University of British Columbia (UBC) and University of Saskatchewan researchers pooled their expertise to create a ball-shaped virtual reality (VR) display. While most spherical VR displays circulating the market show a complete picture from a single view, the new design harnesses graphics rendering and calibration techniques to create a distortion-free 3D image when seen from multiple angles.
“When you look at our globe, the 3D illusion is rich and correct from any angle,” says Sidney Fels, lead researcher and UBC electrical and computer engineering professor. “This allows two users to use the display to do some sort of collaborative task or enjoy a multiplayer game, while being in the same space. It’s one of the very first spherical VR systems with this capability.”
The system, called “Crystal,” utilizes a 24-in. spherical display. The display surface was custom-made in Ottawa, while other components were purchased off-the-shelf, including calibration and touch sensing, a camera, and four high-speed projectors.
The Crystal ball currently supports up to two users, but the research team plans to up that number to four. Potential applications include VR games, VR-assisted learning, and virtual surgery.
“Imagine a remote user joining a meeting of local users. At either location you can have a Crystal globe, which is great for seeing people’s heads and faces in 3D,” says Ian Stavness, computer science professor at the University of Saskatchewan, and member of the research team. “Or you can have a team of industrial designers in a room, perfecting a design with the help of VR and motion tracking technology.”
Fels adds, “We’re not saying that spherical VR will replace flat screens or headsets, but we think it can be a good option for VR activities where you still want to see and talk to other people—be it at home or in the office, for work, or play.”
The article, “Design and implementation of a multi-person fish-tank virtual reality display,” which outlines the research, was published in VRST ’18 Proceedings of the 24th ACM Symposium on Virtual Reality Software and Technology Article No. 5.
