Abstract: An augmented reality environment allows interaction between virtual and real objects and enhances an unstructured real-world environment. An object datastore comprising attributes of an object within the environment may be built and/or maintained from sources including manufacturers, retailers, shippers, and users. This object datastore may be local, cloud based, or a combination thereof. Applications may interrogate the object datastore to provide user functionality.

Abstract: Described herein are systems and techniques for detecting a location of a medium and projecting content onto the medium at the detected location. These systems and techniques also track the changing location of the medium while continuing to project the content onto the medium as the location changes. A user consuming the content on the medium is able to move the display medium relative to a projection device that projects the content without interrupting the consumption of the content.

Abstract: Apparatuses, methods, and computer-readable media for determining a distance and an angle of a display medium with respect to a projector are described herein. Based at least on the determined angle of the display medium, the angle of at least a component of the projector is adjusted. The projector then projects light onto the display medium.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for detecting gestures of a user based on analysis of acquired depth maps as well as identified distortion within one or more acquired color images. For instance, a system may project content onto a display surface within an environment. A user may then interact with the content via gestures, which may include hand gestures, gestures with a stylus or the like. In some instances, the content includes multiple selection portions, such as soft buttons, icons, and the like, that a user may select by pointing or touching with a finger or other type of selection tool. For instance, the projected content may include one or more projected icons and the user may select one of the icons by touching the display surface onto which the respective display icon is being projected.

Abstract: An augmented reality system may generate an augmented reality environment by projecting images onto various surfaces within a scene. A projection accessory display device (PADD) provides known characteristics for projection, and may be configured to simplify generation and maintenance of the projected image upon the PADD. The PADD may also provide one or more input devices which accept input from a user within the augmented reality environment. The PADD may comprise non-electronic passive components, electronic active components, or a combination thereof.

Abstract: A computing device configured to request a password from a user, capture audio after issuing the request, and determine a number of alternative candidate passwords most likely represented by the audio. After identifying the number of candidate passwords, the computing device may submit these candidate passwords, one at a time, to an entity until the entity grants the device access to an account associated with the user or until the device has submitted each candidate password. The account may comprise a network account (e.g., a wired or wireless network account), an online account (e.g., an email account, an account an online merchant, etc.), or the like.

Abstract: In analyzing a scene, a projection device may project an image onto surfaces or objects within the scene. The image may include user interface elements as well as structured light patterns for analyzing shapes of the surfaces and objects. The intensity of the reflection of the projected light may be monitored and used to derive an audio signal representing sound that occurs within the scene. The audio signal may be analyzed to detect and recognize user utterances and speech, which may be interpreted as commands.

Abstract: A plurality of microphones of a communication device is grouped into multiple microphone groups, such that each microphone group includes two or more microphones. For each microphone group, output of the corresponding microphones is processed to form an acoustic null in a corresponding spatial direction, such that sound from the corresponding spatial direction is attenuated in the processed output. One of the microphone groups is selected based on various factors leading to maximal echo attenuation and rejection of reverberant components of the room. The selected microphone group is then used to detect sound from a near end talker of the communication device.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for providing feedback to users within an environment that interact with user interfaces (UIs) that are projected within the environment. For instance, the systems and techniques may project a UI that includes one or more selectable portions, such as keys, icons, sliders, dials, or any other type of control. After projecting the UI, the systems and techniques may identify the user attempting to interact with the UI. In response, the systems and techniques may provide feedback to the user indicating that the user has engaged the UI. For instance, the systems and techniques may visually alter the projected UI, may output a sound via one or more speakers within the environment, or may provide the feedback in any other manner.

Abstract: Techniques for creating a persistent connection between client devices and one or more remote computing resources, which may form a portion of a network-accessible computing platform. This connection may be considered “permanent” or “nearly permanent” to allow the client device to both send data to and receive data from the remote resources at nearly any time. In addition, both the client device and the remote resources may establish virtual channels over this single connection. If no data is exchanged between the client device and the remote computing resources for a threshold amount of time, then the connection may be severed and the client device may attempt to establish a new connection with the remote computing resources.

