Shadow Trak hides your big screen behind a motorised painting

As sales of plasma and LCD screens continue to skyrocket (up 40% in Q3 2005), innovative ways to cut the clutter in the living room are booming, at least according to Gizmag’s statistics. Each time we run something like Reversica’s big screen concealment solution, or Sonance ‘s invisible' loudspeaker technology or even Onkyo’s combined speakers and television stand they get lots of traffic and lots of referrals (via the “send this article to a friend’ facility at the bottom of each page), which we presume is Partner A telling Partner B they have found an elegant way of combining technology into the living environment. Might we be so bold as to suggest to all those manufacturers of megascreens, that people don’t necessarily want to look at them ALL the time. Anyway, here’s another hide-the-screen solution. The Shadow Trak System hides the screen behind the painting of your choice, so it can be appropriately integrated into any decor.

Auton's Shadow Trak System could change the way you think about installing your plasma or LCD TV screen when it becomes available in mid-March. Just touch a button on the hand held remote and your favourite painting will move to reveal your plasma or LCD screen. Made from welded steel construction, the Shadow Trak has a four-year warranty, and will accommodate screens up to 42''.

The Shadow Trak system consists of a "shadow box," a remote controlled rack and pinion drive, and a bracket that is used to hang a painting on the unit. When the unit is activated, the painting will glide smoothly and quietly on the track to reveal the plasma or LCD screen. The Shadow Trak attaches directly to an existing wall so there isn't a need for reconstruction, framing, or other intrusive procedures to install the system.

Auton is the world's oldest and largest manufacturer of TV lifts. The company has been manufacturing motorized TV lifts for architects, designers, builders, furniture makers, and audio/visual integrators for half a century. Auton products are installed in residential, corporate, hotel, watercraft, and aircraft environments with clients including The White House, Hyatt Hotels, Sheraton Hotels, CBS, MGM, Walt Disney, Universal Studios, and many of the world's most recognisable celebrities.

Auton expects the Shadow Trak to become its biggest seller because the unit is so easy to install.

For those who just love motorized systems, Auton’s range of hide-the-screen solutions includes some ripper implementations, with special mention for their hide-the-wine-cellar, hide-the-safe, hide-the-cocktail-cabinet and hide-the-projector solutions.