This is something I have been wanting for years, not being able to shell out the funds for a patent lawyer and the research. Despite Google’s push to put patent search online (currently in beta), it’s still a tough and expensive task for the individual to get an invention made. If an invention gets enough votes from the Quirky community, or is deemed to have what it might take by the Quirky staff, it gets moved to the next level of being “under consideration”. From there, the Quirky staff discusses the viability of an invention or idea. If they give the thumbs up, it is chosen to be made as a product. From there, it goes through phases of research, design, and branding with voting and participation of the Quirky online community. Each vote cast gains a person “influence” over an invention, and consequently, a percentage of the profits if it is made. The person with the original concept can make over 10% for just that. The rest of the pie is split up with Quirky, manufacturing costs, and the community. Not too bad for just coming up with an idea that is sold online and at several large retailers across the nation.

After submitting a few ideas of my own, my first idea made it into the “under consideration” category. While I did not make it to the next round, it was a fun process that allowed me to do some of what I enjoy most–design and create 3D graphics. The benefit of getting feedback from the community made the experience even more worthwhile.  Some of the very quirky and far-out ideas are entertaining to boot.

My invention: a "puck" to hold coffee grinds or tea in a French press

So for this next round of drawings we are now illustrating each concept in a sequence of frames! By creating a “sketch” that moves, the user can be more fully immersed in the testing scenario. Yay, I get to do some traditional animation. Wait a minute though…

Because of the nature of the way these are presented I need to keep them to very few frames. Whittled down to the bare minimum. That doesn’t mean I can’t get creative, I simply need to make the most out of each keyframe. We decided to do a test to see how treatment of the scenarios in a frame sequence might improve the testability. Just like a flip book, the concept plays out over time. (Takes me back to the good old days.)

These sequences will ultimately be turned into animated gifs using the animation tool built into PhotoShop (I feel this feature is rarely used anymore but very useful) More info about it here.

I would love to attach an actual sample of one of these however, we have some NDA limitations. Instead here is a link to a similar style/technique we are employing.

This year I had the pleasure of attending Unite11, a conference for developers on the Unity3D platform. Here are some more non-game uses for Unity that I found really interesting.

Getting briefed for training in the virtual Conference Room

Interactive Training

Another burgeoning field for interactive 3D applications is training. This is more than just pictures, animation and quizzes. Using a 3D interactive engine opens up training skills that, in the past, would have required a real-world training environment and instructors. In our age of limited educational resources, along with more computer-savvy students, “virtual” training has come into its own. 3D interactive training tools allow the educator to create a single set of virtual “assets” (environments, instructors, equipment) and let the student use them any time, anywhere. It scales up, as well, allowing hundreds of students to use the same training “space” at the same time with little additional cost.

The fully-interactive virtual patient

Interactive Medical Clinic

One of the most exciting examples of 3D interactive training was demonstrated by IndusGeeks. Their “CliniSpace” tool is a study in detailed virtual environment training. They’ve created a fully interactive medical clinic, populated with administrators, doctors, nurses, and even real working tools. They’ve integrated multi-user tools to allow several students to interact in the same virtual space (including voice and text chat). They’ve got a virtual reception space and conference room where the students are briefed, an exam/operating space with working equipment, and even a virtual patient that the instructors can customize that will react to the student’s actions in a realistic way.

A gamer like me might see this and be reminded of games like Trauma Center, where you take on the role of a surgeon to save patients. However, unlike games, this is the real world, and modeling a real clinic in a way that’s accurate and realistic enough to satisfy medical training instructors is an accomplishment to be applauded. More to the point, it hits home the fact that 3D virtual worlds aren’t as impractical as they once were. Our tools and audience are much more refined, making it easier to create realistic scenarios, as well as making it easier for the user to understand how to interact.

An example of a crime scene that's been scanned and processed into a 3D virtual environment

Virtual Crime Lab

Despite what shows like CSI might suggest, with most police departments, investigating crimes is primarily a matter of paperwork. The investigator uses photos and documents as his primary source of data. However, North Carolina State University’s Digital Games Research Center is working on a solution that will allow the investigator to revisit the crime scene again and again, as many times as necessary, even months or years after the crime was committed.

