Those of you with decent memories may remember VRFocus reporting on a startup company called Mira, which last year launched pre-orders for an affordable augmented reality (AR) headset, the Prism. Well the company has attended CES 2018 so VRFocus managed to get some hands-on time with the device to see if consumer priced headset AR does actual work.
The Mira Prism is as simple as it comes in compassion to more expensive AR headsets. It’s made up of two parts; the main plastic body which sits on your head and the removable clear lenses at the front which reflect the smartphone screen to see the AR content.
Firstly, the headset is very lightweight, even with a smartphone docked at the front it doesn’t feel front heavy making it easily usable for long durations – or the battery time of the smartphone installed. Just like a normal pair of glasses you soon forget what you’re wearing, other than the holograms in front of your vision.
What’s remarkable is the clarity of the image portrayed. Yes, the distance between the screen and lenses isn’t that great, but in a show like CES which is filled with artificial light the resulting images looked solid enough with reasonable detail. The content on show was for the new film Downsizing, where film stars Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig decide to start a new life by being shrunk to five inches tall. So the interactive experience was all about looking around to find items to shrink, with the trailer playing away in the background. After locating an item it was then a case of pointing the 3DoF remote and shrinking it. Not exactly amazing stuff – a lot of immersive movie tie-in experiences tend to be rubbish – but it gave enough of an idea about the visual quality and how everything worked.
While the objects were 3D and looked good enough, it was the 2D trailer playing away that was more eye catching. As mentioned the visual quality was very good which made the trailer a focal point rather than what was going on all around.
The remote itself was functional and easy to use, with very little difference to others such as the one supplied with Google Daydream. It’s not going to give the same level of control or immersion as a 6DoF device but at the price Mira is charging you can only expect so much.
And that price is very reasonable, with pre-orders going for $99 USD – an MRSP of $149 is listed on the website when it fully launches. The couple of issues that stand in the way at the moment is availability, the first batch is completely sold out, and the Mira Prism only supports iPhone 6/6s/7/8 with Android compatibility due at some point in the future.
For what it offers the Mira Prism looks to be a great introduction to AR headsets. It’s going for a market few are attempting – there’s also Aryzon – as the big boys like Microsoft HoloLens and Meta 2 are priced well out of the interest of most consumers. There is the Lenovo Mirage AR headset, but it does cost double the price and it’s nowhere near as ergonomic. Hopefully Mira will be able to ramp up production to get more developers involved, creating more content for a novel device.
Even to those who only lightly follow the virtual reality (VR) industry it should be fairly clear that 2018 will see a change – or should that be addition – to the norm, with standalone headsets due to make their rise into the market. It was a natural synergy that was always going to take place, smartphone power inside an easy to use, all-in-one body that needed no wires. Last year Google made plans with HTC and Lenovo on two different headsets that would use the search giant’s Daydream platform. As we now know HTC eventually went off on its own, creating Vive Focus, while Lenovo stuck with Google, building the Mirage Solo in the process. During CES 2018 VRFocus got to spend some time with the headset to see how the partnership panned out.
First impressions upon seeing the Lenovo Mirage Solo are good, with Google’s Daydream reference design proving to be well made and relatively compact. What’s instantly noticeable is the PlayStation VR style head band, placing most of the weight on the forehead with an adjustment wheel on the back to ratchet the whole thing tight. It’s a system that’s been proven to work very well, providing a comfortable fitting for even long durations of gameplay.
Whilst this is true with the short amount of time VRFocus spent with the headset, due to its all-in-one design the device isn’t the lightest of head-mounted displays (HMDs). Sporting all that battery and processing power means the Lenovo Mirage Solo clocks in at 645g, while PlayStation VR weights 610g, HTC Vive is 470g, and Oculus Rift comes in at 470g.
The overall design of the Lenovo Mirage Solo is that of simplicity, with a clean form factor that features a couple of buttons on the right hand-side. Inside, the headset has a Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of RAM, 110 degree field-of-view (FoV) and sports a resolution of 2,560 × 1,440 – so very similar to that of smartphone VR headsets. The actual image quality is equally on par, if not slightly better than smartphone brethren, with decent clarity and sharpness provided by the lenses. Where the Mirage Solo shines however is with its inside-out tracking thanks to the two forward facing cameras.
Using a technology developed by Google called WorldSense, users can wander around fully tracked within the virtual world without the need for external sensors or cameras. In the dark, limited space demo area the tracking performed admirably, with little noticeable latency or moments of uncertainty. Whilst this will certainly aid immersion, the headset only comes supplied with the basic Daydream 3 degrees-of-freedom (3DoF) controller. This really only gives you the flexibility to point and select objects and items in menus and experiences.
Lenovo Mirage Solo’s menu will be instantly familiar to anyone who’s tried Daydream, as it utilises the same design configuration. One benefit is access to Daydream’s ecosystem which is attracting more and more developers.
So the overall headset works very nicely, the question is would you spend almost $400 USD on one. Lenovo has already said the Mirage Solo will retail for under that price, just not how far under. That puts it in the same price range as Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR, way above Samsung Gear VR, and still significantly more than Oculus Go. Whilst the latter two are wireless, they don’t feature inside-out tracking, and the two high-end units can produce better visuals they just need external processing. This puts the Mirage Solo in a grey area that was once black and white, mobile VR or tethered VR.
Have you ever walked around a city and wondered what it used to look like in the past? What your everyday citizen was wearing, buying or what the trams looked like that used the old rails now unused on the cobbled street you’re walking on today? Or perhaps you might be daydreaming about the future, and might think about what the street you’re walking on might look like in several decades from now. Timescope has made this a reality.
