Progress update #8

With the help of the previously mentioned solid state drive, we were able to simulate the arena's robotic camera fairly accurately. This allowed us to test our software in an environment that would be pretty close to the real one. After some adjustments we were able to get the camera feed from the SSD into the software which made the the Canada cup appear on the screen. This was a great success, as our software should now easily work on both Windows and OSX computers.

Now we will be working on optimizing the UI to be easy to use for everyone, while also focusing on the visual aspects.

Progress update #7

We are back once again for some actual updates!

On Wednesday we went to the HK Arena in order to have a development/testing day for our updated application. We were hoping to test whether the program could finally recognize a certain Mac-exclusive video capture card but unfortunately the device was unavailable. However, the staff at the arena were friendly enough to lend us a solid state drive with a case that is able to output some video material we recorded earlier on that day. This way we can simulate the output from the robotic camera whenever necessary, and hopefully we will be able to get the connection between the capture card and our software working. We shall try this out on next week's Wednesday as the capture card will be available at that time.

Additionally, we made some new UI designs and changes in order to make it quicker to operate: Some drop-down functionality and overall clarity. We did other more graphics-related tasks as well and our application should start looking pretty nifty quite soon. Also, we have been working on several different build versions of the software to make sure that it runs at least on Windows, OS X and Linux, but we have been looking into an Android version as well.

Progress update #6

[ This post was an April Fool's Joke ]

Today the Finnish Hockey League contacted us about our Canada cup 3D model. They insisted that we quit using the model in case we want to avoid major legal troubles as the actual cup is protected with very restrictive copyrights. Additionally, we were prohibited from using any team logos in our work. Naturally, we do not wish to infringe on any copyrights, and have therefore decided that we will change our model to something just as appropriate.

After a meeting we came to the conclusion that we would replace the cup with other hockey-related models such as a snus can, alcoholic beverages and various 3D models of the top 3 Miss Finland competitors. Also, the Swedish Hockey League contacted us about using a surströmming can as one of the models, and asked if we could use milder alcoholic beverage models such as medium strength beer instead of our previously planned vodka bottles.

We will also take the sponsors' wishes into consideration when selecting and editing the models.

The name of our application needs to be changed as well, as Fundación de Fútbol Profesional sent us an email with this link:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.engidia.raisethecup

Progress update #5

This week we have been recovering from the exhausting ICT-showroom. It was ton of fun and lot of people visited our stand and really liked our product. Unfortunately we didn't win any prices but we won people´s hearts and made them laugh with Raise the Cup which is the most important thing. We got mentioned in TUAS´s web page and behind this link you can find interviews of Ville and Peter. ICT-showroom

Later this week we have been looking for different kinds of solutions for the video capture problem we faced at HK-arena. We have found some solutions that could work and we have been busy testing them out. Hopefully we can visit HK-arena soon again and see Raise the Cup in action.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Progress update #4

We're back once again!

This week we had a lot going on: First, we honed our software to be as responsive as possible while utilizing our new markers. This was done in order to make the software ready to be tested with the arena's equipment.

We did actually go to the arena in hopes of testing out the software but we could not anticipate the huge differences in the hardware side of things. Currently our program recognizes all camera devices linked to the computer it's running on - whether the connection is via USB or Firewire - but the setup on the arena utilized neither of the two. However, we are now working on getting the connection working even with this sort of a setup.

Secondly, we participated in the ICT Showroom, and it was a blast! We had a lot of people interested in our project and wanting to raise the cup, and they seemed to enjoy playing around with the software. We did get some feedback on things we could work on, and it will be taken into consideration.

Unfortunately, we did not win any prizes in the ICT Showroom as our competitors (and their innovations) were very good. It is also possible that the position of our stand was not the best, as we were put in a small hallway furthest from the main lobby in the building, and this could have affected our chances. We also learned a lot about organizing one's stand in such an event. One should focus on the visual presentation and be able to introduce the innovation idea in a very concise and clear way.

Overall, the experience was very exciting as we finally did have a completely public presentation of our innovation and were able to get some (probably) unbiased feedback on the project. So, stay tuned for more updates!

Weekly progress update #3

Despite some flu infections, we've made some great progress:

• Mac compatibility has now been worked on and tested to some extent: As of today, the application recognizes cameras connected to a Mac, and the connection can be via Firewire or a USB port.
• The application no longer hides the object on screen even if the marker is not seen by the camera (instead, the object stays still in the place where the field of vision was lost).
• The 3D model still needs some slight decoration mostly on the upper part but the overall style and material seem to be pretty close to the final one.
• The poster is nearly ready: it simpy lacks the new project name and maybe some sponsor logos.

Next week shall be a vacation week, so the weekly progress update #4 will be posted on a later date. Additional visual update and maybe some video material shall be posted at that time as well.

Weekly progress update #2

We're back again for our weekly progress update. There are several things we have been working on:

• We've added some rudimentary layout and menu systems to our application while also testing it out further. These changes help the user of the software to operate it fluidly.
• Posters and their layout designs are coming along nicely.
• The new 3D model for the Canada cup is very close to being finished, but it still needs quite a lot of adjusting texture-wise and some shading work as well.

Additionally, our pitching video is here, so go ahead and watch it!

Weekly progress update #1

The first developing sprint for the project has been quite a productive one, and much of the most crucial elements of our application are in a working order. Below one can find the individual tasks for each member their progress in them.

Ville: I have been working as the ScrumMaster for this sprint, but there have been other tasks I have been involved in as well. As the ScrumMaster my main responsibilites have included starting the daily scrum, listening to the other team members on their progress and possible issues regarding the project, and helping them in any way I can if necessary. Additionally, I have been doing some testing with different cameras, with an Android phone, and with both our previous AR technology as well as the new open source one.

Valtteri: I have looked up various AR technologies to use and tried to learn how to use Unity. I’ve also set up a git repository for the project and tried to encourage people to use it (probably not going to happen :c). Now I’m trying to get involved with the poster design.

Jenni: This week I've been working on the markers for the camera. First three drafts that I made were unsuccessful: The program which is used to scan the marker cannot detect them well enough unless the picture is surrounded with thick borders.

I made other drafts which now have different border sizes around the picture.  The correct border thickness will be tested next week. At the moment I’m still working on a silhouette of the Canada Cup, which will be placed inside the borders.

Petri: I’ve been learning how to use Adobe Illustrator and implement vector graphics. I’ve been working on the poster design and came up with a couple of simple drafts:

 

I’m going to keep working on the poster next week as well.

Teemu: This week we started designing an improved version of the Canada Cup 3D model. I have searched online for some reference pictures and started modelling the bottom part of the cup.

Viljami: I started working on the players on the Canada Cup. I have been using Autodesk Mudbox to create the players and their poses. The challenging part was to find a good way to create the players. At first I tried box modeling but our ScrumMaster Ville suggested that I use Mudbox. So far so good.

Rami: This week I’ve been looking for an alternative Augmented Reality plugin for Unity. An open source plugin called “ARToolkit” was found and it seems to be suitable for our needs, so I will continue working with that.

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So, overall we have worked on improving the 3D model of the Canada Cup, started working on the poster for the ICT Showroom and improved the appearance of the marker used in image recognition. Also we have been researching for a new AR-plugin and found a potentially usable one.