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Hardware Technology

Pico Projector Adapts To New Surfaces, Uses Random Objects As Input Devices 22

jpwilliams writes "This tiny projector can use any surface you have on hand to project an image. Using a webcam, it adapts to the surface, not just by adjusting keystone, but also following that surface and displaying different amounts of information (in certain cases). The guy in the video also uses a coffee mug as an app changer."

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Pico Projector Adapts To New Surfaces, Uses Random Objects As Input Devices

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  • Pico (Score:5, Funny)

    by Hatta ( 162192 ) on Tuesday February 21, 2012 @07:00PM (#39118275) Journal

    Does it work with pine too?

  • by Fluffeh ( 1273756 ) on Tuesday February 21, 2012 @07:25PM (#39118541)

    Okay, so switching the display by rotating a coffee cup or bottle is nifty, but could get annoying when any movement at a board presentation switches things around. I am much more interested in seeing if the input commands are able to be modified and changed around.

    • Okay, so switching the display by rotating a coffee cup or bottle is nifty, but could get annoying when any movement at a board presentation switches things around. I am much more interested in seeing if the input commands are able to be modified and changed around.

      Dude, just hold down the shift key. geez.

    • i think what the mug rotation shows is that they can associate real items with virtual ones. That's more impressive then the (relatively cheap) projector . with a top down projector, they could not only avoid projecting on /you/, but they could associate real sticky notes with virtual ones! I can think of some cool uses of that kind of rapid, free association of information you could do with it, like reading a book cover to prin a summary next to it. It's all about pointing the projector down, not sideways

      • I think what the mug rotation shows is that they can associate real items with virtual ones.

        That's not quite the message that I walked away with. It looked as if rotating a mug (and later a bottle) simply switched the information being displayed. If rotating the mug had rotated a single object within the frame, I think it would be more interesting - such as manipulating common objects to manipulate individual models in a 3D app for example. What I saw seemed to imply that "look for something being rotated" translated to "ALT-TAB" for the environment.

        The idea of a top down projector is interesting,

  • I can't really find the technology behind the trick in the paper. It does describe that a Kinect is used. That sounds a lot more plausible as the source for figuring out where to project, in what shape and for detecting object movement as a controller than a plain web cam. Could it be that the WebCam is only used to record contrast and color balance so they can project on "printed" surfaces?
  • I'd much rather be able to predict where the image is going to end up. Maybe make it so you can project onto arbitrary objects?

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