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BurningWell

Micro-controller based sensor localization and tracking using projected light patterns.

Introduction: Displaying an image on an arbitrary surface requires that you know where the surface is located within the projection area. Other methods including manual calibration and camera based calibration are either time consuming, labor intensive, or error prone. We augment the display surface with an electronic light sensor which can determine its own position and report back to the projector via radio.
Additionally, our system can track the sensor as it moves in real time using a small tracking pattern, allowing mobile projection screens.


The hardware:

We used a Microchip rfPIC 12F675 with:
A hardware sensor which determines its physical location with respect to a projected pattern.
Download BurningWell The Movie
(6.1MB MPEG4 [divx] AVI)Divex.com has codecs and players available for MS Windows & Macintosh systems.

Radio receiver to computer interface circuit.

Tracking the sensor

After the initial localization stage, a hexagonal tracking pattern is used to track the sensor. When the sensor is not moving, the tracking pattern can be shrunk to cover only the sensor itself.

Tracking a display surface

After localizing the sensor, a hexagonal tracking pattern is used to continue sending location data to the sensor while freeing up most of the projection area for display purposes. The intersection of the green and red lines indicate the current location of the sensor, and are visible for illustrative purposes only.
A simple display screen with one sensor, allowing two dimensions of motion. Placing sensors on the other corners of the surface would allow the projector to track the quadrangle where the display should appear, and warp the image appropriately as the display is moved arbitrarily in 3-space.


Download BurningWell The Movie (6.1MB MPEG4 [divx] AVI) or Just the Highlights (1.2MB MPEG4 [divx] AVI)
Divex.com has codecs and players available for MS Windows & Macintosh systems.

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Jay's Homepage > > Research > > BurningWell