Start-up adds depth to 3D imaging

Canesta’s imaging method is said to allow machines to ‘see’ in 3D
and act on the information in real time

Start-up Canesta has developed a chip and software that enable machines to do
something that humans take for granted: get a sense of depth.

Richard Shim, CNET News.com

The California-based company on Monday unveiled the new, low-cost method for 3D
imaging at the PC Forum tech conference in Scottsdale, Arizona.

"Machines can’t see in 3D,
but we’ve developed a
technology that allows them
to do that and use that
information in real time," said
Nazim Kareemi, Canesta’s
president and chief executive.

Canesta’s technology works
like a radar system, but using
invisible light rather than radio
waves. A computer with the
company’s chip would emit
the light, which would bounce
off objects in front of it, and
the chip would measure the
time it takes for the light to
return. The software then
would record that information,
allowing machines to
perceive, react and interact with the environment around them, the company said.

Canesta is planning to outsource manufacturing of the chip, which should be available in
the third quarter. The start-up is working with mobile and wireless device companies to
use the 3D imaging technology in devices due at the beginning of next year.

One possible use is a full-sized but virtual keyboard that a device could project. This would
be address one of the biggest difficulties for handheld or cell phone owners: inputting data.

The chip and software will cost device manufacturers around $10 to use in their products,
said James Spare, Canesta’s vice president of marketing.

Canesta’s plans include products for the automotive market, which the company intends
to address in 2006.

The company was awarded a patent in November for 3D imaging sensors and has raised
about $20m. Carlyle Venture Partners, Apax Partners, JP Morgan Partners, TechFund
Capital and Thales Corporate Ventures were involved in Canesta’s funding.

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