Setting up URBI Display
How to activate URBI Display for a property, pair kiosk devices, theme the screens, manage content sources, and trigger emergency takeovers.
Last updated
Display is URBI Kore's branded screen experience for elevators and common-area lobbies. Once activated, it rotates property news, building events, weather, neighborhood highlights, and curated local stories, all themed to your property and managed from the URBI Kore admin.
What is Display
Display turns any Chromium-based screen in your building into a managed kiosk surface. The layout is a fixed three-column grid: a curated featured story on the left, a rotating queue or property-news panel in the middle, and a right rail with time, weather, neighborhood places, and nearby events.
Content updates automatically. Property news and emergency takeovers push in real time; weather, curated news, neighborhood places, and event listings refresh on background schedules. There is nothing to operate on the screen itself; everything is configured from the URBI Kore admin.
Hardware requirements
Display device: any Chromium-based player (Android TV box, ChromeOS device, Windows mini-PC, Raspberry Pi running Chromium). Smart TVs with built-in browsers are not supported.
Resolution: 2560×1440 is the design target. 1920×1080 works but text and forecast cards will be denser.
Orientation: landscape only.
Browser: Chromium 110+ in fullscreen kiosk mode (
--kioskflag on desktop Chrome, or the equivalent kiosk setting in your device's launcher).Network: always-on internet. The display reconnects automatically after outages but cannot fetch fresh content while offline.
Power: screen and player should stay powered 24/7. Schedule any restarts overnight.
Activating Display for your property
Display is gated by a per-property feature flag (display_feature) that URBI enables on request.
Email URBI support or message your URBI account manager to request Display activation. Include the property name and how many screens you plan to install.
Once URBI flips the flag, refresh URBI Kore. A new Elevator Display section appears under Settings → Spaces & Displays.
Confirm the section loads. You should see four cards: Theme & Branding, Devices, Emergency Control, and Contact & Schedule.
If the section does not appear after a hard refresh, the flag is not yet enabled for the property; contact URBI support.
Registering a device
Every physical screen is paired to URBI Kore once. After pairing, the device persists its identity and reconnects automatically on every boot.
In URBI Kore, open Settings → Spaces & Displays → Devices and click Add device. Give the screen a name (e.g. "North Tower Elevator 2") and save. URBI Kore generates a pairing code.
On the kiosk device, open Chromium in fullscreen kiosk mode and navigate to your URBI Display setup URL (provided when the feature is activated).
The screen will show a six-character pairing code and a QR code. Enter that code in the URBI Kore Devices drawer, or scan the QR with a phone signed into URBI Kore.
Once paired, the device reloads into Display mode and begins rotating content within 60 seconds.
Troubleshooting pairing
Code expired: codes are valid for 10 minutes. Reload the setup page on the device to generate a new one.
"Display deactivated" screen: the device was unpaired or the property feature flag was turned off. Re-add the device in Devices.
Stuck on setup screen after entering the code: verify the device has internet access and that the system clock is set correctly; TLS handshakes fail with a skewed clock.
Theme & branding
Open the Theme & Branding card in Spaces & Displays to control the visual identity of every screen at the property.
Accent palette: pick from URBI's curated palette (URBI Gold is the default). The accent drives highlights, badges, and the property news border.
Dark mode: Display ships dark by default. Switch to a light theme if your lobbies are bright; both modes use the same token system, so contrast stays compliant.
Logo upload: upload a PNG or SVG. The logo appears in the header on every screen. SVG is preferred for crisp rendering at 2560×1440.
Preview: the card shows a live preview of the header chrome with your selections applied. Changes save immediately and push to every paired device.
Content sources
Display pulls from five content sources. Each runs on its own refresh schedule and is configured from elsewhere in URBI Kore.
Property News: articles published from News & Announcements. Mark an article as Show on Display in the article editor to include it. The middle panel cycles every property article in turn.
Curated News: local and national headlines pulled automatically via SerpAPI based on the property's city. No configuration needed. Stories appear in the featured slot and the rotation queue.
Weather: current conditions and a 5-day forecast, geocoded from the property address. Refreshes hourly.
Neighborhood: nearby restaurants, cafés, and services pulled from Google Places. Only 5-star and high-rated venues are shown. Refreshes daily.
Events: building-hosted events (from URBI Kore's event module) plus nearby public events. Each event card includes a QR code so a viewer can save details to their phone.
Scheduling and contact
The Contact & Schedule card controls operating hours and the contact information shown in the footer.
Content rotation cadence: the queue advances every few seconds (configurable). Featured stories cycle on a longer interval so they are readable from across a lobby.
Property contact: the building name, address, and contact line shown in the footer come from the property's primary settings. Update them under Settings → Property Details.
Quiet hours: Display does not currently power-off screens; that's handled by your device's own scheduling. Pair Display with a smart plug or the kiosk OS's sleep schedule if you want the screens dark overnight.
Emergency mode
Emergency mode is a full-screen takeover designed for fire alarms, lockdowns, lobby evacuations, and similar incidents. When active, every paired device at the property switches to a high-contrast emergency layout within seconds.
Open Settings → Spaces & Displays → Emergency Control.
Click Trigger emergency. Pick a preset (Fire, Lockdown, Evacuation, Custom) and write the message that should appear on every screen.
Confirm. The takeover broadcasts in real time to every paired device. The card shows an active-emergency badge while the takeover is live.
To restore normal content, return to Emergency Control and click Clear emergency. Screens return to their regular rotation within a few seconds.
Only users with the property's emergency-control permission can trigger or clear takeovers. Audit who has this permission before deploying Display.
FAQ
One of my displays went offline. What do I do?
The device's row in Devices will show a stale "last seen" timestamp. First, check the screen itself; most often the device lost power or network. Reboot the player and confirm it returns to the Display URL. If the screen shows a "Display deactivated" message, the device was unpaired; re-add it in URBI Kore to generate a fresh pairing code.
Can I change the weather location for a property?
Weather is geocoded from the property's address in Settings → Property Details. To change which city the forecast shows, update the property address; Display will pick up the new location on the next hourly refresh. There is no per-screen weather override.
Can different elevators show different content?
Not yet. All paired devices at a property share the same theme, content sources, and rotation. Per-device targeting (e.g. "Tower A only") is on the roadmap. If you need separate content for different buildings, register them as separate properties in URBI Kore.
How quickly do property news articles appear on screens?
Within 60 seconds of publishing. Property news pushes in real time; the rest of the rotation refreshes on its normal schedule.
Will the displays show anything sensitive about people in the building?
No. Display only renders property-level content (news, events, weather, neighborhood) plus the building name and address. It never shows unit numbers, names, or any private data.