nsquared releases three new Kinect for Windows-based applications
The following blog post was guest authored by Celeste Humphrey, business development consultant at nsquared, and Dr. Neil Roodyn, director of nsquared.
A company that is passionate about learning, technology, and creating awesome user experiences, nsquared has developed three new applications that take advantage of Kinect for Windows to provide users with interactive, natural user interface experiences. nsquared is located in Sydney, Australia.
At nsquared, we believe that vision-based interaction is the future of computing. The excitement we see in the technology industry regarding touch and tablet computing is a harbinger of the changes that are coming as smarter computer vision systems evolve.
Kinect for Windows has provided us with the tools to create some truly amazing products for education, hospitality, and events.
[View:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teOR1tTuSqg]
Education: nsquared sky spelling
We are excited to announce nsquared sky spelling, our first Kinect for Windows-based educational game. This new application, aimed at children aged 4 to 12, makes it fun for children to learn to spell in an interactive and collaborative environment. Each child selects a character or vehicle, such as a dragon, a biplane, or a butterfly, and then flies as that character through the sky to capture letters that complete the spelling of various words. The skeleton recognition capabilities of the Kinect for Windows sensor and software development kit (SDK) track the movement of the children as they stretch out their arms as wings to navigate their character through hoops alongside their wingman (another player). The color camera in the Kinect for Windows sensor allows each child to add their photo, thereby personalizing their experience.
nsquared sky spelling
Hospitality: nsquared hotel kiosk
The nsquared hotel kiosk augments the concierge function in a hotel by providing guidance to hotel guests through an intuitive, interactive experience. Guests can browse through images and videos of activities, explore locations on a map, and find out what's happening with a live event calendar. It also provides live weather updates and has customizable themes. The nsquared hotel kiosk uses the new gestures supported in the Kinect for Windows SDK 1.7, enabling users to use a “grip” gesture to drag content across the screen and a “push” gesture to select content. With its fun user interface, this informative kiosk provides guests an interactive alternative to the old brochure rack.
Kinect for Windows technology enables nsquared to provide an interactive kiosk experience for less than half the price of a similar sized touchscreen (see note).
nsquared hotel kiosk
Events: nsquared media viewer
The new nsquared media viewer application is a great way to explore interactive content in almost any environment. Designed for building lobbies, experience centers, events, and corporate locations, the nsquared media viewer enables you to display images and video by category in a stylish, customizable carousel. Easy to use, anyone can walk up and start browsing in seconds.
In addition to taking advantage of key features of the Kinect for Windows sensor and SDK, nsquared media viewer utilizes Windows Azure, allowing clients to view reports about the usage of the screen and the content displayed.
nsquared media viewer
Kinect for Windows technology has made it possible for nsquared to create applications that allow people to interact with content in amazing new ways, helping us take a step towards our collective future of richer vision-based computing systems.
Celeste Humphrey, business development consultant, and
Dr. Neil Roodyn, director, nsquared
Key links
- Microsoft Kinect for Windows news and resources
- Kinect for Windows case studies, photos, and videos
- Visit the nsquared website
- Watch the nsquared sky spelling video
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Note: Based on the price of 65-inch touch overlay at approximately US$900 compared to the cost of a Kinect for Windows sensor at approximately US$250. For integrated touch solutions, the price can be far higher.
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