EROShambo
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					The overall goals of the EROShambo project is to develop a "smart-theater" - one that includes robotic, digital and virtual elements combined with live performers to create a fluid environment. The "smart-theater" would include some or all of the following elements: Projections and lighting effects Full-motion video Virtual puppets puppeteered in real-time and played back from recordings Still imagery and virtual set pieces Music, both live and recorded MIDI-based drum systems Acoustic drums Human performers Robotic performers The particular segments we decided to tackle were the requirements of a system that would allow live virtual character performances through the puppeteering of virtual puppets (Virpets). These Virpets were to be controlled through a variety of input devices including MIDI devices, magnetic trackers and standard computer inputs such as keyboards, mice and joysticks. In addition to the live performance aspects of the system we also wanted to make sure that the same input systems used to puppeteer the Virpets would also be usable to record the Virpet animations for later offline playback. This would allow us to puppeteer the Virpets live, while simultaneously recording the performed animations for use later.