The future of virtual reality (VR) will be allowing people to interact with each other with more natural interaction, similar to the real world. This is the goal for Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI) who are planning to demonstrate a new technology that makes it possible for interaction and feedback to be transferred between the real world and the virtual world. at CeBIT.
The power of VR, augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) allows for people to collaboration regardless of the distance between them, using applications to engage in a range of activities. In the example of a remote assistance working with a technician to repair equipment, the future technology that Fraunhofer HHI are working on could allow for the assistance to provide scenery input to the repair. This includes hand movements and feedback on the surrounds of the technician, with more applications made possible depending on the situation.
“The solution we developed for this purpose can connect a simulated world with the real world in real time and high quality and open up new perspectives or collaborations,” explains Paul Chojecki, project manager at Fraunhofer HHI. “Physical interaction without disturbing controllers is more natural and more comfortable. The solution can be adapted more flexibly to the height of the user and increases immersion. At the same time, it can reduce symptoms of motion sickness that are often caused by VR scenarios.”
In the real world, eight cameras, four pairs each, capture the scene from all sides and generate depth maps with up to 30 Hertz. Gestures and dynamic movements are detected and the data is combined by algorithms, coded and transmitted to the VR station in real time, with the corresponding 3D textures. For the user wearing the VR headset, another 3D camera records the users. Thanks to the Fraunhofer HHI algorithms for 3D body detection and gesture interpretation, it is naturally interacted in the VR scene without disturbing controllers or markers.
The feedback from the virtual world is displayed in the real scene by means of a projection, with special image processing algorithms from Fraunhofer HHI used for this AR projection. This combination of two exciting technologies results in an impressive and immersive experience which offer a unique solution for MR interaction and applications.
VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest on this development from Fraunhofer HHI in the future so stay tuned for more.