In the video clip below, it looks like the guy pours liquid into the bottom of his machine, and moments later, the fluid is climbing to the top of the machine, pouring back onto a paddlewheel at the bottom, then flowing back uphill, the cycle repeating in perpetuity.

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So is this a true perpetual motion machine? Have the laws of physics finally been defied? I think not. Watch again carefully, and you can see from the shadows the whole rig is some sort of Escher-like illusion, where the bottom isn’t really the bottom and the top isn’t really the top, and a bit of camera-trickery fools our puny brains. My head hurts just thinking about how it works, but from what I can tell, it’s just gravity doing all the work.

[via BuzzFeed and Gawker TV]

Aside from simulating motion, the parts of the Atomic are also highly adjustable and customizable. If you have mad riches, you can even network multiple Atomics. Good for multiplayer matches and virtual roller coaster rides. Currently, the Atomic’s complementary “motion-link” software, SIMPHYNITY, claims support for over 60 games, with more en route. Some of the supported games are Burnout Paradise, Dirt 2, NFS Speed, Shift & Carbon, HAWX, and for virtual truckers, Big Mutha Truckers.

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I wish the video had an actual shot of someone using the Atomic. As awesome as it seems to be you really should wait until you see it in action or at least read a couple of reviews about it before you order one, because you’ll have to shell out £4,290 (approx. $6,600 USD) plus shipping for one unit. But if you think you’ve seen enough, just go to JoyRide Simulators’ website to order. As for me, I think I’ll stick to moving my body and making engine noises while playing racing games.

[via BornRich]

As someone with a love-hate relationship with the mouse, this could be really exciting to me. I might even switch back to Windows! It might be worth it to be able to really flip through my music and photos when I flip through my music and photos, though the whole idea of manipulating nothingness would probably take some getting used to.

Just as with everything else Project Natal-related, there’s nothing concrete here, just an interview, a remark, and a dream, but it’s something to keep an eye on.

[CNET via Xbox-Scene]

This is pretty basic–as strange as it is to refer to motion controlled gaming as basic–considering this glove is just a holder for an accelerometer, so that the tilt and motion of the player’s hand and wrist is used to manipulate the pieces.

You could also just play WiiWare’s Tetris Party, but that’s fancy Tetris, and sometimes you just want simplicity. Simplicity and a wrist wrapped in wiring.

[Tetris glove via HackADay]

The new VholdR ContourHD is a wearable HD camcorder that can shoot full 16:9 widescreen video to capture your daredevil moments in glorious high definition. The camera shoots at 1280×720 (720p) resolution at 30 frames per second, or can also shoot SD video at up to 60 FPS if you don’t mind sacrificing resolution for greater framerate. Video can be captured on MicroSD cards, each of which can hold as much as 16GB – about 8 hours of HD video. Not too shabby.

Just strap the weather- and shock-resistant ContourHD to your helmet, and flip the record switch to get started. Not only does it capture video from your point-of-view, but the ContourHD grabs decent audio thanks to a special built-in microphone designed to minimize wind noise as you careen down that hill or out of that airplane. The camera features a special 135-degree wide-angle lens to capture all the action, and even has built in laser guides to ensure you capture a straight shot. And if you’re really defying death and don’t wear a helmet at all, VholdR offers a variety of mounting accessories for your bike, car, ski goggles or other locations.

While the videos below give you a pretty good idea of the type of action you can capture with the ContourHD, you’ll really want to head over the the VholdR site to see some clips in their full HD glory.

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You can find the VholdR ContourHD camera over at Amazon for $299.99 (USD).

[via Helmet Camera Central via EngadgetHD]

Yep, that’s the idea behind interactive artist Eric Loyer’s new iPhone app, Ruben & Lullaby. By jostling your iPhone, you’ll make the lovers angry. Give them a little stroke, and they’ll calm down and maybe even shed a tear.

Your motions and gestures control the destiny of the young couple, and each action produces a real-time reaction from the characters in your little mobile drama. It’s sort of like a Tamagotchi for adults, with a couple, on a park bench.

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Ruben & Lullaby is the first of Loyer’s Opertoon series, which envisions animated stories that can be played like a musical instrument. While the concept of two fighting lovers seems a bit odd, the interactive component could be pretty cool for other animated stories.

It’s available now over at the iTunes App Store.

