BBC develops Dalek model that can be controlled by Doctor Who episodes

Fans of the Doctor Who series are probably familiar with the Daleks, a race of mutant cyborgs who basically are the show’s protagonist’s enemy. Now researchers at the BBC have managed to sync toy Daleks with their on screen counterparts, thus allowing the toy to mimic the actions of the Daleks that appear on the TV. This is achieved by having the metadata sent from the set-top box to the toy via WiFi.

Now before all Doctor Who fans start getting excited about a potential gadget or toy that they could buy for their own living room, unfortunately this is more about researching and experimenting rather than creating a series of interactive toys for fans. The idea behind this research was to scope out the possibilities of transferring the action the viewer sees on screen into the living room via a toy or a third party gadget.

The metadata necessary to make this happen can be coded into the video itself during the production and making of the shows, along with DVDs. Imagine buying a DVD that came with a toy that acted out the actions while you watched your movies. Undoubtedly this would take the viewer’s experience to a whole new level, but the question is does this hold more practical value or novelty value? Check out the video below for a demonstration.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Robots
Tags: bbc, research, televisions, uk