AR to Let Users Reach Out and Grab Virtual Objects
A new software system, Portal-ble, is ready to take augmented reality (AR) to new heights by allowing users to view AR objects through their phones and manipulate them with hands as if they were real. The developers expect their software to act as a tool for artists, game developers, and others interested in experimenting with AR. ‘We wanted to make something that made AR portable so that people could use anywhere without any bulky headsets. We also wanted people to be able to interact with the virtual world in a natural way using their hands’, says Jeff Huang, an assistant professor of computer science at Brown University, who developed the system with his students.
Currently, AR apps like Pokemon GO place virtual objects in the real world, but the user needs to swipe the screen of their smartphone to interact with these objects. However, a “hands-on” software like Portal-ble will make use of a small infrared sensor mounted on the back of the phone to track the position of people’s hands in relation to virtual objects. This will enable the users to pick or drop objects, turn them, and even paint onto real-world backdrops. Huang and his students used the system to paint a virtual garden into a green space on Brown’s College Hill campus as part of the demonstration.
At present, the infrared sensor requires an external compute stick as well for extra processing power, but Huang hopes to streamline the system in future to make it run entirely on a phone. Huang and his students are also planning to continue their work on expanding the object library and refining the interactions of Portal-ble.
The source code for Portal-ble is freely available and can be downloaded from researchers’ website. The team will next present their work on User Interface Software and Technology at the ACM Symposium in New Orleans.
News and Image Source: https://www.futurity.org/augmented-reality-touching-virtual-objects-2186512
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