Obscura Digital projects multi-touch "hologram," blows all sorts of minds
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted August 5th 2008 12:25AM
posted August 5th 2008 12:25AM
posted August 5th 2008 12:25AM
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The technology to do this is actually pretty simple. I suspect it's doing pretty basic image processing that looks for blobs of bright objects, in this case, his hands and his face. The reason he's making fists is likely that the algorithm probably doesn't work so well with outstretched fingers. Once it finds the blobs, it just has to track their position and velocity over time.
I'm glad you got my joke... i guess i should've said something about the iphone, then it woulda been really funny.
It looks like a sweet device, and I envy your internship. i can't wait until i can stand in front of my computer like a conductor and tom cruise my way through pictures, videos and maps of the world (that was a minorty report reference, in case you missed it).
i hope the integration of these types of tehnologies are affordable and quickly implimented. and i hope theyre able to break the glass cealing of simple gestures and GUIs since this type of interface seems to lack complexity and user-controlled exactitude.
I'm glad you got my joke... i guess i should've said something about the iphone, then it woulda been really funny.
It looks like a sweet device, and I envy your internship. i can't wait until i can stand in front of my computer like a conductor and tom cruise my way through pictures, videos and maps of the world (that was a minorty report reference, in case you missed it).
i hope the integration of these types of tehnologies are affordable and quickly implimented. and i hope theyre able to break the glass cealing of simple gestures and GUIs since this type of interface seems to lack complexity and user-controlled exactitude.
Boringgggggggg........
What's the point of doing that?!?!?!
He looks bored himself at the end hahahahahaha
Its like minority report all over again, so awesome
come on people. This looks like a guy on a school stage waving his hands around and another video track put over the top, does nobody agree.
it looks really fake. the camera should have changed the position, so we see how the perspective changes. but as it looks now, this could really be some superimposed video-track over a stupid guy waving around.
No, nobody agrees.
Who are these jack asses that have infiltrated engadget lately!! Enough negative votes over a certain time frame should suspend your account for stupidity!
nope.
quick grab your tin hat!
mind = blown
mad 1337 skillz
cool...geez!!
I only see two planes- one in front of and one behind the presenter. I would hardly call this a hologram. (Now if he stepped through and object I'd be impressed.)
Ever think about how video games started? They were 2D for the longest time and only recently do we have technology that enables us to create fast moving 3D worlds on screen. It's the same here, it's a first step.Nothing more, nothing less. Wait another 5-10 years and then we'll probably see your fancy step through holograms. I don't need to see the Holo-Halo right now because I'm glad already there is Super Holo Mario Brothers.
So fake. It could have been more convincing if he held a Wii-mote to move those things around. Or better yet a glove like device like in minority report. He doesn't even have his eyes open (1:28), what's up with that!!
What would he need is eyes opened for? It's not like he's projecting the hologram with his mind or something. The system apparently traces his hands in 3D space so even Stevie Wonder could fucking operate this thing. It's a bit too sophisticated for a fake and a darkened stage setting is the ideal environment for clean shape recognition so I think this actually works. Wonder how they do the display anyway.
How can you see what your doing if your eyes are closed. Maybe b/c his eyes are closed that "...he's projecting the hologram with his mind or something" (^ v ^).
don't feed the trolls
Cactaur attacks w/ 1000 needles.
Where's the 3D? holograms are supposed to be 3D but all I see is a guy behind a see-through projection screen.
It looks cool but unfortunately nothing more than that.
I "Hate" his yellow teeth!
Did I ween?
DAMN YOU SINNN
I think he's got a wand.
I think that the gloves in Minority Report were potentially a smoother way to interface with a system like this. Maybe in a few years...
What's with the pant leg? I think the tech would be useful later on especially in medical applications where you would want to blow up the scans to read them (the resolution might be an issue)
The whole concept is that it's a concept. I'm sure eventually we'll stop using input devices as we know it; it's really about time for the mouse to retire; keyboard too...we should all just think real hard at the computer and hope it responds someday
It's totally cool and all, but seriously, how useful is a big haystack of photos as an interface? The multi-touch guys keep putting out demos showing people zipping through a pile of photos to do -- what exactly? Tilting a photo 5 degrees and sweeping it to the left isn't a real 'in demand' sort of feature, is it?
I suspect that if this interface was ever built as a real application, the most popular button would be the 'clean up album' button.
Man, I'm glad someone else put that out there. I've been thinking that very thing since I first saw MS do it with their surface demo.
I can see myself playing "holographic" solitaire with this instead of looking at photos. Then again watching "holographic" youtube would be nice.
We need a devise that is user friendly in user interface, HD display that consume less, less vulnerable to hostile environment, weighs less, costs even less and practical... I don't find any super big, super bling, multi-touch and always in prototype stage product that irritate my eyes.
The implications for the online porn industry are staggering.
Can everyone please stop saying hologram? In no way does that technology use holograms, it's just a fancy projection. In fact, in all honesty I'm surprised they're allowed to use the word. No denying that it's cool though.
Very impressive, I am currently looking for a practical cost effective similar to this which we want to use for commecial promotions etc.
Any ideas where I might find a 3D Holographic System. As I say this looks very impressive to me but I guess it priced out of the range for small medium size companies.
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