Microsoft’s latest Research project involves projectors, augmented ones.
The software giant has been showing off its future projects over the past couple of weeks, creating a buzz around what the future might look like in the next five years. Microsoft’s Next blogger, Steve Clayton, revealed the latest work on Tuesday, augmented projectors. Microsoft’s augmented projectors work demonstrates how projectors may understand the environment they’re placed in, in the future. The augmented projectors could be used in a variety of ways. Microsoft demonstrates ways of interacting with projected content and also copying real life content to represent it in a projected form elsewhere in the room.
The Augmented Projector could be used in future online shopping experiences. Clayton points out that online shoppers could project potential products onto their walls or inside their rooms to see how beds, desks and other objects might fix into a real world setting. Microsoft’s Augmented Projectors work is the latest in a series of Research projects. Microsoft revealed its HoloDesk project recently. HoloDesk lets users manipulate 3D virtual images with their hands. The software giant also revealed its “OmniTouch” technology last month alongside “PocketTouch“. OmniTouch is a research project designed to turn any surface into a touch screen. The project makes use of a Kinect style camera to project output and capture input. Microsoft’s PocketTouch work involves a custom sensor to allow users to control smartphones through clothing.
Microsoft’s Research work forms part of the company’s recently released vision of the future video. Microsoft’s future vision is designed to show what the world might look like in the next five to 10 years. The latest video builds on Microsoft’s previous concepts of touch based computing anywhere and everywhere. The video opens with a business woman visiting Johannesburg and having the audio around her translated in real time thanks to some futuristic glasses. Other scenes in the video feature highly personalized experiences and touch computing on every surface. Microsoft previously created an “Office 2019” video which also features the same opaque smartphones and touch walls.