Billiards professionals, enthusiasts and novices alike enjoy many aspects of the game, from the challenge of its physics and geometry, to the social, competitive and pure fun of it. The Obscura developers of this project saw the surface of the pool table as a canvas, a place to develop and hone precise object-tracking projection capabilities and add a new and exciting edge to the age-old game of pool. The Obscura Digital Cuelight Pool Table is an interactive pool table system from Obscura Digital that turns a regular game of pool into a digitally-enhanced interactive video experience.
The one-of-a kind Obscura Cuelight projection system turned the table into an interactive art display, combining sensor and tracking capabilities. The projection, sensor and tracking system reveals high definition imagery and animations that follow the movements of the balls, responding in real-time as players hit them around the table. High definition imagery reveals itself underneath each ball, and more of the image gets uncovered as the pool balls roll over this high tech billiards table. This futuristic pool table displays trippy images below the pool balls via sensors and motion detectors from an overhead projector. The system can also be configured to trail flames behind the balls or project a pool of water on the table instead, complete with ripples and all. The Obscura system incorporates an overhead-mounted projector, that shines a 1920 x 1080-pixel display onto a conventional pool table at 60 frames-per-second. Users choose between Fluid, Fire and Reveal modes with a handheld control unit.
The system has three standard settings. The “Mercury” where the surface of the table appears as a thin layer of liquid mercury and the cue ball causes a rippling wake as it rolls across it. The “Inferno” which causes bursts of smoky fire to pour from behind the cue balls. The “Reveal,” which consists of a murky layer of water resting over any custom image until a ball or cue stick moves, revealing the image hidden beneath it.
For the tech loving billiards player, this pool table comes packed with a whole lot of fancy gadgetry. The Obscura Digital Cuelight Pool Table utilizes a set of projectors and sensors to light the playing surface with dynamic imagery. Of course the ultimate pad pool table doesn’t come cheap. This will set you back $80,000 for the system alone.