Innosummer project 4/2010: Haptic Paintball

Background and Motivation
Location based applications are one of the rapid growing areas for mobile devices. Typically the location sensing is based on GPS satellites for outdoors and WiFi networks for indoors. At the same time mixed reality applications are gaining speed as well. Augmentation of reality is typically based on sophisticated video capturing and rendering technologies, however new eyes-free haptic and/or audio methods are entering the field currently. NRC Helsinki has demonstrated their indoor positioning system, which could be combined with NRC Tampere's mixed reality expertise to create multi-player “paintball” game. Alternatively GPS could be used in outdoors settings. NRC Tampere has experience in using haptic pointing devices which could use orientation and simple gestures for pointing at each other and shooting. Tactile feedback representing capturing the target could be delivered by the same hand-held pointers. Additional audio feedback could be used for enhancing the experience.

Project Goal
Explore the possibilities for such mixed reality multi-player game in both indoors and outdoors environments and implement (at least) one of them. Creativity in interaction design using the specified multiple modalities and finding suitable metaphors are essential part of the main outcome.

Development tools, environments and standards
Existing technology descriptions (keywords: augmented reality, haptics, tactile feedback, wearable computing)

Time period
The project constitutes full-time work for the project team between 24.5 - 31.8.2010.

Interaction between stakeholder and project team
The work will mainly be done at the Demola 'office' in Tampere, Finlayson. There will be regular meetings with the company partner and the team members. There will also be other forms of communication and guidance available to the team. The team will report the work by writing a team blog on the Demola website.

Support (supervision & financial)
Demola staff will supervise the reports and by the end of each month the team will also write a one page summary of the reported project actions, methods used, implemented software, and results.

How to apply for Innosummer
It's possible to apply by April 11th. Further information on www.demola.fi/innosummer2010

Early Hapticrunch

Submitted by Antti.Salomaa on Fri, 23/07/2010 - 07:32

At the start of this week we decided that we need to make working gestures and GPS location features to Super Awesome Fighters by the end of the week. Or at least that's what our merciless todo-flapboard commanded us to do.

Haptit's getting hot in here paintblog

Submitted by Antti.Salomaa on Mon, 19/07/2010 - 10:45

Here's another update from Haptic Paintballers! Last week went by in blink of an eye, but we managed to make the most of those hot summer days. We created a chart for our future work path, brainstormed some great ideas in innowednesday with the help of other Innosummer teams, and made a working demo for Super Awesome Fighters.