{"id":300860,"date":"2013-04-29T12:01:39","date_gmt":"2013-04-29T19:01:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/research\/?p=300860"},"modified":"2016-10-05T12:16:57","modified_gmt":"2016-10-05T19:16:57","slug":"chi-2013-immersive-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/research\/blog\/chi-2013-immersive-event\/","title":{"rendered":"CHI 2013: an Immersive Event"},"content":{"rendered":"
Springtime in Paris this year sees the Association for Computing Machinery\u2019s 31st Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems<\/a> (CHI) in full swing from April 27 through May 2, welcoming experts and students from more than 60 countries. A large contingent of researchers from Microsoft Research will be there to exchange ideas and deliver 27 papers and 12 notes covering a broad spectrum of human-computer interaction (HCI) topics, from natural user interfaces and digital arts to machine learning, health care, and predictive intelligence.<\/p>\n Two papers co-authored by Microsoft Research scientists have been honored with Best Paper awards. The first, IllumiRoom: Peripheral Projected Illusions for Interactive Experiences<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> was written by Brett Jones of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Hrvoje Benko<\/a> and Andy Wilson<\/a> of Microsoft Research Redmond<\/a>; and Eyal Ofek<\/a> of Microsoft Research\u2019s eXtreme Computing Group. The second, <\/em>Weighted Graph Comparison Techniques for Brain Connectivity Analysis<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> was written by Basak Alper of the University of California, Santa Barbara; Nathalie Henry Riche<\/a> of Microsoft Research Redmond; and Benjamin Bach, Tobias Isenberg, and Jean-Daniel Fekete of Inria.<\/p>\n Other highlights during CHI 2013 include awards honoring Microsoft Research personnel. Eric Horvitz<\/a>, <\/em>Microsoft distinguished scientist and managing co-director of Microsoft Research Redmond, will be inducted into the CHI Academy<\/a> to join other individuals who have made a substantial impact on the HCI field. And retired Microsoft researcher George Robertson will receive the ACM SIGCHI Lifetime Achievement in Research Award<\/a> for his influential contributions to the practice and understanding of human-computer interaction.<\/p>\n HCI is a research area in which diversity is essential and collaboration an asset, so it\u2019s no surprise that many of the accepted papers from Microsoft Research feature interdisciplinary research teams and Microsoft product groups, nor that researchers have drawn on data, hardware, and software-engineering skills, as well as strong relationships with the academic community. The breadth of topics being presented make it clear that Microsoft Research is intent on reimagining the computing experience\u2014on multiple fronts.<\/p>\n During this year\u2019s CHI conference, when it comes to demonstrating the breadth of disciplines Microsoft Research has deployed to advance the state of the art in HCI, two dissimilar projects exemplify these efforts.<\/p>\n IllumiRoom<\/a> uses the area surrounding a display as surfaces for \u201cperipheral projected illusions\u201d\u2014projected visualizations that enhance traditional viewing and gaming experiences. At first glance, this proof-of-concept augmented-reality system appears straightforward: create an immersive experience by integrating an off-the-shelf projector with a Kinect Sensor<\/a> to extend the field of view (FOV) surrounding the display. It takes a few moments to realize that IllumiRoom is extrapolating from images on the screen: The projections are being rendered in real time in response to on-screen content. Delve into the research behind the project, and it turns out the IllumiRoom team not only solved immense technical problems, but also had to cope with creative challenges to blur the lines between the physical and the virtual.<\/p>\n This is exactly the sort of multidimensional challenge that intrigues Benko, a researcher with the Natural Interaction Research<\/a> group. Over the years, Benko\u2019s work in natural user interfaces has encompassed augmented reality, computational illumination, surface computing, new input form factors and devices, and touch and freehand gestural input.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m fascinated with the ability of projectors and cameras to turn any object or any surface into an interactive experience,\u201d he says. \u201cThere are many other ways of providing augmented-reality experiences, but projection-based augmented reality intrigues me because it is inherently \u2018gear-free\u2019 and, very importantly, the experience is sharable.\u201d<\/p>\nIllusions Create an Immersive Experience<\/h2>\n