Abstract: Techniques for utilizing blind source separation as a front-end to an acoustic echo canceller are described herein. The techniques include removing a first portion of an acoustic echo from an audio signal using blind source separation and a reference signal. The techniques then further remove a second portion of the acoustic echo using an acoustic echo canceller and the reference signal. Further, output of the blind source separation may be used to improve double-talk detection.

Abstract: An augmented reality system may generate an augmented reality environment by projecting images onto various surfaces within a scene. A projection accessory display device (PADD) provides known characteristics for projection, and may be configured to simplify generation and maintenance of the projected image upon the PADD. The PADD may also provide one or more input devices which accept input from a user within the augmented reality environment. The PADD may comprise non-electronic passive components, electronic active components, or a combination thereof.

Abstract: Objects and their placement within a particular scene may be characterized using structured light with no or minimal manual intervention or calibration to the scene. The structured light pattern may be rendered with visible light, yet imperceptible to users, by generating a set of opposing excursions in one or more image properties for durations which are shorter than the integration time of the human eye. A set of assumptions and ongoing testing of those assumptions against physical objects identified within the environment allows characterization of the scene and the objects therein.

Abstract: An augmented reality environment allows interaction between virtual and real objects. Various surfaces within the environment such as walls, tables, countertop, chairs, floor, ceiling, and so forth may be used as projection surfaces. Qualified projection surfaces are determined, and an initial projection surface is selected for use from these. This selection may take into account user preferences, user orientation, types of image to be projected, and so forth. Other qualified projection surfaces may have visual indicators projected thereon, indicating relative suitability for use as a projection surface.

Abstract: Techniques for receiving a voice command from a user and, in response, providing audible content to the user using a first device and providing visual content for the user using a second device. In some instances, the first device includes a microphone for generating audio signals that include user speech, as well as a speaker for outputting audible content in response to identified voice commands from the speech. However, the first device might not include a display for displaying graphical content. As such, the first device may be configured to identify devices that include displays and that are proximate to the first device. The first device may then instruct one or more of these other devices to output visual content associated with a user's voice command.

Abstract: Techniques are described for tracking the pose of a surface based on a point set representing the surface. Sequential observed poses of the surface are used as the basis for creating a mathematical model of the motion of the surface. Future motion of the surface may be predicted based on the mathematical model.

Abstract: Techniques for using both speaker-identification information and other characteristics associated with received voice commands to determine how and whether to respond to the received voice commands. A user may interact with a device through speech by providing voice commands. After beginning an interaction with the user, the device may detect subsequent speech, which may originate from the user, from another user, or from another source. The device may then use speaker-identification information and other characteristics associated with the speech to attempt to determine whether or not the user interacting with the device uttered the speech. The device may then interpret the speech as a valid voice command and may perform a corresponding operation in response to determining that the user did indeed utter the speech. If the device determines that the user did not utter the speech, however, then the device may refrain from taking action on the speech.

Abstract: Two or more imagers having associated frame rates are each configured with a global shutter having an exposure interval less than a frame interval. The exposure interval for a first imager is offset from the exposure interval of a second imager such that the first imager is exposed while the second imager is not exposed. When interleaved, an effective frame rate exceeds the individual frame rates provided by the individual imagers. This interleaved imaging system may be used to recover, at high frame rates, images that are projected from spatial light modulators.

Abstract: A computing system has multiple endpoint computing devices in local environments to receive verbal requests from various users and a central or remote system to process the requests. The remote system generates responses and uses a variety of techniques to determine where and when to return responses audibly to the users. For each request, the remote system understands who is making the request, determines when to provide the response to the user, ascertains where the user is when it is time to deliver the response, discovers which of the endpoint devices are available to deliver the response, and evaluates which of the available devices is best to deliver the response. The system then delivers the response to the best endpoint device for audible emission or other form of presentation to the user.

Abstract: The location of a sound within a given spatial volume may be used in applications such as augmented reality environments. An artificial neural network processes time-difference-of-arrival data (TDOA) from a known microphone array to determine a spatial location of the sound. The neural network may be located locally or available as a cloud service. The artificial neural network is trained with perturbed and non-perturbed TDOA data.