sensors

Learn to Play like Minnesota Fats: Augmented Reality in the Pool Hall

Thu, 10/29/2009 - 09:41 — lorcan

Publication Type:

Report

Authors:

Deirdre Dalton; Lorcan Coyle

Source:

ODCSSS (2009)

Keywords:

pool; sensors; augmented reality

Abstract:

Detecting human activities from sensors deployed in the environment is a difficult problem. Human activities are so varied that it is difficult to match sensed activities to observed actions. Instrumented homes have proved a popular platform for such sensors but experiences there show how challenging it can be. We believe that the pool hall is a more useful platform for the deployment of body-mounted sensor networks as the motions that can be captured correlate well to the activities that take place on the pool table. The problem is more narrow than detecting human activities in general. We will focus on a simple sensor, mounted on the cue, which is important as the cue is the sole actuator used to play the game. By correlating the force with which a player strikes the ball with their cue and the distance the ball travels we demonstrate that with a simple off-the-shelf sensor we can derive useful information. We conclude by describing a set of enhancements that enable a computer to “sense” the game of pool.

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Lost and Found at the Kilkenny Arts Festival 2007

Lost and Found was a collaboration between Science and Art that ran two sell-out shows at the Kilkenny Arts Festival in August 2007. The goal of the project was to engage children in the potential of technology. Lost and Found followed brought its audience and participants on a journey through four magical realms. Sensor technology is used to follow the location and movements of a dancer and map these to the projected visuals and sounds, and through these a story evolves. Active audience participation was required to move the story between the different realms, and children were invited on stage individually and in groups as the show progressed.

The Technology Behind Lost and Found

Lost and found included a diverse set of technologies, including sensor systems based on pressure pads, microprocessor programming to interpret sensor readings from pressure pad sensors, processing to recognise and deal with patterns in behaviour, and flash animation to drive the display.

The Cast

Paddy Nixon oversaw the project.
Tara Carrigy came up with the vision and produced the show.
Megan Kennedy was the dancer/choreographer.
Jo Timmons directed Lost and Found.
Lorcan Coyle headed the technology team and managed the technology interfaces.
Emerson Loureiro worked on the interface and built the technology to react to the dancers' movements.
Hui Zhang was responsible for the electronics behind the sensor system.