With various terminals dotted around French cities, children aged seven and up are able to enjoy a unique experience at a particular Timescope terminal. They look similar to binoculars that you usually find at tourist lookout points dotted around the city. However, instead of being able to see to the present cityscape around you, you’re able to travel to either the past or future. The Timescope terminal can be adjusted in height, and the user can select what content they’d like to view as well as the language on a touchscreen.
Each terminal contains a 4K screen resolution display and an embedded stereo sound system. Users can look all around them and rotate completely at 360°. The terminals are fully customisable for clients looking to use them. In other words, you can choose colours, logos or branding and incorporate a payment system if clients want to have these options. The Tiimescope terminals can be placed inside or outside and are fully weatherproof and resistant to vandalism such as graffiti. Timescope install the terminals and are also responsible for maintenance. The terminals operate 24/7 and therefore there is no need for staff at each terminal.
VRFocus spoke to Adrien Sadaka, the co-founder and CEO about Timescope. The concept was born out of frustration with historical sites that Adrien and his co-founder visited when travelling. The sites were either receiving renovations, covered in construction equipment or there were too many tourists to truly enjoy or imagine what the site could have looked like. Taking matters into their own hands, they decided to re-imagine a virtual reality (VR) booth by making a self-service system that could work in public spaces for everybody from children to the elderly, with height adjustment. At the moment the Timescope terminal has a universal display that also enables individuals with glasses to see through them. Sadaka notes that in future the Timescope terminals would be able to adjust for each individual’s DPI.
When asked about why they didn’t use augmented reality (AR), Sadaka explains that VR is powerful in terms of feeling of presence and being inside an environment. Sadaka explains that his personal background is business and his co-founder is a historian. Timescope produce most of the 3D re-constructed content for Timescope, making sure to be as historically and accurately correct as possible. Most of the 3D models are made in Maya and Unity is then used to create interactions. So, when viewers use Timescope terminals there is gaze interaction and information pops up on spots they choose to focus on.
Timescope terminals are available in 15 locations in France with various languages available on every interface (English is available on every one), and customer satisfaction is very high. With 95% of users enjoying the experience and 75% of those choosing the option “wow” when prompted on feedback. Sadaka said that it was great to have somebody in their eighties or nineties who had been present during the events that the Timescope terminal showed say, “oh I remember it was quite like this!”.
Although the Timescope terminals are only available in France, Sadaka says that there has been a lot of demand from abroad and that 2018 will be coming to more cities soon. To find out more watch the video below.
According to WHO, depression is the third leading cause of disease globally, and stress is also one of the complaints that predicts depression and generates high costs worldwide. 36% of absenteeism at work is caused by work related stress and 17% of absenteeism of 25-35 year-olds has to do with occupational burnout. In the hectic work-life, globalised and highly connected world we live in today, it seems that stress is on the rise leading to disease, depression and burnouts. At CES 2018, VRFocusgot hands-on with virtual reality (VR) videogame Stressjam, which apparently teaches users to become self aware of their personal stress levels to then make users control how they deal with stress.
Before putting on your HTC Vive and playing Stressjam you are required to put a band around your waist, close to your heart in order to measure your heart rate. The band that comes with Stressjam specifically measures your heart rate variability. It is able to detect any extra rhythm from your normal heart rate, and is therefore able to measure whether the player is stressed or relaxed. Once that’s tight and secured, the PC will start giving you real time data on your heart rate rhythm.
There’s an initial spike as data is being put into the system.
Once the data is being put in and the system recognises your heart rate rhythm, you put on the HTC Vive and take hold of the controllers. Stressjam is a colourful, island-like world where a little totem pole appears to give you guidance throughout the videogame. You will be asked for example to disable a bee’s nest, and this is when my heart rate went up. I was asked by Jozef Meerding, Chief Game Officer at Jamzone to become calm and I found myself standing there waiting to be calm. After breathing slower, I managed to calm down and disable the bees nest.
The sound of loud bees near your ear, should be enough to frighten anybody.
The little totem pole guides me to a gate where I then have to pick up orbs that change colour depending on how I’m feeling. The orb turns from blue to red, I have to change it back to blue which is my calm state. Meerding says that I have to become calm once more and I find myself just standing there trying to think of something that makes me calm. “You’re thinking too much about it and becoming stressed you see,” Meerding explains. “Your breathing helps a lot,” he adds on a side note.
I try and breath in deeply, think of the beach, the calm waves, the sun setting down over the ocean. “You’re still stressed.” he says, and I can’t really think of another place that would make me calmer. I look down at my orb which is still bright red and try again. Breathe, imagine a hammock from a palm tree, reading a book and gently swinging from side to side – it takes a while and a lot of effort, but it seems to do the trick as the orb suddenly turns blue. In panic I quickly throw it into one of the vases that hold the orb. I see another vase which is empty, another orb is needed. I turn around and have to click a button to collect an orb, “this time you have to make yourself stressed.” This wasn’t too hard, seeing as we are at CES, I know people are watching me, there’s people walking past me and there’s a cacophony of noise around me. I put the red orb in the right place and the gate opens.
With a sigh of relief I enter a cave like structure. I teleport around the cave and see that there is a lever which needs to be reached but is blocked by a gate. There is another orb which I need to put into somewhere, this time I have to become calm. I hold the orb and concentrate trying to become calm. I am aware that I am standing there, appearing to be or doing absolutely nothing in VR and that the clock is ticking for the interview, and all the other interviews that still need to be done – I take a deep breathe and try and block it out. It’s still hard, but easier than the bees nest to change my state of mind. Then it’s time to go – and i have to pull myself out of Stressjam.
