HTC launches developer SDK for Vive Pro's front-facing cameras

HTC is giving developers a chance to build some pretty cool experiences using the Vive Pro's pair of front-facing cameras. The company last week announced the Vive SRWorks SDK, which takes advantage of the stereo cameras to put 3D perception and depth sensing in the hands of developers.

Stepping outside of raw camera images, the SRWorks SDK gives developers access to the following:

  • Depth
  • Spatial Mapping (static and dynamic meshes)
  • Placing virtual objects in the foreground or background
  • Live interactions with virtual objects and simple hand interactions

With that information, developers can build some potentially interesting augmented reality (AR) projects, bringing virtual objects into the real world space around them. In the video below, you can check out an example of how this might work when interacting with and occluding virtual objects in the space around you.

Another example video shows how you can take advantage of the cameras to seamlessly open a portal between the real and virtual worlds.

The SRWorks SDK is available in early access for developers now, with support for native development with plugins for Unity and Unreal. That's in addition to two Vive audio SDKs, both of which are also available in early access as well. If you're a developer, you can get your hands on the new SDKs from the developer resources portal.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl