Johnny Chung Lee's Wiimote hacks

Johnny Chung Lee, who you may recall from $14 steadicam fame (read about it in Make:01), is also a very proficient Wiimote hacker.

His latest, demonstrated in the video above, is a prototype VR system that uses the Wiimote and a head-mounted IR LED as a head tracking device. The software transforms a standard monitor into a 3 dimensional portal. As you move your head, the objects on the screen are positioned appropriately for your new perspective. Think about adjusting your position to see what’s around the side of the screen! The effect is like looking through a window, and it gives an more impressive 3D effect that you’d get with the goofy colored glasses.

Lee has a project page for his Wii creations, which also includes a finger tracking, Minority Report-style device and an interactive whiteboard hack. He’s generously provided source for all of these hacks. Return the favor by building something cool.

Johnny Chung Lee’s Wii Hacks – Link
Procrastineering Blog – Link

3 Responses to Johnny Chung Lee's Wiimote hacks

Andrew Reid on December 26th, 2007 at 8:22 am said:

Absolutely fantastic. Thanks Johnny.

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Atomic on January 3rd, 2008 at 7:29 am said:

I am making a test with this now. I try to make a game where two people can move around and see everything correctly in perspective like that. It has two screens and two controllers. They are then linked to each other…. Currently it is… not working :/ Well I keep doing tests..

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voxel486 on December 30th, 2008 at 1:04 pm said:

That is soooooo stinking cool! i have heard of computer screens in the future using web cameras and facial recognition to sense where the user’s eyes are, to do the exact same thing you had shown us.

Great explanation, too. It was very well thought out and accessible, and made the whole project more understandable.

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