INCLINE VILLAGE, NV – In a strategic alliance with International Robotics Inc. (IRI), CHOPS & Associates Live Animation, a performance animation company, has found a new way to attract tradeshow attendees and intrigue corporate meeting audiences, using IRI’s HyperSonic Sound Beam (HSS)™ technology. The Sound Beam is a new commercial audio device that projects sound straight ahead, like a spotlight.

“Just as our interactive characters catch the eye with their unusual appearance, the Sound Beam catches the ear and gathers people to where the video puppets appear,” states Gary Jesch, Digital Puppeteer of CHOPS & Associates Live Animation and creator of CHOPS (Cyber Human On a Performance System). “Many people are much more oriented around what they hear, so the Sound Beam becomes a 'secret weapon' that is heard, but not seen, adding another aspect to the CHOPS experience.”

Jesch will use the HSS technology at tradeshows, in combination with his Bubble Screen display system, an ultra-bright, round screen that is two feet in diameter and a quarter-inch thick. The Sound Beam is projected from behind the Bubble Screen where CHOPS appears, so it seems like the sound is coming out of his mouth. Jesch can also aim the device to wave the sound across a large audience at a corporate meeting or special event, creating the effect that the sound is moving, in a different way than using stationary stereo speakers.

The small black box containing the sound-generating electronics allows him to project his voice in a tight cylinder-shaped pattern extending about 100 feet. Persons outside of the Sound Beam's edges will hear nothing, while those who step into the path of sound will hear the voice of CHOPS and musical sound effects clearly.

“The Sound Beam is the marvel of science fiction brought to life,” adds Robert M. Doornick, founder and president of International Robotics Inc. “We are very pleased that CHOPS has adopted our technology into the voice boxes and airwaves of its interactive characters. Over the last 30 years, IRI’s technological developments have proven to change the way people experience life.”

About International Robotics Inc.

International Robotics Inc., official demonstrator of the avant-garde Segway Human Transporter™, is a 30-year-old research and development group composed of a global network of scientists, physicists, engineers, inventors, and techno-artists. IRI also provides concept development, design, consulting, licensing, and marketing services. IRI and Techno-Marketing International are headquartered in New York City and maintain a Techno-Marketing™ showroom, which is a permanent exhibit of some of its more innovative technologies. The showroom is available by appointment only. For more information about IRI, please visit http://www.internationalrobotics.com or call Robert Doornick, 212-982-8001.

About CHOPS & Associates Live Animation

Pioneering performance animation artist Gary Jesch began working with computer-generated virtual characters ten years ago and established CHOPS & Associates Live Animation in 1996. As the "man behind the curtain," he brings his 3D cartoon characters to life, using real-time animation, motion capture and unusual video displays. His family of more than a dozen characters has performed at tradeshows, corporate special events and award ceremonies around the world.

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