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Media Browser N.U.I. (Natural User Interface) Kinect


chef

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Here is the Latest Release Date: Saturday, March, 1, 2014

 

Note: Speech Training is still very important for Media Browser Kinect.

I have attempted to write the application to need no speech training, however the Speech recognizer could not handle

the number of commands it takes to run Media Browser. So we'll stick with the current one.

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/46151346/MbKinect%20Release%203-1-2014.zip

 

 

MBKinect.png

 

[media=800x640]http://youtube.com/watch?v=MIJMrWiZ_3o[/media]

 

 

All Public Releases will be posted here, please ask questions or post issues in the Questions / Issues sub-forum.

 

Please visit here before initially trying to use this Controller for information regrading this plug-in (under construction):

 

http://mediabrowserkinect.com

Edited by chef
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  • 4 weeks later...

I feel as though the Kinect is beginning to fall through the cracks.

 

Here is why I think this is happening: (it's my fault really..)

 

  • It is never mentioned as part of Media Browser Utilities or as a selling feature
  • During the initial development of the application a lot of trial and error was used publicly during its creation, creating a less than respectable reputation for Media Browser Kinect.
  • The application download link is hidden in the Server Application, and is not prominently advertised
  •  The developer (Me) was learning .Net 4.5 Networking languages, such as Tasking and Threading Functions between clients and servers, while writing the Application openly causing a  less than respectable reputation to occur in the community and possible users.
  • XBOX One is releasing a new version of the Kinect Sensor, which people believe will out do many of the first Generation Kinects (which Media Browser Kinect is based on).
  • Most of the more prevalent applications have been accepted by their Device Companies (ie. iOS, Android, and Microsoft) and are able to be sold in their respective online stores.

 

What I plan on doing about it:

 

1. Dealing with Exposure in a positive way

 

Microsoft Kinect doesn't have an online outlet for consumers, it is mostly a second hand device at a thrift store, pilled among themselves on a shelf that no one is paying attention to. 

 

As of the Middle of this week, a fully functioning version of Media Browser Kinect will be Available, for Free.

 

2. Dealing with XBOX One exposure:

 

The most unfortunate part about XBOX One kinect is that people have begun to extraneously believe that this new sensor will out do the old version.

 

Although in many ways the sensor has new technologies added, but this may not be  the case.

 

For instance a XBOX 360 Kinect with USB cable to connect to your computer, at a thrift shop will cost about $40 CAD.

 

A Microsoft Kinect for WIndows bought online will cost Approximately $200.00.

 

Since XBOX One kinect has no way of "kinecting" to a PC, Microsoft will only sell "New Generation -  Kinect for WIndows" sensors for this purpose.

 

Q: If the First Generation Microsoft Kinect for Windows costs $200.00, what will a New Generation Kinect Cost? 

 

A: More than the $40.00 you spend on an X360 Kinect at a pawn shop, this is for sure.

 

For this reason I will still develop MBKinect with the purpose of using the old Generation Kinect Sensors.

 

 

3. No more public Testing Trails of the Application

 

Now that the application is working in a way that is acceptable, Only releases that present themselves as working with few bugs, will be released.

 

There will be a channelog of new additions to the application.

 

This will hopefully attract attention, and respect from other developers.

It should be mentioned that this particular application was built from the ground up. "From Scratch" if you will, no easy task.

 

 

 

Lets see how we do in the long run. This application may bit the dust in the coming months.

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Kinect is so responsive with the browser theatre.

Edited by chef
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  • 2 weeks later...

I have begun to create a new menu option called "user recognition".

 

This menu will allow you to start speech training for your profile and also allow for the user to take their account picture and also set up face recognition.

 

When face recognition is started , the user has to choose their name from a list of user account names. So media browser must be set up first.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I released version 2.1.

 

This version still has it's drawbacks. Every once in a while, there is an error that is not .NET.

 

It happens during start up, and it is windows stopping the application from Running.

 

Re-starting the app will have no issues, which leads me to believe that it is a compiler issue.

 

Speech training is still extremely important. If you don't speech train, then the kinect will not respond very well at all.

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New tracking methods have been implemented in an up coming version. I was able to cut down on the processing by taking the Array of Body parts from the Kinect Skeleton stream and feeding the information into an Array Variable.

 

This  new Array Variable is Scoped throughout the Application, and each Class can then access the information and events based on it.

 

Before I was attempting to process WAY to much information all at once, at 30 FPS. This was wrong!

 

I now use an enabled timer object to control the amount of times I want to access the kinects depth, color and skeleton camera information. This cuts processing down substantially. 

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I have created a user class that mimics some of the server classes. This allows the app to save default information to XML and then gab it quickly by using Property declarations in the app. Less time waiting to sift through information this way. The entire app is much more stable.

 

Read only properties are kind of new to me, I should have been coding this way from the beginning this is for sure.

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chef

I re worked everything now. All classes now have constructors if they contain properties or functions. I also created a dictionary of responses that the synthesizer is able to say. These are dynamic already, but I used a random number generator to choose the response. Now you never know when it will say the dynamic replies.

 

I build replies based on user gender, the time it is currently, and the users name.

 

Also, I have re written the media browser library locator class in the app. It now finds the current library the user is in faster and loads commands faster.

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chef

Almost ready to release a new version.

 

I re factored the entire application.

 

Yeah, refactoring! Actually refactoring is quite a large job. I went through and built proper namespaces, functions and properties.

 

I ran the entire application through reSharper and found a bunch of interesting ways to make the app faster and more productive.

 

This should be quite interesting.

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  • 1 month later...

Good day! This weekend I will release a new version of mediabrowser kinect.

 

This version will automatically set you up with everything you need to run it, in a configuration page.

 

We now have control over the kinect led light which is used to let the user know when the speech recognizer is listening or not.

 

Face recognition work.

 

Stay tuned

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@@trooper11
@@Xzener
 

@lanos


Adding finishing touches to media browser kinect first run configuration. It was super easy to add a first run set of configuration forms to the application. From there you can set up the kinect sdk of you haven't already, set up the LED light control and face recognition.

The last configuration will be you room a architecture of you house and how it relays into the media browser environment. And then home automation.

Edited by chef
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Xzener

Sounds great Chef... Wish I were in a place to test. Fortunately, my house will be done in a couple weeks. But, Xzener's Theater 2.0 will be a while off. Keep up the great work.

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