360 VIRTUAL REALITY CAMERA

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VIEW THE 360 STREAM ON YOUR IPHONE OR ANDROID

Download the free app from Panoplaza Movie to view the stream on your phone (and move your phone around to have a look around me!)
Also compatible with Google Cardboard!

• iOS (App Store)
• Android (Google Play)

Need a Google Cardboard? I recommend hacosco!

THE TECH BEHIND THE 360 CAMERA:
Custom-made ‘Jack-in Head’

Shunichi Kasahara is a researcher at Sony Computer Science Laboratories, Inc. His focus is on exploring interactive systems for the transmission of real-time first-person experience, the storage and sharing of total experiences, and humans augmenting humans. His purpose is to trace the contours of the relationships between humanity and technology, and between human beings themselves, as they become redefined by the “human as medium” phenomenon.

I approached Shunichi just weeks before the marathon, suggesting a a collaboration. I was delighted when he accepted; he has since worked tirelessly to transform the system into something portable that I can carry during the race.

Shunichi’s software algorithm stitches the images from two cameras in real time, stabilises them, and then the signal is sent to a LiveU broadcast unit from where it is transmitted over multiple LTE networks to the receiving server at Panoplaza.

Learn more about the Jack-in Head project (by Sony CSL & Rekimoto Lab) here.

HELP JOSEPH RUN 42KM / 26 MILES WHILST TALKING NON-STOP

This project wouldn’t be possible without the very generous support of a fabulous team.
My sincere thanks to everyone involved, including Kasahara-san and Kei for working around the clock on the Jack-in Head system; the Sony Computer Science Research Lab team for their support; the team at Panoplaza for the generous donation of their services (and super fast development of additional features); Konishi-san of http://exiii.jp/ for the amazing helmet design and production work, LiveU for providing a reliable mobile broadcast solution; The Hacosco team for the generous provision of Google Cardboard headsets for our crew, Dan, Shiro, Alan and all of the team at Breaker Inc. for filming and overall support, to Ikan for the provision of the gimbal, Virgin Earth for assistance with data connections, Fuji TV and NHK for press coverage, and then of course all of the team who are supporting us on the day: Simon, Martina, Nami, Phil, John Daub, Jonathan, Guy and the team at Lowp, the thousands of Tokyo Marathon volunteer staff, and above all, my wife and extended family, who work tirelessly behind the scenes to help make the impossible possible.

I’d like to also thank my friends all around the world: your online support for my escapades means a great deal to me.

Let’s finish this race together!

WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?

Good question.

Well, for one thing, we’re raising funds for charity! (see below).


…But there’s another reason:
It’s now 8 years since I took up running, and 8 years since I completed my first Tokyo Marathon.
Little did I know then how it would come to change my life. Thanks to the Tokyo Marathon, I have been able to make counties friends, set up my own business, take part in a wide range of creative projects, and stay healthy.

For me, it’s much more than just a 42km race. As I said in last year’s marathon report:

“What moved me more than anything though was the support along the marathon course. It was, quite simply, overwhelming. With this being my 7th Tokyo Marathon, many of the supporters know me from previous years (in which they might have run, or worked as volunteers)… There were also shouts of things like ‘itsumo no joseph!’ (it’s the joseph who’s always here!).

It felt like I was in another universe, where everyone was my good friend; I felt that I had a connection with each and every one of them. They were not just strangers cheering me on as another marathon runner. This was an incredibly moving experience, and truly warmed my heart. It gave me a kind of emotional recharge, a recharge that keeps me going throughout the year.

Further reading / links
Follow my run on Runkeeper here
Learn more about me here
Press contact here

RAISING FUNDS FOR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS WORLDWIDE

The 2016 Tokyo Marathon is Joseph’s 8th Tokyo Marathon, and the 3rd Tokyo Marathon through which he has been raising funds for Plan Japan. By registering as a Charity Runner, Joseph donated 100,000 yen (approx $840) to support their vital work in many countries around the world.

If you would like to support Plan Japan in their vital work, please visit www.plan-japan.org