How to start writing an augmented reality application

Question

I have been looking at creating an augmented reality application. Can anyone suggest a preferred technology platform to start writing an application of this kind.

I wou

Answer 1

You can use Nyartoolkit for java on Windows and Linux platforms You can install using http://sixwish.jp/Nyartoolkit/Java/section01.en/ Also you can check http://fivedots.coe.psu.ac.th/~ad/jg/ch165/index.html for Augmented Reality with NyARToolkit e-book and samples.

Answer 2

If you want to build your own AR sdk so you can improve it over time, here I posted a kind of tutorial on which techniques and functions do you need.

I chose OpenCV as it is fast, free and versatile.

Answer 3

For desktop purposes - object recognition with a webcam - opencv is certainly worth a look. I think there is also a port for mobile devices

Answer 4

Your best bet is probably a cell phone of some kind.

I would go for Android. With the built in Accelerometer and GPS on Android phones, it won't be too hard to tag locations and detect if you are looking at them. You can then create an overlay ontop of the camera input to tag locations and the like. There are some people who have done similar things on this platform, so you might even get some help.

Good Luck.

Answer 5

There is the Android and iPhone Augmented Reality dev kit. iPhone version here Android version here. Assuming you can program in obj-c or java, those should take some of the complicated math off your hands.

Answer 6

I was at a conference last weekend where somebody demoed Goblin XNA. It's an extension to the XNA framework to support augmented reality. It certainly looked very impressive.

If your already familiar with .net it might be worth a look.