Kinect on Ubuntu

In this post, we will see how to setup Kinect (Xbox 360)  to work with Ubuntu 10.4 or higher using Freenect

Update: If you plan to develop full fledged Applications with Kinect (Computer Vision, AR apps), you may also want to take a look at OpenNI Api (Apparently, this has wider support and more features in the API).

You will need to install a software/binary called "freenect" which comes with working binaries and header file (for development in C/C++).

Follow the steps mentioned below:

1. Fire up your terminal and execute the following command:
   
   sudo add-apt-repository ppa:arne-alamut/freenect
   
   So basically you are adding the software source to your authorized software sources list
2. Update your software sources list by executing the following command:
   
   sudo apt-get update
   
   
3. Install the software using the following command:
   
   sudo apt-get install freenect
   
   
4. Now, you need to add your user to "video" group using the following command:
   
   sudo adduser <OS_USER_NAME> video
5. Now, connect your "Kinect" to your PC and execute the following command:
   freenect-cppview
   also, there are other programs like:
   freenect-glview

After you execute the following commands, you might see something like as follows:

Along with this application, comes libraries for development. Run your synaptic manager and search for "kinect" and you might see something like this:

So, you just need to include these C++ header along with your programs (C/C++ probably) to develop applications that use Kinect sensor.

Happy Kinect Hacking/Programming.

References: http://openkinect.org/wiki/Getting_Started#Linux