Microsoft working on RoomAlive for immersive augmented entertainment, holographic calls

While the buzz for Microsoft’s virtual reality headset HoloLens is strong, Microsoft Research shared the details of an on-going project – RoomAlive.

RoomAlive is a proof-of-concept prototype that transforms any room into an immersive, augmented entertainment experience. The system enables new interactive projection mapping experiences that dynamically adapts content to any room. Users can touch, shoot, stomp, dodge and steer projected content that seamlessly co-exists with their existing physical environment.

The basic building blocks of RoomAlive are projector-depth camera units, which can be combined through a scalable, distributed framework. The projector-depth camera units are individually auto-calibrating, self-localising and create a unified model of the room with no user intervention.

Microsoft plans to investigate the design space of gaming experiences that are possible with RoomAlive and explore methods for dynamically mapping content based on room layout and user position.

There are also reports of Microsoft taking that research and apply it to video calls. It would work like a Skype video call where the person with whom the call is connected is not on the screen but perhaps the hologram of the person is sitting on the couch across the room. Currently, the technology works with real time streaming, but the resolution and image depth is still something that needs to be addressed, says a report by dna. The setup also involves a multi camera setup with a projector, but one can hope for some way to bring the technology to at least semi-portable standards.