Minority Report is Real

How Holographic UI Works

A good article in How Stuff Works about Holographic UIs. 

"Tele-immersion will blur the lines between real and computer-generated images. It will be the ultimate tele-commuting technology, almost entirely eliminating the rush-hour drive to work. Instead of commuting, people could attend board meetings by projecting themselves into the company's conference room. And if your job requires you to travel, you could still be home for dinner by tele-immersing yourself into the family kitchen. Because this technology is still in the early stages of development, the possibilities are truly endless." Read the Article.

HoloTouch - Overlays Data on Life

This website looks like a joke - like an infomercial parody. But the images of their product look compelling (if they're real). Here is some information from their site:

"HoloTouch® is unique and widely patented.  HoloTouch vastly exceeds capabilities of conventional human-machine interfaces and outperforms them.  Here are just some of the reasons:
HoloTouch HMIs are entirely touchless
with no moving parts, HoloTouch HMIs are indestructible - impervious to shock, dirt, moisture, hard use and other hazards of customers and workplaces
sterile operation - whether in healthcare, high-traffic consumer applications or other settings, HoloTouch HMIs neatly bypass hygiene issues, because there's nothing to touch in operating them
full-color, 3D holographic images of HoloTouch HMIs draw customers in and hold their attention
people-friendly , easy-to-use HoloTouch HMIs provide comfortable, reliable operation where conventional keys and buttons have shrunk below normal finger sizes and fingers tire from pounding keys and buttons
HoloTouch interfaces are friction-less and have longer life cycles than conventional switches and HMIs
HoloTouch HMIs compare favorably in cost with conventional interfaces, both initially and over time,
their physical designs are appealing and very flexible
HoloTouch HMIs enhance competitive positions by underlining commitment to newest and best technology"

Gorillaz Hologram - MTV Awards

Now here is a hologram that actually works. It's super cool and makes sense for the environment. They are using the Musion Eyeliner 3D Holographic Projection System.

Musion Eyeliner is a unique high-definition video holographic projection system allowing spectacular freeform 3D hologram effects to be projected within a live stage setting using Peppers Ghost technology.

Eyeliner produces images of high resolution and quality that make them unmistakably real, which is what happened when Gorillaz & Madonna performed the opening number at the recent Grammy Awards.

Eyeliner is an open system that uses a specially developed foil in reflecting images from high-definition video projectors, making it possible to show virtual images of variable sizes and distinct clarity created using a proprietary software. The entire system consists of a truss box and a stage, where the virtual picture appears.

Using sets starting from just 2m 2 sized cubes, projected images range in size from 50cm square, up to a massive 20m x 100m. Content can be live or virtual humans, animations (cartoon or computer generated), full sized trucks or automobiles, landscape, property or scenery, even machinery, pharmaceuticals and electronic components and appliances.

CNN Hologram

As the author of this Engaget review notes, CNN's holograms during the election seemed completely gratuitous. Here's how the technology works:

On the subject's side:

• 35 HD cameras pointed at the subject in a ring

• Different cameras shoot at different angles (like the matrix), to transmit the entire body image

• The cameras are hooked up to the cameras in home base in NY, synchronizing the angles so perspective is right

• The system is set up in trailers outside Obama and McCain HQ

• Not only is it mechanical tracking via camera communication, there's infrared as well

• Correspondents see a 37-inch plasma where the return feed of the combined images are fed back to them. Useful for a misplaced hair or an unseemly boogar

• Twenty "computers" are crunching this data in order to make it usable

On the HQ side:

• Only used on two out of 40-something total camera feeds that CNN has

• Wolf Blitzer really loves it (or loves Jessica Yellin):

Here's the Will I Am Hologram. What is crazy about this is that Will I Am is in the midst of one of the most exciting crowds of people ever - on the inauguration grounds in Chicago - and he's totally insulated by the holo shooting room - giving none of the excitement of actually being there, for the sake of being projected somewhere else. Weird.

Here's an interview about how it's done:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRck4hpWRKs&feature=related