Haptic Technology in Virtual Environment

The Immersive Theater Demonstrator from the Belgian firm De Pinxi provides a provocative, enlightening virtual experience to the public with advanced haptic technology.

When developing the new virtual reality technology for “edutainment” purposes, engineers in the IST-sponsored project MUVII paid careful attention to the Man-Machine Interface (MMI) aspect.

De Pinxi, an MUVII partner, introduced an innovative interface by which a user can interact with the virtual environment using their sense of touch. Until now, such haptic-enabled interfaces were tested in research labs only. The result is improved feedback and an enhanced user experience.

During demonstration trials the public domain got a chance to try out this new technology. An Immersive Theatre Demonstrator (ITD) was specifically created, that allowed people to visit a virtual museum exhibiting Russia’s archaeological past. Using the haptic-enabled interface, visitors were able to manipulate tools on archaeological digs, unearthing relics for further examination. Learning was possible for both single and multi-user applications.

With the success of the demonstration trials, De Pinxi hopes to mature the technology into a full-scale product. The ITD and special haptic-enabled interface will be presented at a number of technology conventions and other events. Potential application areas include the classroom, museums and training centers among others.

Source: CORDIS - Community Research & Development Information Service, Europe