kSpace Imagine the Future

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kSpace Imagine the Future

• Drew Whitehouse
• ANU Supercomputer Facility
• Vizlab
• http//anusf.anu.edu.au/Vizlab/VE/
• OZeCulture 2002

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kSpace (Kids Space)

• An interactive VR exhibit for children installed
  at the National Museum of Australia (NMA).

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Introduction to the NMA

• Flagship project of the Australian Centenary
  celebrations.
• Examine the past, present and future.
• Social History Museum driven by the stories of
  all Australians.
• Major themes Land, National and People.
• Museum of the 21st century.

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NMA Architecture

• Ashton Raggatt McDougall and Robert Peck von
  Hartel Trethowan

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Design Brief

• Open.
• Something futuristic
• Children aged 6 to 12.
• Australian theme.
• Virtual Reality.
• Interactive ?? high throughput ???
• Affordable (i.e. not SGI).

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Interactive vs Throughput

• Not easy, for large numbers.
• Start buttons arent interactive
• Voting isnt that much fun either
• Multi-stage solution.
• Think personalisation rather than interactive.

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Entertainment vs Education

• Entertaining ourselves to death (Postman) ?
• Deep learning ?
• Its an image driven world.
• Let children actively participate in the image
  production.
• Time constraints (15 minutes).
• Aim to engage interest as a springboard to
  further investigation.

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Concept

• Imagining an Australian city of the future.
• Part of NSW primary school curriculum.
• Precedent, national capital Canberra was
  designed.
• A competition was held in 1912.

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Canberra imagined (1912)

• W Scott Griffiths, Robert Charles Coulter and
  Charles Caswell

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Canberra imagined (1912)

• Eliel Saarinen

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Winning Entry

• Walter Burley Griffin

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Reference Material

• Surveyed children 6 to 12

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kSpace System

• Three stages.
• Photo input (plus waiting area).
• Design stations.
• VR theatre.
• Throughput considerations.
• gt 200 per hour.

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Software

• Custom software.
• Distributed system
• 16 computers
• 7 programs

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Photo Input Station

• Webcam video - fast and convenient.
• Blue screen for background removal.

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Design station

• Constraints
• Simple enough for a 6 year-old
• Still engaging for age 14 (and up)
• Cannot fail task!
• 4.5 minutes to learn interface and complete the
  design

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Concept Art
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Design method

• Experimented with genetic algorithms
• psychologically feels like less control
• potentially boring
• Settled on
• grow it, piece by piece
• start simple, teach as we go
• self-paced (but time-limited)

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Introduce the interface
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Learn as we go ( sound)
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VR theatre

• Stereographic projection (i.e. objects float in
  space).
• Pre-planned path.
• Fun encounters with objects designed by the
  participants.
• Real-time CG generation.
• Surprise !

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kSpace City
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Outcomes

• 200,000 participants in first 10 months.
• Participants have a real sense of ownership of
  their creations.
• Lots of thats mine! exclamations.
• Much wider demographic than we envisaged (3 -
  80).
• Brings children back to the museum for repeat
  visits (with adults in tow).

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Future Projects

• Printouts of participants designs
  merchandising possibilities.
• More participant effect on kSpace world.
• Educational WWW packages that examine specific
  aspects of the city of the future, e.g.
  alternative energy sources.
• A WWW interface into our city of the future
  kWorld, a persistent online world.

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Team

• Vizlab
• Biftek (Sound Track)
• Alison Bell (voice talent)
• Stephen Duke
• Darran Edmundson
• Ajaye Limaye
• Stuart Ramsden
• Marciano Telese (Sound Effects)
• Drew Whitehouse

• NMA
• Johanna Parker
• Darryl McIntyre
• Louise Douglas
• ANWAY
• W. Scott Guerin (DMCD)
• Marcus Bree(Amaze Design)