D&M Innoventions series are each week-end on Disney and more and the goal is to introduce some amazing technologies. If you like Epcot, Tomorrowland and Audio-Animatronics, then this article is for you!
We begin with RoboThespian which is a great Audio Animatronic created by Engineered Arts. This first video showing RoboThespian having a check-up you will learn the secrets of its making.
In this next video RoboThespian demonstrates how his movement routines can be created using Blender, the open source 3D animation application. The virtual robot drives the movements of the real robot hardware.
In this last video RoboThespian demonstrates content playback and control using a touch screen interface.
The Japanese as we know love robots, and this next one is coming from Japan. Yotaro, the Baby Robot was created to be a Baby Simulator. As you'll guess when you will see Yotaro’s oversized head, Yotaro is not only made of robotic elements but also have a projector behind his head to simulate a face. Yotaro reacts to the user through a sophisticated emotion-control system that watches and senses what they are doing and provides an accompanying reaction. This baby simulator can do a variety of things that make it much more sophisticated than the standard baby training dolls, like crying real tears on its 2-d face.
As someone said in a comment about the video: "It's almost comforting to know that the Japanese will always be there to come up with something even more bizarre every day as if the universe would end if they suddenly stopped!"
Audio Animatronics may also leave the Earth soon and go on the Moon with NASA JSC's "Project M". The NASA video below depicts a Robonaut-based, tele-operated mission to the Moon - one that JSC claims could be accomplished in 1000 days once the go-ahead will be given. The robot will be controlled from the Earth using motion capture. Hope we will see this for real soon!
But how this future NASA robot will work using motion capture? Well, let's come back to RoboThespian which can use the same technique. The video below show a demonstration of the prototype motion capture device, more or less the same technique that will be used for the NASA robot on the moon and almost the same one that WED Imagineers used for the Carousel of Progress Audio Animatronics 45 years ago!
D&M Innoventions series are each week-end on Disney and more and the goal is to introduce some amazing technologies. If you like Epcot, Tomorrowland and the spirit of the Future, then this article is for you!
Since yesterday it is possible to pre-order on the Apple web site the awaited IPad which will be released in the U.S on April 3 and at the end of April in other countries. I am always furious that no webcam are included on the device - see my previous article here - even if it will probably be the case in the next version. However, except if you're really in a hurry to get Apple's tablet, i strongly suggest you to wait until the end of the year.
Why? Well, not only the IPad V2 will be better as it's always the case, but also because Microsoft is working on its on tablet concept, it's called "Courier" and it looks damn' good! Think about it as an "infinite diary" where you could collect any theme park pictures you'd like when you surf on the web, or even shoot pictures with it when you're at Disneyland (a camera will be included) and share them, etc... all this with an AMAZING user interface. If you use each day a diary or a Filofax AND need a mobile device to read your emails, go on internet, note ideas, take pictures on the go, read ebooks, etc...then Microsoft's Courier will be for you. It's going to revolutionize the diary concept, and boy do we need it! But if you're looking for a device to look movies or play video games, then the Apple IPad will be a better choice.
As you know, normally I'm a Mac addict, the kind of Mac addict who doesn't even want to hear the word "Microsoft"! But it seems that this time Microsoft has designed a product that I would be pleased to order! So, this "Courier" looks great and we have now more details about it. Courier will be under an inch thick, will weight a little over a pound, and will not much bigger than a 5x7 photo when closed. But as you may have already understood Microsoft tablet will open like a book with two screens inside, so i think we can say it's more a "booklet" than a "tablet".
And why Courier will have two screens, you ask? Well you'll understand in a minute on the videos why this dual screens is a great idea but here is more details from Engadget: "The dual 7-inch (or so) screens are multitouch, and designed for writing, flicking and drawing with a stylus, in addition to fingers. They're connected by a hinge that holds a single iPhone-esque home button. Statuses, like wireless signal and battery life, are displayed along the rim of one of the screens. On the back cover is a camera, and it might charge through an inductive pad, like the Palm Touchstone charging dock for Pre.