When I came out of Stressjam it felt very odd, it was like I had taken a yoga or meditation experience and suddenly the loud, noisy and busy world of CES came to life. The demo was so short, but it still definitely felt like it had an immediate effect on me. It would have been nice to get more data or information on how calm or stressed I was whilst I was in Stressjam, perhaps a meter on the side that slowly changed colour depending on where I was so I could have a visual representation of where I was in my mind. It will be very interesting to see if other sensors would be able to distinguish between stress, depression, anxiety, anger as well as other subtle emotions.
I was sad to leave the experience and wish I had tried it for longer. It will be very interesting to see the results of employees who manage to use this for a long duration and see their results. The potential to help youngsters who perhaps have anger-management problems would be great, or otherwise a great substitute for those who are seeking to meditate but find it difficult without truly immersing themselves. This could be a great start.
CES 2018 is the most exciting showcase of innovative technology every year. With over 170,000 attendees and over 3,900 exhibitors, there has to be some virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) here, right? Today, VRFocus is doing a Post CES #XR event Review at the Realities Centre in London, UK bringing some of the companies together for those that couldn’t attend the main event. However if you aren’t attending the Post CES event, VRFocus has put a little recap together. From head-mounted displays (HMDs), VR platforms, VR content, 360 cameras, AR, audio, and MR to accessories to accompany new immersive technologies, you’ll find a sizable list in the run down below.
Big Announcements at Press Conferences
The HTC Vive Pro was the most exciting pre-CES announcement from HTC Vive.
Before CES even started VRFocus attended the Nvidia press event, where the company showcased its latest technology in autonomous cars. The biggest trend by far at this year’s CES, was how both VR and AR are being used to help ensure the safety of future cars, but also testing autonomous cars in environments that otherwise could not be controlled. Nvidia announced AutoSim, a VR simulator for self-driving cars as well as Drive AR, software that gives drivers information about what is around the car. All this information will be featured on the windscreen or dashboard screen. Think Google Maps on your heads-up-display (HUD).
It was HTC Vive that really stole the show that day after its initial Twitter tease of a HMD with new resolution, announcing the new HTC Vive Pro and Wireless adapter. The promise of no screen door effect and going untethered? It was a big day for VR lovers around the world. To add a cherry on top, the HTC Vive Pro will feature two microphones for noise cancellation capabilities and it’ll work with both 1.0 and 2.0 base stations.
Not exactly room-scale virtual reality, but a quick and easy access to transport users into a digital re-created world.
With the announcement of the HTC Vive Pro, Dell revealed at its press conference a partnership with HTC Vive to make it easier for consumers to get a full VR package with their desktop by allowing customers to purchase both the VR-Ready Dell Inspiron Gaming Desktop and an HTC Vive.
With no new Oculus Rift being teased or showcased, VRFocus managed to catch up with Kopin, showcasing the Elf VR headset. With a pixel density of 2,940 PPI, dual 2K resolution, 120 Hz for each eye, and a promise of smaller, lighter size and no screen door effect, Kopin is making ambitious promises for VR applications in the future. The Elf VR HMD is not yet available for consumers, but Kopin has said to keep an ear out for news just before the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2018.
Pico Interactive showcased its standalone headsets Pico Goblin and Pico Neo CV. Both headsets will be compatible with the Vive Wave platform, giving Pico customers access to 400 titles from the Vive owned store. A taster perhaps of what other standalone headsets might be such as Oculus Go and Vive Focus. The Pico Goblin is retailing for $269 USD and the Pico Neo CV can be pre-ordered for $749 on Pico’s website.
Lenovo also demonstrated its standalone device, Lenovo Mirage Solo. The headset utilises the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835, has 4GB RAM, with 110-degree field-of-view (FoV). The headset also uses Google’s WorldSense technology for inside-out tracking and comes with a wireless Daydream controller. The HMD is set to be released in Q2 this year.
Zeiss VR One Connect is now also compatible with Steam VR. Supporting both iOS and Android, the Zeiss VR One will need two wireless three degrees of freedom (3DoF) controllers that are linked via Bluetooth to enjoy full VR. The Zeiss VR One Connect is set to be available at major US retailers in the spring of 2018 at $129. No details on an international launch date are currently available.
Then there was Timescope’s terminal, which wasn’t what one would call “true VR”, in the sense that it’s not room-scale, you are not able to teleport or physically pick up objects with controllers – but still a form of new VR for public spaces. From the age of seven, members of the public are able to use the Timescope terminal to then see into the past or future of certain locations. All 3D content is as historical accurate as possible, with historians and engineers that have worked hard on making the terminals suitable for everybody – including people wearing glasses.
VR Platforms, VRContent, Training and Social VR
It might become easier to start a platform when making numerous amounts of VR content, and trying to find a solution to distribute the content to their clients and audience. This seems to be exactly the case for Jaunt, Ikonospace Art and Serious Factory.
Jaunt has created the Jaunt XR platform, which gives clients an easy way to distribute large amounts of VR content. With a media manager, player engine and intelligence suite to track information of how users interact with 360 content – its biggest benefit is that it allows all 360, VR films to be distributed across various VR HMDs.
Ikonospace is a small Dutch start-up company that use VR to create virtual art exhibitions. The platform would enable any artist around the world to build, create, digitise and finally curate their own art exhibition. CEO and Co-Founder Joris Demnard, personally comes from a family that specialise in curating and putting together art exhibitions. With simple design tools, one can create a building, decorate the interior and then place their art in it.
Serious Factory have a special toolkit that enables users to create social scenarios. Think of it as directing a social space where you can control the characters interactions, facial expressions, reactions and create the perfect social training scenarios. The platform allows for full customisation of characters from ethnicity, outfit, and interactions to the 3D environment where the interactions would take place. The final scene also has a point system, which would allow recruiters to see in which category users failed in or excelled in.
