Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Final Augmented Reality Video

Work in Progress

The process undergone to create this AR Guide is not complicated however it was incredibly tedious and slightly boring as it included a number of model optimising actions, multiple exports as different model types in order to make it work with the layar platform, and then the actual placing of the model onto a gps map, which required lengthy model and image uploads for the respective models information dialogues. So as I said, a simple process yet because of the scale fo the job, the simple process became repeated and tedious.


My workflow went as follows:

Models

-Unit setup












-Resize and Position on plane












-Export as .obj












-Open in Layar model converter, export as .l3d












In the first stage I really should have made sure I had a low poly count(<5000), style="font-weight: bold;">

Hoppala

-Setup new augment page












-Place models












-Upload model, image, information












Layar
-Setup new layer












Test
-Use iPhone or Android to view the AR layer

Models Used for AR Guide

To start off I needed a compilation of objects I would embed into the campus that would enhance the features and buildings in an interesting, funny and catchy way. I naturally went with video game objects and decided on how I could use them to my advantage and to create a bit more depth and life to the major features of the university.

Because I wasn't entirely confident in the accuracy of the google map placement, I went with objects I could simply put into a space, as opposed to parasitic installations for example something stuck to the side of a building.

I decided to attach an object to the meaning of the faculty or the space, to give it some kinda of video game characteristic, like the castle from Mario brothers to represent the Architecture faculty. In other cases I went simple and just attached icons to things, such as the burger to represent eating places.

The Mario Brothers Castle - Architecture Faculty















Goomba - These were placed along main walkway as if to be obstacles before one enter the main area of the university















The Tubes - Placed along main walkway as well, as options for other world or paths before entering the university















The Plant in Tube - I placed these with jokes about them eating students















The tree from Mario Brothers - placed to keep the other objects in character along main walkway















The book - up near the library















The Stargate - I used this to represent some students idea that the library lawn clock is actually a portal, and notjust a wasted ornament.















The stocks - Were placed near the law faculty















The Hamburger - used to represent food outlets















Giant 8-bit Mario - placed outside CSE















Radioactive Barrel - Placed outside Chemical Engineering















The Pokeball - Used to replace the ball sculpture near the Photovoltaic faculty















Halo Teleporters - These were place at the top and bottom of basser steps as a joke to say we need some way to avoid the steps















The Money - This was to represent ASB















The Barrel - Represented the Roundhouse















There were other objects used such as the powerboxes from Mario and a parade of doraemon, pikachu, kirby and other cuddly characters. Here is a full list of the objects, and their respective sources online, all accessed between 27th January and 3rd of February.

book
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=742e14aa241feab67efcee988123ee4c&prevstart=0

battery
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=a924eb3037129eaff8095890d92b7d6c&prevstart=0

mario
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=990d23bd05d1c4831a3ec9372ad43c85&prevstart=12

atom
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=e51e9d5c1c44e8c77606ea5e71538863&prevstart=0

money
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=70f21800f1a96174463abfaed9deacfc&prevstart=0

beer barrel
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=926a48228d89e5e344b2fa2cac0778f5&prevstart=60

hamburger
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=794254b87952feaad0a4a80928262549&prevstart=0

stargate
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=a2129c7130b9d773715bc452373fd8b5&prevstart=0

eye of rah
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=1ab7439e969795af2ada19a8d8424ba7&prevstart=0

gear
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=fbe88db131a663712023ea913a5ab2ea&prevstart=0

stethoscope
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=e56b2d6fd4cb11772a9ac6e37486360c&prevstart=0

music notes
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=3405197dd271aa03c1b1d058ac781b3c&prevstart=0

radioactive barrel
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=315893050380836e8e35db9103756ad5&prevstart=0

teleporter
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=39653d1f38f19f0e4dbbdd0235b5740e&prevstart=48

kirby
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=2936cf91218a53dee04e4d5188c661b9&prevstart=0

yoshi
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=e84e2abc7d52e97594c82b4c22576d29&prevstart=0

doraemon
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=23d24c6685ca6571d9b6e49730554b10&prevstart=0

pikachu
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=52e8c9cb831d02d2d30940d312d0f512&prevstart=0

toad
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=7704cff5dd17bd82fbae9ce3c3e23f65&prevstart=0

goomba
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=ab64f848922ddfe442382753acf99ebb&ct=mdrm&prevstart=0

sonic
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=2fe711d4929637b46f4986aaad339ed6&prevstart=0

mario tube
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=2b5a8696d01668fa6f4986aaad339ed6&ct=mdsa&prevstart=0

plant pipes
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=9d9762a4a2982b55e32398ab272e24a1&prevstart=0

mushroom pipe castle
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=6cc6d441db49480253e73991e4e62a07&prevstart=0

pokeball
http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=6e5293cc109eb6a3a06399e706688398&prevstart=0

