Venture Further winners（六）.docVIP

PixelScape could perk-up painful PowerPoint presentations A 3D projection system developed by entrepreneurial students at The University of Manchester could breathe new life into painful PowerPoint presentations. A team of six entrepreneurs – including three Physics students and one Physics graduate – has developed a digital system called PixelScape, which takes 3D computer images and projects them onto hundreds of dangling/tensioned nylon threads. The result is stunning 3D colour projections measuring around one metre high, one metre deep and two metres wide. The team’s innovative work has landed them the ￡25,000 first prize in The University of Manchester’s Venture Further competition for budding entrepreneurs. Now in its second year, the Venture competition (www.manchester.ac.uk/venturecompetition) is an opportunity for staff and students to test their ideas as potential new business opportunities. It is run by the Manchester Science and Enterprise Centre (MSEC). With further development, the winning team believe PixelScape could be used to project graphs and other illustrative objects commonly found in PowerPoint slides. So instead of just pointing at something on a screen, a presenter could turn the object into a 3D projection, walk around it – and reach right into it. (you’d have to be pretty thin to walk through it) They’re also working on possible applications in video gaming, live entertainment and the healthcare sector – for example, a brain scan could be projected in highly detailed 3D and examined quickly and thoroughly by medical experts. The PixelScape team is also exploring the possibility of incorporating gesture control systems – like those used by Tom Cruise in the film Minority Report – to replace mice clicks and keyboard controls. The software that makes the stunning 3D projections possible has been developed from scratch by the team. They have also adapted existing projection hardware to make the system function effectively. PixelScape team lead