Tracker | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Wed, 25 Jan 2017 10:44:55 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png Tracker | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 HTC Vive trackers used to create real-world companion cube https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/jon-martindale/htc-vive-trackers-used-to-create-real-world-companion-cube/ https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/jon-martindale/htc-vive-trackers-used-to-create-real-world-companion-cube/#respond Mon, 23 Jan 2017 12:43:11 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=318388 Virtual reality hardware can be used to modify the real world too. Two artists have made use of a HTC Vive's tracked controllers for realtime projection mapping on real world objects, letting them create customisable projection screens on any surface, 3D models and even a movable companion cube. Traditionally the HTC Vive's controllers are used …

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Virtual reality hardware can be used to modify the real world too. Two artists have made use of a HTC Vive's tracked controllers for realtime projection mapping on real world objects, letting them create customisable projection screens on any surface, 3D models and even a movable companion cube.

Traditionally the HTC Vive's controllers are used to track gestures and allow interaction within the virtual world for those wearing a HTC Vive headset. However the controllers utilise a similar tracking system to the tracking puck accessories HTC recently announced. That means that when placed on a surface, APIs like OpenVR know exactly where they are. When combined with some clever software and an artist's ingenuity, some interesting projects emerge.

Harvey Moon posted a Youtube video of what he and a colleague were able to do with that technology and the results are impressive (thanks Redditor friendshipcastle).

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gkidC6hTlY']

The controllers can be used to manually control a PC-connected projector, changing colours and the size of the projection, but it's the automated projection mapping that is so impressive. In one example it is used to create a companion cube and another, a 3D model of the Statue of Liberty.

Moon hasn't detailed exactly how this was achieved but said that it was quite simple and used: “some rubber bands and a calibrated projector,” which lets the controller “allow physical interaction with projected surfaces.” He also told Redditors that they used the Valve developed, open source API, OpenVR, to translate tracking data into something that the projector could understand and react to.

Right now the artists don't have a standalone tracking puck the likes of which HTC and Valve will release later this year, but they hope Valve will send them one in the near future. Perhaps after seeing this project in action.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I was already excited by the possibilities of extra trackers in VR, but it seems like they can have some use outside of it too.

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Japanese black-hole tracking satellite Hitomi may be lost to space https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/jon-martindale/japanese-black-hole-tracking-satellite-hitomi-may-be-lost-to-space/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/science/jon-martindale/japanese-black-hole-tracking-satellite-hitomi-may-be-lost-to-space/#comments Wed, 30 Mar 2016 09:58:40 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=288305 The $270 million Japanese satellite, Hitomi, launched earlier this year, has gone quiet, leaving scientists on the ground anxious to get back in touch with it. Although there has been some sporadic messages from the orbiting craft, no solid lines of communication have been opened up, with some wondering whether it is now lost to …

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The $270 million Japanese satellite, Hitomi, launched earlier this year, has gone quiet, leaving scientists on the ground anxious to get back in touch with it. Although there has been some sporadic messages from the orbiting craft, no solid lines of communication have been opened up, with some wondering whether it is now lost to space.

The Hitomi, otherwise known as ASTRO-H or the New X-ray Telescope, was launched into orbit around the Earth in February this year, with an intended goal to study the structure and evolution of the universe. Specifically, it could analyse hard X-Ray bands, beyond that of other devices currently in use, which would let it look at things like how matter behaves around black holes and dark matter.

While all seemed to be going well for Hitomi over the last  month, things started to seem awry this past Saturday. Five small objects were detected around the satellite, suggesting some sort of debris or damage and observers on the ground have said they saw a flash, which may mean the craft is rotating or tumbling (as per BBC).

hitomi

Artist interpretation of Hitomi. Source: JAXA

Tracking its position also suggests that Hitomi drastically changed course within the past week.

The Japanese space agency, JAXA, is still trying to figure out what went wrong and whether it will be able to recover the massively expensive instrument. Some suggestions have been that it may have suffered a gas leak or a battery explosion, but without data from the craft itself or closer observations, it's hard to know.