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Assignment 3 Proposal

Using Layar and Hoppala I plan to embed 3D models of concepts, ideas and objects into the AR world of the UNSW campus, in order to act as an interesting and interactive guide for new students to UNSW, and as an alternate form of interaction between current students and the buildings.

The 3D models will consist of metaphors for existing campus life culture icons, directions to variations points of interest, labels of various important buildings and in in some cases just simple installation art to enhance the feel of certain spaces in the university.

Hopefully a layar can be achieved that will comprise of these models that will enhance the users experience of the university.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Final Augmented Reality

The completed AR construction creates a media and entertainment room as you can see below.

This assignment only contained a few steps, however these steps for some reason, still took a huge amount of time. For example, eventhough a model is exported from an origin in the 3D modeling tool, for some reason Build AR still puts it off the charts somewhere off your screen.

The second issue was units. For some reason units always come out screwed up in Build AR, regardless of your export settings. I exported separate parts from a single model, and yet Build AR interpreted them as completely different scales. So that took a bit of tweaking as well.

So after all the tweaking and fiddling the scene finally came together as follows.

Windowed Wall

























For this model I utilised the symbol that represents light. As this wall is the natural light source for the room, so it was only appropriate to label it as such.

The Audio Equipment




























This wall is where the sound equipment for the room is situated and naturally the symbol used for this was an element giving off sound waves.

The Room Structure



























This model was the main frame of the room, which included the main seat of the room from where the inhabitant would be situated while interacting with the room. As a main point of interaction being the seat, I used the side view of a gaming seat as the symbol for the part of the room.

Completed Gaming Room
















As one can see in the above picture this is the complete room. The elements are slightly offset, but the UI of Build AR is so sensitive that adjusting these tiny differences are near impossible, unless using the coordinate inputs.

The complete AR construction consists of three markers, with three separate 3D models. Combined they create separate major sections of a room that is designed, and solely dedicated to media and entertainment. I thought this was appropriate as the theme of this assignment is AR.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality HUD Glasses


Hopefully this arrives sooner than people would like to think.

This is my inspiration as I enjoy the act of phyiscally interacting with the AR and the AR actually becoming a tool rather than simply a visual effect. Interactive buttons on a programmable interface are what attracts me to AR.

Google Warehouse Model

Frank Lloyd Wright - Falling Water
Google Warehouse Model - Link




























This model took a little bit of tweaking but I eventually got it into BuildAR alright.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Final Submission

Coming into the final stages of the assignment there's been a few hitches. Having PhotosynthToolKit transfer from lab computers and start running a bit strangely, only to realise a little bit late that the file was corrupt, however after getting a fresh version, it appeared to begin running as it should.

Final Concept
The typical university campus consists of many buildings with their own functions and meanings, connected only by the strings of a society attempting to educate it's populous. Other than that the university attempts to create an on-campus environment by running events, allowing student run societies to advertise their own hopeful, yet somewhat detached, idea of a community.

In all honesty I like societies and the community they generate but they really do segregate the university community as a whole. You have business students running off on their own commercial tangents, while the law students attempt to draw the circle of law which the former party's tangent diverges from. You then have the beer chugging engineering students who are ironically meant to make stuff work (they're still good blokes), and then the minorities of science, architecture and arts attempting to make their own way along side the titans of the aforementioned faculties, all the while leaving the med students to exist only in their exclusive cliques learning about how terribly fragile the human design is, with, I'll admit as depressing as they are, incredibly necessary aims to keep the rest of us from kicking the bucket too early because we've run head on into eachother. However, the point is that the university community is growing larger, and as it does this it separates the community on the whole. Therefore my proposed building theory is to recreate certain sections of the campus on the interior space of a dome in order to hold them together in a space, rather than allowing them to spread outwards.

Renders and Photos












Close-up













Top













Oblique View