SIGGRAPH VIRTUALLY THERE -- EMERGING TECH INSIDER LOOK

SIGGRAPH EMERGING TECHNOLOGY always offers a peek at the future today. Here's a recap of some of the kewlest tech at Siggraph in the Emerging Tech arena in Boston 2006.

This is the first of a series in Siggraph reports -- what we see from these examples in the emerging technology arena are new emphasis on:

1) Alternate controllers

2) Alternate input devices (including forehead skin)

3) PAN (personal area network) -- using the body as a conductor

4) Optics -- cameras/sensors for replay or alternate tracking devices

5) Rise of sound as an entertainment vehicle

6) Sensors-- Chatty Cathy is old hat when your new doll or stuffed animal has 'feelings' all over it's body. No more metal robots??

7) Reel vs Real-- mixing the real with reel-- fooling the eye as to what's real life and what's video or simulation.

8) New games/toys and advertising or communication vehicles.

more later js.

		AR Tennis (AUGMENTED REALITY TENNIS) A collaborative augmented reality game for face-to-face interaction on mobile phones. Two users can play tennis on a virtual court superimposed on the real world. Contact Mark Billinghurst HIT Lab NZ, University of Canterbury [email protected] The Huggable: A New Type of Therapeutic Robotic Companion A robotic companion featuring a full body "sensitive skin," novel voice coil actuators, cameras, microphones, an inertial measurement unit, and an embedded PC with 802.11g networking for relational affective touch. Blogger note-- says can be used for nursing homes-- but you can't tell me this isn't a perfect 2007 XMAS TOY! -- WAY BEYOND CHATTY CATHY -- FEELY FRAN maybe? contact: [email protected] AUGMENTED PAINTING: Contact Jan Fischer WSI/GRIS, Universität Tübingen [email protected] Stylized AR (augmented reality) viewer cannot tell what's real and what's not -- even being used in psychotherapy. Combines video acquisition, video-based camera tracking, artistic video stylization, and artistic rendering in a single interactive real-time system. (BLOGGER NOTE -- may have big apps to the Film/TV industry). AND could be a new kind of ART & MEDIA. HOW ABOUT STORE WINDOWS WITH THESE APPS? BUBBLE COSMOS: Projects CG (computer graphic) images onto white smoke bubbles! When users break the bubbles--they make changes in the sound and visuals. Cameras track the CG project. Could be used to project logos of brands onto the bubbles with a sound. Ie NIKE SWOOSH with a swwwwwoooooosh sound......according to this blogger. Contact [email protected] Forehead Retina System designed for visually impaired but could be third eye for the rest of us! Evolved out of the Smarttouch display of 2003 at Siggraph!Note it is electronic stimulation -- the tech is in the sweatband -- not the glasses! The glasses are there to show the model has low-vision. Kewl stuff. Augmented reality in the works. FREQTIC DRUMS -- turns audience into a drum-- uses electro-dermal activity to create sound. Human body is conductor for MIDI SOUNDS Human skin contact supposedly has never been used before as an interface designer. BLOGGER NOTE -- could a future iPOD do the same thing-- turn your body into the band?  contact [email protected] HAND SHADOW -- 3D DDR (DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION) use for play, for fun and more-- could be used for motion capture according to the display description -- but I wonder (this blogger) if it could have relevance as a security measurea and as an exercise vehicle? Of course Dance Dance Revolution could be kewl with this too. Virtually involved. contact: [email protected]. National Taiwan University. INSTANT REPLAY -- motion capture at 500 HZ for objects without any tagging-- they're saying use it for air hockey -- but blogger says -- what about pool tables or what about tracking hand movements, and use as a security device-- ie opening locks/safes etc?    [email protected] DIGIWALL -- climbing wall that combines audio interaction [email protected]  It includes a sound-based game engine-- not just visual -- could be very interesting in entertainment and also whole body movement. BLOGGER NOTE: THINK DDR (DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION) STANDING UP! FABCELL --fibers are dyed with liquid crystal ink and then woven into a square textile The ink changes color as voltage is applied to them. BLOGGER NOTE -- could be used to put logos (IE MICKEY MOUSE ETC) on clothes and also to put ads on it too-- much more flexible than LED's -- hmm wonder if it's washable? Contact [email protected] DESKRAMA -- high resolution sensor that helps to examine a 3d model ie in architecture. Blogger note: could have ramification in the modeling part of the film industry...also could let you look at dioramas or become an art or entertainment format --not unlike mini VR tour! Contact [email protected]