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Ankita’s Status Report 04/08

Progress:

  • Worked on rendering the audio cues using gtts, pydub, and playsound and ran into many dependency issues
  • Phrased the audio feedback for each of the pose corrections and created separate audio files for each suggestion
  • Worked on creating a new Hardware plan after damaging the monitor (order a used monitor and replace)

In regards to the timeline, we are slightly behind schedule as our Hardware is not going as expected, however we have a plan in place that will allow us to finish building the hardware and allow adequate time for testing as well.

Next Steps:

  • Finish all the audio cues and test the entire yoga routine workflow
  • Meet with the Yoga instructor to verify the pose corrections
  • Re-build the Smart Mirror with the new monitor and make sure all the connections are secure
  • Integrate the second camera so we can track the side poses as well
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Youssef’s Status Report 4/1

Current Progress:

Timeline:

  • By the timeline, we should have been finished with the hardware construction by this point, however, because of the multiple unexpected issues we ran into and the dependencies from the hardware on how the software works (mapping system etc.), we chose to spend more time working on the Mirror hardware construction.
  • This means that we will have to push the mirror-camera integration and the mirror UI into our buffer time which we allocated for situations like this where we are slightly off-track.

Next Steps:

  • We will complete the error rendering for the UI
  • Need to make final adjustments to the mapping component
  • We will also contact the yoga instructor to gain any constructive criticism before our final demo.
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Ankita’s Status Report 4/01

Current Progress:

  • Assembled the Smart Mirror hardware and built a frame that will encompass the monitors, mirror, and additional wiring. Our initial designs were not compatible with the wood piece sizes, so we had to pivot to another design that didn’t offer as much support for the monitors causing them to bulge in the center. To rectify this, we removed the bezel/outer covering of the monitors entirely and re-attached our mirror (as shown below)
  • We also worked on testing the camera with the current hardware and displayed some initial renderings of the nodes on the monitors. One issue right now is that the monitors’ brightness and the acrylic mirror sheet’s transparency are conflicting, making it hard to see some color renderings. Thus, as we construct the UI going forward, we will need to use bright colors to render the error suggestions and display any written commands.

Timeline:

  • According to the timeline, we should be finished with the hardware construction, however, because of all the issues we ran into and how critical the hardware is for the software, we chose to spend more time working on the Mirror hardware construction. This means that we will have to push the mirror-camera integration and the mirror UI into our buffer time which we allocated for situations like this where we are slightly off-track.

Next Steps:

  • Assuming our last prototype for the Mirror hardware is sufficient, we plan to work on the Mirror mapping component and finish our initial rendering of the error nodes to construct an MVP of PosePal.
  • We will also contact the yoga instructor to gain any constructive criticism before our final demo.
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Team Status Post 4/01

Current Progress:

  • Finished Error Rendering code (circling nodes that are incorrectly aligned) to be rendered on the monitors
  • Ran into some challenges with the hardware assembly and iterated through various prototypes to ensure that both the monitors and the LCD screen spanned by the 2 monitors are as straight and even as possible to prevent any distortion effects.
    • Prototype #1: We attempted to follow the design sketched out in the previous team post of an inner and outer frame with the inner frame encapsulating the mirror and the monitors. However, we ran into issues with the sizing of the inner frame and the wood pieces available to us.
    • Prototype #2: To circumvent the sizing issue, we decided to completely scrap the inner frame idea and instead use mirror brackets to keep the mirror held in place on the larger frame. However, we ran into issues with the monitors bulging in the center as the monitor’s thickness was concentrated at that point due to the HDMI/USB/etc connections. This caused the mirror to also bulge in the center, distorting the user’s reflection.
    • Prototype #3: Still using the same mirror brackets, we decided to remove the outer casing of the monitors to get rid of the bulge in the center. This allows for an even LCD screen and no distortion effects visible on the mirror. We also cut up more wood for extra padding encompassing the monitors to ensure they are fixed in place.
  • We also worked on reflecting the nodes read by the camera to reflect what is seen from the user’s point of view.

Challenges

  • One of the major unexpected challenges we faced while constructing the hardware for our project was the uneven placement of the monitors beneath the mirror which as a result warped the user’s reflection to an unacceptable degree from the perspective of our use case/design requirements.
    • To fix this, we decided to remove the entire bezel/covering of our monitors to remove their curved backing and allow them to rest cleanly within the frame and let the mirror be straight and aligned properly.
  • We also worked on the mirror-mapping component of the project and are testing it with our completed hardware construction tomorrow/making any needed adjustments before our MVP project demo on Monday
  • Next major challenge is completing all the hardware integration/testing and making revisions/fixes as needed.
  • We also will need to implement the pose corrective suggestions in addition to the pose error highlighting we currently have in place after the MVP demo

Timeline

  • We are on track with original plan, but need to finish the pose corrective suggestion rendering

Next Steps:

  • Continue working on Mirror mapping UI and determining the scaling factor
  • Test the mapping on subjects of various heights to ensure the scale factor works on everyone
  • Contact the yoga instructor to determine if additional changes should be made in regard to the audio suggestions feedback and whether the product as a whole is missing any key features (also whether it meets our proposed design requirements)
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Sruti’s Status Report 4/1/23

Progress Report

  • I worked on completing the hardware construction. I spent time cutting, drilling, gluing and re-designing the hardware based on constraints, errors and things we realized on the fly.
  • Got the web cameras for out mirror with I tested and worked on integrating with the hardware and software.
  • Realized the camera’s render flipped images, so worked on flipping the poses and processing the flipped poses in real time.
  • Initial camera mirror integration has been done, but there is still more work that needs to happen for it to be completed!