The last communication from Hitomi was on the 29th March, with very brief signals received consistent with a quickly tumbling space craft, as it passed over tracking stations. Other passes are expected within the next 24 hours, so we may know more information then.

KitGuru Says: We have our fingers crossed for JAXA and Hitomi on this one. Hopefully it can be recovered as that's a monster investment to lose otherwise. 

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Swallowable fitness trackers could replace wrist wearables https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/jon-martindale/swallowable-fitness-trackers-could-replace-wrist-wearables/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/jon-martindale/swallowable-fitness-trackers-could-replace-wrist-wearables/#comments Fri, 20 Nov 2015 10:47:38 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=275903 As morbid as it sounds, one of the biggest issues with the current generation of wearable tracks is that there is a lot of skin in the way of their readings. Detecting a heart beat requires you wear the device somewhere that a pulse can be found and tracking breathing means being placed much closer to …

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As morbid as it sounds, one of the biggest issues with the current generation of wearable tracks is that there is a lot of skin in the way of their readings. Detecting a heart beat requires you wear the device somewhere that a pulse can be found and tracking breathing means being placed much closer to the wearer's chest. But what if we could just swallow a tracker instead? That's what one group of researchers has been trialling and it works quite well.

trackerpill

Admittedly it's worked quite well on pigs only, and sedated ones at that, but this is an interesting development nonetheless. The fitness trackers that the researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are able to accurately track heart and respiratory rates from inside a live pig, delivering useful data as they pass through the body over one to two days.

The small tracking-pills use a micro-microphone to detect heart rate and respiratory rhythms through acoustics, which is possible throughout the entire digestive system (as per the Guardian).

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zq8cfLv84Q']

This has a number of applications beyond just being convenient though. Patients with skin diseases or burn victims would likely be far more comfortable with a tracker that could be swallowed, than hooking them up to a number of skin-mounted sensors. Further development of the wireless transmission of these devices is still required, though researchers are now developing a human-friendly version for further testing too.

If made safe, one day we could be using a variety of different swallowable sensors, trackers and delivery methods. Imagine a tracker that sits in your gut and dispenses antibiotics when an infection is detected, or one that could alert you that you may require serious medical attention before a potentially fatal incident.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Perhaps a device like this could even detect blood sugar levels one day, allowing for a much simpler day to day tracking for diabetics. 

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ASUS giving away ZenWatch in launch build up https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/jon-martindale/asus-giving-away-zenwatch-in-launch-build-up/ https://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mobile/jon-martindale/asus-giving-away-zenwatch-in-launch-build-up/#respond Wed, 05 Nov 2014 09:06:25 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=220350 The world and his dog seems to be developing their own wearable at the moment, with Microsoft announcing the impending release of its smart ‘Band,' and Apple giving its fans a reason not to buy one this Christmas. ASUS is getting in on the act too, with the upcoming release of its ZenWatch smartwatch. To …

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The world and his dog seems to be developing their own wearable at the moment, with Microsoft announcing the impending release of its smart ‘Band,' and Apple giving its fans a reason not to buy one this Christmas. ASUS is getting in on the act too, with the upcoming release of its ZenWatch smartwatch. To aid promotion, the Taiwanese electronics maker is giving away 10 of the wrist-mounted devices and all you have to do is answer a few questions.

Like many smartwatches, the ZenWatch comes with an AMOLED display, with a 320 x 320 resolution and can give your smartphone some added function, like using it to control your phone remotely, or letting you find your handset in a hurry. It also comes complete with sensors that let you track several health-based metrics, including: steps taken, calories burned, how long you've been running for, as well as your heart rate or relaxation level.

zenwatch

All of this is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 CPU running at 1.2GHz, 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal flash storage. There is no hard release date as of yet, but it's available to pre-order for £160 at select retailers.