The solution they’ve developed utilizes 3D virtual space to re-create a crime scene. This isn’t an approximation of the crime scene as imagined by a 3D artist. They use a relatively recent technology called “3D laser scanning” to scan the entire scene, inside and outside. This creates a highly accurate, realistic representation of the scene in 3D software that can be imported into an interactive engine like Unity. Then the investigator can use their computers to “explore” the scanned copy of the crime scene from any angle.

The shared "lobby" of the IC-CRIME interactive space.

The resulting information is similar to what the investigator would get using traditional technologies like photography, but the 3D virtual space allows this information to be presenting in a natural, meaningful, easily assimilated way. This allows the investigator to get a big-picture view of the scene, and zoom into details, and relate data points much more quickly than they would be able to by sifting through piles of photos. The goal is to make investigations more efficient and more informative, saving time but also improving the quality of the data the investigator produces.

Another great advantage to virtual crime investigation is collaboration. More than one investigator can use the system at the same time, allowing them to trade data and ideas in real time as they work together in the same virtual environment.

More to come…

That’s it for this installment, but there’s lots more to talk about. Stay tuned for some highlights of ways the US Military is experimenting with Unity to train troops, how scientists are using 3D software to create a virtual archaeological site, and some fantastic visualization tricks using Kinect.

First up, next week, I head to Phoenix on the 15th and will do a short workshop on EA at The Creative Leadership Academy. “The Creative Leadership Academy (CLA) is uniquely designed to uncover, unleash and develop the business leader’s creative talents as a core competency. CLA is not a conference but rather a curated solution to an unmet need. You will understand by seeing; believe by hearing; and achieve by doing.”  Just a handful of speakers were asked to participate — Daniel Pink is giving the keynote – and I’m quite honored to be with this hand-picked group.

Then in the first week of February, we take it international and head to Dublin, and the perfect audience for EA at Interaction12, the annual global conference for IxDA. “Our vision is to create an experience over four unforgettable days, plotting a course through the elements of interaction design, which will flood your mind and inspire your work.” How much do I LOVE that there are 6 of us that were invited from Portland – and two of those are keynoters, Dr Genevieve Bell and Amber Case, who are friends of mine as well as people I greatly respect.

On top of all that — my article about Ethnographic Animation will be published this week with Core77.

And we continue to explore, in our shop, what limits – if any – there are for combining these worlds of physics, creativity, social science, design, and visualization.  Bring it 2012.

The Vigilon strikes fear into the hearts of office mates.

“He’s pretty accurate,” Artistic Director, Vince Nimmoor offered, “because of the quality of his gun, which is boardline cheat-level because he special orders his.”

You might think that these things have slowed down here at the offices of Animation Dynamics, Incorporated in beautiful Industrial Northwest Portland. It’s quite the contrary, in truth. Despite the fact that the Consumer Electronics Show begins today in Las Vegas–and the fact that several of our recent projects were deadline-driven by that very same event–we’re clicking and whirring at full tilt this week. With freelancers Dave Balzer and Mike Wilson also in the house, it puts the testosterone levels at ADi studios at an all-time high.

“It’s a different energy than two years ago,” explains Owner and President of ADi, Kate Ertmann, “when it was equally distributed male-female.”  When asked her weapon of choice she replied, ”A shiv or shank; I don’t know what you call it.” At press time there was no word from Nerf as to whether there were plans to make these items available among their product line.

“The discs go farther,” Nakadate confided when asked the relative advantage of the Vigilon model.

This stealth compact offers the element of suprise.

“They’re more accurate,” Creative Lead Seth Short interjected. But are they more painful? “Yes.” Short replied.

The team has been putting in long hours for the better part of two months now and the projects show no signs of slowing up in January. Best to keep noses to the grindstone for now, and ammo handy for those unexpected breathers.

Automotive companies are using augmented reality for a few different purposes, but for the same reasons. Augmented Reality or AR allows you to create a richer visual experience. So, if you are an advertiser or marketer, you want to create an experience that makes your brand more memorable. And, you want to attract potential car buyers to interact with your brand and your product so they begin to form an emotional attachment. AR apps often take advantage of mobile phone technology, so the consumer is able to tap into the experience quickly and easily, with the device they carry in their pocket.  Here are some very cool recent examples:

The all new Ford Fusion is being promoted with an Augmented Realitycampaign. The 2013 Ford Fusion is the “Official Vehicle” of the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show.

