Intel, Nokia Create Lab to Work on 3D Holograms

Just like in Star Wars?

Intel has teamed up with Nokia and the University of Oulu to open their first joint laboratory, which it aptly calls the Intel and Nokia Joint Innovation Center. It will employ about two dozen R&D professionals and become the latest member of Intel’s European Research Network, Intel Labs Europe.

Rather than work on the CPUs and chipsets for desktop and laptop machines, this special lab will focus on making new user interfaces for mobile devices. Intel said that the research will draw from modern games and movies use of 3D graphics.

One area of research could look into technologies that allow displaying a 3D hologram of the person you are talking to on the phone, a capability only found in science fiction movies today (as well as decades ago).

The new lab will extend the MeeGo open source platform recently launched by Intel and Nokia.

 “3-D technology could change the way we use our mobile devices and make our experiences with them much more immersive,” said Rich Green, Senior vice president and chief technical officer, Nokia. “Our new joint laboratory with Intel draws on the Oulu research community’s 3-D interface expertise, and over time will lay down some important foundations for future mobile experiences.”