Recent Advances in Virtual Reality

Virtual Reality is a great technology that has recently expanded to new levels of capability. VR can fully immerse the user in a simulation, encompassing their entire field of view with an interactive world. It had humble beginnings, with one of the first instances of a publicly released system being Nintendo’s Virtual Boy in 1995. The system was unfortunately too ahead of its time because the Virtual Boy was plagued with technical and marketing issues that ultimately caused its demise in just a few years after its initial release. However, this system proved that, while the technology would need to improve, the concept of a fully immersive virtual reality machine was entirely possible.

The technologies needed to perfect the idea were gradually refined over the next decade, and in 2010 the first prototype for the Oculus Rift was proposed by young innovator Palmer Luckey. Luckey’s proposal generated lots of popularity, having raised over two million dollars on Kickstarter during the years after the proposal. Nowadays, hundreds of companies are using the VR technology to produce their own headsets and experiences: Sony, Samsung, Apple, Google, Amazon, HTC, and even Facebook, which purchased the Oculus Rift company back in 2014 for 2 billion dollars. With the game-changing innovation of these companies, it’s no doubt that the possibilities of virtual reality have extended far from its nearly exclusive gaming ability that it once had in the past. Gaming in VR is still very prominent, for example the HTC Vive is primarily designed for immersive gaming. However, companies are developing and expanding VR to allow for new possibilities. People have been able to entirely immerse themselves in the vision of a robot which they are controlling remotely and even use VR as a way to help treat certain psychological disorders. More complex systems also allow for safe job simulation training for occupations that may be more risky in reality, such as flight, astronauts, military, and automotive operation training. VR-based simulations allow for people to experience working in a job without any real-life consequences. In addition, the field of education has been greatly expanded upon with more custom simulations and affordable technology now being accessible by many primary school classes. Google VR Expeditions is one such example. Curated “expeditions” allow a group of students to move from one scene to the next, taking in information and visuals while using an affordable VR headset, such as Google Cardboard. VR in education is not limited to field trips, however. Much like on-the-job training that is done in VR, advanced classes can use VR to simulate a real-world environment that makes certain elements of an assignment or lesson easier, such as identifying and overcoming hazards and problems that one might see on the job site. Building and architectural design classes also benefit, with the onset of new virtual reality design programs being released to the standard VR platforms. Also available is Anatomyou, a virtual tour of parts of the human body with information placed where necessary to serve as a guide. A slightly more interactive learning experience would be Molecule VR, a virtual space where visual learners can see the building blocks of the universe in 3 dimensions, as well as being able to see how they are constructed. There are countless more experiences like these that would not be made possible without the innovation of Virtual Reality.

Nowadays, powerful Virtual Reality systems like Oculus Rift cost around 500 to 1000 dollars. If this seems too much for the average consumer, there are a few places in Ottawa where you can experience VR. Colony VR, on 58 Beech Street in the Little Italy area. You and a group can rent out one of 6 cells in which an HTC Vive is suspended from the ceiling and use it for a rented time. There is a large collection of different VR games that can be learned quite easily. In addition, you can also try out Room Escapes Ottawa for a cooperative VR experience. It’s a standard escape room, however there are now more opportunities for special effects and unique interesting puzzles. Try out Virtual Reality during your summer vacation; it’ll be worth your while.