With the application, users can virtually test drive the all-new Ford Fusion, immersing themselves in driving environments and videos to learn about the design and features of the car. More of the car will be exposed each day. This vehicle will be the “Official Car of the 2012 International CES” and will be introduced at the show by Ford CEO Alan Mulally and Consumer Electronics Association CEO Gary Shapiro.

The app operates on the Android and iOS operating systems, and tablets such as the iPad and Droid. Finding and capturing a Ford logo using the mobile device’s camera initiates the augmented reality experience. Operating like a video game, the app will allow users to drive a digitally camouflaged new Fusion on a track towards videos that features insights into the Fusions technology and design. You can visit http://fordfusionapp.com/ and see a video and learn more about the app.

Toyota is also using AR in a new campaign. This campaign, for the new Corolla, using augmented reality and QR codes, based on Hatsune Miku, a computer-generated pop star. That’s right  - a computer-generated pop star. You can learn more about Hatsune Miku here.

This campaign is designed to feature the car, but to introduce the virtual singer to the American marketplace. Beyond sponsoring a concert by Hatsune Miku in the United States, Toyota has also created a QR code-based mobile program that offers users an augmented reality experience that will encourage users to visit the social media properties and website for the Corolla. Beyond the attraction that Hatsune Miku has to actual fans, the purpose of the mobile campaign was to make it possible for the experience to be shared. Along with the Hatsune Miku concert which occurred on September 16, 2011, in California, the augmented reality experience connected to the virtual pop icon has also been launched by Toyota.

Not to be outdone – Volkswagen used AR to launch (literally) the new Beetle.

A new series of augmented reality billboards bring the car to life on both smartphones and tablets around the world as consumers get an unexpected level of engagement with the new car.

Volkswagen say in the video that launches the campaign that the “advertising should always be as innovative as the car itself” and there is no doubt that they have hit the nail on the head with this particular launch. Although it is smart making the most out of billboards and adding an online element to them, you do have to wonder how many people are actually going to pull out their phones or tablets and actually engage with the campaign. Watch the video to see how it works.

ADi is very enthusiastic about AR. It allows us to take our expertise in creating 3D models and characters and combine it with smart digital storytelling and cool interactive experiences. We think this kind of technology will become more pervasive with the ever increasing penetration of smartphones and tablets in 2012 and beyond. I’m sure I will see more cool examples at CES2012. I’ll blog back at you when I get home from the show.

Scorcese, one of the master directors of our time, did what many have stated and argued for a long time: 3D can be used to make great film in the right hands.

This is definitely the case with Scorsese and Hugo. The cinematography took advantage of the additional 3D tool added to the film toolbox. Camera moves were accented with the 3D, not made purely as a gimmick to show a pointy finger or sharp object in one’s face. The camera pathways through the shots were accentuated and sometimes punctuated by the 3D, which supported framing and directed my eyes. I felt much more immersed and a part of the scenes. Camera moves were made to travel expanses of the inner workings on the train station, clock tower, and other sets, supporting the machine and mechanical themes and imagery. It just plain worked, and there is, in my mind, no arguing it. A master filmmaker picked up a new tool, spun the gears, adjusted the buttons, added it to his work flow, and made another great film.

From a technical standpoint, I did not once see an improper convergence, or 3D artifact. The depth of field seemed deeper, as one would expect, the zooms more powerfully accentuated, and the layers of objects more dimensional than in any other 3D film. The colors popped even more (of course the sets were amazing to begin with) and were made that much richer by the use of 3D to sculpt the volume of the spaces.

I know the artists working on Hugo put in an amazing amount of effort, and it shows. They helped prove that it’s not 3D or VFX hurting 3D film sales, it’s the quality of the vision and how it is carried out. Scorsese brought a vision and pushed 3D to what it should be–a tool to shape the film experience and support the themes and visuals of the medium. Of course, he did this with the collaboration of a talented crew of 3D wizards turning the dials and gears behind the curtain. A near-perfect meld of art and technology.

The 3D machine

I’ve been doing this stuff for, oh, all my life I guess. I walk to and from work, go on vacations in the woods or at massive productions like Burning Man or big music festivals. Hauling around your gear, working in a team to build something and setting up massive art are things I always enjoy filling a vacation with. When not on vacation however, when I’m looking to relax from the the chair, I like to walk, dance or go out on the town.

Many of my friends have a lot of physical trouble from the job. Pinched nerves, back pain, screwy legs and a bunch of other things I’m not qualified to identify. You don’t need to be as active and intense as the folks working out 4 times a week, just keep moving around. Stretch, run in place every now and then, jump or lift chairs.

I know that if you’re in the animation game, you’re probably not into sports, or participating in said sports. I’ve always found its easier to do something because it’s fun than because it’s good for me. The only reason I quit smoking is because there’s no awning at my new place to stand under in the rain. I would never want to sign up for an aerobics class, but I do love to dance, so I dance. You’ve got to find something to do, because the tension of working in animation at a computer terminal endlessly will break you down before you time.

This year I had the pleasure of attending Unite11, a conference for developers on the Unity3D platform. Unity’s a flexible, powerful, and multi-platform 3D interactive development package. It’s primary use is in making 3D games, but its toolset is flexible enough to make it useful in a number of other areas. This conference was a place for people to show off their Unity tools, games and interactive software, with a number of seminars on techniques and showcases of interesting ways people are using Unity.

As we’re a 3D animation and interactive company, but not a game company per se, I was especially interested in the non-game or “serious games” that were being showcased. I was not disappointed. There were a number of very creative solutions, and a diverse selection of subjects and intended audiences. Here are some of the highlights:

The iPad as "Magic Window" using Augmented Reality and Unity3D

Augmented Reality

We think augmented reality (or AR) has a lot of potential as an interactive concept. For those of you who are unfamiliar, it’s a way of using a mobile device as a sort of “magic window”, so you can manipulate reality to a small extent. The developer uses the device’s camera to show a live view of what it sees, then overlays something on top of it: a magic castle, a car, a Lego model, or even detailed information about what it’s seeing.

Unite11 had a number of AR applications on show, including tools from Qualcomm that demonstrated how easy it is to set up AR with Unity on mobile phones and tablets, and a demonstration of an AR-based user interface centered around a physical model car. Unity definitely offers plenty of options for creating our own magic windows, and I’m excited to offer this technique to our clients.

They call it "Skyline" for obvious reasons

Data Visualization

“Data Mining” is a trending topic in this age of ubiquitous Internet and Facebook marketing. Thousands of really intelligent people are working hard to filter and refine raw data that others can use for research, marketing, and developing new products. But we still don’t have a lot of ways to show the data we find, or visualize it in a way that’s meaningful to non-dataheads.

They can drill all the way down to the individual

An interesting presentation at Unite11 showed the potential of the 3D space in visualizing data. American Public Media (APM) has a database of experts they call the “Public Insight Network”. These are volunteers, self-proclaimed experts in their own fields, that have made themselves available to APM for opinion and commentary. APM has thousands of these volunteers, so, for a researcher, sifting through them to find the ones that are pertinent to a particular story is a large task, to put it mildly

At Unite11, APM demonstrated that they’re using 3D interactive software, an “Insight Engine”, to let researchers and reporters see trends in the data as well as drill down to individuals, all in a intuitive and easy-to-grasp way. The result is both beautiful and useful, and it’s definitely an inspiration for others looking to help laypeople browse dense fields of data.

More to Come!

Those are just a couple highlights of what I saw at Unite this year, and I have plenty more to talk about. Check back later for other great examples of 3D interactive projects, like 3D Virtual Training Solutions (Medical, Engineering, and Military), Remote Crime Scene Investigation, Exploring an Ancient Astronomical Site, and even Dynamic Music Visualizations using Kinect. Check out part 2 here.

Part of my role on this project is keying out the backgrounds so the characters can be placed into their CG environments. One of the challenges I encountered was some of the actors costumes had lacy elements that did not separate from the background easily. I had had to explore several different keying techniques and apply them to achieve the desired result. There is no such thing as an easy key job.

Several passes were required for almost every shot. Techniques employed were Muli-Layer Keying, Traveling Mattes, Use of Keylight, etc… If you are interested Creative Cow has some really great tutorials.

I have learned a ton about the process and some finer points since we have begun working on this. I am certain that by February (our presumed completion time) I will have gained even further experience and tips and tricks. Working with the awesome crew here has also proved to be a great resource. For example our very own Nick Nakadate has key experience on many feature film projects.

We have a history of taking on projects like this and seeing them to completion. By constantly exploring and pushing ourselves we grow in new and exciting ways. I’m proud to be a part of ADi for this reason.