It were presented in Aveiro the intermediate results of the project InMerse – Multimodal Interaction Expanded in Entertainment Services Network – of the PT Inovação e Sistemas’ 2014/2015 Innovation Plan in collaboration with INESC TEC.
This project aims the exploratory study of natural interaction and immersion techniques and devices (such as Google Glass, Oculus Rift, Leap Motion), in various scenarios and contexts like entertainment, learning, welfare. Under the project it were built demonstrators that were on display at this workshop and that will be further tested with potential users.
The project leader, Professor Leonel Morgado, has been following the path of virtual technologies and augmented and immersive reality in the recent years and made three different demos using these new technologies.
The use of Leap Motion in various scenarios where it is possible to apply a Framework/API of gestural control was first demonstrated. During the session was enhanced the ease of programming of this technology with concrete examples of applications, at the level of interactive advertising in shop windows.
The second demonstration consisted of an immersive and increased game, “First Armada of India”. Making use of Oculus Rift, Google Glass and Kinect, Paulo Cristóvão (INESC TEC) showed the game: while a user is sitting using the fully immersive glasses, another user is in range of the Kinect to make gestures that will be replicated in a game character (in this case, the Giant Adamastor).
The last demonstration showed the application of 3D stereoscopic vision to control a robotic arm, using two small video cameras with real-time transmission to Oculus Rift. InMerse tests the remote manipulation of a robotic arm for operation in network racks.