Grant: Strategic Projects - Group

There is no doubt that mobile computing will soon replace PC-based computing for the average consumer. Already, more than half of the world population uses cell phones or other mobile devices, more mobile phones are used to browse the Internet than PCs, and the average person is more likely to use a handheld device than a PC for a variety of applications. This is a natural evolution as we move from the traditional device-centric era (PC) to a new user-centric era (pervasive, ambient, and mobile computing). Mobile devices now come with integrated video cameras, 3D hardware accelerators, fast CPUs, large memory, BlueTooth and WiFi. Wireless networks are also advancing with more bandwidth and features as we move from 3G to 4G networks. At the same time, we are witnessing a trend towards the mass consumption of new media. There is a significant rise in next generation applications such as gaming, 3D Virtual/Social Environments, and 3D video. It is estimated that 78.6 million people in the U.S. alone played mobile games in 2009, and downloads of mobile games increased tenfold compared to 2003. In parallel, there are breakthroughs in 3D video systems, with experts now confident that the future of video is 3D, a fact that was clear from the 2010 edition of the Consumer Electronics Show. The phenomenal success of the recently-released movie Avatar, which quickly became the best selling movie in the history of cinema, has both demonstrated and fueled interest of both industry and consumers in 3D video. Other 3D movies have followed suit, indicating that 3D video has huge potential for the short- and long-term future. The interest in 3D is not limited to video; it impacts the whole Web experience as well, with browsers incorporating 3D display and processing capabilities as shown by initiatives such as WebGL and O3D. Despite the promising nature of these new media, significant challenges remain to be solved in order to bring them to the next generation computing platforms: mobile devices. In this research, we team up with Nokia to study, design, and develop a framework for processing, streaming, and rendering of multiuser games, 3D video, and 3D Virtual Environments on mobile devices.