Starline Project: video calls via 3D holograms, the future offered by Google

The 3D videoconferencing booths of the ‘Starline Project’ of Google, already installed in some of its offices, create a life-size hologram, thanks to the cameras and sensors distributed by the screen of 62″, with spatial audio and information transmission.

Holographic technology as a basis for the future in videoconferencing has become an R&D challenge for multinationals that offer videoconferencing and collaboration platforms (culm, Microsoft), to which are added other proposals, such as that of ArthMedia, Portl Hologram, or the most recent of Newtonlab Space in the MWC 2021 in Barcelona, for application in offices, Events, television, medical training, Etc.

“Over the years, we've created products to help people feel more connected; simplified email with Gmail and we make it easy to share what matters with Photos and be more productive with Meet. But while there has been progress in these and other communication tools, are a far cry from sitting and talking face-to-face”, explain from Google.

To solve this challenge, “we have been working for some years at Starline, a technology project that combines advances in hardware and software to enable coworkers, friends, Etc. sit together, even when they are separate cities or countries”.

One of the most advanced developments is the one presented just a month ago by Google with its Starline Project: one videoconferencing booth with volumetric video capture with a screen of 65 screen light field″ and spatial audio, which allows you to see the partner in 3D in life size.

“Imagine looking through a kind of magic window and, through it, seeing someone else, life-size and in three dimensions -described from Google-. You can speak naturally, make gestures and eye contact”.

As they add from the multinational (watch attached video), have been working on Project Starline for several years and in evolution: “we are applying advanced on-screen display technologies, of machine learning, spatial audio and compression of data and information for real-time shipping”.

One of the biggest advances in this development has been the light field display system, “with which we have created an experience of volume and 3D depth, without having to wear additional glasses or headphones. The effect is the feeling of a person in life size, as if you were in the same room, and with which when starting a conversation you forget if it is a real holography and all the technology”.

All information is transmitted via WebRTC, that while it uses the same open source architecture of Google Meet, integrates advanced compression technology for 3D video transmission without latency and bidirectionally.

Google, which presented this advance during its annual developer conference, it has already installed these cabins in some of its offices as a pilot project.

Other articles on ArthMedia, culm, Google, Microsoft, MWC2021, Newtonlab Space, Portl Hologram