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iPad 2 gets glasses-free 3D display using front-facing camera for head tracking

by Samuel Gibbs Apr 11th 2011 at 12:30PM

Now that the iPad 2 has a front facing-camera and some decent horsepower under the hood, there's a lot of potential for really interesting camera-plus-screen coordination hacks. The clever folks over at the Engineering Human-Computer Interaction Research group have managed to combine a feed from the front-facing camera, with a bit of software wizardry, to track the position of a person's head in 3D in real-time.

They call it Head-Coupled Perspective, and the result, as you can see above and past the break, is a 3D representation on the 2D screen that moves when you do. Like looking through a small window, the dynamically adapting 3D effect is pretty convincing, at least on camera, and it's not just the iPad 2 that can get in on the action; the iPhone 4 can be kitted out, too. Considering that all you need is a front-facing camera, something that every Apple device capable of running apps already comes packing, we could see some pretty ingenious 3D application interfaces that don't just rely on tilting the device.

Currently, it's just a tech demo, but there's a possibility of an app in the cards for the near future. In the meantime, hit the break to check out HCP in action on the iPad 2.



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Now that the iPad 2 has a front facing-camera and some decent horsepower under the hood, there's a lot of potential for really...
 

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Tapio Terävä

Sigh, it's just an illusion, it isn't real 3D. It only appears to be 3D on the video because it's recorded with one camera - if you were to watch it "in real life" you would not see any depth, since both eyes would see the same picture. Unless somebody transforms the screen into an actual 3D screen. Cool app though, you could perhaps make it work with anaglyph (red/cyan) glasses, when it would actually be 3D.

May 10 2011 at 4:53 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
PaulMmn

The effect should be usable on an attached TV-- as long as you prop the iPad up on top of the TV so it can 'see' your head.
.
--Paul E Musselman

April 14 2011 at 5:51 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Jeremy

I think I'll hang on to my 3DS. I have Nintendo's DSiware game that employs the same tech, and it was so hard to get the camera to track properly. Plus, you can forget about using this in the dark.

It's a cool concept though. If it was sensitive enough to render a decent effect it could result in a fun app to mess with.

April 12 2011 at 5:01 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Louie

Related technology from 2008: http://www.chrisharrison.net/projects/3dvideo/

April 12 2011 at 1:50 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
$matt


This demo is a clever scam-

It only looks impressive when you FILM the demo as above and play it back here.

The reason being is the real world around the ipad is converted to 2D in the youtube clip and that matches the visuals on the ipad which are already 2D. It portrays a seamless reality which is almost magical.

In real life with the ipad in your hand, the world around you is perceived in 3D and the visuals are only 2D.. When you see it in action it barely makes visual sense. A huge letdown.

April 12 2011 at 1:25 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
nicleT

What about if there's two dudes in front of the iPad?

April 12 2011 at 1:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Who

I guess they got the idea from Johnny Lee and the wii head tracking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd3-eiid-Uw

April 12 2011 at 9:32 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JBT

Tis appears to be a clone of Johnny Chung lees work from back in 2007.
http://johnnylee.net/

April 12 2011 at 8:37 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
oxygen

A research group made something that has been around in Flash, Nintendo and other platforms as technology demo or applied in actual software for the last 4-5 years?
What kind of a research group is that? Historians?

April 12 2011 at 6:51 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Michael

Like others have said, it's not 3D at all. It's polygons rendered on a 2D screen. Like we have had for the last 20 years.

The title of the article is wrong and misleading.

April 12 2011 at 5:06 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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