Kobito – Virtual Brownies

2006

Takafumi Aoki (JP)
Hironori Mitake
Rikiya Ayukawa
Takatsugu Kuriyama
Toshihiro Kawase
Takashi Matsushita
Takashi Toyama
Hiroshi Ichikawa
Kazuyuki Asano
Itaru Matsumura
Yuichiro Iio
Makoto Sato
Shoichi Hasegawa
Society for the Study of Robotics

Virtual imps are up to their mischief in the Ars Electronica Center. Whoever wants to catch ‘em in the act has to peer through the “Kobito window.”

In the real world, the Kobitos themselves remain invisible but their activities are there for all to see—for instance, when a tea can moves across a tabletop as if it were being pushed by a ghost. Visitors can take up contact with the Kobitos via real objects like the tea can, and when they do, they actually feel the resistance the Kobitos put up. But only on the monitor are the creatures’ reactions visible.

“Kobito – Virtual Brownies” is the first instance in which virtual creatures interact with physical objects. Previously, this took place strictly in cyberspace. To make this breakthrough possible, the physical objects’ movements in the real world had to be synchronized with the virtual world. The “Kobito window” displays a combined image of Kobito computer animation and reality.

With the friendly support of the Tokyo Institute of Technology