Last week I shredded a Liquid Image MRG2.2. This week we go for the classic Virtual Research VR-4 stereoscopic head mounted display. There’s a lot to love about the VR-4: wide field of view optics, adjustable interpupilary distance, coated aspheric lenses, excellent fit to different heads, and provision for eyeglasses. The optics are timeless; used again in the V6, V8, and 15 years later in today’s Virtual Research VR-1280.
Anyone else see the resemblance between this 18 year old Lawnmower Man copulating couple and their doppelgangers in Avatar?
I’ve gotten a ton of emails hurled at me about the Liquid Image MRG2.2 VR helmet. The gist of most of them is: “Hey, I love the wide field of view and how rugged the MRG2.2 is, but I wish I could upgrade the LCD resolution, and, is there a way to make this HMD stereoscopic?”
This looks like the closest thing yet to a real-life holodeck! The Virtusphere is (as the name suggests) a large hollow sphere which sits on a set of computer monitored wheels. This allows the sphere to rotate a complete 360º whilst still allowing the computer to track the movments. For more information please visit www.hack247.co.uk
It’s 1985 and there’s already a nice high resolution, wide field of view VR helmet (from VPL Research), glove system, and 6 DOF tracking of both helmet and glove, thanks to Scott Fisher and NASA Ames. In particular, check out the LEEP wide FOV optics (from LEEP inventor Eric Howlett’s predecessor company Pop Optix.) These lenses became the optical basis for the Virtual Research Flight Helmet and several of the subsequent generation of VPL HMDs. 25 years later, and these lenses are still pretty much the reference standard for wide FOV. Presumably NASA funding covered the cost of the precision molds for the huge plastic lens elements.
This totally excellent demo of the Victormaxx Stuntmaster helmet speaks for itself. Lyme disease aside, the Stuntmaster’s wretched optical qualities seem overly cruel to this beast.
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