SUNNYVALE, CA — Two original apps developed by students at Cogswell College (www.cogswell.edu) have been named as finalists in Google’s 2015 “Project Tango Developer” Contest. These two projects are now competing for grand prizes against professional developers and companies, and are among 48 finalists chosen from hundreds of submitted entries.
“Room Modes Calculator” was created by Cogswell student Caleb Madsen, with coding assistance by fellow Cogswell student Dylan Hart, under the submission entry name “Audio Architects.” It is a finalist in the “Utility” category. Room Modes are a collection of resonances that result in standing waves when a room is “excited” with the introduction of new audio. Standing waves are made up of frequencies that, when added up, create modes, or anti-modes. The “Room Modes Calculator” app presents the user with augmented reality visualizations. It is a tool that can be utilized by visually-minded people when planning how to create and build a proper listening or recording environment.
Originally prototyped during the 2015 Global Game Jam by Cogswell students Sasso and Ulrich, "We Are Cubed" (WeR3) is the next evolution of 3D puzzle game. Sasso and Ulrich demonstrated WeR3 during SIGGRAPH 2015’s Appy Hour. In WeR3, each level presents players with a colored canvas they must recreate using their own colored avatar. Players must develop a strategy for moving their six-sided avatar across the landscape, as some faces of the avatar "paint" different colors. Developed in the Unity Game Engine using Google Cardboard technology, the game can be enjoyed as a standalone smartphone experience using touch controls or as a completely hands-free Virtual Reality experience. The app is a finalist in the “Entertainment” category.
The grand-prize winners in three categories — Utility, AR or VR, and Entertainment — will be announced on October 26th (https://www.google.com/atap/project-tango/contest).