Fibrum is the largest Russian developer for VR games and applications, having dipped its toes into e-sports as well as creating the Fibrum Pro HMD. Fibrum now focuses on a platform called Desirium, a mobile VR app and platform that’s similar to Jaunt’s app, where the company can host 360-degree and VR content. You can download the app on Google Play, App Store, Google Daydream or Samsung Gear VR for a free trial period now.
Make your dreary gym workout plan fun with VR, gaming and highscores.
VRFocus got into the grind of CES with Black Box VR, a new concept that combines gaming with gym workouts. Instead of getting bored at the gym, trying to make your exercise routine more interesting by listening to your ‘Gym Workout Session 1’ playlist on Spotify or attempting to enjoy the visual images on the TV screen, you’ll soon be able to dive into a HTC Vive headset (accompanied with special trackers on each arm) and carry out various work outs through Black Box VR. Several Black Box VR gyms will be opening on the West coast of the United States, to make your average gym workout more interesting.
Anybody who’s been trying to use VR for exercise will have heard of Sprint Vector, Survios’ action-packed multiplayer VR title. Survios announced several Sprint Vector tournaments and that it would be coming to various VR arcades soon, which can also be experienced in California.
Serious VR takes things very serious indeed, specialising in VR training and performance data focusing on industrial companies such as defence, metal and automotive sectors. The plan is to change manuals and e-learning into an information schedule to implement VR for training processes. The benefits of immersion that VR offers seem be very cost-effective and more efficient than conventional training for industrial companies at the moment.
French company Light and Shadows use both VR and AR to provide solutions to major industrial enterprises, having created various devices and training applications for companies that are looking for ways to train or operate in VR. With a background in 3D environments, they showcased a training simulation that combined leap motion with the HTC Vive. Using just your hands, VRFocus managed to pick up mechanical and industrial pieces in a factory.
vTime gets an audio boost with DTS custom audio technology.
All in all, VR companies exhibiting at CES showcased various platforms that wanted to be cross-platform friendly and were looking to have users create and generate their own content in order to boost their platform. For the most part, it seems like these platforms are oriented at large industrial companies looking to train staff or employees, whether it be in factories or in social situations. With it comes a lot of responsibility to create easy-to-use toolkits, quick production work flows as well as the tools to create the best immersion. For the most part, it has been HTC Vive that’s been the winner when looking at how companies are using the HMD to help introduce VR to the masses.
360 Cameras
Kodak’s three lense camera shoots 8K and will have a waterproof case to film underwater in.
There were only two cameras that really showcased what 360 VR could offer in the future. Besides Sony and Zeiss’s previously mentioned, it was Chinese company Pisoftech and Kodak that offered 8K capabilities. Lenovo also dips into VR, but uses 180 degrees instead.
Pisoftech has a background in mass surveillance and data. They decided to venture into the realm of hardware when they saw that the products their clients were making could be more efficient if they made it. The Pilot Era camera can shoot 8K and has the capability to stitch internally. In other words, no need for an external device or software to stitch for you anymore. It’s quite big as well, 61mm x 61 mm x 159mm and weighs around 565g, however it may be worth it if you don’t want the hassle of stitching your images and if you want 180 minutes of battery life. 8K comes at a huge price though, its estimated price is at £3,000 GBP, not exactly affordable for the average consumer. The product is expected to be available on Amazon in April 2018.
What Pisoftech offer in 8K internal stitching, Kodak makes up for in size. Showcasing two brand new cameras that as of yet have no name, Kodak is also dedicated to creating 8K VR footage but in stereoscopic 3D VR. The first to be shown is the three-lens 8K PixPro 360 camera that is able to film at 30 frames per second (FPS) or 4K at 60FPS, potentially even at 120FPS. A waterproof version is said to be released around the same time to enable underwater filming. Half the size of the Pilot Era camera, this camera does not offer internal stitching but is very small and could potentially last a long time if combined with external batteries.
The second camera shoots 4K 30 FPS and can fold out and do 3D stereoscopic 180 images. It was designed specifically to please the push YouTube and Google are making into 3D on their platforms. You can also tether the cameras together and make a full 360 3D unit, if you were to have three of them. When speaking to Kevin Kunze, he mentioned that the three-lens 8K camera would be $1,000-$2,000 cheaper than other 8K cameras on the market and both cameras would hopefully be coming out in Q4 this year.
Lenovo hasn’t exactly created a 360-degree camera but instead opted for the Lenovo Mirage Camera. The device enables users to capture VR video in broad 180-degrees from its two front facing lenses, which can then be viewed on the Lenovo Mirage Solo HMD (mentioned in the HMD section).
It really depends on what you’re looking for when it comes to cameras, 8K, size, weight, price or the effort of stitching. It’s interesting to note that both Lenovo and Kodak have created VR 180 degree cameras due to the push that Google have made for this content on the YouTube platform. Lenovo’s Mirage Camera for example natively integrates VR 180 images and videos onto both YouTube and Google photos.
Augmented Reality
AR was a big buzz word when it came to autonomous cars. Nvidia showcased this with their Drive AR, but it was WayRay that really got people on the show floor queuing up to have a try.
WayRay, is a Swiss developer of holographic AR navigation system for connected cars. They showcased NAVION, the world’s first ever holographic AR navigator, and the advanced version of the AR Infotainment System for cars. Placed on a dashboard, NAVION shows directions, trip details and display real-time indicators for things like pedestrians, POIs or alerting to hazards exactly where the driver needs them to be — on the road ahead — with no headgear or eye wear required. NAVION works hands-free and responds to the simple voice commands or to unique hand gestures.
