Lighttoys Composer offers unique visualizations that simulate how the image pattern will look like in
real life. When you click an image on the timeline, a preview appears:
Three modes of visualization: animated, static, dynamic
When you click inside the small circle in the bottom left corner, you can switch
between three modes of preview:
•animated – real time preview simulating a spinning Visual Poi
•static – the circular preview doesn’t rotate
•dynamic – shows how the Visual Poi will look without spinning
Image tuning
Each image you put into your sequence can be fine-tuned for optimal display to the audience. This is
especially important when you are spinning company logos or pulsating patterns synchronized with
the music. Let’s see how it works.
END
Start

To tune the image, you use two sliders located in the bottom
left corner of the main window: scale and spacing. Scale is
used to stretch or shorten the image. Spacing is used to set the
empty space between repetitions of the same image.
Play with both sliders, so you get the idea how they work.
You can reset the sliders by double-clicking on the diamonds. You can also
input precise values into the text boxes underneath.
Different combinations of scale and spacing parameters
Sequence repeat will make the image sequence loop
indefinitely. This is useful for demo purposes or when you
don’t know the exact duration of the act.
Lock sizing option helps when you plan to use the same sequence for different types of Visual Poi.
When activated for the selected image, it will lock scaling of the image along the horizontal axis. This
makes the image play at the same speed across all types Visual Pois, at the cost of some size
deformations.
We recommend turning it on for images like pulses and fades (intended to be precisely synchronized
with music). For logos and texts it’s better to turn this feature off.
Lock sizing turned ON, notice the same speed of display

Lock sizing turned OFF, pictures are scaled to look their best for each device
When lock sizing is activated, it follows the physical parameters of Visual Poi V4 MAXI. Keep this in mind when creating image
sequences for Visual Poi V4 CLASSIC and MINI.
Uploading your first image sequence
Now having learned the basics, you are ready to upload your first image sequence into the Visual Poi
and start spinning your beautiful patterns!
Open Lighttoys Composer and prepare your image sequence as described before (or open your saved
project). Connect your Visual Poi to the computer with the provided micro USB cable and power it
ON with a long press of the main button.
If the Visual Poi was successfully connected, the red diamond in the top right corner will turn green
and the device name will be show in blue color at the bottom of the window:
Connecting your Visual Poi to the computer
Then in the Upload menu press “Upload Sequence”. Select one of the memory
banks, by clicking on one of the colored boxes. Your sequence should begin to
upload, showing a nice progress bar on the device.
Once the sequence is uploaded (the first LED blinks in red/blue color), you
can disconnect the device from the computer and using the main button or
remote controller start your image sequence.
1
2

Using the FT remote controller
Visual Poi V4 is supplied with a powerful FT remote controller, which allows you to control and
precisely start many Visual Pois from distances up to 200 meters away.
The remote can be used in two ways:
•simple (manual) operation – you can play with the color and dynamic modes available on
the remote, simply by pressing the corresponding buttons. This is similar to our other FT
products.
•image sequence start / stop – by pressing the buttons labeled 1 - 4 you can start your
uploaded image sequences instantly and perfectly synchronized thanks to the Perfect Sync
feature.
FT remote controller layout
Powering on / off
To turn on the FT remote, press and hold the red
button for 1 second, until the blue indicator LED
on the remote starts shining.
To turn off, press and hold the red button again
until the blue LED stops shining.
The FT remote will turn off after 30 minutes of inactivity to save battery power. This feature is disabled, when any image sequence
(show) is running or the FT remote is plugged to the computer. Pressing any button on the remote will reset the timer.
Brightness or Speed
UP / DOWN
10 static colors
brightness can be
changed
5 dynamic modes
adjustable speed, brightness
and hue set from the most
recent static color
Show start buttons 1 - 4
press to start your
uploaded image
sequence
A/B button
selects the light
segment to be
controlled
ON/OFF button
also used to stop the
running image
sequence
Hold for
1 second

LED indicator
The blue color LED indicator at the top of the FT remote indicates the different work conditions of
the FT remote:
Pairing procedure
Pairing procedure synchronizes your FT remote with the Visual Pois of your choice. Whenever you
want to control more or different Visual Pois, you will need to perform a new pairing procedure.
Turn on the FT remote with the on/off button.
Now press and hold the PAIR button for 1
second. The LED indicator will start blinking.
This indicates the remote has entered the
pairing mode.
Now make sure all the Visual Pois you want to control are turned off. For each Visual Poi, press and
hold its main button for 3 seconds, until you see the 8 LEDs double blink in white color, then turning
pink color – indicating a successful pairing.
Pairing Visual Poi with the FT remote
After you pair all Visual Pois to the FT remote, press and hold the PAIR button again for 1 second. The
LED indicator will stop blinking. The LEDs on the Visual Pois should turn blue color. Congratulations,
the pairing is now completed.
You can pair up to 32 Visual Poi units to a single FT remote. If this is not sufficient, you can pair the remaining units to another
FT remote and use the two remotes concurrently. They won’t interfere with each other.
During the pairing process, the 2.4GHz radio spectrum is scanned and best channel is selected (with least interference). When
performing with Lighttoys FT products in a new venue, it is recommended to perform a new pairing procedure close to the actual
gig where performance is about to happen.
remote is turned on
pairing mode
show is running
battery is low
charging
Hold for
1 second

