Embargoed until Dec 1st, 18:00 EST.
Newswise — WHAT: A DEMONSTRATION of a three-dimensional videoconferencing system at the 26th Army Science Conference.
Developed by the Institute for Creative Technologies at the University of Southern California, the system displays the image of a speaker's head in real time, in three dimensions, and with two-way communication between the image and bystanders.
The 3-D display shows the first interactive hologram-like* image that looks realistic from a wide field of view, accommodating a large number of viewers. It uses inexpensive components and does not require special glasses.
Unlike CNN's experiment on election night, or the famous holograms in the "Star Wars" films, this image is visible in person, and is not achieved by compositing images together on film or video. WHO: Paul Debevec, research associate professor and associate director of graphics at ICT Andrew Jones, computer scientist in the Graphics Laboratory at ICT Magnus Lang, visiting graduate student in the Graphics Laboratory at ICT WHEN: 6 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 1
WHERE: Exhibit 609 at the Army Science Conference in Orlando, Fla. For directions and general information, go to http://www.asc2008.com. To obtain (mandatory) credentials, go to http://www.asc2008.com/media.htm.
MORE: Broadcast media are encouraged to use the system in their segments, either by interviewing images of people projected on the display or by delivering a standup as their own holographic image.
For reporters who cannot attend the conference, online-quality VIDEO of the system will be available Dec. 1. Contact Carl Marziali at (213) 219-6347.
* The display is like a hologram in that it accurately reproduces the image of an object as it would appear from different points of view, yielding a solid, three-dimensional appearance. However, the image is projected onto a spinning mirror, rather than formed in thin air as in the science-fiction ideal of a hologram.
Recent surveys of 3-D display technologies can be found at:http://gizmodo.com/5084121/giz-explains-3d-technologies and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_display.
ABOUT ICT
ICT was established in 1999 with a multi-year contract from the US Army to explore a powerful question: What would happen if leading technologists in artificial intelligence, graphics, and immersion joined forces with the creative talents of Hollywood and the game Industry?
The answer is the creation of engaging, memorable and effective interactive media that are revolutionizing learning in the fields of training, education and beyond.
ABOUT USC
USC is at the center of the communication revolution " where technology, entertainment, and enterprise converge. As a research leader in video gaming, artificial intelligence, virtual humans, multimedia literacy, video search, "serious" games and new media sociology, USC gathers key elements of the communication revolution into a coherent whole.
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