Challenge your AR Skills and Diminished Reality
Mobile AR
Qualcomm finally opened their doors towards their SDK. It can be downloaded from their SDK website. To quote them from their press release: “Qualcomm’s Augmented Reality (AR) Software Development Kit (SDK) for Android smartphones is now available for download in a public beta. This SDK will help developers build a new generation of AR applications that enable interactive 3D experiences to take place on everyday objects. The SDK utilizes computer vision technology to tightly align graphics with underlying objects and features support for image targets, frame markers, virtual buttons and simple 3D objects.”
… and keep in mind their Developer’s challenge, that opened up officially now, too. Grab the USD 125k first price! :-)
To get you started and inspired on mobile AR apps development, see the winners of the wikitude world cup!
Remove, don’t augment!
Another great demo, submitted at last year’s ISMAR, just went online on youtube. Francesco Cosco now documented his work in the web: their main focus was on integrating a robot-arm haptic feedback controller for interaction into their AR setup. But the by-product was even more impressing for me. To hide the ugly robot arm they mask it out in real-time. The term for this kind of trickery is diminished reality and is the evil twin brother of Augmented Reality. You will need reference images of the area behind the real object or interpolate missing areas. It works pretty stable and fast in the demo below. This could actually be another way of changing your personal reality one day. Don’t overlay existing ads (like in my Adbusting post), but rather get rid of whole elements. Of course we need to think of security, so you don’t bump into hidden cars. ;-)
Munich
Small note at the side: if you happen to be in Munich this weekend and are a journalist interested in web2.0 and technology, be sure to register for the Besser Online conference. Held at BR on 9th. I will be in the Augmented Reality Panel, talking about the fascination and future of AR. I’d be happy if you drop by and say Hi! :-)