Austria, 1999-2001, lightweight sandwich panels made of connected and stabilised MDF honeycomb boards, height 265 cm, length 730 cm, width 345 cm, weight 950 kg. (DRAX)

Version 1: interactive rear projection ( screensize: 164 x 224 cm), multichannel sound system, high-end graphic workstations, custom-made sensor hardware with a scanning accuracy of 8/8 mm, optimised for manual operation; interacts with one or two hands; direct connection to Microsoft system device permits a variety of Windows application, different Demo Software-Applications are available, custom made applications on demand; driver for Windows Operating Systems

Version 2: If requested by the buyer, the system may be upgraded to state-of-the-art hardware equipment, with applications adjusted according to the buyer’s needs.

A unique specimen.

In 2001 awarded the Austrian “Adolf Loos National Design Prize”
In 2003 nominated as “Best Invention of the Year 2003” by Time Magazine
In 2004 awarded the “Red Dot Design Award”

Lit.: M. Fox, M. Cemp, Interactive Architecture, Princeton Architectural Press 2006 - Ch. Salchner, “Frisch erfunden”, in: BRAND EINS, 06/01, p. 20

Exhibited:Interactive Transportable Architecture, Emerging Technologies, Siggraph San Diego, 2003 – Stefan Sagmeister, in: Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far, Abrams 2008. Red Dot 2003, Red Dot Museum, Zeche Zollverein, Essen

“The transportable iTube permits multimedia adventures on a large scale. The flexible form of iTube is composed of three connected lightweight segments and has especially been developed for easy transport, installation, and disassembly. iTube therefore perfectly lends itself to indoor presentations in public places and at trade fairs, events, and road shows.

iTube is a mobile space in the form of a tube that offers an ideal environment in terms of acoustics and light technology. Isolated from reality outside, the beholder will be able to concentrate on the new impulses received from the virtual world. They are produced by a large-screen rear projection system, a multichannel sound system, and one or several high-end computers. A specially developed light curtain or a camera-based motion tracking solution ensure that users will be able to interact with the virtual world merely by hand and body movements, thus navigating the system without touching it. The combination of large-screen projection and this special type of input hardware produces a so-called “pseudo-tactile effect”. The beholder believes to be touching the graphic images. This impression will be particularly vivid when using 3D stereo projection, with objects virtually floating in space before the viewer’s eyes.

Due to the integration of the interface design of the screen into the product design of the terminal, they merge to form a functional unity. The interface of the relevant application should therefore support users in an intuitive and playful manner so as to create a low threshold for them and also encourage individuals unfamiliar with computers to use iTube. Users will feel like Tom Cruise in Stephen Spielberg’s “Minority Report”, when he is able to conduct the images and thus control the computer with harmonious movements.” (Oliver Irschitz)

The first iTube was created around the turn of the century, and in 2003 the conception was nominated by Time Magazine as “best invention of the year” (Apple’s iTunes music store eventually claimed the prize that year). Irschitz, who received part of his formal education at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has put the iTube to use, for example, at Swarovski’s World of Crystals in Wattens, and the 2010 Shanghai World Exposition in China, where he converted the Austrian pavilion into a “river of electrons”.

Watch Video iTube | Watch Video Siggraph

“The transportable iTube permits multimedia adventures on a large scale. The flexible form of iTube is composed of three connected lightweight segments and has especially been developed for easy transport, installation, and disassembly. iTube therefore perfectly lends itself to indoor presentations in public places and at trade fairs, events, and road shows.

iTube is a mobile space in the form of a tube that offers an ideal environment in terms of acoustics and light technology. Isolated from reality outside, the beholder will be able to concentrate on the new impulses received from the virtual world. They are produced by a large-screen rear projection system, a multichannel sound system, and one or several high-end computers. A specially developed light curtain or a camera-based motion tracking solution ensure that users will be able to interact with the virtual world merely by hand and body movements, thus navigating the system without touching it. The combination of large-screen projection and this special type of input hardware produces a so-called “pseudo-tactile effect”. The beholder believes to be touching the graphic images. This impression will be particularly vivid when using 3D stereo projection, with objects virtually floating in space before the viewer’s eyes.

Due to the integration of the interface design of the screen into the product design of the terminal, they merge to form a functional unity. The interface of the relevant application should therefore support users in an intuitive and playful manner so as to create a low threshold for them and also encourage individuals unfamiliar with computers to use iTube. Users will feel like Tom Cruise in Stephen Spielberg’s “Minority Report”, when he is able to conduct the images and thus control the computer with harmonious movements.” (Oliver Irschitz) Oliver Irschitz invented the iTube, the iFrame and the iPoint interfaces long before Apple’s first iPad saw the light of day. The iFrame’s built-in infrared sensors allow users to control the screen without actually touching it – when an invisible barrier is breached, every movement is transmitted to the screen. It’s ideal for presentations, but is also used in complex, interactive physical therapy games. The round and transparent iPoint table can best be compared to a massive iPad. Irschitz’ most spectacular invention, however, is the iTube, which takes the shape of a large, portable walk-in tube. When a person steps into the tube, he enters a virtual, interactive world that can be navigated and manipulated through body movement.

The first iTube was created around the turn of the century, and in 2003 the conception was nominated by Time Magazine as “best invention of the year” (Apple’s iTunes music store eventually claimed the prize that year). Irschitz, who received part of his formal education at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has put the iTube to use, for example, at Swarovski’s World of Crystals in Wattens, and the 2010 Shanghai World Exposition in China, where he converted the Austrian pavilion into a “river of electrons”.