My iPhone and the Emperor's New Clothes
Augmented reality is a field of computer research which deals with the combination of real-world and computer-generated data (virtual reality), where computer graphics objects are blended into real footage in real time. Augmented reality is not a new topic, there has been a lot research the last two decades on the discipline (the first augmented reality “device” was the Sensorama proposed by Morton Heilig in 1950). However, most of the research has been performed around devices such as enhanced glasses connected to a personal computer that you have to wear, perhaps even integrated into you clothes (wearable computing). But now we can take a new direction, a more realistic approach, with our new iPhone 3GS.
It's all about the magnometer (a.k.a. digital compass), combined with GPS, acelerometer, and the video camera. Can you imagine all the things we can do with these elements? What kind of new cool applications we will have?
A few examples of applications already available on the App Store that can be considered as the beginning of an augmented reality iWorld are the following:
* Wikitude is an application which makes Wikipedia a location based service. The actual camera view is mixed with information from Wikipedia.
* TwittaRound: an application that combines your world with that of the Twitter, showing nearby recent tweets overlaid on top of the horizon.
* Layar: takes the sort of GPS POI data in current map-based apps, like ATMs, houses for sale, or nearby hotspots, and displays them overlaid on the landscape as seen through the camera lens.
* Nearest Tube: an application that tells Londoners where their nearest tube station is. Via the iPhone video function, you will see the nearest stations, what direction they are in relation to your location, how many kilometers and miles away they are and what tube lines they are on.
But, this is only the beginning, because developers have just started to scratch the surface of the huge possibilities that the new iPhone 3GS brings. Augmented reality apps are quickly becoming the next big thing!
And more is coming in the near future. Apple have just issued a patent called “Systems and methods for identifying objects and providing information related to identified objects”. What basically they pretend to do is that just point your iPhone to a real object, your handset will recognize it (a bar code, a cinema poster, and why not, people faces). Wow!
I'm sure that in a couple of years, my little child will have to tell me the true, as this child form Andersen's failry tale did once: "But the Emperors has nothing on!"
It's all about the magnometer (a.k.a. digital compass), combined with GPS, acelerometer, and the video camera. Can you imagine all the things we can do with these elements? What kind of new cool applications we will have?
A few examples of applications already available on the App Store that can be considered as the beginning of an augmented reality iWorld are the following:
* Wikitude is an application which makes Wikipedia a location based service. The actual camera view is mixed with information from Wikipedia.
* TwittaRound: an application that combines your world with that of the Twitter, showing nearby recent tweets overlaid on top of the horizon.
* Layar: takes the sort of GPS POI data in current map-based apps, like ATMs, houses for sale, or nearby hotspots, and displays them overlaid on the landscape as seen through the camera lens.
* Nearest Tube: an application that tells Londoners where their nearest tube station is. Via the iPhone video function, you will see the nearest stations, what direction they are in relation to your location, how many kilometers and miles away they are and what tube lines they are on.
But, this is only the beginning, because developers have just started to scratch the surface of the huge possibilities that the new iPhone 3GS brings. Augmented reality apps are quickly becoming the next big thing!
And more is coming in the near future. Apple have just issued a patent called “Systems and methods for identifying objects and providing information related to identified objects”. What basically they pretend to do is that just point your iPhone to a real object, your handset will recognize it (a bar code, a cinema poster, and why not, people faces). Wow!
I'm sure that in a couple of years, my little child will have to tell me the true, as this child form Andersen's failry tale did once: "But the Emperors has nothing on!"
Comment
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Comment by Luis SG on July 28, 2009 at 2:29am -
are you scared??? watch this...
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Comment by alex grant on July 27, 2009 at 6:27am -
This is amazing and if not a little scary. When is it estimated that this will be available. I am working for another iphone social network http://www.iwikiphone.com/home and have come across many applications that have blown me away but this is simply phenomenal.
I have to wonder what is the major advantage of something like this. Do we need complete strangers getting so much information so easily. I can see the benefits but also see the negatives.
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Comment by Peter van Dike on July 24, 2009 at 11:21pm - By the moment it is no possible to superimpose a layer of content over the real world in an iPhone. We will have to wait to new OS release (3.1), scheduled for the next September.
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Comment by iLonder on July 24, 2009 at 11:13pm - I'm sorry, but for me these kind of applications are scary. Big Brother is here. Don't you think?
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Comment by Luis SG on July 24, 2009 at 9:36am
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THIS is the future... just incredible! cant wait to see it happen :)
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Comment by LuXo on July 24, 2009 at 3:00am - Microsoft has Project Natal and Sony has Wand... but i gotta agree Natal seems more spectacular and more innovative, the videos make me want to have one so bad :)
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Comment by Carl Fried on July 22, 2009 at 2:06am - Microsoft is working on something simmilar for the Xbox platform. Its called Project Natal: http://www.youtube.com/user/xboxprojectnatal?blend=2&ob=4
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Comment by Ivedone on July 16, 2009 at 5:53am - Man, i wish i would have been borned 20 years later... the future seems SOooooooo cool :) i cant even imagine it!
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Comment by RGL on July 15, 2009 at 9:54pm -
A new "augmented reality" application:
http://www.iphonestalk.com/lastminute-nru-coming-to-the-iphone-soon-5543/
Salu2
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