Microsoft has created a 3D browser that projects digital content to every wall of a user’s room- potentially showing how technology interfaces will evolve beyond screens.
The ‘SurroundWeb’ technology is powered by a prototype ‘IllumiRoom’ device that scans the room for projectable services in one minute, and can then beam content on walls at 30 frames per second with up to 25 screens and up to a 1440×720 display.
The system, developed at Microsoft Research, uses technology originally intended for immersive gaming on its Xbox and PCs to cover up to 25 screens, using a series of projectors to move the content onto the walls and furniture of a room without the need to align the projectors with a room’s flat surfaces.
Each screen – up to 25 in the prototype – can operate independently or in conjunction with others, and appears on any flat surface – automatically avoiding furniture using the depth data from the Kinect-style sensor.
Microsoft hasn’t detailed when the SurroundWeb project will be commercially avaialble.
Read more here (Microsoft Research PDF).
