Startup Looks to Bring Kinect-Like Camera to the iPad (Video)

Occipital, a company best known for an app that lets users take panoramic photos from their phone, is looking to get into hardware.

On Tuesday, Occipital is announcing plans for Structure Sensor, a 3-D camera that brings Kinect-style depth sensing abilities to the iPad and other mobile devices. Attaching such a camera to a phone or tablet paves the way for use in other contexts, including object scanning and augmented reality.

Although Occipital is showing off the sensor on Tuesday, it won't be ready for mainstream consumers until sometime in the middle of next year. The company is launching the product first for developers who order the device on Kickstarter. Doing so, said Occipital CEO Jeff Powers, will get the device into production quicker.

"We really wanted to get feedback from the world," Powers told AllThingsD. "We wanted to also be the first to do this. There's something about being the first to bring the sensor."

Getting a consumer-ready product with three or four fully functioning apps would have meant waiting another year or more. Kickstarter backers willing to pay $500 for a developer kit will get a hand-assembled beta version by this December, while those who pay $349 can get a developer unit around February.

The Structure Sensor is designed to fit directly onto an iPad to link up with its camera, but uses Bluetooth so it could be connected with other phones and tablets. Backers who pay $349 get to choose either an iPad or non-iPad version, while those paying $379 or more will get both attachment options.

The hope is that the developers will not only serve as early enthusiast customers, but also help create the killer apps that will make the Structure Sensor worth it for consumers.

Occipital, which managed to cram PrimeSense's full-size sensor into a mobile device, is likely to face significant competition in the market for mobile-compatible 3-D cameras. Intel talked at last week's developer conference about including 3-D cameras into future Ultrabooks, while imaging-sensor maker PrimeSense has its own Capri sensor that is designed to go into smaller devices.

Powers said that Occipital knows it is a small company likely to bump up against bigger competitors. But he said being small offers some advantages, too.

"We don't have to sell five million of these devices to succeed," Powers said.

Here's a video of the Structure Sensor in action:

U.S. To Russia: We Won't Kill Or Torture Snowden

The CrunchGov Essential is a scannable roundup of technology's influence on the day's big issues. Below a feature post, we present the most thoughtful, outrageous, and inspiring stories told through the web's best content. Sign up for the morning newsletter here.

The U.S. has pledged not to seek the death penalty for NSA-whistleblower Edward Snowden. To persuade the Minister of Justice to give up Snowden, it appears that Eric Holder had to ironically assure Russian authorities that it will respect human rights.

"The United States would not seek the death penalty for Mr. Snowden should he return to the United States," he wrote. "We believe these assurances eliminate these asserted grounds for Mr. Snowden's claim that he should be treated as a refugee or granted asylum, temporary or otherwise."

For good measure, he wrote that "Mr. Snowden will not be tortured. Torture is unlawful in the United States."

Snowden is currently holed up in Moscow Airport, seeking asylum from the United States.

U.S. State Department employees tell me that the NSA spying affair is seriously harming their ability to negotiate human rights issues with authoritarian governments around the world. Apparently, the perception of hypocrisy does not put the U.S. in a compelling position.

The Essential: Anti-NSA Debate In Congress, Manning Trial Closes, Navy's Kinect Sexual Assault Solution, FOD for Obamacare

Anti-NSA Debate [TechCrunch]

-Watch Congress debate whether the NSA's dragnet spying operation should be defunded

Manning Trial Closes [TechCrunch]

Creepy having armed MPs in camo patrolling behind each row of reporters & looking over shoulders as we take notes on Manning trial today

-
Charlie Savage (@charlie_savage) July 25, 2013

-The trial of Wikileaks Source Pfc. Bradley Manning ended yesterday
-Prosecutors argued that Manning leaked information out of lust for fame
-Manning faces life in prison for "aiding the enemy"

Using Kinect To Stop Sexual Assaults [Verge]

-The military awarded a contract to build a video game anti-rape simulator
-"The system will not use pre-programmed branching scenarios to determine the responses for the avatar. It will instead animate a human agent using a [Kinect] interface"

Funny Or Die Is Making A Pro-Obama Care Video [Mother Jones]

-Viral sketch comedy startup, Funny or Die, met with celebrities at the White House to design a pro-Obamacare video, aimed at getting young people to sign up for insurance.

