Magic Markers

When the South West Regional Development Agency asked HMC Interactive to create something special for the 2007 Creative Economy Summit, that’s exactly what they did.

One heated brainstorming session later, HMC Interactive’s creative minds had come up with ‘Magic Markers’ – a new kind of interface technology that is flexible enough to be used in many unique and interesting interactive applications.

The Magic Marker technology can be used to draw lines and shapes at any distance from a screen, using a specially built wireless pointing device. The wand-like device communicates with an optical sensor to translate your movements into actions on a computer.

The software can recognise multiple wands, which can be used to accurately trace lines in the air. The wand itself is lightweight and battery powered – making it simple for anybody to use.

HMC Interactive built the Magic Markers technology for the South West Creative Economy Summit, based on branding supplied for the event. The resulting interactive allowed conference participates to interact with the brand on a playful and emotional level.

The system was such a huge success that HMC Interactive was commissioned to install it again at a European Summit to help highlight a £600m investment into the South West region. HMC took advantage of the flexibility of the software to make it draw stars from the EU flag.