Two students from the Terrassa School of Engineering have designed, as part of a final degree project, an augmented reality chess learning system. Using special AR markers instead of the traditional chess pieces, a computer watches the board overlays the correct pieces in the computerized display, offering guidance and advice to new players. That doesn’t sound all that interesting, until you realize the application to other special chess niche players.
The learning tool also incorporates a move-tracking program called Chess Recognition: from the images captured by the webcam, the system instantly recognises and analyses every movement of every piece and can act as a referee, identify illegal moves and provide the players with an audible description of the game status. According to Ivan Paquico and Cristina Palmero, this feature could be very useful for players with visual impairment — who have their own federation and, until now, have had to play with specially adapted boards and pieces — and for clubs and federations, tournament organisers and enthusiasts of all levels.
Imagine full regulation-style chess between blind and seeing opponents, aided by the computer.
