Applications of Virtual Reality

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Virtual reality is a virtual environment that is created to try to simulate reality. It is supposed to make the person feel like they are in a three-dimensional space. Several companies are currently designing systems to simulate this fully immersive environment, along with interface devices to make the simulation even more realistic. This technology can be applied to aid in many fields and research. One of those systems is the head-mounted display. The HMD come is many shapes and sizes but is usually some sort of headgear usually like a large helmet that covers your entire head blocking out anything from your surroundings. The helmet contains two small screens, one for each eye, which display slightly different images based on what that eye would be seeing in reality. On top of the helmet is a device that tracks your head’s movements. This device signals your head’s movements relative to a stationary tracking device. The device picks up your head’s movements and relays them to the computer. The computer then updates the images in your helmet to reflect your new orientation. In addition to this visual simulation, this system also uses sound to create the feeling of three-dimensionality. Headphones let in stereophonic sound or 3D sounds. These sounds are not only of things near you but also of everything surrounding you in various locations and at various distances. A type of head-mounted display that is currently being deverloped is the Oculus Rift. The Oculus Rift is an attempt to create a more effective device that could also be inexpensive for gamers. It would feature improved head tracking, positional tracking, 1080p resolution, and it would be wireless. Another system that is relatively similar to the head mounted device is t... ... middle of paper ... ... the damage to healthy tissue while maximizing damage to the cancer cells. In addition there is a special dataglove under development whos goal is to allow doctors to feel the tumors size, texture, and pressure in patients for many miles away. Although advances have already been made in vision and sound possible in virtual reality, eventually hopefully virtual reality will be able to envelop al the senses including taste, smell, and touch. IN addition the future will bring images that are much sharper, movements that are tracked more rapidly and realistically, all while being lighter, smaller, cheaper and more portable. Works Cited http://archive.ncsa.illinois.edu/Cyberia/VETopLevels/VR.Tech.html http://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality-military/combat-training.html http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-12-18-oculus-rift-and-the-virtual-reality-revolution

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