augmented reality

Augmented Reality used to simulate an accelerometer in Windows Phone 7 emulator

September 14, 2010 | By Surur

We have seen many creative approaches to implementing accelerometer input in windows phone 7, including using Wii remotes, but Nikos Kastellanos’s approach clearly takes the crown for the most innovative and unusual approach.

Using the ARToolkit, they implemented a method where a user will be able to hold a cardboard cut-out of a device with a special pattern in front of a webcam and see, on their screen, an apparently real device responding to their movements, running the code they had just written in the emulator.

Nikos from tainicom.net promise to release the software to developers soon.

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Scansearch Augmented reality app coming to Windows Phone 7

August 31, 2010 | By Surur

ScanSearch-LG Today’s leak of the LG Optimus 7 has revealed more than the looks of the device and processor speed. Also shown, besides the Media Sharing app, appears to be the Korean ScanSearch app, which is a Google Goggles application on steroids (see the video above of the iPhone version to see what that means).

While we have not seen the user interface on Windows Phone 7, hopefully the software will also be able to take advantage of the compass and direct video feeds, unlike non-OEM Windows Phone 7 developers.

Via Mobiletechworld and WMExperts.com

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NaviGame – new augmented reality MMORPG for the HTC HD2

August 4, 2010 | By Surur

quest_logo NaviGame is a new game MMORPG-type game which blends reality and the virtual world by using the many and varied sensors on the HTC HD2, including the GPS, , G-Sensor and compass.

At present the game consists mainly of planting virtual trees to gather resources, and having to travel physical distance to move from tree to tree (the board is about 100 KM big in real life).

The software uses Philippe Wechsler’s free Tigre OpenGL engine

3 quests already implemented include:

QUEST 1: I’ve planted 10 trees on map (positions are bellow), your goal is to find one of them and get some seeds from it (Player -> Interact -> Extract -> Get seed). Note: Extract feature works only if you’re very close to tree. Now look into your inventory, Tree Seed should appear there. You can get another one or two from that tree.

QUEST 2: If you already have your own Tree Seed, you can plant your own tree wherever you want (I recommend some place near your home, it will be easier to get wood from it in future). Now how can you plant the tree? Simply select it in your inventory and click Action -> Drop. Tree will be visible for you and for every other player after restart of the game. Yes, the in-game world will be very dynamic… You can also get next seeds from your tree

QUEST 3: Wait, until your tree grow (it takes a few hours). When you click „Extract“ on your tree, you can see how much of wood you can extract from it (Older tree = more wood). Now the real fun begins… Hold your phone like when you hold axe and make a move like with axe. Extracted value will raise and when you click OK, the extracted value will be added to your „Inventory“, just check it The tree you’ve extracted will be lost and you can plant another on that place.

Not the most thrilling missions yet of course, but its early days, and isn’t gold farming about 90% of WoW?

To get started read more at Shawn.cz here.

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Heads-up Display for HTC HD2

May 17, 2010 | By Surur

We have written before about a developer figuring out how to render video from the camera on a directX surface but at the time a practical use escaped us. Baldido however soon provided an answer, in the form of this Heads-Up Display for the HTC HD2 which uses the accelerometer & compass sensor, with the live camera preview is used to fake transparency.

Can our readers think of more uses? Email and Walk for Windows Mobile maybe? Let us know your ideas below.

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Zenitum shows of marker-less augmented reality on a Samsung Omnia 2

March 10, 2010 | By Surur

Korean company Zenitum has shown of an improved version if augmented reality that allows the company to dispose of the ubiquitous back and white markers one normally associates with the technology.

Able to recognize features on a scene directly, this also allows for depth perception using only a single camera, and allows for more natural interaction with the scene.

In the above demo a Samsung Omnia 2 is being used to animate a figure climbing a keyboard, demonstrating not only 2D but also a 3 dimensional perception of the space.

Read more about the technology at Zenitum here.

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Windows Mobile Augmented reality developer talks about winning Samsung Developer Challenge

December 26, 2009 | By Surur

PocketGamer has published an interview with the $100 000 Platinum winner of the Samsung Application Store Developer Challenge 2009

The winner was Korean outfit HyongaSoft, with its Ompass World Cities with its Augmented Reality application for Windows Mobile.

When developer Sukhyun Shin was asked why he felt they won, he noted they were able to take full advantage of the hardware, the Samsung Omnia II, such as GPS, accelerometer, compass, vibration and camera. They also paid attention to the UI of the device, which they felt complemented the hardware and was pivotal in their win.