Hololampon the other hand depends on interactions with your hands. Tracking individual faces, it’s able to change and alter the perspective of holograms to appear 3D. This can include anything, from food to architectural buildings. The holograms can be interacted with as well, so you can choose to change the colour of a room for example by tapping on the hologram.
AstroReality takes 3D printed objects and then uses their AR app AstroReality to help inform users about planets. AstroReality showcased how this was done by using 3D printed planets such as Mars, Earth and the Moon for example at CES. They hinted at working on other 3D printed objects and AR for other uses cases such as Dinosaurs, Rocks and other things. They’ve been very popular with astrologists, space-enthusiasts and classrooms.
uSens has not only partnered with Pico interactive on hand-tracking for mobile VR, but has managed to find a way to bring AR to almost all Android phones with the uSensAR app. uSens also announced a partnership with Chinese technology firm Spreadtrum, and uSensAR will be bringing AR camera effects to the Spreadtrum SC9853 chipset platform which will be in “hundreds of millions” of smartphones in 2018.
AiFishowcased the Wonderlens app which remarkably manages to capture individuals from their phones or tablets to anywhere they want without the need for green screen. This is all done in real-time as well, so no need for Chroma keying or masking – it’s all done on your phone or tablet. For those who aren’t filmmakers – this is remarkable and ground breaking technology at the tips of your consumer fingers and should definitely be tried (it can be argued that Wonderlens is actually MR). AiFi also showcased Holo Messenger turning you into a hologram which then gets projected in a personal video message to friends and family. Founded by former Google and Apple engineers, AiFi is currently working on the advanced checkout-free shopping experiences in the US. Apparently they’re doing Amazon Go, but on a much larger scale in US retail stores.
XXII is a French company that has taken the profits made in VR and AR and have gone into Artificial Intelligence (A.I.). Its created various escape room VR experiences and have now gone into smart retail, where the system uses sensors to analyse customers. They use AR to show and explain how their smart retail AI can be used. Similar, but smaller in size to AiFi it looks like the combination of immersive technologies and A.I. are proving to be a great combination for selling products.
The feedback VRFocus was getting from exhibitors was that AR was the first step to bring VR into the mass market. AR was an easier and less drastic way of introducing the technology to consumers. The buzz around autonomous cars and AR definitely looks like a new exciting possibility for future entertainment – right there on your dashboard. Stepping into an autonomous car in the future, will possibly be like stepping into a theatre. The combining of AI with both VR and AR can be very interesting, but is just at the start. Booth AiFi and XXII are blurring the lines and we could potentially see various interesting outcomes from both companies if they were to apply it in new and exciting ways.
Audio
Can you imagine being in a busy and loud room where only you hear the sound and voices?
Audio is equal, if not more important when it comes to feeling immersed. You can hear a mistake a lot quicker than seeing a mistake. If audio doesn’t quite work the way it does in real life, it breaks the immersion for many people. Besides vTime’s partnership with DTS, Dirac and Noveto aim to help create more immersive environments for both VR and AR.
Some tech needs to be experienced first hand, VR is certainly one while Noveto’s audio tech is another. The company showcased what it called ‘virtual headphones’, named Sowlo, projecting sound into your ear like a pair of headphones. The system tracks the users’ ears as well, so even if you turn your head a certain degree, the sound and volume would stay the same. Noveto demonstrated this for a conference call and interior of car use cases, explaining that the days of ‘headphones’ would soon be over. The system works with no need for any accessories on the user at all, no headphones, cables or added accessories. It just needed you and your ears.
Swedish company Dirac launched Dirac VR last year, a 3D audio platform for VR. This year at CES Dirac showcased the next iteration of the Dirac VR platform. The audio rendering of a virtual environment showcase how the location and volume level of the audio adjusts as the head rotates with a VR headset. In other words, if you move your head, sounds bounce off the walls the same way they would if you were doing this in real life.
Noveto’s Sowlo has the potential to not only change the way users interact with audio for VR, but also for everyday use cases. It has the potential to really enable social VR and really alter the way we can experience audio as a whole. Dirac’s experience in audio means that the re-creation of environments will create more immersive and realistic sound environments. Both look very promising to enhance VR worlds through means of audio.
Mixed Reality
Being hands-free would enable health care providers to work more efficiently.
There was not too much MR that VRFocus saw on the show floor at CES. Luckily the company that did showcase MR are doing something that could revolutionise the future of public health care. Making it more efficient, quicker and potentially lifesaving.
Exelus, a French telemedicine solution company has created a comprehensible mobile diagnostic platform using Microsoft’s Hololens. Partnering with Holoforge, they’ve created Nomadeec. It’s focused on delivering and providing the most accurate information as efficiently and quickly as possible between healthcare providers. Designed for nursing homes and out-of-hospital care facilities, it would allow nurses, care assistants, night watchmen and doctors to communicate with one another. Nomadeec is currently being used in France and could be a glimpse of what future healthcare methods healthcare providers will be using in future.
The last part of this recap is dedicated to accessories that are made to enhance your VR experience or can be used by developers to help develop and create new VR content.
When it comes to untethered VR, or VR without wires and cables that attach you to a laptop or desktop, HTC Vive users can rejoice at the announcement of the HTC Vive Wireless Adapter. However TPCast are also providing another option. The TPCast 2.0, which according to TPCast will utilise the latest generation of ultra-low latency codecs and upgraded real-time data control protocol. This will allow the company to deliver high quality video with low latency and real-time transmission at a range of distances. TPCast’s General Manager for Americas Udi Yuhjtman confirms that regardless of which HTC Vive HMD you’re using (Vive or Vive Pro), you’re able to use the TPCast 2.0 for both.
