A Platform for Seamless Multi-device Interactive Digital Content
Background: Previous mechanisms for connecting two or more devices in the same physical space have been cumbersome, and offered little advantage over connecting two devices that are hundreds of miles apart. There are two general methods: first, the automatic triggering of content when a device enters a certain proximity and/or orientation to another device, and second, having a seamless information space between the two devices once they are within the appropriate proximity and/or orientation.Previously, the triggering of content was done manually by the user. No solution allowed the triggering to be done automatically when a device is brought into a certain physical relationship with another device, whether or not the person carrying the device is aware of the fact that the physical relationship between devices will have that effect.
In previous systems, the transfer data between devices was done by explicitly moving data and objects between devices using floppy disks, external hard drives, Ethernet cables and similar technologies. For example, to move data using a USB flash-memory device typically requires several steps - inserting the device, opening a directory window for the file to be transferred, opening a window for the storage device, dragging the file between windows, waiting for the file transfer, ejecting the device, physically carrying it to another device and repeating the above steps. This process takes a minute or more, and requires user attention throughout that time. While certain processes, such as hot-syncing a PDA, have attempted to streamline this process, there is still significant overhead to the transfer.
These previous methods did not create a seamless and efficient cross-device experience among collocated devices. In order for multi-device systems to reach their full potential as powerful tools for work, learning and play, a continuous and dynamic multi-device experience is needed. Technology: University researchers have developed a platform for digital content that operates seamlessly across multiple collocated devices. It involves the coordination of digital content on each device, sensing of the proximity and/or orientation of devices to each other, communication among devices, synchronization of devices so that content can appear to move seamlessly from one to the other, and deployment of autonomous computational systems that operate on the platform. The purpose is to create a superior user experience through the coordination of multiple devices; this improvement of the user experience can occur through a more seamless continuity among devices, through a more engaging experience and/or through a more efficient coordination of devices. The fundamental principle is that the coordination of collocated devices to produce a multi-device system can yield superior functionality to the constituent devices operating independently. This platform enables graphics, sound, autonomous computational agents and other forms of content to appear to occupy a continuous virtual space across several different devices, thereby reducing the overhead of interoperation of devices and enabling new kinds of interactions that are not possible without explicit and seamless content transfer between devices. Application: This invention can be used for the following:
Museum exhibits: This invention has been used to develop a multi-device, collaborative, interactive simulation of the process of restoration ecology. This exhibit has been deployed to 2500 people at several venues since April 2005. By creating a collaborative experience, this exhibit helps people connect the topics they learn in the simulation to potential application in the real world.
Trade-show exhibits: This system mcould be used to develop exhibits that inform people about the qualities of various commercial products.
Multi-device industrial applications: There are numerous examples of using physical locations to trigger virtual content that could increase the efficiency of industrial processes. For example, by enabling content to occur automatically on mobile devices when they enter a trigger zone, persons walking through a factory could have the appropriate manuals spontaneously appear on their PDA as they approach one and then the other.
Collocated multi-device gaming: There will be an increasing number of opportunities for computational devices to work together for entertainment. There is a push toward physicality in games, with publishers putting forward physical interfaces to games such as dance pads and virtual fishing poles, and others offering games that encourage children to exercise . The invention described here extends this physicality by possibly creating games that stretch across multiple devices to take advantage of the opportunities offered by collocation.
Multi-device simulation: In complex, interactive simulations, it is a challenge to intuitively and effectively interact with and influence others .This invention opens up new possibilities for how people can interact in multi-device simulations.
Type of Offer: Licensing
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