VIRTUAL
REALITY: A BLESSING
INTRODUCTION
At the beginning of 1990s the development in
the field of virtual reality became much more stormy and the term Virtual
Reality itself became extremely popular. We can hear about Virtual Reality
nearly in all sort of media, people use this term very often and they misuse it
in many cases too. The reason is that
this new, promising and fascinating technology captures greater interest of
people than e.g., computer graphics. The consequence of this state is that
nowadays the border between 3D computer graphics and Virtual Reality becomes
fuzzy.Virtual reality is the creation of a virtual environment presented to our
senses in such a way that we experience it as if we were really there. It has
both entertainment and serious uses. The technology is becoming cheaper and
more widespread. We can expect to see many more innovative uses for the
technology in the future and perhaps a fundamental way in which we communicate
and work thanks to the possibilities of virtual reality.
BACKGROUND
Nowadays computer graphics is used in many
domains of our life. At the end of the 20th century it is difficult to imagine
an architect, engineer, or interior designer working without a graphics
workstation. In the last years the stormy development of microprocessor
technology brings faster and faster computers to the market. These machines are
equipped with better and faster graphics boards and their prices fall down
rapidly. It becomes possible even for an average user, to move into the world
of computer graphics. This fascination with a new (vr) reality often starts
with computer games and lasts forever. It allows to see the surrounding world
in other dimension and to experience things that are not accessible in real
life or even not yet created. Moreover, the world of three-dimensional graphics
has neither borders nor constraints and can be created and manipulated by
ourselves as we wish – we can enhance it by a fourth dimension: the dimension
of our imagination...
But not enough: people always want more. They
want to step into this world and interact with it – instead of just watching a
picture on the monitor. This technology which becomes overwhelmingly popular
and fashionable in current decade is called Virtual Reality (VR). The very
first idea of it was presented by Ivan Sutherland in 1965: “make that (virtual)
world in the window look real, sound real, feel real, and respond realistically
to the viewer’s actions” [Suth65]. It has been a long time since then, a lot of
research has been done and status quo: “the Sutherland’s challenge of the
Promised Land has not been reached yet but we are at least in sight of it”
[Broo95]. Let us have a short glimpse at the last three decades of research in
virtual reality and its highlights.
·
The Ultimate Display
In 1965 Ivan Sutherland proposed the ultimate
solution of virtual reality: an artificial world construction concept that
included interactive graphics, force-feedback, sound, smell and taste. !
· VIDEOPLACE
Artificial Reality created in 1975 by Myron
Krueger – “a conceptual environment, with no existence”. In this system the
silhouettes of the users grabbed by the cameras were projected on a large
screen. The participants were able to interact one with the other thanks to the
image processing techniques that determined their positions in 2D screen’s
space.!
· VCASS
Thomas Furness at the US Air Force’s Armstrong
Medical Research Laboratories developed in 1982 the Visually Coupled Airborne
Systems Simulator – an advanced flight simulator. The fighter pilot wore a HMD
that augmented the out-the- window view by the graphics describing targeting or
optimal flight path information.
· AUGMENTED REALITY
A technology that “presents a
virtual world that enriches, rather than replaces the real world” [Brys92c].
This is achieved by means of see-through HMD that superimposes virtual
three-dimensional objects on real ones. This technology was previously used to
enrich fighter pilot’s view with additional flight information (VCASS). Thanks
to its great potential – the enhancement of human vision – augmented reality
became a focus of many research projects in early 1990s . References Institute
of Computer Graphics Vienna University of Technology, Austria
[mazuryk|gervautz]@cg.tuwien.ac.at http://www.cg.tuwien.ac.at/
SCOPE
Virtual reality (VR) are no longer the stuff of science-fiction
movies or something that gets batted around in laboratories. Sectors such as hardware,
marketing, gaming, and more are being impacted by developments in this field
every day, and this technology is making a serious play for business relevance.
Companies such
as Google, Facebook, and Microsoft are putting their weight behind this
technology but there is more than enough room for other enterprises to make an
impact. Globally, investments in these industries have been overwhelming .According
to the data from tech advisor Digi-Capital showing that investments in VR
touched $1.1 billion in the first two months of 2016, far exceeding the $700
million invested during 2015 and it became $2.3 billion at the end of year
which is more than 300% increase .