Feeling and Touching in VR: Gloves and Haptic Feedback
French company Go Touch VR uses haptic feedback to create the illusion of touch, except you don’t need to wear a glove. So no matter what size your hands or fingers are, you will be able to feel haptic feedback. It’s probably important to note, that long fingernails do not work with the system. By wearing small devices at the user’s fingertips, the units provide pressure on the fingers, allowing for multiple haptic feedback sensations. The VRTouch Developer Kit began selling in October 2017 and has since sold to several companies that include BMW.
Dutch start-up company Sense Glove is also seeking to find a solution for haptic feedback. However instead of putting items on your fingers, you need to put on what looks like a very complicated exoskeleton of a glove. It not only provides haptic feedback though, but force feedback as well. This was demonstrated at CES by having users trying to crack an egg and various other circular objects. The idea is to help the user feel the shape and density of virtual objects.
BeBop Sensors showcased their newly announced BeBop Sensors Marcel Modular Data Gloves that allow for either 6 or 9 degrees of freedom with a sensor sub-frame latency at 120 Hz. The data glove uses smart fabrics, with sensors tracking force, location, size, weight, bend and twist.
TreeTech is a Dutch company that realised that PC gamers were moving to the couch with VR and Steam Link box. So they created the PO!NT Controller, a modular game controller that brings the keyboard and mouse shortcuts to a controller. TreeTech also create custom module controls, and can be approached by developer for custom experiences. They will start producing the PO!NT controller in Q3, and on the market in Q4 retailing at $149.
Jamzone is a Dutch company that’s created a videogame to help train users to learn and cope with stress. Stressjamuses a special waistband that measures heart rate variability to read your body’s state of mind. So in other words it knows when you are calm or stressed. Stressjam then takes you on a guided journey where you can only complete certain tasks by making yourself calm or stressed. Jamzone want to use it for B2B purposes and want large companies to use it to help prevent stress, burnout and depression in their employees by training them to control their stress levels in VR.
VRFocusstumbled upon the Yaw VR Motion Simulator which makes VR more like a Cinema 4D experience. The Yaw VR offers full 360 degrees swivel, tilts, shakes, spins and motions that make you feel like you’re in real life. You can pre-order the Yaw VR and it is compatible with the Gear VR, Oculus Rift and HTC Vive for £629 if you get an Early Bird version.
On a special note, Pico Zense, AiFi and various other companies seem to be working on depth sensing technology at CES. The ability for VR or AR headsets to recognise the location around them could change and alter the way we interact with digital objects as well as pave the way forward for mixed reality content. All in all, it’s clear that there are numerous exhibitors who are looking for new solutions to solve problems in the fields of VR and AR.
Conclusion
CES 2018 showcased untethered VR without the need to link to a PC or laptop, trying both the HTC Vive Wireless Adapter and TPCast 2.0 was very strange in the sense that the usual ‘safety net’ or umbilical cord that kept you grounded to the sense of existing reality was gone. However with Oculus’s Santa Cruz and HTC Vive’s Wireless Adapter coming to the market – TPCast may struggle to stay relevant by the end of the year. The most common trend amongst HMD manufacturers such as Kopin or Zeiss One and VR content producers such as Jaunt, Fibrum, Ikonospace or vTime was that they wanted to be cross-platform and enable user generated content. This means that users need access or full customisation to what they’re creating in VR, but also make VR a much more accessible platform. It was very refreshing to see Timescope take VR outdoors and to public places where numerous tourists, and anybody from the age of seven is able to experience a location in a new way. It just goes to show that no matter which HMD you have, it’s all about content.
With regards to 360-degree cameras the trend is looking to get higher quality resolution and bumping up the cameras to 8K. It’s then just a matter of size, prize, weight and intent. There’s a definite trend towards using 3D 180 degree cameras for YouTube and Google’s sake, as is seen in Lenovo Mirage Camera – although not many except the Lenovo Mirage Solo seem to be discussing being a platform for the 3D 180 degree video or image content that would be created with the cameras. The foldable Kodak camera seems to try and combine both stereoscopic 180-degree 3D as well as full 360-degree filming – but at what cost? Stitching is still a massive problem when it comes to creating 360 content, but is paying $3,000 worth the price for not having to stitch?
When it comes to AR, the autonomous cars were the winners. AR on the dashboard or windscreen were two of the biggest hypes at CES when Nvidia and WayRay discussed them. Not only would information become easier, but it seemed like a natural progression having all this information accessible. Within five years, it will be expected that every new vehicle should have AR integrated in it. This means that in some sense AR will have reached the general consumer population to a certain degree. uSens as well as AiFi do deserve a special mention. uSens not only showcase impressive finger tracking, but uSens AR would also bring AR to cheaper android phones – especially in China opens up the AR market to various new types of content, users and market. No longer will AR be something only iPhone users can afford, but something that is for everybody. AiFi is one to watch with regards to how they are using A.I. with AR and VR. Though Wonderlens and Holo Messenger seem like small quirky apps, the technology behind it really showcase the intelligent sensors and software created by AiFi that enable them to go into the mass smart retail market.
When it comes to audio, it’s clear that vTime is trying to address immersion through realistic audio. It’s great to see a company such as Dirac who have built custom made audio for various locations and applications intently try and create a realistic audio as possible for VR. It was however Noveto that really blew VRFocusout of the water. Not only could this revolutionise the way users interact with audio as a whole, but it would also enable various users to go into a public space without the need to wear headphones on their VR headsets to enjoy an experience. No unnecessary wires, hygiene problems or headphones that aren’t suited to your specific ear shape.