Asked what inspired them to make Ompass World Cities they said:

Thanks to the rise in mobile technologies and access to free internet, augmented reality is one of the key new fields for smartphones so we’ve been studying it for a while.
Our first release Ompass World Cities has two functions. One is a digital compass that displays accurate angle information, and the other is location information in terms of the distance and angles to major world cities. This distance and angle information updates when camera view is moved or turned.
In addition, the next version will provide detailed city life information for each city. This means that users can see how far away the subway, airport, restaurant, theater, museum or park is by turning on the app.

They noted they only had one week to test and integrate the application, due to the initial unavailability of the Omnia 2 in Korea. They are however pretty proud of their effort and noted they would re-invest their win in many new fun smartphone applications, mostly Windows Mobile.

Although HyongaSoft is only a five month old start-up, we’ve been preparing to enter the fastest growing sectors of the smartphone market for a very long time.

We say "the festival just started". This means there’s more expected value, many chances and possibilities ahead. From 2010, many platforms and devices will vie with each other for victory. In this sense, we’re ready to become a global star company.

We started our business with the support of Seoul’s 2030 Youth Start-up Project, and since then we’ve been building up our technologies around smartphone apps (mostly Windows Mobile platform), and exploring the possibilities of marketing and distribution to global marketplaces and making partnerships with developers and business partners all over the world.

Read the full interview, which should provide plenty of inspiration to new developers, here.

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Total Immersion Partners with int13 for Windows Mobile Augmented Reality apps

September 14, 2009 | By Surur

dfusiongame Total Immersion, the world leader in augmented reality, today announced that it has signed an exclusive distribution partnership with int13 , a French software firm that specializes in next-gen smartphone applications.

Total Immersion and int13 will integrate their respective technologies to market embedded augmented reality applications through Total Immersion`s D`Fusion Mobile platform. Compatible with the majority of next-generation mobile phones, the initial application will operate seamlessly on Symbian and Windows Mobile devices, with iPhone and Android support following thereafter. The application will be released early in Q4.

Total Immersion`s patented D`Fusion augmented reality technology integrates real time interactive 3-D graphics into a live video stream. The partnership between Total Immersion and int13 expands the D`Fusion platform to mobile devices. D`Fusion Mobile complements Total Immersion`s D`Fusion Professional, D`Fusion@Home and D`Fusion Web browser implementations.

"At int13, we recognize the value of augmented reality as an engaging new way to interact with consumers," said Stéphane Cocquereaumont, Managing Director of int13. "Our aim is to develop games and augmented reality applications that make the most of what smartphones have to offer. With this distribution partnership, we look to benefit from Total Immersion`s premier market position as the company brings our combined technology to a global audience."

"This is a win-win for both companies, and for consumers," said Bruno Uzzan, CEO, Total Immersion. "int13 has developed one of the most dynamic augmented reality libraries for mobile phones. With this agreement, Total Immersion enters the booming smartphone application space, marketing a compelling augmented reality experience on mobile devices."

Total Immersion Total Immersion is the global leader in augmented reality. Through its patented D`Fusion technology, Total Immersion blurs the line between the virtual world and the real world by integrating real time interactive 3D graphics into a live video stream. Leading the augmented reality category since 1999, the company maintains a presence in Europe and the U.S., and supports a network of partners worldwide.

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Cross Platform Augmented Reality service aims to make the world more interesting, psychotic

August 5, 2009 | By Surur

If you have a penchant for seeing things which are not really there, Metaio has got you covered,. The company has developed a Augmented Reality service which allows one to create interesting graphical objects and website links tied to geographic locations, only visible through smartphones using their software.

The software is set to be available on Windows Mobile, Android, S60 and iPhone, and integrates with social networks such as facebook and twitter, meaning friends who do not have appropriately equipped devices can still share in the fun.

"You now can turn places into your own hotspots," metaio explains on its Web site. "By leaving traces, messages or objects, you can change how you, your friends and everyone else sees the world. Whether you want to guide your friends to your favourite restaurant, point out a yet-unknown sight or add objects on your campus–it is up to you."

See the video below for the software being demoed on an iPhone in action.

[flv:http://www.metaio.com/uploads/tx_templavoila/metaioWorld_01.flv 530 420]

See more at Metaio here.

Via itvt.com

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Augmented Reality comes to Windows Mobile

January 12, 2009 | By Surur

There seems to be a dearth of cool Windows Mobile apps these days, so I thought I would dig this one up from the vault.

Students at the Graz University of Technology has created an Augmented Reality Framework which runs very well on the average Windows Mobile smartphone. Augmented Reality supplements the real world with electronically created graphics and information, and normally needs rather powerful hardware.

Their solution, which can recognize graphics and objects in the real world, like pictures and business cards, works very well on even mid-range smartphones like the Motorola Q.

The business card version is particularly cute, and one wonders why no-one has implemented the technology commercially yet.