NOVA 3D LED light display runs at 25fps

You know we love the crazy light fixtures, and it doesn't get much crazier than the NOVA, a 3D LED display developed by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology for its 150th birthday. Each of the 25,000 suspended lights contains 12 LEDs, and it's capable of pumping out 16M colors at 25fps. It's on display in Zurich until September 2009 (and we hear it might make an appearance at Wired's NEXTFEST), but if you're thinking about nabbing it for yourself, you'd better bring a crew -- it weighs in at over three tons. Hit the read link for way more info.

[Via Digg and Today and Tomorrow]

[Danny @ May 2nd 2008 5:38PM]

I want one in my room.

[Eric @ May 2nd 2008 5:43PM]

Your going to need a bigger room

[po @ May 2nd 2008 6:03PM]

and life insurance too

[Maurik @ May 2nd 2008 9:39PM]

It's pretty cool this, the one at the railway station, you can SMS it and it displays the text. How useless.

[IT-Accountant @ May 2nd 2008 5:42PM]

will it play doom?

lol j/k

still, think about it, you could use this as a QVGA screen... you could do multiple-layer 3d a la samsung's lcd screens too... (http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/06/samsungs-3d-capable-pn42a450p-plasma-display-hitting-the-states/)

Okay, my imagination is getting out of control.

[Vic20 @ May 2nd 2008 6:19PM]

It gets 25fps? We'll see about that...

timedemo 1
map crusher.dm2

[Zack Isaacs @ May 2nd 2008 5:45PM]

Guys, seriously. This is old. Replicate this effect with a 1000x1000x1000 pixel OLED cube and I'll be impressed.

[Phil Ringsmuth @ May 2nd 2008 5:46PM]

Guess you better get started then, huh?

[Rafer @ May 2nd 2008 5:50PM]

Lots of info at the read link.... If you speak German

[Rafer @ May 2nd 2008 5:51PM]

NM theres an English button

[Isaac @ May 3rd 2008 12:48AM]

Lucky for me I do speak german.

Buenos Dias.

[PaulPaul @ May 2nd 2008 5:51PM]

video in action:
(simple colors)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MBegN07uDg

(music video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBGIQ7ZuuiU

[Sam @ May 2nd 2008 5:55PM]

DAMNIT

[w00t @ May 3rd 2008 2:29AM]

I still don't get the point, I only ever hear those snares before the song starts and I've already hit the red X button and it's gone :)

[TheGeektoriousBIG @ May 2nd 2008 7:38PM]

fap fap fap fap

[Cassini @ May 2nd 2008 8:56PM]

That's the second time I've been Rick Rolled on Engadget. Aaaarrrgh!

[Wwhat @ May 3rd 2008 11:30AM]

Seems this thing makes people holding cameras very nervous then eh.

[LesbianHam @ May 3rd 2008 1:32PM]

@ w00t:

It takes you until it starts?? I see the title and it's gone.

[Emil Crumhorn @ May 2nd 2008 6:07PM]

I walk past this thing a few times a week (I live in Zurich), and it's not nearly as cool as it looks. It's quite far up in the ceiling (the vertical height inside the train station is astounding).

Here's how users interact:
There's a touch screen computer on a pillar down below that lets you draw a 2D shape onto it and color it (like a basic paint program) that will then get mirrored by the ceiling. The problem is that it converts 2D to 3D by coloring all "bulbs" vertically to the top. Another issue is that the timer on that computer is too short, so people usually get cut off in the middle of drawing something. Even when they do finish, it stays lit up for about 10 seconds before it reverts back to some random gradient scheme.

Overall it could've been much cooler than it is, but the implementation is poor, and (in my opinion), the whole display is way too far up in the ceiling.

[Tim Co. @ May 2nd 2008 6:40PM]

yes! I cant believe I am seeing this here. I didn't even know what it was when I walked by on my trip to Zurich last week. Its in the central train station right? It looked interesting but I had no idea what the purpose was and didn't give it much of a thought. Who knew it was a modern marvel of technology? Seemed more like IKEA threw up lol... way too high up. Maybe i'm just a dumb american, I can accept that one wholeheartedly.

[superpotential @ May 3rd 2008 10:08AM]

i agree. it hangs over near a smoking area and is too high, where nobody ever looks; it also doesn't look 3D because you really can't see the inside of it from the floor of the HB. i think they should take it down, put it on a big table, and have it on display like that.

[glenneasley @ May 2nd 2008 6:37PM]

An artist by the name of Mark Lottor did this at Burning Man in 2004 and every year since - improving the design and programing each time. Last year's version was 40' in diameter:

http://www.nw.com/nw/projects/brc/

It looks absolutely amazing!

G!

[sam @ May 2nd 2008 6:51PM]

this thing is a million times cooler
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cubatron

[sam @ May 2nd 2008 6:53PM]

(i meant Mark Lotter's thing)

[Barry @ May 2nd 2008 8:51PM]

Hell yeah, the Big Round Cubatron pwns this.

[sam @ May 2nd 2008 6:46PM]

old news, saw this over a year ago.
not as cool as it could have been (its so high I barely noticed it). still can't blame them for trying.
however
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF1vFTQOWN4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cL_0yBmWEEw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42hgPLL8IrA

[Stem $ell @ May 2nd 2008 9:54PM]

Meh... Let there be trite...

[Dave @ May 3rd 2008 4:23AM]

In Zürich where exactly? I might take the train go there to take a look... it looks awesome!

[hiko36 @ May 3rd 2008 4:46AM]

Screw a mirror above my bed... why would I need to watch myself when I could just watch that beauty!!!

[Wwhat @ May 3rd 2008 11:43AM]

You have a mirror above a single bed I'm guessing, not a double.

[JRD15 @ May 3rd 2008 3:05PM]

That would go great in my washroom! That way I wouldn't be so bored washing clothes.

[Player1 @ May 4th 2008 10:33AM]

In the big hall at the Zurich main station. It has been hanging there for ages, so actually this is old news. But it really is impressive when seen in motion, especially in the evening when the hall gets darker. Very nice. You should really visit Zurich, it's a beautiful town *Advertising* ;)