Miscellaneous Funny:

Blink three times if you're being held against your will guys. RT @katetaylornyt: The Weiner volunteers at the forum. http://t.co/T8ve5Jlf0q

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Andrew Kaczynski (@BuzzFeedAndrew) July 25, 2013

Microsoft's Kinect Can See Inside Your Skull With Its Almost X-Ray Vision

Kinect's potential for gaming might not have been thaaaat great, but its applications for other things, like cheating at pool and medicine, have been pretty impressive. The team at Microsoft Research Cambridge, for instance, have rigged one up to peek inside skulls and look at brains with kindasorta x-ray vision.

Using the Kinect's stereoscopic cameras, special software can keep track of how your head (or a dummy's head) and figure out exactly how a brain is sitting in there. Obviously it's not real x-ray vision because it's just projecting a brain, not the brain, but even the approximation could prove handy for neurosurgeons when they're getting ready to do some probing.

The admittedly hacked-together prototype system uses a tablet with a Kinect literally taped to the back of it, but it certainly wouldn't be hard to work out a better model. This would be a dream app for Google Glass, but you'd be hard-pressed to pull off the same effect with just a normal camera. But head-mounted or not, seeing inside of people—even if it's just what they're supposed to look like—without cutting them open is a neat trick for pretty much anyone to pull off.

[IEEE Spectrum via Technabob]

Xbox 720 rumors point to mandatory Kinect as well as multitasking

It’s time for a fresh batch of rumors about Microsoft’s successor to the Xbox 360. While the Redmond software giant is still mum about what to expect in its next gaming endeavor, the leaks continue to flow.

This time around, rumor has it that an anonymous individual with access to an Xbox 720 developer kit has said that the new console will only function if users have a Kinect (or the Xbox 720 equivalent) plugged into the system.

According to the rumor, the Kinect (or would that be Kinect 2?) will come packaged in with every console, so making it a requirement will be the same as requiring users to have a controller or a video cable.

Today, with the Xbox 360, the Kinect functions as an important part of the system, allowing users to navigate through menus and access content with the wave of a hand or an unencumbered voice command. However, it’s an optional accessory, which means the the Kinect is not mandatory nor is Xbox 360 experience is not unified.

Such has been an issue with the console practically since day one. To this day, some players have an Xbox 360 without an HDMI port, without built-in WiFi, or without a hard drive. Microsoft clearly realizes that it needs to unify the experience, which is presumably why Kinect will be mandatory on the Xbox 720.

A somewhat less surprising requirement will be that all units will have a hard drive, making it possible for game developers to require game data installations, which will increase the power of individual game titles and decrease load times.

More interestingly, the new console will be able to multitask, meaning players could have multiple games or apps open at the same time, allowing players to seamlessly switch between each application.

And finally, Microsoft will make its second-screen experience more integral to the gameplay experience. As for the controller, Kotaku’s insider says that it will be markedly different from the Xbox 360 pad,and will use an unspecified “new wireless technology.”

Previous rumors to surface include that the system will require an Internet connection and that the GPU specs will be leaps and bounds above that of the Xbox 360.

The continuous pile of rumors — along with the increasingly fragmented Xbox 360 audience — leads to an almost certain conclusion that the new console will be revealed soon, perhaps before the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in June.

Meanwhile, it is expected that Sony will unveil the Playstation 4, which has been kept much more tightly under wraps, at an event in New York City later this month.

Microsoft patent uses Kinect to detect TV audience, limit content

It doesn’t matter how much evidence you throw at Hollywood or their associated copyright enforcement agencies, piracy and the viewing of illegally acquired content will always be something they want to wipe out. A new patent application from Microsoft could well aid them in that quest.

The patent has the ominous title of “Content Distribution Regulation by Viewing User.” It details a system whereby the people sitting in view of a TV can be detected using cameras and sensors like those found in the Kinect motion controller. Once logged, the content provider can assess the audience and either choose to charge more for viewing the content or block access based on there being too many people.