Pendulum Studios’, AlterEgo division combines facial expression software, precision motion capture, and good old-fashioned artistry to reproduce the most minute facial movements you’ve ever seen on a digital actor. Every wrinkle, crinkle and twitch is reproduced with startling accuracy.

The guys over at AlterEgo have developed proprietary “facial performance software”, which combined with special mo-cap hardware, can produce unbelievably real digital faces in record time. Their work has been featured in motion pictures, commercials, animation and video games including Dark Sector and the forthcoming Silent Hill 5.

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After you’ve watched the lo-res video above, be sure to check out AlterEgo’s Hi-Res demo videos to see just how amazing this stuff truly is.

[via TechEBlog]

Steve Gilbertson’s interactive color cube uses a 3-axis accelerometer to detect movements and relays that information to a grid of brightly colored LEDs to create a portable light show in a box.

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Each axis of the accelerometer (X, Y, and Z) directly influences one of the color channels (Red, Green and Blue), so every angle results in a unique color display. All of the electronics, including the array of 54 RGB diodes are packed into a tiny 2″ cube which then “floats” inside of a 4″ white acrylic box, which diffuses the light.

While this is currently a one-of-a-kind gizmo, I’m hoping that Gilbertson finds a way to mass produce battery-powered versions of the cube at some point. I’d definitely want one on my desk.

Seeing Machines faceAPI is a developers’ toolkit which provides easy head tracking on all three axes. When combined with the proper game concept, this type of technology could provide for some really unique experiences, including the ability to interact with environments just by looking around.

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Amazingly enough, it’s all feasible with a single, standard webcam, and no special hardware is required.

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In addition to tracking head movements, faceAPI can detect changes in facial expressions, regardless of skin color or facial hair, and even works you’re wearing glasses or makeup. It can automatically find the face in the current scene, and reacquire it if the subject leaves the frame. It’s also able to work in pretty much any visible or IR light situation, so it’s not overly sensitive to changes in lighting.

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Currently, faceAPI works with any Windows compatible webcam, but the technology could theoretically be ported to other platforms if the demand is there. The faceAPI website isn’t live yet, but for now you can check out SeeingMachines’ product page for more specifics.

KEYnetik’s motion interface system uses multiple accelerometers to detect not just the direction of movement, but to triangulate where force originates from. The dual-sensor design is also immune to minor, unintentional motions (a.k.a. “motion interference”). The system can detect user gestures and translate them into on-screen interactions. By combining the motion-based interface with side-grip finger controls and joysticks, an entire device can be controlled with just one hand, freeing your other digits for, um, whatever you need them available for.

An added benefit of the design is that it’s totally ambidextrous. Just flip a KEYnetik-powered device over, and it’ll automatically get its bearings and adjust the interface appropriately.

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In addition to the prototype device (above), KEYnetik has already completed a proof-of-concept implementation on the Nokia N95 (below), called “RockNScroll”. N95 owners will be able to download RockNScroll for free by registering on the KEYnetik forums.

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The gestures in these prototype videos are arguably a bit exaggerated, but hopefully they’ll find a way to tone them down and keep users from ending up with some nasty repetitive strain injuries.

The company’s recently revealed ZCam is capable of not only capturing gamers’ most intricate gestures, but detecting full-body movements in three dimensions, without the need for the player to hold a controller. The camera’s unique ability to detect depth allows it to track motion as well as sample 3D images (the surfaces it can see, that is) in real time.

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The technology used in the camera was originally designed for use in defense systems, and has now been packaged into a low-cost consumer product. The ZCam can capture 1.3 Megapixel images at up to 60 frames-per-second, passing coordinate data back to a PC (and hopefully game consoles some day).  A proprietary chipset called DeepC takes care of the depth detection algorithms.

The company hasn’t announced any big distribution partnerships at this point, but hopefully some console or computer accessory makers will stand up and take notice.

[via TechShout]

While it’s designed as a platform, capable of playing a number of different games and puzzles, the interactive plaything happens to do a great job digitally emulating the old Rubik’s Cube.

The digital puzzle’s 216 mulit-colored LEDs are controlled by touch-sensitive panels and 3D motion accelerometer circuits (like the ones found in the Nintendo Wii).

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Fentem says his Cube will be available in limited quanties from the UK’s Kinetica electronic art museum in the near future.