Two screens, a mashup of a pen-dominated interface with several types of multitouch finger gestures, and multiple graphically complex themes, modes and applications. (Our favorite UI bit? The hinge doubles as a "pocket" to hold items you want move from one page to another.) Microsoft's tablet heritage is digital ink-oriented, and this interface, while unlike anything we've seen before, clearly draws from that, its work with the Surface touch computer and even the Zune HD."
Frankly, if Microsoft succeed to create a "booklet" which works as shown on the videos below I predict a big success to this new device. So, the best is to have a look at the real thing - not totally "real", though, as what you will see on the videos is CGI animation, not the final product which is expected to be released this fall. Important note: these are new videos, not the one released last September, and they show new details on the amazing Courier UI. So, even if you've seen the previous videos, don't miss these new one! Let me know what you think about it in the comments!
Update April 30th, 2010: Microsoft announced today that "the Courier Tablet will not be produced". I can't believe that these guys can be so dumb. Microsoft, one of the biggest and richest company in the world can't succeed to produce such a promising tablet? God, they are really really bad...
Pictures and videos: copyright Microsoft, Engadget
D&M Innoventions series are each week-end on Disney and more and the goal is to introduce some amazing technologies. If you like Epcot, Tomorrowland and the spirit of the Future, then this article is for you!
I've always thought that a lot of geniuses will come from India and the video embedded today brings a perfect proof. Don't go away as not only you will discover the future and a amazing technology but also a real genius: Pranav Mistry.
Pranav Mistry is born in 1981 in Palanpur, India. He is a young research assistant and a PhD candidate at Massachusets Institute of Technology Media Lab and most of all the inventor of "SixthSense". A lot of modern inventions came from the MIT, and this one is fantastic. Pranav Mistry is passionate about integrating the world of information with our real world interactions. Among some of his previous work, Pranav has made intelligent sticky notes that can be searched, located and can send reminders and messages; a pen that can draw in 3D; and a public map that can act as Google of physical world. His latest invention, Sixth Sense, has been awarded 2009 Invention Award by Popular Science. Pranav Mistry also won Young Innovator Award TR35 by Technology Review and has been called "one of the two or three, best inventors in the world right now".
So, what did he invented? Pranav will explain it to you better than i can do on the video below but, basically, here it is: Right now, you're reading this article on my site, i.e you are on internet. Which means that YOU are coming to the virtual world. Well, Pranav Mistry invented a way to have the "virtual world" coming into our "physical world", i.e exactly the contrary. And, as he did it using things which are already existing we won't have to wait twenty years before it arrives in our reality, it can be done right NOW! And here is the best: all what you will see on this video from a TED conference - if you take the time to look at it, which i hope - can be done for a cost amazingly cheap, not more than $500, i think.
It's not every day that we discover a true genius, and Pranav Mistry is one of them. And the beauty of it is that everything looks so simple...
Below, the 13 min TED video and good news for my non-english readers as you can choose to watch it with subtitles and have the choice of 14 different languages!
And it seems that Pranav opened the way for others researchers as you will see with the next video showing the Skinput system created by Chris Harrison of Carnegie Mellon University and Dan Morris and Desney Tan of the Microsoft's research lab in Redmond. The system is a marriage of two technologies: the ability to detect the ultralow-frequency sound produced by tapping the skin with a finger, and the microchip-sized "pico" projectors now found in some cellphones.
And all this for doing what, you ask? Well, to put it simply, in a near future instead to dial a phone number on your mobile phone you'll be able to do it directly on your hand - and, yes, without holding any mobile phone! Even better, the system will allow to choose options just by tapping your forearm as this one could become part of a skin-based interface that effectively turns your body into a touchscreen!
Have a look below at this other video to be amazed once again!
Today the theme of the article is "outer space" and this first video will delight those of you interested by Audio-animatronics. Using leading edge control, sensor and vision technologies, NASA and GM engineers and scientists came together at NASA Johnson Space Center to build a new dexterous humanoid robot - Robonaut2, or R2 for short - capable of working side by side with people or assisting NASA astronauts on dangerous space missions!
I know you've all seen a Space Shuttle launch but space shuttle Endeavour lift-off that happened last February 8 was absolutely awesome. There is only four more Space Shuttle missions and may be this one was the last launch at night. Definitely watch the video in full screen mode and i guarantee you a big WOW! All engines running!
