2. VIRTUAL
ENVIRONM
ENTS
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 2
BEGINNING WITH FLIGHT SIMULATORS, ADVANCING
THROUGH SCIENTIFIC APPLICATIONS, AND INTO
THE ENTERTAINMENT ARENA, VIRTUAL
ENVIRONMENTS HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED TO
PROVIDE AN IMMERSIVE SIMULATED EXPERIENCE
WITHOUT THE EXPENSE AND RISK ASSOCIATED
WITH THE REAL THING.
BOEING
787
FLIGHT
SIMULATO
R FROM
ALTEON
MOLECULAR
SIMULATION AT
ARGONNE
NATIONAL
LABORATORY
MATTEL POWER GLOVE, VECTREX
3D IMAGER, AND NINTENDO
VIRTUAL BOY
3. DIGITA
L 3D
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 3
ADVANCES IN DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY AND STEREOSCOPY HAVE
ENABLED FILMMAKERS TO AFFORDABLY PRODUCE 3D FILMS AND
THEATRE OWNERS TO AFFORDABLY SHOW THEM.A 3D DIGITAL CAMERA RECORDS VIDEO,
CIRCULARLY POLARIZING THE RIGHT
VIEWPOINT USING RIGHT-HANDED
POLARIZATION...
...WHILE RECORDING THE LEFT
VIEWPOINT USING LEFT-
HANDED CIRCULAR
POLARIZATION.
BOTH IMAGES ARE PROJECTED
SIMULTANEOUSLY ONTO THE
THEATRE SCREEN, IN A MANNER
THAT GUARANTEES THAT THE
VIEWPOINTS ARE SYNCHRONIZED.
THE MOVIEGOER WEARS POLARIZED
GLASSES THAT ONLY ALLOW THE
RIGHT-HANDED POLARIZED IMAGES
TO PASS THROUGH THE RIGHT LENS
AND THE LEFT-HANDED POLARIZED
IMAGES TO PASS THROUGH THE LEFT
LENS.
4. VERGENCE
VS.
ACCOMMOD
ATION
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 4
PROJECTING A 3D IMAGE ONTO A 2D
SCREEN OR TELEVISION DISPLAY
TENDS TO PLAY TRICKS WITH ONE’S
VISUAL PERCEPTION.
IN THE REAL WORLD, WHEN A PERSON
TRIES TO FOCUS ON A DISTANT OBJECT,
THE EYES EXPERIENCE VERGENCE,
WHERE THEY BOTH ROTATE ON THEIR
OWN VERTICALAXES UNTIL THEY BOTH
POINT AT THE OBJECT.MEANWHILE, THE EYES EXPERIENCE
ACCOMMODATION, WHERE THEY
REFLEXIVELY FOCUS ON THE OBJECT
IN ITS DISTANT POSITION, CAUSING
NEARBY OBJECTS TO GO OUT OF
FOCUS.WITH 3D IMAGES, HOWEVER, THE
EYES ROTATE SO THEY ARE POINTED
TO WHERE THE OBJECT SEEMS TO BE,
BUT THE REFLEXIVE FOCUS MUST
ADJUST TO THE SCREEN’S ACTUAL
LOCATION, ELIMINATING THE NATURAL
THIS RESULTS IN
SERIOUS EYESTRAIN
AND HEADACHES FOR
MANY 3D AUDIENCE
5. SIMULA
TOR
SICKNE
SS
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 5
EFFORTS TO MAKE VR
SIMULATIONS AS
REALISTIC AS
POSSIBLE
FREQUENTLY HAVE
UNPLEASANT SIDE
EFFECTS.
FOR EXAMPLE,
PROVIDING A VISUAL
HEADBOB (LIKE THE
ONE ILLUSTRATED AT
RIGHT), WITHOUT AN
ACCOMPANYING
PHYSICAL MOTION,
CAN RESULT IN
SIMILAR PROBLEMS TEND TO OCCUR WITH
RAPID CHANGES IN ACCELERATION AND
RAPID SHIFTS IN PERSPECTIVE.
6. BALANCE &
THE INNER
EAR
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 6
THE SEMICIRCULAR
CANALS WITHIN THE
INNER EAR CONTAIN
HAIR CELLS THAT
REACT TO BODY
MOVEMENTS.
THESE REACTIONS ARE
TRANSMITTED BY
MEANS OF THE
VESTIBULAR NERVE TO
THE BRAIN, WHICH
SUBCONSCIOUSLY
SENDS MESSAGES TO
THE BODY’S TRUNK
AND LIMBS TO
WHEN THE EYES SEND THE BRAIN A
DIFFERENT MESSAGE REGARDING THE
BODY’S MOVEMENTS, THE BRAIN MAY
REACT ADVERSELY, CAUSING A LOSS OF
BALANCE.
7. VR
LATEN
CY
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 7
WHEN THE VR SYSTEM’S
PROCESSING TIME IS
EXCESSIVE, ITS REACTIONS TO
THE USER’S ACTIONS WILL LAG
BEHIND, WHICH DESTROYS THE
ILLUSION OF IMMERSION WHEN
IT BECOMES NOTICEABLE TO
THE USER. LATENCY IS
PARTICULARLY
PROBLEMATIC IN
“AUGMENTED
REALITY”
APPLICATIONS,
WHERE VIRTUAL
OBJECTS ARE
OVERLAID ON THE
USER’S REAL
WORLD SETTING,
8. OCULU
S RIFT
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 8
Head-Mounted Display
(Coated in white markers)
Camera
(Tracks markers to record
user’s head position)
Head Straps
Circuit Board
Screen
Diopter Adjustment
(Rotate to fine tune so
eyeglasses aren’t
needed)
Lenses
(Three pairs are
provided to
accommodate
good, moderate,
and heavy
nearsightedness)
Foam Padding
(Fits to face)
11. FACEBOOK
PAYS $2
BILLION FOR
OCULUS
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 11
“Our mission is to make the world more
open and connected. For the past few
years, this has mostly meant building
mobile apps that help you share with the
people you care about. We have a lot more
to do on mobile, but at this point we feel
we're in a position where we can start
focusing on what platforms will come next
to enable even more useful, entertaining
and personal experiences…
“After games, we're going to make Oculus a
platform for many other experiences.
Imagine enjoying a court side seat at a
game, studying in a classroom of students
and teachers all over the world or
consulting with a doctor face-to-face -- just
by putting on goggles in your home.
“This is really a new communication
platform. By feeling truly present, you can
share unbounded spaces and experiences
with the people in your life. Imagine sharing
not just moments with your friends online,
12. GOOGLE
CARDBO
ARD
IS 376
August 21, VIRTUAL REALITY’S MOMENT Page 12
Cardboard
($2)
Lenses
($10)
Magnets
($6)
Velcro
($3)
Rubber
Band
(1¢)
Google’s response to the $350
Oculus Rift Developer’s Kit is
this do-it-yourself “Oculus Thrift”
which turns Android devices into
portable VR viewers, using an
open source software
developers kit.
REMINDER:
Next Thursday (8/28) is the
deadline for the early draft of the
first paper!NEXT TIME:
Professor Kapatamoyo speaks!
