You can track the movement of these items and even use them as game controllers.
Wen 丨VR Gyro ID: vrtuoluo
Author 丨 Gyro Jun
Imagine how fun it would be to be able to use a 3D printer at home to make an input device with tracking that could be used with ar/VR headsets to play games. And all of this can be achieved through an "invisible" AR tag.
Researchers from Meta (Facebook)Reality Labs and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a way to 3D print objects that can be printed with AR tags that people can't see with the naked eye.
The research team recently released a research paper titled "InfraredTags: Embedding Invisible AR Labels and Barcodes Using Low-Cost, Infrared-Based 3D Printing and Imaging Tools," in which it states that by designing parts with built-in gaps, the pattern can be converted into a two-dimensional code, and then the AR labels can be 3D printed into the object gaps with infrared (IR) emitting filaments, which can create objects that dock with AR devices.
Doing so, engineers say, would allow track the movement of these items and even use them as game controllers, allowing users to make a variety of game input devices at home using 3D printers.
Make AR tag integration easier
Now, AR technology has been applied to many aspects such as medical surgery, training, metaverse and so on, and has begun to truly become mainstream. While 3D printing is also a cutting-edge technology, often hailed as a disruptor of traditional approaches, researchers have seen the adaptation of the two technologies and have begun to try to combine the two to explore their potential.
While some methods have been developed to achieve this, the MIT and Facebook teams say there are still limitations to wanting the technology to be widely adopted. For example, with regard to the team's AirCode and InfraStructs programs launched in 2017, the researchers believe they have had only limited success because the functionality that wants to implement them must come at the expense of complex and expensive hardware setup.
To solve these problems, engineers recommend 3D printing objects with infrared filaments, and using air gaps to print AR labels, and also scanning with low-cost cameras. While they acknowledged that the technology had already been tested in the 2019 LayerCode project, it was necessary to soak the resin material in infrared dye in advance and deposit it through an expensive retrofit printer, so the team followed up with research around off-the-shelf materials.
"The main geometry of the object (in our method) is 3D printed using infrared filaments, while the label itself is created by leaving an air gap," the team explains in their paper. "Because the main geometry is translucent in the infrared region, the near-infrared camera can see through it and capture the air gap, the label, which is able to show it at different intensities."
Researchers' InfraredTag embedded interface Image source: MIT/Facebook Reality Labs
Play with a printed controller
To bring their vision of integrated printing of accessible AR labels into reality, the researchers initially embedded the label into an object using PLA (polylactic acid, a novel biodegradable material) with infrared emission using an everyday FDM system. While this was able to produce a readable label, the team later found that by mixing their material with regular PLA, they were able to improve the contrast between clearance and filled areas, resulting in clearer labels.
After optimizing their 3D printing methods, engineers turned their attention to the docking of QR codes with digital devices. While the researchers insist that their labels can be read by the infrared cameras of many smartphones, the team also acknowledges that this is an advanced feature, and there may be many smartphones that do not carry infrared cameras. So to ensure that their method can be used, they also developed a customized imaging module and application.
The adapter, designed by the researchers, consists of an infrared camera and visible light cut-off filter, as well as two infrared LEDs for illuminating objects in the dark, and they are mounted on a TPU 3D printed enclosure that is said to work with any modern smartphone. What's more, during use, this add-on shows the user what they can see, rather than just providing them with an infrared signal. When used in AR applications, more information can also be superimposed on it.
The technique was named "InfraredTag" by the research team, and for field testing, the team used it to 3D print a wheel with an embedded label, which allows the movement of the wheels to be tracked and can be used as a steering input device for games. The team suggests that in the future, objects like these could ideally be adapted to AR headsets with infrared capabilities, such as Microsoft's HoloLens 2, while also being well suited for data sharing.
"Embedding metadata or document information in the space of the object itself can provide richer environmental information and allow information to be shared," the team concluded. "For example, we can embed a make/origin link to an object (such as a shortened Thingiverse URL) into an InfraredTag for users to query in case they want to get more information from the creator or 3D print it themselves."
The team designed an adapter for smartphones without infrared gear Source: MIT/Facebook Reality Labs
The influence of AR in the field of 3D printing is increasing
Although experiments combining 3D printing and AR technologies are still in their early stages, AR is increasingly attracting the attention of the additive manufacturing industry.
In the past, the technology of integrating watermarks into 3D printed parts has caught the attention of researchers at the University of Exeter and Durham University, who describe it as a "growing threat" to people's privacy. However, InfraTrac's CEO, Sharon Flank, later poured cold water on those claims, saying she didn't think tracking 3D printed design documents was one of the "big dangers" facing manufacturers.
Meta itself has invested a lot of effort in researching the potential of developing game controllers using additive manufacturing technology, having previously made 3D printed AR gloves. The gloves were also developed by the company's Reality Labs team in collaboration with researchers at Cornell University, and when they were disclosed, it was thought that these wearable devices that support haptic feedback could work with the Oculus Rift.
In addition to Meta, Luxexcel has also partnered with waveguide manufacturer WaveOptics to print SMART GLASSES with AR capabilities using 3D printing technology. The lens modules of the two companies are designed to be used both for vision correction and AR, while retaining the usual form factor, allowing them to be integrated into traditional eye frames.
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