What is Virtual Reality?

Table of Contents

What is Virtual Reality?

A 3D simulated environment that is created with the help of computer technologies is called Virtual reality and can be explored in 360 degrees. It is an artificial environment VR headphones give an immersive experience by giving a feeling of being there. You feel like you are in that virtual environment but you are not in actuality. In that sense, Headphones and sensors manage your movement in that environment. Usually, by wearing a headphone you can explore such things which in reality you can’t.

Augmented reality and VR

AR and VR are computer-generated based concepts or terms. While AR is a blend of digital and physical elements to create an artificial environment. The basic need of this article is to know about VR. If you are interested in AR then for this link “what is AR ?”

History

To get to know about VR let’s first dig into its history. From where VR term was generated and how it come into use.

Firstly, in 1950 VR was invented after that it faced a lot of ups and downs.” The sword of Damocles “ first VR head-mounted display system was invented in 1986 by computer scientist Ivan Sutherland and his student Bob Sproull. After 10 years later VR was used in the US military and NASA for training and simulation. In the early 1980s, the mass production of VR was started. But, the term “virtual reality” was popularized by Jaron Lanier in the 1980s. So, there are some eras or divisions of periods in which the VR field was progressive.

Sensorama, considered to be one of the earliest VR systems, was invented in 1956.

The first company to develop and sell VR products was founded by Jaron Lanier in 1984.

2007-Google introduced street view which provides a panoramic view of locations.

2014 – Sony announced the launch of Project Morpheus, a VR headset for its PS4 console.

2015-Samsung launched the Gear VR headset.

2016- Sony’s introduced PlayStation VR (PSVR).

2017,-Microsoft launched the Xbox one X.

2018- Facebook released its untethered Oculus Go headset.

Working of VR

Combination of Hardware and Software to create an immersive experience that fools your eye and brain. While Hardware manages your sensory simulation like sound, smell, and touches through controllers, headphones, hand trackers, and 3D cameras. And software creates the virtual environment.

To experience VR, you have to wear a VR headset. Which is responsible for the whole process. Controllers help you to navigate or control the environment smoothly.

Types

Three types of VR :

Non-Immersive Virtual Reality
Semi-Immersive Virtual Reality
Fully Immersive Virtual Reality

To get details of these types go for the topic “Types of VR”.

Devices

There is much Hardware that is used in VR. Such as a VR headset, 3D mouse, 3D camera, optical tracker, wired gloves, omnidirectional treadmills, and smelling devices.

VR headset: It is a head-mounted device. It contains a display screen. That consists of cameras or eye and head tracking sensors.

It has also subtypes of headsets.

3D mouse: It is a pointing device that is used to control movement in 3D spaces.

Optical tracker: It is used to monitor users’ movement and position. Therefore, one or multiple fixed video cameras.

Wired gloves: This also called cyber gloves or data gloves. However, a motion tracker is used to capture the movement of gloves. The glove software interprets the motion.

Omnidirectional treadmills: This device gives the ability to users to move in any direction physically. Smelling devices: It is a newer device in VR. For instance, there is a Vaqso company in Tokyo, that offers headset attachments that emit an odor to convey the size and shape of the candy.

Purpose and Uses

In this paragraph, I will talk about the purposes and uses of Virtual reality. Artists and painters always try to give their paintings a reality. In all the fiction and stories we try to visualize that scene in our mind. The best example of fantasy is Disney land where we have different characters and locations which do not exist in reality. But we can see them with the help of VR technology. The are many purposes of VR, some of them are

Training
Gaming
Architecture

Fashion
Education
Manufacturing

Entertainment
Social Media
Real State

Training:

The main purpose of VR was training by giving an environment where the trainee can get real experience. Above all, that idea was used in US military training and NASA training. The air force uses VR to train its pilots. For instance, they provided different scenarios to the users and ask them to handle them.

Gaming

Now almost gaming is a crazy thing for everyone. Everyone who is involved in any kind of gaming. With the help of VR, participants can experience and influence the gaming environment. Some games use VR concepts in their gaming. Like Arizona sunshine, Batman, half-life, and many more.

Architecture:

It’s like a half-cooked dish as a demo before being cooked well and served. Same as for building, VR gives an insight look at the building before construction. To understand it better and the structure of the model.

Fashion

This is an amazing thing in fashion. By using VR many brands have increased their audience . customers can try different outfits without wearing them it helps them to choose the best one. For example, Dior’s VR store.

Education

With the help of VR, students can understand everything and concepts very well. For example, they can understand complex diagrams and structures in Biology and chemistry to understand fully. Like Charlton Park Academy in London use VR to address their student’s problems.

Manufacturing

In car and automobile manufacturing, experts use VR to understand the model and the possibility of structure. In other words, gives a proper view of the product before manufacturing.

Entertainment

Virtual reality environments let common people engage with exhibitions, concerts, museums, and gallery, etc. It allows 3D images for the view which give an immersive experience to people.

In that sense meetings and get-togethers are very important. Friends and clients of a company sitting around the globe can conduct a meeting without being there .other than this Brands also use VR to minimize the gap between their customers and users.

Its best example is VRchat.

Real State

Developers can view and simulate life in a new home and commercial spaces. Other than this, a person can visualize his room or home with another person before his joining.

Other than these uses and purposes there are many more which are creating crazy and mind-blowing changes.

Future

This is a new turn and future of computing technology. If you talk about gaming then it is already making great changes in traditional gaming. By using VR the teaching methods and the approach of students are better now.

In short, in the future, we see VR in almost every field of life.

In my final words, I will say that it’s a good thing to visualize everything before its physical existence.

Training in a virtual environment is not the same as incidents that happen in reality. By using VR people are becoming addicted to technology which also has many side effects on human health.