I think that while we are behind schedule, we have a plan in place on how to tackle the rest of the project, so we should be able to complete it in time.

Next Steps

  • We will complete the camera to mirror integration
  • We will then begin testing
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Youssef’s Status Report 3/25

Current Progress:

  • Wrote out the pose correction rendering code to dynamically highlight user nodes that need correction
  • Went to Home Depot to obtain the wood pieces and get the corresponding cuts completed, beginning assembly
  • Worked on finalizing mirror coordinate mapping component and testing methodology with example data points prior to full integration testing post-hardware completion

Timeline:

  • Our initially scheduled tasks on the timeline focus on the Mirror UI and the Mirror-Camera calibration components which we are on track to fully complete and test in an integrated environment this week. We are slightly behind on the error rendering component of the UI (need to actually have corrective suggestions not just highlighted errors) and the hardware assembly, but we plan to have that finished this week.

Next Steps:

  • Need to update pose correction rendering to actually give corrective suggestions not just error highlighting/signalling
  • Will complete hardware assembly/integration
  • Test mirror mapping component using completed hardware setup
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Sruti’s Status Report

Progress:

  • Wrote the scaling algorithm and created a plan, as well as did a preliminary proof of concept test, to calibrate the camera-mirror scaling factor.
  • Finalized dimensions and hardware design.
  • Bought the wood and supplies from home depot and marked their dimensions
  • We were supposed to do the wood working and building today but techspark’s woodshop was closed and so have to push that out to early next week.

In regards to the schedule, I think we are a little behind track especially with the hardware building section, but if we get it done in the next couple of days then we will be on track.

Next Steps:

  • Work on hardware construction
  • Work on completing the mirror-camera integration
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Ankita’s Status Report 3/25

Current Progress:

  • Finished finalizing the dimensions for the Mirror frame around the key constraints (primarily the acrylic mirror dimensions and monitor thickness)
  • Researched different smart mirror construction designs and created a plan of assembly and materials required, making sure the monitors are seamlessly attached together and the 2-way mirror is as straight as possible to not distort the reflected image
  • Went to Home Depot to obtain the wood pieces and get the corresponding cuts
  • Helped gather data points on the distance to the mirror and how the reflection changes accordingly (for the Mirror mapping aspect)

Timeline:

  • According to the timeline, we should be focusing on the Mirror UI and the Mirror-Camera calibration components which we are on track to accomplish. We are slightly behind on the error rendering component of the UI and the hardware assembly, but we plan to have that finished this week.

Next Steps:

  • By the end of the week, we plan to finish the hardware assembly and have an MVP of PosePal.
  • We will primarily focus on the error rendering and Mirror-camera mapping aspect.
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Team Status Report 3/25

Progress:

  • Wrote the scaling algorithm and created a plan, as well as did a preliminary proof of concept test, to calibrate the camera-mirror scaling factor.
  • Designed the hardware and finalized dimensions
  • Bought the wood and supplies from home depot and marked their dimensions
  • We were supposed to do the wood working and building today but techspark’s woodshop was closed and so have to push that out to early next week.
  • Wrote the error rendering code but it needs to be tested some more.

Next Steps:

  • We are focusing on the Mirror mapping software system this week, which will entail us recording measurements of key distances such as the distance from the user to the mirror, the depth recorded by our Pose Estimation algorithm, the width of their shoulders or arm span in the mirror reflection, and the actual width/arm span of the user. Once we have these measurements, we will be able to perform a linear regression/interpolate between these data points to produce a line of best fit that represents a correlation between the distance from the mirror and how the reflection shows up on the mirror.
  • Any remaining hardware assembly will also be wrapped up this upcoming week.
  • We hope to have an MVP of PosePal by the end of the week!

Challenges

  • Following up from last week, the major hurdle we are facing is completing the integration of the mirror-mapping logic to successfully render pose correction suggestions directly onto the user’s reflection.
  • For this mirror-mapping task, we have finalized the methodology for how to dynamically scale coordinates of the user from the camera feed coordinate space to the coordinate system of the monitor/mirror such that corrective suggestions get rendered in the right position on the reflection
  • We went through an example flow of collecting this data and testing the resulting scale factor measured from it through our algorithm

Timeline

  • We are in the middle of wrapping up hardware construction and integration of the product itself
  • We’ve begun assembly of the frame of the mirror/monitor, and will need to complete final assembly this week to begin testing with the fully integrated product and verify the validity of our mirror-mapping logic and algorithm most importantly
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Youssef Status Check 3/18

Current Progress:

  • Worked with group on testing acrylic two way mirror in comparison with mirror sheet approach, confirmed that we want to use the acrylic for improved reflection quality
  • Researched methodologies to implement mirror mapping from camera feed to on-reflection rendering – plan out math and approach for implementation
  • Worked on pose correction rendering and starting with highlighting incorrect nodes

Next Steps:

  • Complete pose correction rendering this week and hardware construction