Microsoft Research unveils 'wearable' projector and 3D camera
A shoulder-mounted device that projects interactive images has become the latest innovation from Microsoft’s research wing.
In partnership with Carnegie Mellon University, Microsoft Research has built a pico-projector that comes with a Kinect-like depth camera. The result is a device that can spread images on many surfaces – hands, paper, walls – while at the same time is able to detect and read fingers interacting with them.
The result, known as OmniTouch, is branded as Wearable Multitouch Interaction. Users can resize, rotate and move projected images, as well as turn fingers into highlight markers and read emails from their hands.
The gaming potential for the device was not demonstrated.
A video of the technology can be found below.
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Certainly a cool idea, and to see it in action means we're getting closer and closer to these ideas becoming a reality.
The only "But" I have is that Microsoft aren't the first ones to build and demonstrate such a system - Pattie Maes and Pranav Mistry demonstrated their "Sixth Sense" technology in a TED talk in February 2009.
Here's the link, I recommend you take a look, its fascinating stuff: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/pattie_maes_demos_the_sixth_sense.html