[via Engadget]

The piece, entitled I, ball used a webcam along with special processing software to detect people as they pass the display window. A series of digitized eyeball movements then follow the those who approach the window. The installation was on display at the recent Exposed @ VillaNuts show in Den Haag, Netherlands.

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I think I’m gonna have some weird dreams tonight.

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It does have an interesting user interface, in which you turn a band at the top end of the “egg” to change tracks, or the one at the bottom to change volume. A motion sensor automatically detects which end is up. To shuffle tracks, you shake the player. There are some good videos of how that all works over on Akihabara News.

The player has built in speaker “ears” which flap along to the music too. It’s also got Bluetooth on board so you can download custom movement sequences from your PC. It can play MP3, ATRAC and AAC tracks, but not WMA files. But most important is its ability to pull of some cute little dance moves.

With a retail price around $350, this isn’t exactly a kids toy. Just 1GB of memory means it’s not going to store your entire music collection either. It’s also just too big and cumbersome to put in your pocket, so it’s not particularly portable. I know that it’s supposed to be cute, but when I can pick up an iPhone or an Xbox 360 for about the same price, I’m just baffled.

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While I’m a bit skeptical that the video clip could be a fake, developer Erling Ellingsen does have a track record hacking motion-sensors and says he’ll be posting the source code soon. Even if it is phony, I just can’t get enough of that Steve Jobs bobblehead.

[via Gizmodo]

Amazon.com is now listing a bundle which includes the game Eye of Judgment and the EYE camera for $59.99. They’re currently showing a release date of October 23, 2007, so it’ll be out just in time for the holidays.

The PlayStation EYE camera offers significant advancements over its predecessor, the popular EyeToy for the PS2. The EYE can capture up to 120 frames per second, meaning it can record much more precise movements than the earlier camera. It’s also got a four-element microphone which can detect the approximate location where sound is coming from. I’m assuming this feature will come into play in some games.

[via PS3Fanboy]

The filing, originally dated March 30, 2007 (but just updated this week) describes a portable gaming system that includes X/Y/Z motion sensing that’s similar to that found in the Wii-Mote. The application abstract describes the system as follows:

“A game system includes a housing to be held by a player. The housing incorporates an XY-axis acceleration sensor to detect an acceleration in an X-axis and Y-axis direction and a Z-axis contact switch to detect an acceleration in a Z-axis direction. These sensor and switch detect at least one of an amount (e.g. tilt amount, movement amount, impact amount or the like) and a direction (e.g. tilt direction, movement direction, impact direction or the like) of a change applied to the housing. A simulation program provides simulation such that a state of a game space is changed related to at least one of the amount and direction of the change applied to the housing.”

Now unless I’m mistaken, that sure sounds like some sort of combination of a portable console and a Wii motion sensing controller. The system would also provide for interactivity between multiple players, so one player’s movements could impact information on the other players’ consoles.

Let’s hope Nintendo decides to commercialize this technology and put it into a real gaming system sometime soon. Given the huge success of the Wii, it seems only natural that the next logical step would be to go portable..

Traditional (if you can call them that) MoCap systems usually start around $30,000, and often much more. The OptiTrack ARENA system uses anywhere from six to twelve digital cameras to capture 3-dimensional body movements in real time, then store them in a data format that can be used by 3D animation systems.

The ARENA foundation system costs $4999 and will come with everything you need to make your own animations (other than the actor’s motion capture suit and markers, which will set you back around $400 to $500 extra.)

Designed by the research team of Jungsoo Kim, Jiasheng He, Kent Lyons and Thad Starner, the Gesture Watch uses an array of infrared sensors to detect hand movements in close proximity to the watch. The gestures are then interpreted by software to control a remote device.

The developers of the envision that the technology could be used to do things like control media players. The watch embeds Bluetooth wireless connectivity so it can command external devices. For instance, if you wore a tiny MP3 player in an earbud, the watch could act as a remote control for that device.

[via Discovery]

The XCM BestTilt includes a complete replacement shell for the back of the 360′s controller. It requires just a small amount of soldering to install (five easy solder points.) Once you hook those up, it just screws into place, and you’re ready to go.

Here’s a video of the controller in action:

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The $40 modification kit should ship any day now in both white and black variants, so Xbox 360 Elite snobs can join in the fun too.