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 lets you 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 Challenge Chronos, which continues 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 related 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 advanced setup necessities or poor person expertise attributable to low accuracy and excessive latency. 

With the fast evolution of {hardware} expertise and AI, Challenge Chronos can push the boundaries to allow close to real-time movement seize, permitting new ranges of freedom for folks to work together and interact inside digital areas. To that finish, we additionally did not need to confine its use to just one situation, however fairly energy a number of use instances throughout totally different points of shoppers’ lives.  

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

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

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

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

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

We are going to proceed to refine the shape issue and specs primarily based on person expertise research. We may also work with content material creators and builders to drive the very best match to energy the brand new situation experiences. 

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

Because the Challenge 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. In the end, we’ll optimize the I/O ports and specs for the very best person expertise primarily based on person insights and market realities. 

Additionally, why is a handheld distant management required? Certainly any person interplay with the Chronos unit may very well 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 popular.

We would like Challenge Chronos to be as versatile as attainable, in order that it may possibly meet a large number of wants and use instances. A distant management supplies the agility, and infrequently comfort, wanted to accommodate that. As we construct out our content material companion ecosystem, the distant may also give us extra choices to permit for compatibility throughout a higher variety of apps the place full-body motion could solely be acknowledged in points of the appliance.

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

Challenge Chronos can monitor facial expressions together with the person’s micro facial features, eye motion, and mouth motion. We have achieved this by the adoption of 3D Level Cloud expertise that captures greater than 50+ energetic items round an individual’s face. It is a powerful expertise that we’re excited to proceed exploring on this proof-of-concept stage.

Which Challenge Chronos use instances are more likely to have most enchantment? 

We aren’t positioning Challenge Chronos as a gaming resolution at present, however see plenty of potential in all its supposed use instances. Nonetheless, I actually suppose individuals who at present use motion-capture fits or different wearable units to regulate their digital avatars within the VTuber area will gravitate to this expertise due to the liberty it supplies. Challenge Chronos will allow these performers and broadcasters to specific themselves by physique motion and facial features that hasn’t been attainable with out wearable movement sensors of some type.

Health is one other space that I feel folks will see its enchantment. The flexibility for an individual in Spain, for instance, to take a yoga class with an teacher in Thailand, obtain their rapid suggestions on type and posture, and have the ability to emulate what the teacher 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 take pleasure in that have in a gorgeous digital atmosphere with none extra AR/VR tools 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 standard, the place folks can leverage Challenge 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 might meet up and current their creation as a 3D hologram that they’ll each see in a extra immersive means, eradicating the boundaries of time and area.

What is going to the Challenge Chronos software program ecosystem seem like? Will I have the ability 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 on daily basis. By merging gaming, media, reside occasions and social media into a brand new type of interactivity that blends digital and bodily, the metaverse is rewriting the foundations of the patron financial system.

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

The imaginative and prescient we’re creating by Challenge Chronos is an open 3D ecosystem the place customers can take their full-body avatar to any digital world within the metaverse and have the ability 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 Challenge 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 subsequent iteration of Challenge Chronos be demonstrated after CES 2023?   

We’re finalizing future demonstrations of Challenge Chronos and can announce the subsequent iteration as soon as it’s out there.

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

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

Lenovo Challenge Chronos specs

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