While we are above the Earth, let's stay there a little bit and let's have a look to this new Google's Liquid Galaxy invented by engineer Jason Holt. With Google's Liquid Galaxy the user have a wraparound view of 8 LCD screens providing a incredibly immersive experience of Google Earth.
And, talking about Space Shuttle launch i have a last surprise for you: a perfect video of Epcot's Mission Space filmed by MickeyEars.com. If you've never ride the Epcot attraction the video below will show you everything and put you at the center of the action, just like if you were there, including queue decor, pre-show and the full ride "mission"! Enjoy!
In this new Innoventions article we will have a look to a new kind of "Haunted Mansion" created by Alterface a company specialized in interactive theater and based in Louvain, Belgium. Actually you can ride the first version of "The House" as Alterface call it in a U.S theme park based in Branson, MO where the attraction is named "Castle of Chaos".
Here is the pitch of the attraction storyline: "It’s the 1920s and Carli Winepeg, a young actress and silent movies star who focuses on horror films, has disappeared with all her film crew in a dark medieval castle in Transylvania. The shooting of the movie "Castle of Chao" will not be completed. Eighty years later, the mystery has still not been solved and has in fact given rise to a legend. The inquiry revealed that Carli Winepeg was a rather strange character. She was for example always accompanied by her loyal and mysterious big black dog, which behaved just as aggressively as its mistress. If she is alive now, Winepeg could still terrify many people. But here’s the question: Is she really dead?"
Combining Clostermann Design’s audio-animatronics and themed scenery with Alterface’s expertise in interactivity, this interactive haunted house offer fans of this type of popular attraction thrilling new sensations. The adrenalin flowing in the veins of up to 30 spectators is taken to boiling point thanks to a show that combines in theatre special effects (wind, water, low smoke, smells…) as well as in the seats (neck- and leg-tickler, buttkicker), audio-animatronics, surround sound system and interactive 3D Full HD 3D. In a large room, sitting in themed armchairs fixed to a revolving platform, the players/spectators experience all-round stimulation of their senses and lose their spatial awareness as the platform rotates. Guests also have laser guns and are able to shoot at all ghosts coming out of almost everywhere during the show. This interactive haunted house open doors to astonishing worlds – ones that evolve as the story unfolds and in line with the audience’s interaction.
Alterface did a good trailer video, and here it is below!
This next video will show you the attraction model.
As you've seen, it sounds not bad at all, and if one of my reader did the ride in Branson's Castle of Chaos and can let us know how good it is, he is welcome!
And, as we are talking about Haunted House today, a great news for all Disney's Haunted Mansion fans revealed by the O.C.register yesterday as "a Newport Beach company, Candella LLC, has bought worldwide rights to develop and sell the illusory flickering candles in Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion.
President Peter Smith promises that these rechargeable, false-flame candles will be on the market by May under the name Dream Candles. The price will be comparable to real candles but last longer.
Disney Imagineer Gary Schnuckle created these LED candles specifically for the Haunted Mansion. But the false flame’s random movement and other details that make it realistic is more difficult than you’d think, which is why the flame illusion has numerous patents." You can read more about it in the O.C Register full article HERE and below the video interview of Peter Smith, President of Candella LLC where you'll see these magic candles!
Looks definitely a great idea to bring this on the market for everyone isn't it?
See you next week-end for a new Innoventions article!
Two days ago Disney Parks released the video below - a (well-deserved) tribute to Walt Disney Imagineering. The date of the release is interesting as it was two weeks before the opening of the D23 Expo where guests will be able to see "new technologies being developed by Walt Disney Imagineering".
And precisely, this new video shows us - even if it is very brief shots - what seems to be some WDI new technologies we never saw before. We're going to have a closer look at them but before, if you have not watch the video yet, have a look at it below, if you did previously, jump after the video.
So, the first interesting shot is at 0:19 with fountains on fire. It's quite spectacular and i won't be surprised if we see it next year in the World of Color show at DCA.
Next interesting shot is at 0:45 where we see an Imagineer in front of Master Gracey's portrait which changes when the Imagineer waves his hand. Who is ready to take the bets that this technology will be coming to the Haunted Mansion anytime soon?
