Project Applications

Join a project or request funding for your own idea.

Name UMD email

Discord username Major and minor, if any

Year

FreshmanSophomoreJuniorSeniorGraduateOther

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Immersive InstallationsProjection mapping, body tracking and visuals that respond to sound.Niantic SpatialLocation based AR for smartphones, built in Unity.Sony Spatial Reality DisplayCreate a 3D experience on a display that needs no glasses. Apply for fundingUp to $400 solo or $1,000 with a team.

Choose an application to continue.

Project application

Create interactive installations using projection mapping, body tracking and sound. Work with the team on visuals, physical spaces and pieces people can interact with.

Build an AR experience for smartphones in Unity with the Niantic Spatial SDK. Connect digital content to real places and help the team decide what to create.

The Sony Spatial Reality Display shows 3D without glasses. Your team will choose what to build, from an interactive scene to a game or a new way to explore 3D content.

Tools you have used optional

TouchDesignerp5.js or P5LiveBlenderUnity or UnrealAudioProjectors or hardware

UnityC#AR FoundationNiantic Spatial SDK3D artBackend or networking

UnityC#BlenderShaders or VFXInteraction designSound design

Link optional

Availability

YesMost weeksNot sure yet

Funding application

Tell us about your idea!

Project Title What do you want to make? Why do you want to make it?

Who is working on it?

Just meA team

What do you need to buy?

Total $0

Up to $400 for a solo project.

I have read the funding rules and understand what can and cannot be funded.

Team members

Team members except yourself

Website

Application submitted

We will review your application and contact you by email or Discord.

Back to home

Funding rules

Read before you apply. Up to $400 solo or $1,000 with a team.

What can be funded

Hardware that fits the club's direction: headsets, sensors, parts and components
Equipment that benefits the club as a whole

What cannot be funded

Subscriptions and software
Online APIs and cloud services
PCs and other devices that store data (headsets are the exception)

Before you buy

Purchases under $50 are covered by the team. Purchases over $150 go through SGA funding, on SGA's timeline.
No reimbursements. Every order goes through the Treasurer. Do not buy first.
Hardware bought with SGA funds that is not a consumable is university property and stays in the lab after you graduate. Software you build is yours.

After approval

Funds are released in stages tied to checkpoints every 2 to 3 weeks. Missing two checkpoints in a row can move the remaining funds to another team.

If lab equipment is all you need, you can work on an XR Club project without requesting funding.

Immersive Installations turns physical spaces into interactive experiences using interactive visuals, projections, and set design. The team explores how techniques such as projection mapping, body tracking, and audio-reactivity can build art people can physically step into; whether an interactive light show or audiovisual DJ set, create artworks that step outside of the digital.

The team focuses on gathering resources and materials to help our members create their individual projects, organize/discover events, and host workshops. Projects range from using TouchDesigner, live coding (P5Live), and physical set making (w/ Blender) to connect digital media with the environment.

Previously, we've showcased at Maryland Day and NextNOW Fest with New Works Incubator; we already have plans to showcase independently at Fall 2027's NextNOW Fest! Creators with any amount of TouchDesigner/coding experience are welcome to contribute and learn through making an installation together!

We are working with Niantic to explore its Spatial SDK and build an AR experience for smartphones. These tools let digital content relate to a real location and stay connected to the space around it. The team is looking for a useful idea that makes good use of those capabilities, rather than starting with a fixed concept. The aim is to connect an interaction to its surroundings so the location has a real purpose in the experience.

The work will use Unity and C#. Members can help explore the SDK, try different interactions, and develop a prototype around the direction the team chooses. There is room to shape both what the experience does and how people use it in a physical space. Prior experience with Unity or C# is needed so the team can focus on experimenting with the spatial tools and building the experience.

The Sony Spatial Reality Display shows 3D without glasses. It tracks the viewer's eyes and renders the scene for their exact position, so objects appear to float in front of the screen. Neural Lab's AirTouch adds gesture control from a standard webcam.

Your team will choose what to build, from an interactive scene to a game or a new way to explore 3D content.

Work with Unity, C#, the Spatial Reality Display SDK and Blender. The display and development PC are in the XR Lab.

Discord