(Phil Lelyveld note: this video shows how much the Kinect captures in the space where it is installed.)

source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QrnwoO1-8A&feature=player_embedded

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Xbox Kinect Converted To 3D Video Camera

Researcher used hacker’s reverse engineering work to capture objects in three dimensions with the Microsoft gaming console’s add-on.

A University of California Davis researcher has figured out how to turn the Microsoft Xbox Kinect into a 3D video camera.

The device was hacked a little over a week ago and then researcher Oliver Kreylos spent three days working on capturing objects in three dimensions using the Kinect’s two cameras. He then reconstructed the objects in real time “from scratch” in C++ using his own Vrui virtual reality (VR) toolkit for 3D rendering management and interaction.

A 3-D model of the room and all of the objects in it was created when Kreylos merged data from one camera providing a photographic video stream with data from a second camera providing the depth video stream. The software interpreted points created by the depth camera to help create a 3D image that could be moved around.

Some observers have theorized that a clearer image could be now achieved with the use of additional Kinect systems and an algorithm to mesh the four streams.

Kreylos said he based his efforts on Hector Martin’s (marcan42 on Twitter and YouTube) reverse engineering work. Last week, Martin won $3,000 from open source hardware developers Adafruit Industries after he was declared the first person to successfully create an open source driver for the Kinect, a motion-sensitive controller. Microsoft said it did not “condone the modification of its products,” which prompted Adafruit to increase the prize to $2,000 and then eventually $3,000, CNET reported.

“I didn’t use any of his code, but the ‘magic incantations’ that need to be sent to the Kinect to enable the cameras and start streaming,” Kreylos wrote on his website. “Those incantations were essential, because I don’t own an Xbox myself, so I couldn’t snoop its USB protocol.”

A virtual reality development toolkit’s mission, according to Kreylos, is “to shield an application developer from the particular configuration of a VR environment,” so that applications can be developed in a quick, portable, and scalable manner.

Kreylos said his next project will be to create an augmented reality environment by incorporating real and computer-generated imagery. His plan is to figure out if he can use the 3D views and insert them into another 3D environment to blend the realistic people he developed with the Kinect with computer-generated imagery.

Source code is now available on Kreylos’ download page, although the software will not build until Vrui-2.0 is released, which he said should happen soon. He said he thought the source “might still be of interest to some people.”

By Esther Shein ,  InformationWeek

source: http://www.informationweek.com/news/windows/microsoft_news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=228200930&cid=RSSfeed_IWK_All

The news referred to in the article title is that ISee3D Inc. (Toronto, Canada) has announced the availability of single lens 3D camera technology. Now, let’s back up a bit.

One way to create a single lens 3D camera is to position a mechanism between the lens and the imager that can sequentially occlude half of the lens aperture. Doing so has the effect of “moving the center” of the lens. By shifting the center, the image path is divided into a left and a right perspective and allows the camera to capture a stereo pair.

Single lens 3D technology has been around for some time. The ISee3D web site refers the company’s ownership of a basic patent on the technology. It is US 5,828,487 which has a filed-for date of June 6, 1996. The technology was first applied to 3D endoscopes where the mechanism was a vibrating mechanical shutter. In the just announced ISee3D embodiment, the mechanism is a liquid crystal optical shutter.

The approach should produce well-matched image pairs because both images are transmitted through one lens, although there are slight differences in the light path on each side of the lens. Vertical, horizontal and rotational alignment are inherently accurate. Focus and zoom should be as easy to accomplish in the 3D mode as in the conventional 2D mode.

More than that, the production of well-matched image pairs eliminates the need for post capture software processing. This is especially important in real time applications where minimizing camera set up related artifacts should also minimize the occurrence of associated negative physiological effects in viewers.

t might also be added that the one lens 3D approach has the potential of being simpler and therefore less expensive that a conventional 2 lens approach.

A final positive was explained by Dwight Romanica the CEO at ISee3D: the technology can scale across device sizes. This means that the technology can be used in cell phones, digital cameras and camcorders.

On the down side, the liquid crystal shutter likely has a transmission of about 30%. Add this to the fact that the aperture of the camera’s optical system is at least halved for each of the stereo images. The result is a heavy hit to the light level presented to the imager. The light loss is somewhat mitigated by the fact that sensor capability has increased dramatically in recent years.

Another issue associated with the approach is that the parallax from a “reasonably” sized lens is small, which means the camera is best suited for imaging small objects that are close to the camera.

ISee3D’s business model is to license technology. The company seeks partners to jointly develop products incorporating single lens 3D technology. In fact, ISee3D has just announced achieving its first revenue with the billing of engineering fees for the development of a prototype for an unnamed camcorder manufacturer. And, we were told in a previous meeting, that CES should be a good place to see cameras based on the technology.

So, how does this all add up? Does one lens 3D have the potential to be a winner in commercial products? In my opinion, the answer can be yes but……to be a winner, the approach must enable products at least as good and costing no more than equivalents based on more conventional 3D approaches. Examples of the competition include cameras with two lenses in one body such as the Fuji FinePix and the new Panasonic camcorder.

by Art Berman, Insight Media Consultant

source: http://displaydaily.com/2010/11/12/news-and-thoughts-regarding-a-one-lens-3d-camera/