More intriguing at 1:14 are these two Imagineers animating a Jack Sparrow character thanks to motion capture technology. An interactive experience is supposedly coming to the Disney Cruise Line, but may be we'll see this somewhere else.
At 1:52 the face behind the Imagineer looks really A LOT like Yoda's face. Will we see a Yoda AA in the new and awaited Star Tours 2.0 attraction?
At 2:17 a man is walking in what seems to be Narnia's Ice Queen throne and he is interacting with projected characters including Tinker Bell. The WDWnewstoday site think that it may be "an experience where guests would be able to enter environments and interact with “real” characters via RFID technology". We'll see...
And finally at 2:22, we can see a spinning simulator vehicle with mounted guns. Anyone have an idea of where this will appear?
As i've said the release date of this video two weeks before the D23 Expo looks like a viral campaign for the Expo. There is little doubt that they knew that Disney fans will notice these shots, and considering that WDI Imagineers will be at D23 Expo, i count on those of you who will attend the event to ask them more details about these amazing new technologies. Don't forget to let us know!
Nearly 50 years after the opening of the House of the future, the new Disneyland's Innoventions Dream Home is now open! The grand Opening was June 16, and Mouseinfo.com filmed all the ceremony and the exhibit - you'll see below more videos on specific parts of the exhibit thanks to the good work of the great team of ehomeupgrade, but before you get more details with the official press release below, let's begin by the beginning, i.e the opening.
Imagine a home so perfectly attuned to the needs of a family that it can anticipate and fulfill them, virtually without anyone lifting a finger. Now imagine that the home offers family members high-tech connectivity, not just with one another but with people, entertainment and information in the world at large.
Guests at Disneyland can soon do more than imagine it. Beginning June 17, the Innoventions Dream Home in Tomorrowland is bringing that world to life as a limited number of guests have the opportunity to preview the home.
The Innoventions Dream Home is both a show and a showcase, offering guests of all ages a hands-on experience with new in-home technologies, some that are practical and some that are astounding. Microsoft, HP, Life|ware and homebuilder Taylor Morrison have joined with Disneyland Resort to demonstrate how a connected digital lifestyle can simplify and enhance many aspects of daily family life.
"We're thrilled to open the Innoventions Dream Home with the help of our partners," said Ed Grier, president of the Disneyland Resort. "We are confident our guests will find new ways to connect to their world in this immersive, entertaining experience."
The experience includes guest interaction with the residents of the Dream Home - the fictional Elias family – who will be excited to welcome all guests into their new home at the end of June. Members of the family move from room to room, utilizing the technology as they prepare for a big celebration. Guests who enter the Dream Home can observe and play with all its comforts, including: Innovations from Microsoft that enable today’s digital lifestyle, seamlessly connecting family members to live and recorded entertainment and memories Connected entertainment devices and PCs from HP that help the family members stay connected and simplify their daily activities Wireless technology adapted by Life|ware that allows the Dream Home’s devices to recognize individual family members as they enter a room and tailor the room to their individual preferences
Here is the "lifeware' demo video
“It’s both ‘high-tech’ and ‘high-touch,’” said Greg Atkins, writer and director for the free-form Innoventions Dream Home experience. “We’ll be showcasing technology that connects families to each other, their home, the surrounding community and the world. And many of the innovative things our guests will be playing with are actually available today.”
The user-friendly technology of the Innoventions Dream Home is on display from the moment guests approach the entrance to “360 Tomorrowland Way” (a whimsical reference to the circular “carousel” structure of the Innoventions building). Each room offers new experiences and surprises.
Front Yard
A member of the Elias family greets guests as they approach the front door of the Dream Home. Today, the family member announces, everyone is invited to visit as the family prepares a party to celebrate younger son Robbie’s amazing soccer goal, which earned his team a victory in the Nationals and a spot at the International Soccer Championships in China.
The Front Yard also introduces guests to the ease, function and connectivity of the Dream Home. With the touch of a button, the family can change the outside appearance of the Dream Home. Today, they’ll be decorating for Robbie’s celebration, but they can also easily decorate for the holidays.
The Dream Home “recognizes” members of the Elias family as they enter the home. The dog door even recognizes the family dog!
Foyer & Great Room
Upon entering the Dream Home, guests may explore on their own in several directions. Whichever direction they choose, they will enter through the Foyer and Great Room, which showcases many of the connected personal features of the home.
