The Upoint Invention

The Invention

Upoint - what is it ?

In its final version the Upoint system will consist of a remote control, the position and orientation of which is tracked in 3D with respect to a fixed coordinate system embodied by a tracking device integrated with a projector.

This remote will be equipped with standard left, middle and right mouse buttons, a wireless communication module, an integrated laser-pointer and possibly a trigger-like button for cursor-control activation. Advantageously, conventional cursor-control buttons may be integrated as well.

The tracker facilitates the measurement of the 3D position and orientation of the remote, as stated above. It may, but need not necessarily make use of a base-station with an active transmitter; it may for example also rely on other suitable technology, such as electromagnetic sensing, acoustic sensing, inertial sensing etc.

What does it do ?

Since the Upoint system measures position as well as orientation, it enables the presenter to move around the room, point the remote to the projected presentation as if it were a laser-pointer, and interact with any controls displayed at the point-of-aim (e.g., buttons, screen-menus etc). In combination with Netmeeting a powerful system results that allows the computer to transmit the point-of-aim of the presenter to the remote audience, finally doing away with the often-heard complaint that this audience can't see where the presenter is pointing and what (s)he is referring to. On that same note, Upoint also does away with the problems associated with the multiple screens often used in large presentation venues, where the presenter points to one of the screens and hence leaves the audience that watches the alternative screens with questions as to where (s)he is pointing.

How does it work ?

The concept of a direct-pointing cursor control device (i.e., an interactive laser-pointer) is not new. Indeed, it has been used for some time in Virtual Reality Rooms. In such rooms, the position and orientation of a remote is continuously measured with respect to a fixed base-station, while the 3D parameters of the display are measured with respect to this base-station during installation of the equipment.

Upoint brings this technology to everyday business presentations by integrating tracker technology with projecting technology, without any need for user calibration. The hardware and software of the integrated system is capable of establishing size, 3D position and orientation of the displayed images; the tracker then measures 3D position and orientation of the handheld remote. With all necessary parameters known, Upoint then calculates if and where the user is pointing on the display and places a cursor at that spot. In effect, Upoint constitutes an interactive laser-pointer.