There was only one real contender that truly showcased a working platform and model that is revolutionising the healthcare industry, and that is Nomadeec. A small thing such as enabling hands-free care whilst giving real time data back to the hospital as well as being able to call a doctor regarding the patient can be life changing and perhaps even life saving for patients that need immediate care. Though Nomadeec would be implemented in large business such as care homes or out of-hospital care facilities, it’s clear to see the potential of it as Nomadeec roles out. Hopefully Nomadeec will be brought to more countries and have a quick as well as immediate positive impact on patients in need. The only barrier to entry then becomes the price as well as training of staff the use the expensive Microsoft Hololens.
And last but not least, accessories. Now it’s hard to say which glove or accessory was the best at CES. When we reached BeBop Sensors it was nice to see something that felt complete, I personally was unable to use Go Touch VR because I have long fingernails and my colleague Peter demoed the Sense Glove. However after much discussion VRFocusconcluded that when it comes to being prepared for consumers, BeBop Sensors was the closest to being ready. Go Touch VR and Sense Glove both felt like early prototypes which needed several iterations whilst BeBop Sensors was almost there, had haptics on the fingers, was small and worked for both myself and Peter who have very different hand sizes.
A personal favourite of mine was Stressjam. This was probably because of how drastic and immediate of a change was asked from me whilst at CES in my state of mind. When I came out of Stressjam, it had a similar effect to how I felt when I used Noveto’s Sowlo system. Personally, I also believe that being able to control stress is a very healthy and useful ability for a population that suffers a lot from stress, depression and other illnesses as a result of that. It would be great to see VR implemented in a healthy and fun way that is not only associated with shooting zombies, scary horror VR videogames or training simulations.
Finally one thing that was most prominent from the whole show, was the continuous showcasing of VR experiences by using HTC Vive. Almost every single experience used the headset, from Black Box VR to training simulations that combined it with magic leap. Another thing that was noticeable was the incredible number of Asian or Chinese people at CES. It’s very clear that China is a huge market to be tapped, and it will be interesting to see more Chinese VR and AR tech coming out of the continent as well as seeing how HTC Vive will fare in the Eastern market.
Still one of the biggest barriers for many existing virtual reality (VR) owners happens to be wires. Wires and cables dragging behind the user and potentially causing a mishap, since they’re often far out of view. As a result, there’s naturally a lot of demand for untethered VR that will allow users to experience, and TPCast are one of the few companies offering a comprehensive kit that allows for untethered VR experiences.
TPCast are striving to offer users the best possible wireless VR experience, which is why we’ve already seen a TPCast 2.0, which lowers latency and overall offers an even better untethered VR experience.
We also have a full TPCast set up guide ready for you to use, if you’re interested in getting started with untethered VR experiences.
Untethered VR is definitely going to be a focus for a lot of companies going forward, as demonstrated by HTC announced their HTC Vive Wireless Adapter, which we tried, and found to be promising, though a show floor wasn’t the best place to test it. TPCast have the advantage of already having a working product on the market that it is constantly improving on.
We talk to Udi Yuhjtman, TPCast’s General Manager for Americas, and he talks to us about TPCast’s vision, the product, and what’s in store for the future of the company. Yuhjtman reaffirms that PC is always going to be the place to experience the highest quality, premier VR experiences, and therefore isn’t too concerned about mobile and all in one head-mounted displays (HMDs) taking up the market share of untethered VR.
Regardless of which HTC Vive HMD you’re using, either the Vive or the Vive Pro, you’ll be able to use the TPCast wireless kit in order to get an untethered experience running. Sure to be a relief to any VR fans out there who have already put their preorders down for the new HTC Vive Pro.
Watch the full video interview and showcase below for more insight from Udi Yuhjtman, and stay on VRFocus for all of the latest VR news, technology and more.
Playing big budget virtual reality (VR) videogames on a beefy PC is a dream come true for many VR fans, but for others, it’s still just a bit too far out of the ideal price range. Zeiss VR have seized this opportunity, and with their new Zeiss VR One Connect head-mounted display (HMD), they intend to bring the wealth of content Steam VR has to offer to those without expensive HMDs, and instead will allow users to experience everything with just the HMD shell and your mobile phone. The device was displayed at CES 2018, Las Vegas, and the company is excited to launch the product soon.
Nina got the low down on the new HMD directly from Zeiss Team Leader Dave Hodgson, and in the interview video below he reveals to us Zeiss VR’s logic behind their new product and their future plans.
After the release of the Zeiss VR One Plus the company quickly learned that although people love the HMD, they needed more and more content to be able to view, use and experience. That’s where the new Zeiss VR One Connect comes in, a very similar product that will essentially become a Steam VR compatible VR HMD. It’ll come with two VR controllers, which will give users access to hundreds of Steam VR videogames and experiences, completely solving the issue of not enough content.
By Hodgson’s own admission, the experience isn’t quite up to the standard of other HMDs on the market, such as the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, but user impressions are incredibly favourable, with higher latency than the other HMDs, but overall a much better performance than many would expect from a mobile phone acting as a display.
The best part is that users of both Android and iOS devices will be able to use the Zeiss VR One Connect, going back as far as the iPhone 6. It’s a great piece of kit which offers an interesting entry point to VR for budget conscious consumers.
You can see the full interview and Nina trying out the device in the video below, for all of the latest information on Zeiss VR, make sure to keep reading VRFocus.
If there’s one accessory VRFocus would love to see properly working and available on the consumer market it’s a data glove for virtual reality (VR). The idea has existed in various forms over the years, with enterprise models available but nothing available to buy for the average Joe. It’s a device that’s a secondary symbol of what VR is about – after the headset – having appeared in numerous films as the defacto interface for interacting with virtual worlds. At every tech event there’s usually some sort of glove available – remember the CaptoGlove, ManusVR or the rather chunky VRgluv – and CES 2018 was no different, with BeBop Sensors showcasing the Forte Wireless Data Glove.