Those are just two of the extremes such a system could be used for. A cable provider could just as easily log the ages and gender of the people watching the TV and adapt advertising or limit (mature) content accordingly. But even so, this isn’t a system that would go down well with consumers, and how are they going to enforce its use? “This content can only be viewed with the Microsoft Kinect turned on.” is not a message I can see working as part of a content distribution system.

This patent has come about because the Kinect exists. The inventors include lead Kinect developer Alex Kipman, director of Xbox Incubation Andrew Fuller, and executive director of Xbox Incubation Kathryn Stone Perez. Xbox Incubation is Microsoft’s team working on new hardware and where the final Kinect controller was originally developed. It’s no surprise the team is continuing to figure out new ways to use the device, I just wish they were coming up with ideas that are a little less draconian.

More at GeekWire and the US Patent & Trademark Office

PrE3- What to expect at E3 2012

The particular twelve-monthly Digital Fun Expo, or maybe E3, is simply round the area jogging through 6th for you to In 7th place 06. Kept in a Chicago Conference Facility it's certainly the most significant computer game promotions, rivalling famous brands Pax in addition to Gamescom, and thus draws in the big people inside the video gaming market, too almost all they must supply. Just what exactly can we be discovering as of this ages E3?

The chief information through E3 can come from the conferences kept from the 3 console front runners that is Sony, Microsof company and also Wii. Unquestionably this holiday season Samsung might be endeavoring to gain back some sales just after their own terrible monetary season by means of unveiling some huge notices. This tends to most likely will include a brand new line of Vita video game titles, that is sorely wanted, and in addition media upon Xbox exclusives like the Final among us and also Minimal Large Entire world Karting. The Last of Us, produced by the team powering Uncharted- Naughty Dog, should have a lot of focus due to the fact facts around the game have already been extremely short. We realize so it requires a couple character types, Franny as well as Betty, in the world ravaged by way of some sort of fungal-zombie apocalypse. An additional online game which will we will be viewing more of will be the not-quite-Smash-Brothers Many Superstars Battle Royale. In between Little Large Planet Karting and many types of Actors Challenge Royale this indicates Samsung are already planning to Developers for some encouragement. What is going to most certainly not have a look at though is a fresh console, The sony laptops have expressly stated that there'll be no PS4 in 2010.

Additional following your break…

Master of science also have built the statement how they far too are not introduction a whole new system, there are actually speculation although it can become listed next season while. Might know about can get is a lot more game titles pertaining to Microsoft xbox kinect with some much more bizarre seeking demonstrations. It'll be not surprising that Halo 4 are going to be taking centre point, together with the return involving Grasp Chief heralding nice thing about it Milliseconds. One more sport that is to be looking is going to be Forza: Horizon. On the other hand, in the announcement about Net Explorer-Kintect addition, it would seem that Kinect will be very much while in the spot mild.
Last but not least you can find Wii. Developers could be the simply business unveiling some sort of console- a Wii Oughout. From the time continue ages first appearance on the Wii system Ough conjecture offers perform wild on how powerful it's always, exactly what video game titles will probably be into it and the like. This is Nintendo’s 12 months to help broke into the gaming console current market if the Nintendo wii Oughout makes a beneficial feeling. Listening to advice from the errors of the 3DS introduction Developers have made sure that there exists a superior line up of games geared up to the discharge of the Nintendo wii console You including games including Neighborhood: Very last Gentle, Batman Arkham City, Assassin’s Creed 3 or more and also Aliens Colonial Marines. Regardless of this impressive line up if the Nintendo wii game console U can’t compare to the potency of this Xbox 360/PS3 then a fight might be more than intended for Nintendo's creative designers. However it is not just for the Wii-U that will become listed but also the Nintendo 3ds and therefore almost certainly a different type of online games to the mobile which has really ended up lacking in subject material, a dilemma currently dealing with owners of Sony’s Dsi Vita.

As to other news flash we can expect for you to listed here a bit more regarding Bethesda/Arkane Studio’s Broken together with the Parent Scrolls MMO. Ubisoft will definitely often be exposing Assassin’s Creed 3 or more since Long way away Several. One with the most significant wild playing cards might be Valve which routinely unknown and therefore press releases can consist of One half Lifetime Several (even so improbable that is to be) to help Water vapor changes. All of we can declare for sure is that, like every year, E3 can have some great reports for all as well as player.