Microsoft Azure Kinect DK Is a Powerful New Vision Tool

The Microsoft Kinect represented a revolution in inexpensive vision hardware. Now, however, Microsoft is taking aim specifically at…

Jeremy Cook
5 years agoSensors

The Microsoft Kinect represented a revolution in inexpensive vision hardware. Now, however, Microsoft is taking aim specifically at developers and commercial businesses with their Azure Kinect Development Kit (DK), announced here alongside (or under rather) the HoloLens 2. This device integrates Microsoft’s latest sensor technology into a single USB-C-based PC peripheral, which boasts a much smaller, lighter form factor than its predecessors.

The most notable feature of the Azure Kinect DK is a 12MP RGB camera, which dominates the unit’s front face, as well as the same 1MP time-of-flight sensor used in the HoloLens 2. It is equipped a 7-mic array on top, along with a gyroscope and accelerometer. While powerful on its own, three of these devices can be linked together to capture a 3D environment.

More info can be found in its 10-page specs document, plus recommended associated hardware. As you might suspect, Windows 10 is supported, but this sensor is also usable under Ubuntu Linux, opening up possibilities even further. The SDK has a Win32 C-API, but does include preview support for Linux, and will be be open sourced on GitHub. Notably, any software written for the Kinect v2 will need porting to this new hardware.

And as you might’ve imagined, the Azure name is there for a reason. Developers will be able to enhance their applications via Azure Cognitive Services, with the Kinect providing data that’s then used to train machine learning systems, feed image and text recognition services, perform object and activity detection, transcribe and translate real-time speech, more.

Take your Kinect project further with easy Azure integration. Develop more accurate vision and speech models by combining the advanced sensors on your Azure Kinect with Azure Cognitive Services, and use Azure Machine Learning to train your models. Manage PCs connected to Azure Kinect with Azure IoT Edge. When you have your device and you’re ready to build, create an Azure free account to get started.

The Azure Kinect DK is currently available for pre-order with a price tag of $399.

Jeremy Cook
Engineer, maker of random contraptions, love learning about tech. Write for various publications, including Hackster!
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