The Kinect sensor is a horizontal bar connected to a motorized base that sits somewhere above or below the player’s television set. Built into the bar is an RGB camera, a multi-array microphone, and a depth sensor. These three elements combined allow the Kinect to perform 3D motion capture and facial and voice recognition. Kinect is hooked up the usb port on the pluggable USB 3 dock. Kinect appears to be sensitive to the USB controller, but one of the website indicate that pluggable usb 3 dock should be compatible. I had to use an adapter and a tv moutning cllp. To get it to work, you have to.

• Where To Place Kinect Sensor
• Where To Place Kinect Sensor
• Where To Place Minecraft Maps

What is Kinect for Xbox 360?

Unless you have been living under a rock you probably know what Kinect Xbox 360 is! In Microsoft’s own words, Kinect for Xbox 360, or simply Kinect (originally known by the code name Project Natal) “brings games and entertainment to life in extraordinary new ways without using a controller. Imagine controlling movies and music with the wave of a hand or the sound of your voice. With Kinect, technology evaporates, letting the natural magic in all of us shine.“

Where To Place Kinect Sensor

How Does The Kinect Work?

The Kinect sensor is a horizontal bar connected to a motorized base that sits somewhere above or below the player’s television set. Built into the bar is an RGB camera, a multi-array microphone, and a depth sensor. These three elements combined allow the Kinect to perform 3D motion capture and facial and voice recognition. Basically, if the player moves, the Kinect can track it, and convert those motions into data used to control Kinect-ready games and features.

The depth sensor consists of an infrared projector and a sensor. The projector projects a continuous infrared pattern over its field of vision, which the sensor uses to interpret the scene. Facial, voice, and motion recognition is handled by Microsoft’s Kinect software.

Top Five Tips for New Kinect Users:

1. Make sure your playspace is right for you. Experiment with different sensor placements before you install any kind of permanent shelf to hold the sensor. Higher placement usually works better for teens/adults in games like VolleyBall where your arms may be above your head. But for adults, the higher placement seems to work OK when jumping, however it may have trouble detecting smaller children. The lower placement works much better for smaller children when jumping, however it may often clip right above the head, causing issues detecting the hand movement when above the head.

2. When you navigate with Kinect, keep your hands upright and wave big!

3.If you’re playing with other people, avoid running in front of the other player. If you step in front of the other player, then Kinect may not recognize the other player. It could be a good way to get a few extra points.

4. To pause a Kinect game hold your left arm down and to the left.

5. Take advantage of Kinect ID to create different calibration profiles for different lighting settings so you get the best results. For example, you may want to have a calibration for a 1) sunny day 2) overcast day 3) night with low lighting and 4) night with bright lighting. KinectiD is an app that maps your biometric info to your gamer profile (local) or gamertag (XBL account).

Steps to update your Kinect ID data:

– Select Kinect ID from the Kinect hub
– Select your profile
– Select Update
– Complete the poses

Kinect is a remarkable piece of technology and we hope you have a great time playing with it!

• Menu

Kinect is GREAT. It can trace You in 3D without any other tools! So here is Kinect Head Tracking for BAM!!!

***if you purchased kinect with xbox360 console you may need to purchase the usb/power adapter that will connect it to your PC. It can be ordered online through Amazon/Ebay. I believe this adapter comes automatically when kinect is purchased separately from console.

Plugin created byAndreas Benamou
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Installation

1. Download and install Kinect SDK
   http://download.microsoft.com/download/3/1/3/313117D2-315D-4450-86F7-0A761DA19F57/KinectSDK-v1.7-Setup.exe
2. Connect Kinect to PC. (allow system to install drivers. You can test/experiment with Kinect for pc with Kinect explorer demo program that come with the KinectSDK)

3. Run BAM and select plugin: Kinect

Menu

Where To Place Kinect Sensor

(**Note the following description applies to older versions of BAM which have since been updated to include automatic point detection as well as 'skeleton' mode. Skeletal mode performs skeletal tracking as opposed to head tracking. Skeletal tracking is very useful when player glasses and especially 3d glasses (when used in combination with active 3d mode) obstruct the Kinect IR signal. Discussed under Bam Corner at Gopinball.com)

Only two options:

• Angle -You can use Kinect motor to tilt camera
• Eye- Kinect face detection can find eyes on face. You can chose left or right eye to be tracked.

Where To Place Minecraft Maps

'3 Points'

Befor BAM will track your head You have do '3 Points' setup. You have 3 ways to do it:

• Easy '3 points' low -on screen is drawn in checkerboard. Kinect camera is rotated down. If checkerboard drawn on screen is recognized, then '3 points' setup is done.
• Easy '3 points' high- same as 'low', but checkerboard is drawn by a little different way.
• '3 points'- old version. Use it if none of 'Easy' option works.

If You put Kinect 'low', almost at screen, You should use 'low' version. (recomended).
If You put Kinect 'high' for example on top of backbox - use 'high' version.

How to do old '3 Points' setup:

1. Select '3 Points'.
2. Grab some object with know size (You can use book, anything).
3. Put 'object' on red diamond (left/bottom of screen).
4. Put your head over it. (your chin should touch the 'object').
5. Make sure, that Kinect recognizes your face. (You will see yellow 'mask').
6. Press enter (set point).
7. Repeat 3-6 with second point (right/bottom).
8. Repeat 3-6 with third point. But... you don't have to put 'object' exactly on red diamond. Just as far as possible from bottom screen line, when Your face is detected.
9. Tracking will now work, but BAM will get Your position 'too low'.
10. Enter 'object' height in 'shift-y' in 'reality' menu. Add few more inches/cm (2-5in./5-12cm).
    Position is tracked to 'center' of Your head. When you press Enter in '3 Points', tracked point You set is: ['object' height] + [distance from chick to center of head] above 'red diamond'.
11. Test. Look at red diamond when BAM menu is visible. If your head is above screen, red diamond shoud be directly under head.
12. Smoothening. Cam position is not updated very often. Go to: 'Reality' menu and set 'Latency' to ~60-100ms.
    (If You want to make nice move, increase it to 200ms and move camera realy slowly).

After '3 Points' setup, you can change 'tilt' angle. If you move Kinect, You have to repeat '3 Points'.

• KINECT placment

Where to put Kinect

• best place is low, before the Backbox. This way you will be able to look down at table almost vertically. But there is one problem.Kinect for XBOX 360 can trace objects 0.8m away from camera. It will be hard to set third point in '3 Points'. Kinect for Windows can trace0.4maway from camera.
• top of backbox. It will be 'easier' to set third point, but Kinect will probably lose tracking, when you look down.
• if you use Easy '3 Points', Kinect depth range limit is not a problem (only color camera is used), so try to put kinect 'low'.
• Kinect camera must see 'checkerboard' on screen. If it fails in Easy '3 points' low, try to put Kinect 1-2 inches (2-5cm) higher on book or small box.

Tip: DO NOT RUN BAM-TRACKER.EXE WHEN YOU WANT TO PLAY FUTURE PINBALL.
(or you will get message 'Kinect not found')