TViews: An Extensible Architecture for Multiuser Digital Media Tables

The TViews table is a media interaction platform designed for shared living spaces within the home environment. This platform consists of three parts: a dynamic object tracking and identification system that works with an extensible set of tagged objects on the table's surface, a planar display that is integrated into the table's surface, and a set of application programming interfaces (APIs) that tie these elements together. TViews is an extensible method and acoustic-based sensing framework for creating digital media tables that overcome many limitations of single-purpose systems. The system provides a means for real-time multiobject tracking on the tabletop and for the management of large numbers of objects and applications across multiple platform instances