As the Dream Home notes the presence of individual members of the Elias family, the surroundings in the Great Room – pictures on the walls, music in the sound system – automatically adjust to the preferences of the family member who is in the room.
At the Grand Piano in one corner, a would-be virtuoso can take a master class from a teacher on the other side of the country. Technology lets the teacher do a full demonstration, complete with technique, on the Dream Home piano.
In the center of the room, next to the family’s easy chairs and ottomans, is a “coffee table book” that is actually an interactive touch screen with content from the library. The book will display the original manuscript of “Alice in Wonderland.” Guests and Elias family members can turn the pages of the book simply by touching the screen.
Kitchen
Like most kitchens, the Elias family Kitchen is more than just a place to prepare food. It’s where the calendar is kept, and where family photos and works of art are displayed. New technology enables all of this, with a virtual bulletin board that posts all the latest messages about soccer schedules, along with digital photos and versions of the kids’ hand-drawn creations.
Since this Dream Home Kitchen is fully interconnected, appliances can “talk” to one another. So can the grocery items! If Mrs. Elias puts a bag of flour on the counter, the computer voice of “Lillian” will provide recipes and instructions to prepare the meals. If ingredients are missing or out-of-date, the interconnected pantry and refrigerator will share the information and create a shopping list on the virtual bulletin board.
Here is the "smart kitchen" demo video
Dining Room
Like most families, the Elias family gathers around the dinner table to discuss the day’s events, and the day of Robbie’s soccer victory has been a special one. The Dining Room table is a large interactive surface, inlayed with computers, and when the family sets down their mobile phones on the table, photos and videos spill across the screens. Then the family can interact with, view and enlarge the images with a simple touch.
The Dining Room table can also be used to create art, do homework, and assemble video puzzles – with multiple family members all at once.
A Dining Room memory cabinet displays photos and art appropriate to any occasion, triggered by objects placed on its shelf.
Here are two videos of the Microsoft "Surface" dining table, and the technology looks great!
Family Room/Home Office
The entertainment center in the Dream Home Family Room is a movie lover’s dream. With the touch of a button, the room transforms into a state-of-the-art home theater. The curtains close, the lights adjust, the 7.1 surround sound kicks in, and the 100-inch television screen comes to life with one of the movies stored in the Media Center.
Across the room is the Home Office, with desk and chair inspired by the classic design of Walt Disney’s own Studio office. Here, Elias family members can attend to the business of the day, including communication with the Chinese soccer team that will meet Robbie’s team when it arrives for the contest. A 3-D Printer enables the Chinese hosts to send a congratulatory three-dimensional gift directly to the Elias home.
Teen Daughter’s Room
At her desk, the Elias family daughter can connect with friends or her favorite entertainment. As she develops new interests, she can easily change the photos and posters in her room.
But she may be spending much of her time in front of the Magic Mirror, a virtual mirror that projects accessories, hairstyles and the clothes from her closet onto her reflection, fitting the styles to her body so that she can try out different “looks” as she prepares for her brother’s party.
Tip: Watch as she holds the dress up for consideration. The virtual skirt even sways as she twirls around!
Here is a video of this "magic mirror"
Younger Son’s Room
Robbie has a room that would be the envy of any adventurous kid. His bed is a pirate ship, complete with onboard cannon. In the manner of all great Disney attractions, the room combines the latest technology with classic storytelling.
When a family member takes a seat by the bed and begins to tell the story of Peter Pan, the story jumps off the pages. Everyone in the room is immersed in the story with special effects, including video that appears on the ship’s sail and the surrounding walls. Tinker Bell may even breeze past some of the room’s fixtures, causing them to shake and tinkle. The bed-cannon can shoot holes through the virtual clouds, just like the cannon on Captain Hook’s ship.
Very unfortunately, there is no video available yet of the son's room, but let's end with a video of a demo of the amazing HP Touch Smart PC, it worth the look!
You can learn more about the Disneyland's Innoventions Dream Home on the Disneyland press web site, fun facts, official video, etc, HERE
Photos: copyright Disney
Youtube videos; copyright Mouseinfo.com and ehomeupgrade