·
IN HEALTHCARE
For people living with dementia, recalling memories can be a frustrating process, but a new
virtual reality system is being used as a form of therapy. An old woman was given
that therapy .The woman in the video is shown a beach scene, which triggers
her memories of time spent on the beach in Scotland and her remarks was
“
'I'm just so happy to
see that beautiful sight.
'It's beautiful beyond
compare.
'It's one of the happiest moments of my whole
life. ”
FROM ARTICLE OF MAILONLINE
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4510896/VR-help-people-dementia-recall-memories.html#ixzz4iUag7BJA
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4510896/VR-help-people-dementia-recall-memories.html#ixzz4iUag7BJA
· IN MILITARY
Reported in an article of Daily Herald posted on 5/13/2017 7:10 AM.
They posted an article named * VR headsets help military prepare
for real-life threats* in this article they stated that
“In a refurbished building on a military base in
central Israel, soldiers are training in underground combat using headsets made
by Oculus, the virtual-reality headset maker owned by Facebook, and Vive, owned
by HTC Corp.
Israeli
special combat soldiers conduct a training exercise using virtual reality
battlefield technology to simulate Hamas tunnels leading from Gaza to Israel at
an Israeli Army base in Petach Tikva , Israel, on April 26, 2017.
Virtual reality
allows commanders to put soldiers through exercises that are impossible to
carry out in the physical world, said their training officer, Lt. Col. O.,
whose full name can't be published due to military regulations. Oculus goggles,
chosen for high resolution, create realistic tunnel systems and obstacles for
soldiers sitting at a computer, and Vive headsets transport a standing soldier
underground, with control sticks to dismantle booby traps.
The goal is that with Oculus and Vive, more Israeli soldiers will
know how to fight in the tunnels Palestinian militant groups dig under the Gaza
Strip and across its border into Israel. The tunnels, along with rocket fire on
Israeli towns, prompted an Israeli military operation against Gaza in 2014 that
left more than 2,000 Palestinians and 70 Israelis dead.
Several soldiers were killed during the fighting by Palestinian
gunmen who emerged from tunnels, and one soldier was abducted through a tunnel.
A state comptroller report on the war, issued in February, found the government
and army had been unprepared to deal with the tunnel threat. So this technique
will apply to handle this tunnel threat in better way
”
· IN MEDICAL SCIENCES
The use of advanced technology, such as virtual
environments and computer-based simulators (VR/CBS), in training has been well
established by both industry and the military. In contrast the medical
profession, including surgery, has been slow to incorporate such technology in
its training. In an attempt to identify factors limiting the regular
incorporation of this technology into surgical training programs, a survey was
developed by Journal of the American College of Surgeons and
distributed to all general surgery program directors in the United States .The
design, results and conclusion are as follows :
Design: A
22-question survey was sent to 254 general surgery program directors. The survey
was designed to reflect attitudes of the program directors regarding the use of
computer-based simulation in surgical training. Questions were scaled from 1 to
5 with 1 = strongly disagree and 5=strongly agree.
Results:
A total of 139 responses (55%) were returned. The majority of respondents (58%)
had seen VR/CBS, but only 19% had “hands-on” experience with these systems.
Respondents strongly agreed that there is a need for learning opportunities
outside of the operating room and a role for VR/CBS in surgical training.
Respondents believed both staff and residents would support this type of
training. Concerns included VR/CBS’ lack of validation and potential
requirements for frequent system upgrades.
Conclusion:
Virtual environments and computer-based simulators, although well-established training
tools in other fields, have not been widely incorporated into surgical
education. Our results suggest that program directors believe this type of
technology would be beneficial in surgical education, but they lack adequate
information regarding VR/CBS. Developers of this technology may need to focus
on educating potential users and addressing their concerns.
FROM ARTICLE Are surgery training programs ready for virtual reality? A survey of
program directors in general surgery1
Presented at The Association of Program
Directors in Surgery, Phoenix, AZ, April 2000.
· IN GAMING INDUSTRY
The
virtual reality in gaming market is driven by multiple factors such as
increasing disposable income, advanced technological solutions such as
three-dimensional environment
and increasing demand by consumers
for new type of entertainment.
