News Stories

James Cameron Designs 3D Camera for Mars Rover

8.31.2010

When James Cameron talked to Popular Mechanics about Avatar‘s theatrical rerelease and the 3D backlash, he couldn’t help slipping in some info on a project he’s particularly excited about—designing a stereoscopic camera for the Mars Science Laboratory, launching Fall 2011.

By next fall, James Cameron won’t just be planet Earth’s most accomplished director—he’ll be top cineophile on Mars, too. The Oscar-winning director is collaborating with NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and Malin Space Science Systems to help design a stereoscopic camera rig that will travel on the Mars Science Laboratory to our red neighbor. “I’m on the team that’s building the mast cam,” Cameron tells Popular Mechanics during an interview about the theatrical rerelease ofAvatar.

The Mars Science Laboratory, launching in Fall 2011, will explore a site that may have supported microbial life in the past. The rover—also known as Curiosity—will use newtechnologies to adjust its flight while descending to the surface; the platform will have 10 times the mass of instruments on previous rovers. It’s designed to traverse rougher terrain and will have a new surface propulsion system. Initially scheduled to launch in Fall 2009, hardware issues discovered in late 2008 caused NASA to push the launch back.

The camera team initially constructed a camera with zoom lenses, but due to budget cuts, the mast cam they actually submitted was more basic. “NASA had taken out the zoom lenses, which obviated a lot of the stereo [and] a lot of the 3D capability,” Cameron says.

But when the mission was pushed back to Fall 2011, Cameron went back to NASA to make a case for putting the zoom lenses back in. “I asked them to remove the dScope that they had imposed on it,” he says. “I went back and said, ‘Well, now that you’ve pushed the mission two years, why don’t we go back and un-dScope the camera?'”

NASA agreed, and the team is now trying to finish up what Cameron calls “the old bells and whistles version” of the mast cam. “If that can make it under the wire of the big integration milestones in December and January, then we’ll actually be flying the version that has the zooms,” he says. “Otherwise we’ll default to one we’ve already delivered.”

Whether or not the advanced camera makes the cut, one thing is for certain: A stereoscopic camera is going to Mars. “Not only a 3D camera, but a 3D motion camera,” Cameron says. “So if it all goes the way it could, we could be shooting a 3D movie on Mars. No actors, though.”

An engineering model of the 2011 Mars Science Laboratory, dubbed “Scarecrow,” makes its way down a hill in the “Mars Yard” at JPL.

BY ERIN MCCARTHY

Aug 31, 2010

link to original post at Popular Mechanics . com

The Current State of 3DTV (CEA Webinar, 9/7, 2-3pm EST)

8.31.2010

Description:

3DTVs are now widely available in the marketplace but how is this burgeoning category doing at retail? Get an updated look at the current state of 3DTV. Explore which consumers are most interested in buying a 3DTV and their early impressions of it. Discover how 3D home entertainment technology products are selling including 3DTV and 3D Blu-ray players. Learn about the early impressions of sales associates and consumers as they see this technology at retail for the first time.  Get an early glimpse at how this category will do this fall as we head into the Holiday season.

Participants will learn:

  • The sales profile for 3DTVs and what is expected for the remainder of 2010
  • The consumer profile most interested in buying a 3DTV
  • The retail environment for 3DTV from the eyes of both the consumer and the sales associate

Who should attend:

  • Everyone involved in the marketing and merchandising of 3D
  • Everyone involved in the 3D ecosystem
  • Retail analysts covering the hardline retail sector

Register Now! Click here

CEA Members – Free

non-members – $99.00

Please RSVP by Monday, September 6. Registration is limited.
Questions? E-mail the Webcast Team or call 703-907-7797.

The Current State of 3DTV

Date: Tuesday, September 7

Time: 2–3 p.m. (ET) / 11 a.m. – Noon (PT)

Presenter: Shawn DuBravac, Chief Economist and Director of Research and Ben Arnold, Senior Research Analyst, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)

Presenters’ Bios:

Shawn DuBravac is the chief economist and director of research for the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), where he helps direct CEA’s economic analysis and market research initiatives.  Located just outside Washington DC, CEA is a top 15 trade association representing some 2,000 technology companies.

DuBravac holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and serves on the Board of the CFA Society of Washington, DC.  He is an adjunct professor in George Washington University’s MBA program.  You can follow Shawn on Twitter at @twoopinions.

Ben Arnold is senior research analyst for the Consumer Electronics Association.  In this role, Arnold provides a wide array of research support on consumer and strategic initiatives pertinent to CEA and the CE industry. A veteran analyst, Arnold has worked as a senior analyst of marketing research at USA Today and as a media planner at MediaVest NY. He received a bachelor’s degree in foreign affairs from the University of Virginia. You can follow Ben on Twitter @Techbarnold

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Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

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