Bebop Sensors isn’t in the habit of making hardware of this ilk, as the name implies the company specialises in making sensors and more importantly, bend sensors like the ones found in the glove. What Bebop Sensors has done is create a prototype glove that showcases its bend sensors as without it the sensors just look a bit rubbish and can’t actually do much.
Fitted into the glove and bam, there’s some interactive life to be hand. Putting the glove on takes seconds, a strap goes around the wrist and each finger has a nice little pocket to go in. From the images the glove may not look that amazing – it is a prototype after all – but it doesn’t have to, all it needs to do is work, and that it does very well. Those little pockets for your fingers to go in aren’t just there to keep them warm and snug, they have haptics built-in to provide sensory feedback.
The first part of the demo involves strumming a guitar, showcasing the bend sensors flexibility and accuracy, with each finger being tracked to a very precise degree. Thus allowing VRFocus to create a less than tuneful noise. Then on-screen there was a brick wall which could be scratched with the finger tips, giving a rough sensation from the haptics. Lastly Bebop Sensors wisely assumed that most people wearing a VR glove will want to shoot something so a gun appeared on screen to fire off a few rounds. Even in a busy, wireless hostile environment like CES the gloves performed admirably, with the trigger finger action looking almost one-to-one – Bebop claims a 6ms response time.
Also on show but slightly off topic, there was a couple of touch pads on display – one table-based one floor-based – which had some more sensors built-in. These sensors could detect weight and pressure, so as you’ll see in the video below, when stepped on the software would detect the exact point with the most pressure.
In fact, Bebop Sensors demo of its Forte Wireless Data Glove was that good it’s a shame to know it’ll never come to market. With a battery life that lasts for days, it would’ve been great to test the gloves on a title that’s more interactive – Robo Recall would be top of the list – however it wasn’t meant to be. The company will be working with glove manufacturers to implement its bend sensors into their products, so one day you might be able to shoot some zombies using its tech, just not yet.
We always love getting to try out some new technology and learning more from the best and brightest in the business, and that’s exactly what Nina got a chance to do when she spoke to Christophe Dissaux, Executive Vice President of 3dRudder, a company that wants to revolutionise the way we move in virtual reality (VR) videogames and software.
We first saw 3dRudder’s new Blackhawk controller at CES 2018, Las Vegas, where they received a CES 2018 Innovation Award; the third year in a row they’ve grabbed the achievement. At the time 3dRudder CEO Stanislas Chesnais said; “The new design, including leds and foot straps, coupled with the Active Dead zone functionality represents a step forward in the VR foot motion controller technology that we started developing 4 years ago and a new standard for all VR accessories.”
In the interview video below Nina speaks to Christophe in person, where he holds the new Blackhawk controller aloft so we can get a good look at the new, more ergonomic design and the flashy LEDs they’ve attached to the device.
3dRudder created the very first foot-powered controller that was specifically designed for use in VR software such as videogames. He tells us that the Blackhawk is the second generation of the controller, and is intended to help players move more intuitively in VR – after all, what motion could feel more natural to move than moving your legs?
You can use the Blackhawk controller with Steam VR games and is compatible with a variety of software for both HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, but Christophe makes a point of saying that they are looking into having console compatible versions of the controller available by Q3 of this year. He says nothing is confirmed, but clearly the company has big ambitions.
For the full interview just watch the embedded video below where you can see Nina chatting with Christophe and getting her own chance to strap into foot powered locomotion in VR. We’ll have all of the latest news on 3dRudder and their controllers as it happens, so for all of the latest news, keep checking back with VRFocus.
Anyone that’s tried to lose weight will happily tell you that it’s not as easy they’d like. Diets are stressful, exercise routines are tiring, and the benefits take an incredibly long time to actually show themselves. But tracking your progress with videogame-like statistics using devices like FitBit have, for some people, really helped the process. Now you can lose weight in virtual reality (VR) thanks to Black Box VR, and Nina’s spoken to Jim Bradbury, Black Box VR’s General Manager, to find out if this is the future of weight loss.
The idea of Black Box VR is convincing the user that instead of going to gym or doing a tedious work out, they are in fact playing a videogame, enjoying themselves, and working to improve high scores. You can compete against friends and family with high scores and, of course, burn even more calories.
Black Box VR uses unique trackers and arm shields that are necessary because working out in VR is difficult with controllers in your hands. Black Box VR isn’t meant for home use sadly, but instead should pop up in boutique Black Box gyms, but may be licensed to other gyms and manufacturers in time. You’ll be pulling against weights with variable forces being pushed back against you, and the videogame is designed to make you rest and work more frenetically at the perfect moments to give you a vigorous work out.
You can see everything you need to in Nina’s interview with Jim Bradbury below. We’ll have everything you need to know on Black Box VR and working out in VR right here on VRFocus, so if you need a futuristic way to lose weight, don’t look any further.
With various terminals dotted around French cities, children aged seven and up are able to enjoy a unique experience at a particular Timescope terminal. They look similar to binoculars that you usually find at tourist lookout points dotted around the city. However, instead of being able to see to the present cityscape around you, you’re able to travel to either the past or future. The Timescope terminal can be adjusted in height, and the user can select what content they’d like to view as well as the language on a touchscreen.
When asked about why they didn’t use augmented reality (AR), Sadaka explains that VR is powerful in terms of feeling of presence and being inside an environment. Sadaka explains that his personal background is business and his co-founder is a historian. Timescope produce most of the 3D re-constructed content for Timescope, making sure to be as historically and accurately correct as possible. Most of the 3D models are made in Maya and Unity is then used to create interactions. So, when viewers use Timescope terminals there is gaze interaction and information pops up on spots they choose to focus on.
