Obscura Digital

Niklas Lundback

Michael Harville

Steve Mason

Travis Threlkel

Nikolai Cornell

Ammon Haggerty

William C Thibault

An integrated building display and shading system formed of a plurality of exterior building panels arranged in an array, each exterior building panel representing one pixel. A given pixel resides in a first state when a first excitation state is applied to the exterior building panel and can be changed to reside in a second state when a second excitation state is applied to the exterior building panel, thus allowing an image to be presented on the array. The excitation states are controlled by an electronic control system including a frame buffer and an illumination source. Different types of variable property glass can be used such that a first state is a transparent state and the second state is an opaque state or color state (e.g. red, green, blue). The integrated building display and shading system can be illuminated via natural light, or via UV light, or via a projector.

Integrated building display and shading system

A large scale multi-user, multi-touch system with a specialized zone-based user interface including methods for space management and spatial apportioning of audio cues. The system comprises a multi-touch display component fabricated in dimensions sufficient for at least a plurality of users and for displaying projected images and for receiving multi-touch input. The apparatus includes a plurality of image projectors, a plurality of cameras for sensing multi-touch input and the apparatus includes interface software for managing user space. The interface software implements techniques for managing multiple users using the same user interface component by allocating physical spaces within the multi-touch display component and coordinating movement of displayed objects between the physical spaces. Embodiments include a plurality of audio transducers and methods for performing audio spatialization using the plurality of audio transducers corresponding to the physical spaces, apportioning of volume levels to the audio transducers based on movement of a displayed object.

User interface for a large scale multi-user, multi-touch system

Position data is generated. The position data describes a respective current position of each of one or more game objects (e.g., billiard game objects) in relation to a playing surface (e.g., a playing surface of a billiard table) defining a boundary of a field of play of a game involving use of the one or more game objects in the field of play. A graphical interface image is displayed on the playing surface. Whether the position data in relation to the displayed graphical interface image satisfies an input instruction predicate is determined. In response to a determination that the position data satisfies the input instruction predicate, the input instruction is executed on a machine.

Automated enhancements for billiards and the like

Position data is generated. The position data describes real-time positions of each of one or more billiard balls moving on a playing surface of a billiard table. Imagery is displayed on the playing surface. The imagery dynamically responds to the position data as the one or more billiard balls move on the playing surface.

Large scale multi-user, multi-touch system

Position data is generated. The position data describes a respective current position of each of one or more billiard game objects in relation to a billiard table having a playing surface. A state of a billiards game being played is determined based on the position data. One or more perceptible effects associated with the determined state of the billiards game are selected. The one or more perceptible effects are produced in connection with the billiards game.

For objects with non-Lambertian surfaces, an object surface is mapped by effectively modifying the reflective properties of the object surface being sensed. By effectively making the surface Lambertian with high albedo, a calibration imaging task is achieved using a typical camera from a single or small number of camera positions. The calibration method temporarily modifies the surface properties of the imaged object by applying a thin and opaque layer, such as a coating, covering, or veneer, to the object for the duration of the calibration imaging task. The surface of this layer is a Lambertian reflector, with medium to high albedo. The layer is snugly applied, so a shape of the layer is as close as possible to that of the surface. Once the layer is applied, imaging of the layer surface essentially yields the same shape as the underlying object.

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Niklas Lundback