To be in with a chance to win one of the 10 ASUS is putting up for grabs, all you have to do is head through to the competition landing page here, sign in and answer a few questions. The competition runs through till the 28th November, with winners being chosen at random on the 9th December.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I'm not sold on this generation of smartwatches being worth their price. Next year seems more likely to bring products that actually evolve the technology, rather than just emulating what most trackers and watches do already. 

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Nintendo to make a sleep sensing nearable https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/jon-martindale/nintendo-to-make-a-sleep-sensing-nearable/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/generaltech/jon-martindale/nintendo-to-make-a-sleep-sensing-nearable/#comments Thu, 30 Oct 2014 10:02:23 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=219291 Nintendo wants to get into the stat tracking business, with a brand new piece of hardware that sits by your bedside and keeps an eye on you while you sleep. Not with a camera mind you, but with sensors that can detect the quality of sleep you're having, as well as how long for and …

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Nintendo wants to get into the stat tracking business, with a brand new piece of hardware that sits by your bedside and keeps an eye on you while you sleep. Not with a camera mind you, but with sensors that can detect the quality of sleep you're having, as well as how long for and a number of other stats to help give you advice on how to improve the quality of your sleep.

This is certainly a different tack than is being taken by a lot of wearable manufacturers, which are offering the same sort of sleep tracking, but through a wrist mounted bracelet or similar device. Presumably, Nintendo has decided to sidestep some of the issues with wearables – battery life, fashion, comfortability – to offer a simpler product that can perform its function day in, day out without getting in your way or on your nerves.

Information from the device will be sent to the cloud for analysis and can then be viewed by you to give you ideas of how to give you a better night's sleep.

sleep

“Fatigue and sleep are themes that are rather hard to visualise in more objective ways,” Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said in a briefing to investors. “At Nintendo, we believe that if we could visualise them, there would be great potential for many people regardless of age, gender, language or culture.”

This isn't something that Nintendo is just talking about either, but is already planning to move forward with. To produce the sensor, it will team up with American medical firm ResMed, which already has experience in the tracking and treatment of sleep disorders. It's also developed its own non-contact tracking system, which Nintendo will no doubt use as part of the product.

There's been no real word on when the device will be available, or how much it will cost, but there are suggestions that it could come out around 2016.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I'm not really sure why Nintendo is getting into sleep sensors, but I'd be interesting to see if it can make a way for it to be incorporated into a game somehow.

[Thanks Eurogamer]

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Are you ready for the next-gen… of shark trackers? https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/are-you-ready-for-the-next-gen-of-shark-trackers/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/are-you-ready-for-the-next-gen-of-shark-trackers/#respond Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:27:51 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=132514 With all this talk of next-generation consoles, it's time we took a pause and considered the next-generation of more out there hardware: like the next-gen of shark tracking robots that will help us understand how reclusive species like the Great White, actually live. If you've watched shows like Shark Week, where the awesomeness of the …

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With all this talk of next-generation consoles, it's time we took a pause and considered the next-generation of more out there hardware: like the next-gen of shark tracking robots that will help us understand how reclusive species like the Great White, actually live.

If you've watched shows like Shark Week, where the awesomeness of the sharks themselves is often overshadowed by the pre-teen like, prima donna bitching between the teams involved in the show, you'll know that one of the methods used in the past to track giant sharks, was to pin a tracking tag to its dorsal fin. Whenever the shark surfaced, this tag would link up with a satellite and track the fish's position. Of course this has down sides, as the activity of the shark while it's submerged – and ironically, where a shark spends most of its time – is completely untracked.

shark
This is the view the shark will have just before it destroys the pesky snooper-bot.

Enter biologists Chris Lowe and Chris Clark, from California State University Long Beach and Harvey Mudd College in Claremont respectively. These gentlemen have spent the past three years developing a robotic computer that will give us a much better idea of what some of the most elusive predators in the world live like.

