I'm a sucker for all kinds of experimental and alternative interfaces with a computer. That's why I developed the Google Earth Led Torch Controller. Although this next one doesn't have that many applications, it is nevertheless quite interesting.
This is Scratch Input, an acoustic-based input technique that relies on the unique sound produced when a fingernail is dragged over the surface of a textured material, such as wood, fabric, or wall paint.
Whether it is by researching for new interface technologies or modifying everyday devices to operate in a new environment, we have to consider that there may be other ways of interacting with a computer. Pointing and clicking has become a very common task in our everyday use with a computer. But if we want to improve the way we interact with machines and increase our productivity, we have to start thinking outside the box.
DontClick.it is a website dedicated to explore a new interactive experience which doesn't require any clicking with a mouse. Using different types of mouse movements and events, the website is as fluent as if we were moving it with our own hands. It's amazing how something that is so different than our normal interactivity with computers can be so intuitive and familiar.
After a few minutes within the website, I started feeling that every interaction with my computer should be like this. Give a try...it's guaranteed that you'll like it :-)
It seems that everybody is working on image tracking software these days. I've talked about several of these technologies, but there's a new one that sounds very promising. Cam-Trax allows users to control video games with any object that you desire. And you can do all of that with just a simple webcam. Check out the video for the details:
There are geeks all over the world and they all have weird ideas. But sometimes, some of those ideas can actually be very funny or useful.
Check out this experience which uses the sound of sparks coming from tesla coils to play the Super Mario Bros. theme song:
And what about this guy, which decided to create a "Minority Report"-like interface by using the infrared capabilities of the Nintendo Wii controller?
Not to brag myself, but I still think that my GELToC solution is far more simple and elegant :-)
By using two led torches and a webcam, I was able to create an application that processes the light sources (from a dark background) and maps them into mouse control movements, which in turn are converted into Google Earth control movements, giving the illusion that you are controlling the World map with just a pair of tiny lights.
Check out a demo video:
GELToC is an open source application and you can obtain more information on it here.
Augmented reality, a concept that exists for a few years now, may be the key to deliver new gaming experiences as the mix between the reality and computer-generated data promises to deliver new ways to interact with games.
A New Zealand digital artist, Julian Oliver, is working on a cool game that blends the electronic universe with the real world. By using a cube with special symbols and a webcam to film it, he presents an interesting game where the user must help a digital player move around in a 3D maze. Check out the video to get a full understanding of the technology:
When João Bordalo gave the tip, I decided to try Atlas Gloves myself and discovered that it's really fun to have this "Minority Report"-like interfaces where you can control the computer with just a pair of custom lights and a webcam.
For sometime now, I was curious on this kind of technology related to Image Segmentation and this Atlas Gloves idea was just the kick I needed to start doing my own research on the subject. Amazingly, the technology is really simple and obeys some very simple principles that anyone with little computation skills can develop.
So, with a lot of "Googling" I found the basic tools to work with the technology and decided to implement my very own Google Earth controller, which I named GELToC (which stands for Google Earth Led Torch Controller).
By using two led torches like the ones in the figure on the left (but it also worked with flashlights and even with my iPod nano screen) and a webcam, I was able to create an application that processes the light sources (from a dark background) and maps them into mouse control movements, which in turn are converted into Google Earth control movements, giving the illusion that you are controlling the World map with just a pair of tiny lights.
GELToC was developed using the Java Programming Language. It uses the JMF (Java Media Framework) API to access images from the webcam and it uses the java.awt.Robot Class to control the mouse.
Check out the demo video below:
GELToC is an open source application and you can obtain more information on it here. Future steps of this technology include improving the application in order to use the led torches to control the all computer environment and not only specific applications such as Google Earth.
I need some "beta testers" for the application, so give it a try and then let me know of your experience :-)
Computer Science Professor. Portuguese pseudo-geek. Apple fan. Internet Enthusiast. Artificial Intelligence researcher working on a little project called Skynet.
