Project Tango: Exploring Space and Motion in 3D

Next generation, three-dimensional mapping by Google and Android. Project Tango is taking technology to a whole new level.
“As we walk through our daily lives, we use visual cues to navigate and understand the world around us. We observe the size and shape of objects and rooms, and we learn their position and layout almost effortlessly over time. This awareness of space and motion is fundamental to the way we interact with our environment and each other. We are physical beings that live in a 3D world. Yet, our mobile devices assume that physical world ends at the boundaries of the screen.” – Johnny Lee, and the ATAP Project Tango team.
Since 2005, Google and Android Inc. have been developing groundbreaking technology. Their joint endeavors have brought about the wildly popular Android OS: a heavyweight contender to the Apple iPhone. Their next project together is to master space and motion as a whole with the announcement of Project Tango.
Project Tango is the next big step in Google Street View on a much smaller scale. The project is planned to bring virtual reality to Android smartphones to create 3D maps across all spaces on the earth. The beta versions of the device were featured at Google I/O 2014 and since have found their way into the hands of developers across the globe.
Google states that “Project Tango devices contain customized hardware and software designed to track the full 3D motion of the device, while simultaneously creating a map of the environment. These sensors allow the device to make over a quarter million 3D measurements every second, updating its position and orientation in real-time, combining that data into a single 3D model of the space around you.” The data harvested through the device can create a complete virtual map that can then be applied to hundreds of different programs and applications.
According to Princeton Optronics the device “will use vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) from Princeton Optronics as illumination sources for motion and depth sensing” and will, of course, use Android.
The Google Project Tango ATAP team has been collaborating with businesses, organizations and individuals around the world to master the newly developed technologies, but are the first to admit that they have a long way to go.
The project also offers amazing benefits to retailers as the next wave of interactive marketing. Google has partnered up with Burberry, Target, Lionsgate, Nike, EA Sports and Volkswagen as part of the Art, Copy & Code Initiative.
Stay tuned to VPS.NET/blog for more information on the Art, Copy & Code Initiative.
Target retailers have created Bullseye’s Place with Project Tango in mind. By viewing the store through the interactive application, a shopper will get a glance at the brightly animated world that secretly surrounds them.
Project Tango will offer many new uses including special advantages for those who are sight impaired, emergency services as well as alerting drivers to dangerous road conditions. It is plain to see that this project is not a run-of-the-mill application or new device; Project Tango has the potential to serve not only business and entertainment purposes, but also as a device used to aid individuals in their daily lives. The use for this product are almost infinite and exhibits innovation in its purest form.