Robots like the one used in this instance, have begun showing up all over the world, following different marine life – but this is the first one designed for tracking sharks. It hones in on a tag attached to said shark and follows at a distance of 500 metres, so as not to affect the shark's natural behaviour.

As Wired describes, two hydrophone receivers pick up auditory signals from the tag for positioning and other sensors on the robot keep track of water temperature, dissolved oxygen, salinity and other water specifications. All of this information is used to build up a map of the Great White's stomping grounds. Cameras will also pick up what they can, though at the distance this thing travels, the shark is unlikely to be in shot very often.

The test run of the technology has already tracked a leopard shark off the coast of Los Angeles, so this summer the team is planning to use it to track a juvenile great white.

KitGuru Says: This is badass. We're one step closer to having real footage of the end scene from Megashark vs Giant Octopus. Less footage will be recycled too, which will make it infinitely better. 

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Bitgamer torrent tracker shuts down https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/bitgamer-torrent-tracker-shuts-down/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/bitgamer-torrent-tracker-shuts-down/#respond Wed, 02 Jan 2013 19:00:02 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=120943 One of the world's most popular private Bittorrent trackers has closed its doors, bringing an end to a six year career in game sharing and leaving behind it over 65,000 active users that are no doubt spending the early days of 2013 trying to find a decent replacement. The reason given for the shut down …

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One of the world's most popular private Bittorrent trackers has closed its doors, bringing an end to a six year career in game sharing and leaving behind it over 65,000 active users that are no doubt spending the early days of 2013 trying to find a decent replacement.

The reason given for the shut down was that with the legal climate far different than it was a few years ago and the creators' keen to move on with their lives, it seemed like a good a time as any. While they apparently considered handing over the ownership of the tracker to someone else, ultimately it was felt that this could leave their users vulnerable, so the service is simply no more.

Bitgamer
RIP

“We’ve reached the end of the ride. bitGAMER has been an amazingly fun ride, but all rides must come to an end,” the notice to fans on the official site reads. “We hope that closing this door will open other doors in our lives, and that we can take all of the lessons we've learned from bitGAMER into the next phase of our lives.”

“We didn’t give advance warning due to the nature of the site. We don’t want to give any advance notice in case someone was ready to kick someone’s door in at the last minute,” it continued (via TorrentFreak).

The founders also said that anyone who donated to the site within the past 30 days can ask for a refund.

While the tracker itself may be dead however, the ethos lives on. Already the community is looking for a new tracker to call home and those that have always shared are continuing to do so.

KitGuru Says: Bitgamer will live on it seems, in the community it helped create.

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Demonoid is back https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/demonoid-is-back/ https://www.kitguru.net/channel/jon-martindale/demonoid-is-back/#respond Tue, 13 Nov 2012 13:43:43 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=115334 It's been down for over three months, prompting many to believe it had disappeared for good. However, today Demonoid, one of the world's biggest name torrent trackers is online once again, though the Demonoid domain still remains inactive. The last quarter of a year has not been easy for Demonoid or its fans. First it was hit …

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It's been down for over three months, prompting many to believe it had disappeared for good. However, today Demonoid, one of the world's biggest name torrent trackers is online once again, though the Demonoid domain still remains inactive.

The last quarter of a year has not been easy for Demonoid or its fans. First it was hit by what the admin described as a DDOS attack, which took it offline. Then Interpol targeted its hosting provider Colocall, which then took down the domain. On top of this, a criminal investigation was launched in Mexico against the site's owners and beyond that, the domains showed up for sale on SEDO.

Demonoid
Demonoid makes its triumphant return

However these problems are now in the past, with the admin saying to Torrentfreak: “You know how it goes with Demonoid. It might take a while but it will come back.” His point has now been proven.

When the site will come back or if it will at all is anyone's guess, but when Demonoid has been downed in the past, the tracker came back online a while before the site did, so this is par for the course with regards to this particular torrent site.

KitGuru Says: Fan reaction to this has understandably been pretty huge. Any of you guys excited that Demonoid is back?

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