Metaverse minus the headset: A deeper look at Lenovo’s Project Chronos

As anticipated, there was loads of metaverse-related exercise at CES 2023, with the highest-profile launch being HTC’s new flagship VIVE XR Elite VR/AR headset. There was additionally an intriguing announcement from Lenovo — Project Chronos, a camera-based full physique motion-capture system that means that you can animate an avatar within the metaverse with out the necessity for a headset or different wearable sensors. 

Additionally: Apple’s VR/AR headset is coming. Here’s everything we know so far

Particulars on Mission Chronos, which remains to be very a lot a piece in progress, have been restricted, so ZDNET caught up with Sanjeev Menon, vice chairman and basic supervisor of the Desktop Enterprise Phase at Lenovo, by way of e-mail after the present to search out out extra. 

Why do you suppose comparable motion-control applied sciences have failed to achieve widespread traction?   

Pure motion-capture applied sciences are both marker-based utilizing body-tracking sensors or markerless-based utilizing cameras. Deployments of the latter have usually been restricted both by complicated setup necessities or poor consumer expertise on account of low accuracy and excessive latency. 

With the fast evolution of {hardware} know-how and AI, Mission Chronos can push the boundaries to allow close to real-time movement seize, permitting new ranges of freedom for individuals to work together and interact inside digital areas. To that finish, we additionally did not need to confine its use to just one state of affairs, however relatively energy a number of use circumstances throughout completely different facets of customers’ lives.  

Whether or not used for content material creation, social gaming, dwell broadcasting, health exercises or one thing else completely, the Mission Chronos idea is purpose-built to empower a brand new degree of freedom for many who frequent digital areas or those that wish to new applied sciences to have interaction with others. 

What was the impetus for Lenovo to maneuver wearable-free movement management past gaming and into the metaverse with Mission Chronos?  

With Mission Chronos, we’re creating a brand new gateway to the metaverse for individuals to expertise all sorts of 3D digital areas in a brand new method. Since it’s a wearable-free expertise that mimics one’s pure actions with lifelike avatars, it offers customers with an unconventional, immersive expertise.  

Whether or not used for digital health, vlogging, gaming, digital walkthrough, etcetera, our idea will allow individuals to seamlessly change between digital worlds, and a wealthy catalog of choices opens the chances to quicker consumer adoption. 

Is the shape issue and specification of the Chronos unit finalized, or are additional refinements doubtless?   

We are going to proceed to refine the shape issue and specs based mostly on consumer expertise research. We will even work with content material creators and builders to drive the very best match to energy the brand new state of affairs experiences. 

Why are there solely DisplayPort and Mini-DisplayPort connections on the present Chronos unit? Why not HDMI, too?   

Because the Mission Chronos base unit is designed to be paired with an exterior show, like a large-format monitor or TV, we plan to supply a number of video connectivity choices together with DisplayPort, Mini-DP and HDMI. Finally, we’ll optimize the I/O ports and specs for the very best consumer expertise based mostly on consumer insights and market realities. 

Additionally, why is a handheld distant management required? Certainly any consumer interplay with the Chronos unit might be by way of gestures… 

By incorporating a handheld distant management with the system, we’re giving customers the choice to change between body-driven management and a extra stationary interplay inside digital environments when most well-liked.

We wish Mission Chronos to be as versatile as doable, in order that it could possibly meet a mess of wants and use circumstances. A distant management offers the agility, and infrequently comfort, wanted to accommodate that. As we construct out our content material accomplice ecosystem, the distant will even give us extra choices to permit for compatibility throughout a better variety of apps the place full-body motion might solely be acknowledged in facets of the applying.

How good is the monitoring of facial features and eye motion in Mission Chronos? Is extra growth wanted right here?  

Mission Chronos can observe facial expressions together with the consumer’s micro facial features, eye motion, and mouth motion. We have achieved this via the adoption of 3D Level Cloud know-how that captures greater than 50+ lively models round an individual’s face. It is a powerful know-how that we’re excited to proceed exploring on this proof-of-concept stage.

Which Mission Chronos use circumstances are more likely to have most attraction? 

We aren’t positioning Mission Chronos as a gaming resolution at present, however see plenty of potential in all its supposed use circumstances. Nevertheless, I actually suppose individuals who at present use motion-capture fits or different wearable gadgets to manage their digital avatars within the VTuber house will gravitate to this know-how due to the liberty it offers. Mission Chronos will allow these performers and broadcasters to precise themselves via physique motion and facial features that hasn’t been doable with out wearable movement sensors of some kind.

Health is one other space that I feel individuals will see its attraction. The flexibility for an individual in Spain, for instance, to take a yoga class with an teacher in Thailand, obtain their speedy suggestions on type and posture, and be capable to emulate what the trainer is doing as in the event that they’re standing proper in entrance of them is highly effective, particularly when you think about that each people can get pleasure from that have in a good looking digital atmosphere with none extra AR/VR gear weighing them down.

Additionally: Meetings in the metaverse: Our experience with HTC Vive Sync

We additionally see different eventualities like social chatting or conferences being well-liked, the place individuals can leverage Mission Chronos to work together not solely with one another ‘in individual’ within the digital world, however with 3D objects, as effectively. So, two architects or product designers may meet up and current their creation as a 3D hologram that they’ll each see in a extra immersive method, eradicating the boundaries of time and house.

What’s going to the Mission Chronos software program ecosystem appear to be? Will I be capable to take my Lenovo avatar right into a digital world created by Meta, Microsoft, Google, HTC, or whoever? The place is Lenovo on the walled backyard/open system continuum? 

The metaverse is evolving at an unimaginable tempo as extra customers and experiences come on-line daily. By merging gaming, media, dwell occasions and social media into a brand new type of interactivity that blends digital and bodily, the metaverse is rewriting the foundations of the buyer financial system.

As such, so too should our know-how evolve to adequately clear up the wants of its customers. To supply our clients the very best consumer expertise, cross-device and platform collaboration is required within the AR/VR house, simply as it’s in different tech areas, and that is what we’re working towards attaining as we proceed to fulfill with content material creators, builders and repair suppliers to increase on this ecosystem and launch an answer that gives that digital freedom.

The imaginative and prescient we’re creating via Mission Chronos is an open 3D ecosystem the place customers can take their full-body avatar to any digital world within the metaverse and be capable to management it by way of pure interplay and physique motion with out the necessity for glasses or mocap wearables. That is why we’re positioning Mission Chronos as a gateway to 3D digital worlds, not solely from the {hardware} functionality perspective, but in addition from the open ecosystem perspective.

When will the following iteration of Mission Chronos be demonstrated after CES 2023?   

We’re finalizing future demonstrations of Mission Chronos and can announce the following iteration as soon as it’s obtainable.

When will we get a sign of the ultimate product title, launch date, and pricing? 

The ecosystem remains to be beneath growth, and we’ll announce its last title, launch date, and pricing when it’s additional alongside in its launch preparation.

Lenovo Mission Chronos specs

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