There have been many industries heavily affected by the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdowns many governments have had to enforce. Location-based entertainment (LBE) venues fall into this list and when these measures ease virtual reality (VR) centres will have to employ stringent practices to ensure public safety. One of the biggest companies focused on this space is Hologate which has recently developed new Hygiene and Safety Standards in partnership with Cleanbox.
Publishing the new standards on its website, Hologate provides instructions for standard and advanced cleaning methods so that venues can create customer peace of mind.
These cover all the various aspects of Hologate’s hardware; headsets, controller, haptic vests and Blitz. In the standard method (imaged below) staff can follow a three-step process, checking devices for any wear and tear before thoroughly cleaning down with sanitising wipes and then drying. This may all be common sense when dealing with hardware which people touch and put on their faces but how often do arcade machines get wiped down?
The second more advanced step is the Cleanbox UVC light cleaning solution. Making eco-friendly, medical grade, Ultraviolet-C cleaning equipment, Cleanbox now offers Hologate owners a second level of protection to decontaminate VR headsets.
Available in two and four-player package options retailing for $3,600 USD and $7,200 respectively. Users simply place the headset inside the Cleanbox and wait 60 seconds, with the UVC process 99.99% effective in destroying viruses, bacteria, and fungi.
Hologate has over 300 locations in 35 countries across the globe, providing custom, small footprint multiplayer solutions. The platform offers exclusive experiences including Das Boot: VR Escape, The Angry Birds Movie 2 Prank Attack VR, Tower Tag and World of Tanks VR.
It’s these sort of steps all LBE VR locations need to employ as they look to reopen in the coming months. How many survive once lockdown measures are rolled back is another matter. For further Hologate updates, keep reading VRFocus.
