Fun With Digital Signage

Hey all! Just wanted to give a quick update on what we’re doing with digital signage. In addition to trying out the iPad portal idea–we’re looking into making LeapMotion controllable screens where students can interact with 3d scanned objects from the MARTA collection housed in the Anthropology Department. It’s a little rough at the moment–but through Unity I’ve built a test run that’s working pretty well. Two hands enter the screen to manipulate the object with realistic physics. We’re using a 1920s whiskey jug at the moment–luckily I can’t break it in the virtual world, because I’ve dropped it multiple times. Using the LeapMotion is a bit of a skill in itself–albeit fun to learn. Later this coming week I’ll give more detail and some screenshots of a more finalized version! -Robert

The Weeks Just Keep on Getting Busier!

Hey guys! This was another pretty productive week! Andrew and I ran two workshops in how to use Agisoft PhotoScan. The first workshop had no turnout unfortunately–but our second one this past Friday had a few very interested and excited people come along. I explained how the software worked and showed some examples of running through the workflow of building a 3D model based on a set of photographs. It’s a pretty awesome software package–but also needs some finesse i understanding the settings to get better results. These settings are key, because a single set of photographs has the potential to have great alignment–or not–all dependent on which settings one uses. I beseech someone to come out to the next set of workshops we hold this semester! We have the software installed on all out computers and that means we can start doing a lot of on-the-fly modeling in the workshops with various groups working at different workstations! Next week my goal is to finish figuring out how to create a 3 cube based on a list of points rather than just a 2D plane–I’ve tried and failed a few times already so I have to go back to reading up on the workflow surrounding the triangle stripping. I’ll be excited to share with you next week what I figure out! This will help get our buildings accurate in in the 3D reconstruction of Decatur St–because I can start inputting accurate measurements for buildings that don’t follow a strict right-angle … Continue reading