In the year 2014 Virtual Reality (VR ) took
a giant leap. From the hands of a
limited few, the technology has now
seeped into the consumer market.
Oculus can be credited for bringing the
technology to the mainstream . Taking
cues from Oculus , several new devices
have arrived in the market. Sony got its
Project Morpheus and Samsung got the
Gear VR headsets . There were also some
independent attempts into making VR
headsets including Google ’s Cardboard
project. The question remains – is this
just a mere fad or is this technology
here to stay ? We delve into the past ,
present and future of VR
Headsets today.
What is Virtual Reality?
According to a popular online
encyclopedia , virtual reality is a
computer simulated environment that
can simulate physical presence in places
in the real world or imagined worlds . It ,
in essence, creates a world that creates
the perception of being in a whole new
place. Using various other techniques ,
VR can create sensory perceptions of
touch , smell, sounds and even taste .
The Journey to Now…
It ’ s not really a recent phenomenon in
any sense of the word . There have been
efforts to create an artificial
environment for manipulating the
senses since the 1800 s . In 1860 ’s there
were art installations that used a 360-
degree panoramic mural to create an
artificial reality . One of the most
prominent examples of this is Sala delle
Prospettive by Baldassare Peruzzi .
Since then , there have been multiple
efforts to artistically take the audience
into a perceived reality . But in 1968 the
first computer artificial reality headsets
came to become a reality . Dubbed the
Sword of Damocles that was created by
computer scientists Ivan Sutherland. It
was archaic in every sense of the word .
It only displayed wire -frame models and
was so heavy that it needed to be
suspended from the ceiling , thus getting
its name.
Sword of Damocles was the first
computer aided VR headset .
In 1991 , Sega arrived with the first VR
headsets for the consumers. Though it
got a tepid response from the press,
and there were fears that they could
spoil the eyesight of children , this
prevented it from getting to the shelves.
Nintendo tried its hand at VR headsets
when it came out with the Virtual Boy in
1995 . This device too was a commercial
failure , and the users faced discomforts
like dizziness, nausea , and headaches
after extended use . The device was also
lamented for the lack of a head tracking
feature and color graphics .
Virtual Boy by Nintendo released in
1995
Fast forward to 2014 , and we see a
return with a vengeance of the VR
technology . Aided by high processing
power of modern day devices and the
phenomenal breakthroughs in the
mobile technology, it seems like VR has
finally found its moment in time . The
race was intensified with the purchase
of Oculus VR by Facebook. Sony and
Samsung soon followed with their own
designs. Google tried to bring the
technology in the grasps of everyone
with the cardboard project, a DIY
project through which you can create a
stereoscopic VR headsets using cheap
ingredients which costs just about $ 20 .
How do VR Headsets work ?
VR headsets pretty much use the
concept of 3 D glasses . On the displays ,
there are two images , one for each eye .
These images , when viewed through a
stereoscopic lens system , gives a
perception of depth in the images . The
brain brings together the two images as
one and that creates the depth that
immerses the user into the artificial
world . Advanced VR systems like the
Oculus have motion tracking system
that responds to the user ’s movement.
Using hardware like the Omni treadmill ,
you feel like you are really moving
around in the virtual environment.
The emergence of mobile -based portable
headsets has made it a lot easier to
access the technology. Devices like the
Gear VR , Google cardboard , and ANTVR
make it a lot easier to use . These even
allow you to look at your movies with a
perception of watching them on a big
screen . This could possibly mean the
end of movie theaters and the expensive
popcorn that comes with it .
The other potential uses of
the technology
There are a wide range of uses of VR
technology.
Virtual Reality is not just limited to
providing quality entertainment and
gaming, it has many real world
applications too . It can come in handy
in multiple fields such as:
Virtual field Trips
The best way to learn about a new place
is to go there and travel around. It can
often be educational to travel. But if
you cannot afford the trip, you
have virtual reality to your rescue . The
virtual tour can show you around the
place and using complementary
technologies like haptic mediums ; you
can get to touch and smell your new
environment too . It can be a complete
immersive experience that you wouldn’t
want to come out of.
Education
Learning by doing is the best way to
acquire knowledge. Using the tools
provided by gaming advancements in VR ,
students can learn to interact with their
future workplace . For example , an
architect can learn to create buildings
and manipulate it in real time , almost
like Ariadne in Inception . It can even
come handy to school children to bring
lessons to them in a more interactive
immersive fashion.
Training
Several military professionals are
trained on VR surfaces . It is a lot more
economical than creating real world
environments and also decreases the
chance of injury while training . It gives
the chance to practice their lessons as
many times as needed. Pilots are also
trained on simulators that actively
recreate the flying environment. VR can
come handy to train drivers who work
in specialized environments such as high
terrains or ice roads.
Medicine
The technology can be used to train
doctors.
Doctors can benefit from some virtual
simulations too . Specialized surgeries
that require immense precision require
constant practice . In an artificially
created environment , the surgeon can
constantly train on the simulated body
to perfect his /her skills that could
someday come handy to save real lives .
Challenges with VR Devices
VR though has been in development for
quite a while, but there are some
limitations to the technology to make it
more palatable to a mass audience. The
confines of graphics and the tracking
systems even in the best headsets
results in various discomfort for the
users. The industry needs to really work
on the VR tracking systems .
The audio too is an important element
of an immersive experience. The
disconnect between the audio and
visuals or low quality audio can also
lead to motion sickness and other
discomforts . The audio industry is being
encouraged to fix the gap to create a
more natural environment for the users.
There are also some issues with the
content that can be created for
consumption in the virtual world. Some
psychologists say that the VR can create
a generation of sociopaths who have
gotten so used to first person violence
that they are desensitized to it . To
counter this, there is a need for
regulation and codification of content
meant for VR headsets . There should
also be instruction and education on
how to use the technology right so that
it benefits all.
Virtual Reality has come a long way, but
there still is long way ahead for the
technology to grow.
A Long journey begins now.
With the processing power up to the
mark and graphical interfaces
replicating reality better than ever , this
is the right time for VR to come out of
its cocoon . The smartphone revolution
has brought the VR technology in the
grasps of everyone. Google ’ s cardboard
project literally makes this technology
universal. There is a long way to go with
the potential applications of the
technology , but its mainstream visibility
will speed up its adoption in various
fields. There is a lot the technology can
offer us, and it ’s just the beginning of
the access to the virtual world . The
immense potential of the technology is
still up for unlocking. We’ re excited
about the prospects of VR, are you ?