Perfect sync feature
Perfect sync is a unique functionality of the new Visual Poi V4 generation and FT products. It makes
sure that your Visual Pois always start and run synchronized, no matter how strong the electronic
interference at the stage is or when the performer accidentally stops the show.
How it works
When you press the button 1-4 on the FT remote to start the image sequence, the remote starts to
constantly send this information along with the current time mark (actual position in the running
show):
Perfect sync feature
If some Visual Poi doesn't catch the signal, the moment it gets it, it will calculate it's precise position
in the show (with 2 millisecond accuracy) and start from there!
Perfect sync feature helps to rescue the following unfavorable situations:
•SITUATION 1 – some Visual Poi(s) don’t catch the start signal.
Remedy: wait for it to catch the signal, or when the interference is strong, come closer to it
with the FT remote.
•SITUATION 2 – the artist stops the show by a long press of the main button.
Remedy: don’t press the main button again; the Visual Poi will start from the correct time
position in 1 second.
•SITUATION 3 – some Visual Poi(s) were not turned on when the show started.
Remedy: Turn on the Visual Poi with the main button and the Visual Poi will start from the
correct time position.
Calculation of the precise time position in the show is a computing intensive operation. Visual Poi needs to go through all the
pictures stored in the memory and simulate the show. It can take several seconds to find the correct spot. The LEDs are turned off
during this time.
show: 1
time: 02:37:16

Assembling the staff connector
Staff module is an optional accessory that quickly turns your Visual Poi into a Visual Staff. Below you
will find instructions how to assemble and use it properly.
Visual Poi staff connector
First, remove the leash (ring with the chain) from the Visual Poi and align the Visual Poi with the
connector:
Preparations for staff attachment
Next, push the Visual Poi inside, making sure the “L” mark is aligned with the grooves in the Visual
Poi tube. Then rotate Visual Poi 90 degrees, so the “L” mark is aligned with the button:
Visual Poi alignment and the locked position
Staff connector
Unlocked
Locked

As a last step, we recommend using a firm adhesive (or electrical) tape to secure the Visual Poi in the
staff connector against rotation. Your Visual Staff is now ready for use!
Securing the Visual Poi with a tape
To disassemble the staff and return to the normal Visual Poi operation, follow the above steps
backwards.
Available staff sizes
You can assemble the following staff combinations from Visual Poi V4 MINI, CLASSIC or MAXI with
the help of SHORT or LONG staff connector:

How to spin Visual Poi
To create the most beautiful visual experience and clarity for your audience with the device, it’s good
to know how to spin it properly. If you are a seasoned poi spinner, you can skip this part.
The VisualPoi is held with the leash, each in one hand. To start the image sequence (and your
performance) select your chosen memory bank and confirm it. The indication LED will reduce its
brightness. Now press the main button on both VisualPois at the same time. Your image sequence
will play immediately.
Forward 3-beat weave gives the best clarity to your logos and texts
We recommend you to learn the basic 3-beat forward weave poi spinning, which gives the best
clarity to your texts and logos (you can search online for one of the many tutorials). After you gain
practice, you can try other poi tricks, which looks great with abstract patterns.
NOTE: If you want to spin texts and logos, please make sure you are spinning in the right direction (clockwise) facing your audience!
See the image above.
Tips & Tricks
This chapter will teach you various tricks we learned while developing and performing with VisualPoi.
We will show you how to make sure your visual performances always look the best! And that’s what
you actually want, no? ;)
Ideal image design
Coming soon!

FAQ
“I don’t see any images in my image library.”Please make sure your images height is exactly
80 pixels and that the folder name use only standard alphanumeric characters, no special characters
or diacritics.
“The software crashes at start or doesn’t display images properly.” You are probably using an old
computer or operating system. Please make sure that your PC is quite new and that you are running
Windows 7 or Windows 8 operating system.
“A strange popup shows every time I connect Visual
Poi.” This is nothing unusual or something to worry
about. It is a false message triggered by Windows.
Taking photos & videos of Visual Poi
Taking photos
Taking beautiful photos like the ones you see on our webpage is actually not very difficult, once you
have the right equipment and know what to do!
First you need to get a DSLR camera and a solid tripod. The type of camera is not so important, the
only requirement for it is to have full manual mode (“M” mode).
Set your camera on the tripod, set it to “M” mode and for starters dial the following settings:
•ISO 100-200
•Aperture F/6.3
•Shutter speed 1/4 sec
Instruct your performer to spin 3-beat weave (or any other trick) and start taking photos. If the photo
is too dark or bright, change the aperture. If the Visual Poi trails are too “long” or “short”, change the
shutter speed to your liking.
Taking videos
Taking beautiful videos of your VisualPois can be a little tricky, because almost all cameras default to
wrong default video settings. But it’s not hard to get it right!
First, you need to get a camcorder or camera with full manual settings when shooting video. Any
intermediate or professional camera should have these settings. You must be able to individually set
these parameters on your camera:
•frame rate (fps)
•shutter speed
•aperture (or iris)
•ISO (or gain)