[From FierceHealthIT] [Image: From Telementoring and Telesurgery: Future or Fiction? by da Silva, McGregor, Rayman and Luke (2010).] Pittsburgh specialists mentor international surgeons remotely Telepresence technology allows them to walk colleagues through new procedures July 30, 2012 | By Susan D. Hall A University of Pittsburgh Medical Center uses telepresence technology to provide live support for surgeons in other countries who have difficulty replicating complex new procedures. Since 2005, its cranial base surgical team of three neurosurgeons and two otolaryngologists have trained more than 500 surgeons from more than 30 countries on treatment tumors and other conditions affecting the base…

[From The University of Barcelona] Using virtual reality an arm up to three or even four times the length of a real arm can be felt as if it was the person’s own arm July 20, 2012 Recerca A study shows that using virtual reality an arm up to three or possibly even four times the length of a person’s real arm can be felt as if it was the person’s own arm, even if it incorporates strong asymmetries in the body shape. It is explained in the article “Extending body space in immersive virtual reality: a very long arm…

[From IEEE Spectrum; for more information, see Canon’s press release] [Image: Reality Mixed: The author checks out a computer generated car through Canon’s mixed reality system. Photo: John Boyd] Trying Out Canon’s Mixed-Reality Tech Meant for design work, it goes well beyond consumer-oriented augmented reality By John Boyd 26 July 2012—Canon begins selling a next-generation form of virtual reality technology known as mixed reality (MR) this month. The company suggests its version of MR is an enhanced, more grown-up version of the augmented reality provided by some smartphone apps and things like Google’s Project Glass. In contrast to augmented reality,…

[From DesignTAXI, where the story includes additional images and a 1:26 minute video] Virtual Shoe Stores Use Augmented Reality To Find Your Perfect Footwear 25 Jul 2012 To reach out to more consumers, German shoe retailer, Goertz, has gone virtual with their augmented reality ‘pop-up’ shoe stores. They installed virtual stores at crowded public places such as train stations and invited customers to ‘try on’ a pair of shoes. Using three Microsoft Kinect cameras and a large screen, they would scan and render 3D shoes onto the customer’s feet—allowing customers to see the shoes like they were actually wearing them.…

[From Wired;  more information is available at Patently Apple] [Image: An illustration showing a combined system using target tracking and a touchscreen. Image: Free Patents Online.] Apple Granted Patent for High-Concept Input Techniques By Christina Bonnington July 24, 2012 Apple was granted a sweeping, multipronged patent today by the United States Patent and Trademark Office — but you may need a degree in theoretical physics to divine exactly which technologies the patent is protecting. The patent, “Method for providing human input to a computer,” addresses both new and existing ways we interact with touchscreen devices, and covers everything from computer…

[From Eurogamer.net, where the story includes a 2:08 minute video] Project Holodeck aims to make Star Trek gaming a reality Uses Oculus Rift, PlayStation Move and the Razer Hyrdra By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 23 July, 2012 A team at the University of Southern California is trying to make the Holodeck from Star Trek a virtual reality. Project Holodeck aims to create full 360 degree, full body virtual reality in an accessible consumer gaming platform. It fuses head tracking, body tracking and button inputs with vehicular locomotion and in-place locomotion (jogging on the spot to run). This, the team said, means…