Felt Lab

University of Waterloo, St. Jacobs, Ontario
What the facility does

Interactive display environments and applications

Areas of expertise

Felt Lab is a public-private sector living lab, focused on the design, development, and commercialization of interactive display environments and applications. These lab activities operate within our research initiative, Research Entrepreneurs Accelerating Prosperity (REAP), supported by Centres of Excellence in Research and Commercialization (CECR).

We take state-of-the-art display technologies (e.g. projection, projection mapping, LCD monitors, and MicroTiles) and combine them with emerging interactivity technologies (such as touch, voice-activated, eye tracking, proximity, and gesture ), as well as custom content (animation, video, and simulations). To facilitate commercial research outputs, Felt Lab researchers and students mash up existing technologies into new configurations, extending their functionality and, consequently, their market potential.

We develop applications in a variety of sectors: arts and entertainment, retail, government and education, and medical. Some of our projects have included: a virtual, interactive art gallery; augmented reality applications for government and industry; point-of-experience transactional applications; and a multi-touch large display interface for brainstorming and meta-tagging for group discussion and research.

Research services

"Thinkering" events for clients/stakeholders and researchers (thinking and tinkering with display technologies), lab equipment rentals

Sectors of application
  • Arts and cultural industries
  • Education
  • Information and communication technologies and media
  • Management and business related services
  • Tourism and hospitality

Equipment

Function

GestureTek Cube

Turnkey Interactive Floor Projection

GestureTek Illuminate Table 

Infrared multi-touch display and computer

Screen Xtreme

Infrared camera digitizes viewer and integrates image into projection to interact with display

MicroTiles

Projection "cubes" that allow for non-rectangular large display surfaces from Christie Digital Technology

Thin Bezels 

Large narrow bezel displays that can be integrated into a single display  from Christie Digital Technology

Interactivity Kit 

Infrared frame designed to scale with MicroTiles and provide (x,y) interactivity coordinates from Christie Digital Technology

DS+750 Projectors 

High performance projectors

LCD Presentation Projector 

Standard LCD presentation projector

Kommerz MRI 

Multi-display, interactive table that transforms 2D touch surface into 3D projection experience

2 HP Envy Laptops, 1 MSI Laptop

Gaming laptops installed with Unity and capable of rendering graphics and videos

iPad and iPod 

Mobile iOS devices used for interactive apps

Samsung Galaxy Tab II

Mobile Android device used for interactive apps

Google Nexus Tablet

Mobile Android device used for interactive apps

BlackBerry Torch 

Mobile device used for testing apps

BlackBerry Playbook 

Mobile device used for testing apps and recording video

BlackBerry BB10

Mobile device used for building and testing BB10 apps

Livescribe Digital Pen

Digital pen that transfers handwritten notes into digital and records audio linked to location on paper of written notes

Oculus Rift Consumer Version

Virtual Reality helmets that allows wearer to have immersive 3D digital experiences

Windows Kinect Cameras (4)

Kinect cameras with device drivers that can run without xBox or GestureTek controllers

Xbox Kinect Camera 

Kinect camera with device drivers that requires xBox or GestureTek controllers

Panasonic Camera

Powerful digital camera with infrared sensors for interactive controls

Asus 3D camera (2)

Powerful digital camera with infrared sensors for interactive controls

ShadowSense InfraRed Camera

Infrared camera sensor used to interact with digital out-of-home signage systems displays to attract attention with motion

Emotiv & Muse EEG Readers

Emotiv and Interaxon Muse both read EEG brain waves for training, and application development

Media Caster 

Video and sound mixer board

Vista Spyder

Large-scale projection controller with 8 video inputs and configurable display designs

iMacs (3)

Desktop computers with various creative suites installed to develop digital media & sound media assets

FLOAT4  Realmotion interactive system

Digital out-of-home signage systems display development and presentation platform provides procedural graphics manipulation based on interactive controls.

Intel Audience Impression Metric (AIM) Suite 

Based on homeland security technology, AIM suite monitors and identifies general demographics of viewers in front of display

Derivative TouchDesigner

Procedural graphics processing software (multi-purpose - used for Projection Mapping)

GestureTek Dazzler

Software used to configure interactive projection experiences with images, videos and particles

GestureTek HandTracker

Software and controller that allows for integrating hand gesture controls into software applications

Adobe Creative Suite 

Full Adobe Creative Suite software package for developing digital media assets

Apple Final Cut Pro 

Video editing software suite

Blender

Open source digital media creation software

GIMP

Open source photo manipulation software

Junaio

Software development kit for developing Augmented Reality applications

Layar

Subscription service used to assemble Augmented Reality experiences for LAYAR app

Aurasma

Subscription service used to assemble Augmented Reality experiences for Aurasma app

Unity 

Software development kit for developing Augmented Reality applications, gaming applications and interactive 3D experiences

Wikitude

Software development kit for developing Augmented Reality applications

  • University of Waterloo/Stratford Campus
  • Centre of Business/Entrepreneurship/and Technology (CBET)
  • Conestoga College
  • University of Denver
  • Daniels School of Business
  • City of Kitchener
  • Metamaps
  • Christie Digital Systems Inc.
  • Quarry Integrated Communications
  • GestureTek
  • Apptui
  • POET Displays
  • In-Touch Insight Systems
  • Content Interface Corporation

Title

URL

Description of equipment in the Felt Lab 

http://www.reapwaterloo.ca/felt-lab/felt-equipment/

News coverage on Felt lab’s use of augmented reality

http://www.therecord.com/news-story/3881122-augmented-reality-lab-tinkers-in-waterloo-region/

Accompanying news video on lab’s augmented reality applications

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StFjkHxwAyw

Research Entrepreneurs Accelerating Prosperity website (showcase of Felt Lab work)

www.reapwaterloo.ca

AvaVox video (showcase of Felt Lab work)

https://vimeo.com/100519757

Student researcher launches company

http://www.commercelab.ca/how-poet-displays-aims-to-bring-new-meaning-to-retail-experiences/

News coverage on Felt Lab’s digital display playground

http://www.therecord.com/news-story/2592718-felt-lab-is-a-digital-display-playground/