Kinect as you’ve never seen it before...
Wed Dec 15 05:33PM by Andy McV
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Kinect, the motion-sensing camera for Xbox 360 that turns youinto the controller, hides a lot of very clever technology under its sleek black hood. For most of us that doesn’t mean a thing as long it plays great games. For others, though, Kinect represents nothing less than the opportunity to pull the device apart, investigate its innards and put it to new and exciting uses that Microsoft probably never dreamed of.
The speed at which this has happened has been surprising too. Kinect is barely a month old yet the internet is already awash with university projects and madcap investigative initiatives that not only find new ways to flex Kinect’s powerful technology but point the way forward for its future – both within games and, perhaps, beyond.
Put another way, the likes of Kinect Sports and Dance Central are going to look very old fashioned very soon. Here then is a selection of some of the best – or wackiest – new uses for Kinect. It could be taking the dog for a walk in a couple of years. You think we’re kidding...?
Minority Report for real
An enterprising hacker has used Kinect to bring a keyboard-less, multi-touch future a step closer to reality. Just like in the movie ‘Minority Report, in fact. His precognitive crime-fighting skills remain to be proved, but he's a dab hand at manipulating Windows 7:
An enterprising hacker has used Kinect to bring a keyboard-less, multi-touch future a step closer to reality. Just like in the movie ‘Minority Report, in fact. His precognitive crime-fighting skills remain to be proved, but he's a dab hand at manipulating Windows 7:
Kinect takes flight
Strap Kinect to a toy helicopter and what do you get? The ‘Kinect Quadrotor’ from Berkley University’s Hybrid Systems Lab can not only fly around on its own but can see objects in its away and avoid them. It’s either a spooky portent of things to come or a bunch of students larking about. You decide:
Strap Kinect to a toy helicopter and what do you get? The ‘Kinect Quadrotor’ from Berkley University’s Hybrid Systems Lab can not only fly around on its own but can see objects in its away and avoid them. It’s either a spooky portent of things to come or a bunch of students larking about. You decide:
Step into a new dimension
Kinect can already track your movements in 3D, but one man has taken things a stage further by linking two Kinects together. The results are a bit ropey, visually-speaking, but are impressive nonetheless – especially when the little monster from Doom appears on his desk:
Kinect can already track your movements in 3D, but one man has taken things a stage further by linking two Kinects together. The results are a bit ropey, visually-speaking, but are impressive nonetheless – especially when the little monster from Doom appears on his desk:
Virtual Invisibility
You’re not just the controller with Kinect, you can be the Predator! Two Kinects are paired with the freebie ‘openFrameworks’ software to make this user completely invisible. If you don’t like the results maybe you’ll appreciate the cool jazz soundtrack:
You’re not just the controller with Kinect, you can be the Predator! Two Kinects are paired with the freebie ‘openFrameworks’ software to make this user completely invisible. If you don’t like the results maybe you’ll appreciate the cool jazz soundtrack:
The sound of Music
Clever fellas have programmed Kinect to produce a virtual keyboard that can be scaled in size and played on any flat surface. It’s not as slick as Tom Hanks’routine in the movie ‘Big’, but we wouldn’t be at all surprised if this interpretation of Kinect’s capabilities finds its way into a real game:
Clever fellas have programmed Kinect to produce a virtual keyboard that can be scaled in size and played on any flat surface. It’s not as slick as Tom Hanks’routine in the movie ‘Big’, but we wouldn’t be at all surprised if this interpretation of Kinect’s capabilities finds its way into a real game:
No strings attached
Here Kinect picks up hand gestures and arm movements to control a large, comical bird-puppet. Home-theatre applications are immediately apparent, or maybe this is something for budding ventriloquists? Either way, Microsoft needs to start using this tech now!
Here Kinect picks up hand gestures and arm movements to control a large, comical bird-puppet. Home-theatre applications are immediately apparent, or maybe this is something for budding ventriloquists? Either way, Microsoft needs to start using this tech now!