In
an article of BGR (a leading online destination for news and
commentary focused on mobile and consumer electronics markets.) future gaming is represented by this picture
they captioned this picture as *this is what future gaming looks like*
(Compound annual growth rate) during forecast period 2017-2023
As VR gadgets\ Devices such as Gloves, Headsets, Glasses etc. are getting very popular in people
FROM
AN ARTICLE Virtual Reality in Gaming Market 2017: Industry Research, Review, Growth Analysis and
Forecast to 2023
published in
DIGITAL JOURNAL
· IN AVIATION
As we
had already seen VR is covering almost all the fields of our daily lives .Similarly it also has scope in
aviation training. Following info is taken from an article which states that:
“International
Air Transport Association (IATA) has launched RampVR, the aviation industry’s
first virtual reality (VR) training platform for ground operations. Frederic Leger, director for airport, passenger, cargo and
security products, IATA, said, “Improving ramp safety and reducing damage to
aircraft and ground equipment through better education and training is an
industry priority, but training in this extremely active environment can be a
challenge. ”RampVR allows users to safely immerse themselves in ramp operations
and experience a variety of scenarios in different operating conditions. RampVR
also provides users with built-in metrics to track their performance, and
real-time access to key reference material RampVR was developed in consultation
with airlines, airports and ground service
providers to meet training needs while reducing the burden of accessing the
ramp for training. Currently two modules are available: Aircraft Turnaround
Inspections and Aircraft Marshalling. .”
FROM AN ARTICLE OF PASSENGER
TERMINAL TODAY.COM
May 23, 2017
· in education
Virtual
reality is taking off in higher
education.
But what areas of VR should educators specifically focus on and what tech can
they look out for? The answer of this question is given by the specialists in
one of the article of Campus technology they said that
“We can expect to see certain trends in VR
to move forward, while others will disappear. As devices continue to shrink we
will see the development of augmented and mixed reality experiences that will
power compelling visualizations, immersive storytelling, gamified simulations
and learning experiences,” said Maya Georgieva, and tech strategist, author and
speaker with more than 15 years of experience in higher education and global education. Georgieva is
co-founder of Digital
Bodies, a consulting group
that provides news and analysis of VR, AR and wearables in education.
Her partner in crime is Emory Craig, an
educator, speaker and researcher of VR and wearable technologies in the
learning environment. He is currently the director of e-learning at the College of New Rochelle,
where he leads instructional technology initiatives.
“Education is on the cusp of a profound
change in the way we use [VR] technology,” Craig said. “People are starting to
use it in higher and even though the tech is very fluid at the moment.”
Craig and Georgieva both agree that the VR
market is rapidly changing, but there are various technologies in hardware,
distribution platforms and content creation software that are ready to use.”
U.S.
Department of the Interior (DOI) National Park Service (NPS) rangers work
together with Immersive Education Club college students and high school
students to recreate historic Bent’s Old Fort in Virtual Reality. (IED)
Work cited https://campustechnology.com/articles/2017/05/16/5-vr-trends-to-watch-in-education.aspx?admgarea=News
From an article VR TRENDS TO WATCH IN EDUCATION from CAMPUS
TECHNOLOGY.COM Picture from Voice of America article name Immersive
Education Has Promise, but a Long Way to Go
PROCEDURE
The
study was conducted through questionnaires in order to understand people’s
reaction over virtual reality(VR). To understand that how people perceive
virtual reality, few questions were asked in questionnaire and people were
directed to fill questionnaire according to their thoughts. One purpose of this
study was to know about problems or thoughts of people regarding virtual
reality.
First
of all, questionnaire was decided and necessary questions for search were
selected, then a copy of questionnaire was printed and distributed among
audience for their views. After their views been written, questionnaire was
received back and was gone through by the team. After going through the views
of audience about virtual reality, following were the findings.
Findings
The
study was conducted between people of ages 18 to 29. Majority was from 18-21.
·
Age 18-21
Questionnaire
revealed that people between age 18 to 21 use electronic devices on regular
basis, smart phones were commonly used, but only few had known about virtual
reality. They had never experienced any of the VR device.
·
Age 22-25
The
study shown that people lying between ages 22- 25 were much involved in virtual
reality usage. They knew about this technology and used VR devices like Samsung
gear vr. They even know how it works.
·
Age 26-29
People
of this age knew nothing about virtual reality. They just heard name of it.
These
were the findings during research. A sample of questionnaire has been attached
with the report to view
Analysis
An analysis is made from the above findings. Above findings show that people are willing to use virtual reality but they need to stay updated with this technology. Many people suggested that it should be promoted at national level. After going through research, it analyzes that most people think it as an positive aspect of society, but few disagreed that virtual reality is a blessing.
Overall
research suggests that virtual reality should be made aware at national level
to facilitate students and nation at a vast range. Government should take steps
to promote VR.
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