stereoscopy
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Lunar 'sandbox' helps robots see in harsh moon lighting
Everything is more extreme on the moon. On top of temperatures that range from -300 F to +224 F, future astronauts and probes must deal with lighting conditions generously described as "harsh." To help, researchers at Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley created a lunar testbed, complete with craters, fluffy dust and solar simulator lights. The goal is to develop sensors that can "see" in such conditions to help probes and, eventually, humans navigate the surface safely.
Microsoft patent applications take Kinect into mobile cameras, movie-making
Microsoft has never been shy about its ambitions for Kinect's depth sensing abilities. A pair of patent applications, however, show that its hopes and dreams are taking a more Hollywood turn. One patent has the depth camera going portable: a "mobile environment sensor" determines its trajectory through a room and generates a depth map as it goes, whether it's using a Kinect-style infrared sensor or stereoscopic cameras. If the visual mapping isn't enough, the would-be camera relies on a motion sensor like an accelerometer to better judge its position as it's jostled around. Microsoft doesn't want to suggest what kind of device (if any) might use the patent for its camera, but it's not ruling out anything from smartphones through to traditional PCs. The second patent filing uses the Kinect already in the house for that directorial debut you've always been putting off. Hand gestures control the movie editing, but the depth camera both generates a model of the environment and creates 3D props out of real objects. Motion capture, naturally, lets the humans in the scene pursue their own short-lived acting careers. We haven't seen any immediate signs that Microsoft is planning to use this or the mobile sensor patent filing in the real world, although both are closer to reality than some of the flights of fancy that pass by the USPTO -- the movie editor has all the hallmarks of a potential Dashboard update or Kinect Fun Labs project.
Spanish researchers to train FIFA referees on calling plays with stereoscopic 3D, won't help catch dives
Spain might be on Cloud Nine after clinching victory in UEFA's Euro 2012, but a team at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid isn't resting easy. To help referees know when they should blow the whistle, researchers have recorded 500 simulated offside soccer (yes, football) plays in stereoscopic 3D to give refs a more immersive sense of what it's like to make the call on the pitch. The hope is to have FIFA more quickly and accurately stopping play without having to spend too much actual time on the grass. We don't yet know how many referees if any will be trained on the system by the 2014 World Cup, or if it will spread to other leagues -- what we do know is that no amount of extra immersion is needed to catch a theatrically fake injury.
3D (sort of) on your iPad without glasses
There's a nifty little free demo you may want to pick up that uses the iPad camera to do some head tracking and create a kind of faux 3D on your iPad display. We took a look at an early demo for this last month, and now the app has arrived for your downloading pleasure. Unlike stereoscopic 3D systems, i3D doesn't send two images to your eyes. What i3D does instead is show you several scenes that change perspective as you tilt your iPad side to side and up and down. The effect does not depend on the gyros built into the iPad, but instead uses the camera to track the position of your head and render a changing perspective in real time. The demo was developed by Jeremie Francone and Laurence Nigay, and as you use it, you can just imagine the possibilities for games and educational apps. The app only works in portrait view at present. There is an iPhone version, but screen size makes a difference and the 3D effect on the iPad version seems stronger. I've seen some similar demos that use the built-in gyro, but they don't seem as responsive as this app. It's hard to give you a feel for this app in a static screen shot, so I'd suggest that you check out the fascinating video on the next page to get a good idea how it all works. %Gallery-124231%
PlayStation 3 could get 3D depth slider à la the 3DS
How will sir be having his gimmick today? The devs behind the upcoming Sly Cooper 3D compilation are wisely mulling over the idea of inserting a 3D-adjusting slider to let users decide just how much stereoscopy they want with their Sony-approved gaming. It's argued that this should allow you greater positional flexibility when smacking fools down in three dimensions, as you'll be able to manually toggle the depth of the 3D effect to suit your viewing angle. We were happy to see such an option introduced in the Nintendo 3DS at E3 and would similarly welcome its inclusion on the PS3 -- though that's no foregone conclusion as yet. All we can say for sure right now is that the stuff is adjustable, but it looks like it'll be up to devs to roll their sleeves up and integrate the slider into their games. Hey, it's the summer, not like they've got anything else to do, right?
