3d interface
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Apple files patent for interactive 3D interface, keeps rumor mills turning
Murmurs of an iPad 3 on the horizon not doing it for you? How about a new pseudo-3D interface? A patent filing has whet our appetites with the possibility (that's what it is; a possibility) of a future Apple device capable of gauging depth and displaying a 3D environment based on the user's eye movement. On-screen content would adjust to your eye movement, expanding items where ever your eyesight falls. It would also create a "virtual 3D operating system environment," where the user would feel like the UI projects beyond the two-dimensional screen. The patent includes details on 'realistic' drop shadows for icons and other OS furniture based on the degree and angle of ambient light. The filing, from April 2010, says that the technology would use an accelerometer, GPS and 'gyrometer' to reference the placement of the device and report on its movements. Sound interesting? Those in need of more foggy details and line drawings can hit up the full patent request at the source below.
Microsoft patent details a 3D desktop interface with a room for your windows
Many have tried and failed to bring a 3D desktop interface to an otherwise 2D operating system, but that certainly hasn't stopped others from trying. The latest example to crop up comes courtesy of none other than Microsoft, which recently received a patent for what it describes as a "method and apparatus for providing a three-dimensional task gallery computer interface." In other words, it's an interface intended to help you better manage multiple tasks, which the patent suggests could be done in a 3D environment with a floor, walls and a ceiling. Apparently, you'd be able to group multiple windows at various spots in the "room," which would let you rely on your spatial memory to easily find a given task -- with the room getting deeper and deeper to accommodate more tasks. In the patent's claims, the only means described for navigating around that room is a set of icons that would adjust to suit the 3D environment, although it certainly seems like it could easily be adapted to accommodate gesture controls as well. Hit up the source link below for plenty more line drawings where this one came from.
'Beautiful Modeler' app turns iPad into multitouch 3D sculpting device
Sure, it might not make for as good of an R&B album title as Nilay Patel's "Beautiful Handcuffs," but Interactive Fabrication's "Beautiful Modeler" iPad app is probably a bit more useful (though not as useful with the ladies). The concept is to use the iPad's multitouch screen as an input for multi-finger 3D modeling on a computer, while the tablet's tilt sense lets you navigate around the object. Sure, it's not as slick or precise as, say, the Axsotic 3D mouse, but it also looks a whole lot more "tangible." Unfortunately, the app is currently unavailable on the App Store, and we have no idea if it's ever headed for a computer near you -- Interactive Fabrication is all about the high concept stuff, leaving the execution to individuals -- but there's some freely available GPL-licensed source code if you want to take a crack at compiling and making a real product out of this. Check out a video of the sculpting in action after the break. [Thanks, Danil]
3D touch interface for WoW due later this year
Keyboards, mice, and hand-controllers are so 2007. Get with the modern times, willya? Today we discovered that a 3D touch interface is on the horizon for WoW gamers. Using this weird robot-type gizmo, you'll be able to actually feel everything your character does in the game: casting spells, reeling from enemy attacks, feeling objects, bumping into things, and whacking ogres on the head! (I seriously want to bonk some ogres on the head with this thing. I expect it will feel somewhat hollow, like smacking a pumpkin.) The gizmo is called a Falcon game controller and it aims to replace your mouse or joystick. The Falcon is already usable with some other games, but Novint Technologies is now creating WoW drivers for the device using the LUA scripting system. You can map up to 36 actions to it for which the controller will provide feedback that you can feel in your hand and arm. You can watch a demo on the company's website, or a more hands-on demo in the video below. When the drivers are released, you can download them at Novint's website. We'll keep you up to date so you'll know when you can grab them. The Falcon controller sells for $189.99 on Novint's website. No word on what the drivers will cost, if anything.
