How to Extend Kinect v2 (Xbox One) for Windows?


Right now the Kinect v2 Sensor from Microsoft provides users two major applications:

  1. Use with Xbox One Console for interactive game, voice & gesture control and facial recognition.
  2. Use Kinect for Windows SDK 2.0 to provide developers opportunities to create interactive applications that respond to gesture, voice, and movement on Windows OS platform.

One of the common questions that many Xbox One users and Kinect v2 developers frequently ask is that how to extend the connecting distance for Kinect v2 Sensor.

The solution we found is to use USB 3.0 A to B Extension Cable with the Kinect Adapter for Windows

By theory, since the upstream port on Kinect Adapter for Windows is a USB 3.0 Type-B port, any existing USB 3.0 Type-A to Type-B configuration connection from Xbox One to the adapter should make the system properly functional.

However, it is not so easy in reality. The original USB 3.0 A to B cable comes with the Windows Adapter for Kinect v2 is 7 ft. (2.16m). And there isn't any extension cable selling on the market to increase this length. Although there are numbers of USB 3.0 active cable or repeater solutions on the market, only very few of them are truly compatible with Kinect v2 system. As the new generation Kinect v2 adopts the USB 3.0 interface as the data transfer interface, Kinect v2 uses isochronous USB data transfer in addition to the bulk transfer protocol, which requires a more tightened constraint of the data packet transfer time delay from the sensor to the console. When the connection range increases, this time delay will become the barrier that limits the extension distance.

Other than that, another factor is that Kinect v2 reserves an extremely high bandwidth in the USB bus line, which also causes an enormous challenge to the long range connection. Because only high quality USB 3.0 cable can ensure the full bandwidth USB 3.0 signal delivery (5Gbps) with a decently reliable signal integrity.

Newnex is a company that has been in long range connectivity technology industry for over 20 years. Our products are mainly used in industrial application field such as machine vision, aerospace, medical imaging, etc. Newnex's USB 3.0 product line provides Xbox one and Kinect v2 users the most satisfactory extension solutions:

*Xbox One, Kinect and Microsoft are trademarks for Microsoft Corporation

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