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Archive for the ‘Kinect’ Category

Kinect tracks your hands and lets you play with balls in real time

24 Oct

At the first DDDNorth, I did a session on Kinect and the Kinect SDK. One of the question I get asked is “can it track my fingers?” Well, the SDK doesnt let you do this – yet. However, because you have access to the raw video streams, theres no reason why you cant do it yourself.

Microsoft Research have taken a Kinect, and using the reflection on a piece of glass from a normal monitor, and managed to recreate a HoloDeck environment, right on your desktop – Called HoloDesk.

It lets you manipulate 3D objects in real time, and allows intrgration with real world objects. Its much better to see than explain, so watch this video.

 
 

DDD North – My Session on Kinect – Feedback

13 Oct

Thanks to all of you for the great feedback on my session about Kinect. I’ve shared the feedback I got on this post, but you might need to click on the picture to make it big enough to read, but I wanted to share it in the same format as I got it.

Looks like I need to work on the abstracts a little, but overall I’m pretty damn chuffed – thanks.

 

 

 

Speaking at DDD North on 8th October

04 Sep

Firstly, thanks you all of you that voted for my session, “Kinect The Dots”, for DDD north. I’m pleased to say that your votes mean I got the speaking slot and will be there on the 8th October talking about the wonderful things you can do with Microsoft Kinect and its SDK.

Hope to see you there!

 

Vote for DDD North sessions

31 Aug

The voting for DDD north is currently open and will remain so until Saturday.

I’ve got a couple of sessions submitted, including one on the Kinect SDK which a blogged about a earlier this year.

If you’d like to see that session, then you need to vote for it.. It wont happen without your votes!

Head on over to http://www.developerdeveloperdeveloper.com/north/Users/VoteForSessions.aspx to vote.

 

Update: I’m now speaking at DDD north. Hope to see you there!

 

Kinect Air Guitar

04 Mar

With Microsoft giving developers what they want, meaning a fantastic hardware product and an SDK so they can use it in thier own apps, its not surprising at the rate of ideas being shown around the Internet.

I stumbled across this Air Guitar video, earlier this week:

Air Guitar prototype with Kinect from Chris O’Shea on Vimeo.

 
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Microsoft to release SDK for Kinect

22 Feb

When I did my DDD9 talk on Home Automation, I suggested that the Kinect device would soon be included into the Home Automation space. Adding natural gesture recognition sounds like a good fit in this market space. Well, yesterday this took a step nearer when Microsoft released an SDK for Kinect on Windows.

With the initial release expected in the spring, the first version will aimed at the hobbyist developer and non-commercial uses. It will however, allow access to all the fun stuff in the Kinect, such as Audio, 3D cameras, range finding etc. A commerical version of the software development kit will be available later on in the year.

Heres a link to the official release from Microsoft Research Labs in Cambridge.

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/news/features/kinectforwindowssdk-022111.aspx

 

Home Automation: Kinect Edition

11 Feb

During my talk at DD9 a couple of weeks ago, I discussed various different approaches to Domotics (that the posh word for home automation;-)). One of those ideas I suggested was to make use of Microsofts excellent Kinect and its depth perception cameras.

Great minds think alike, obviously, as I notice an entry on 123kinect.com showing exactly that!

Channel4 news ran a promotion on some of the stuff Microsoft are doing in Redmond, and beside the computer guided cars, theres a tour of the Microsoft house, where everything is controlled by touch, voice and gesture.

You can watch the video for yourself here.

Very very cool!