Virtual reality technologies are advancing in more and more areas. Simulated environments, along with technologies such as virtual reality glasses, offer virtually unlimited possibilities. However, virtual reality systems are not used much in everyday life. “Nowadays, virtual reality is mainly used for content consumption. Especially in productive activities, such as classic office work, the technologies themselves have yet to be proven,” says Christian Holz, professor at the Institute for Intelligent Interactive Systems at ETH in Zurich.
What is hindering this development? Christian Holz sees the central problem in the interaction between people and technology. Most VR applications today are run with either handheld or handheld consoles in the air, where their position is recorded by the camera. Most of the time, the users are also on the service. “If you always have to keep your arms raised, it gets tired quickly,” says Halls.
For the team of researchers led by Christian Holz, it is clear then that passive surfaces are still important for a productive use of virtual reality. It can be the classic tabletop, but also a wall or your body. In order to use this optimally, they have developed a sensor principle called “TapID”, which they will present at the IEEE VR conference at the end of March.
Virtual reality at your fingertips
The virtual piano is particularly well suited to demonstrate the benefits of TapID, says Halls: “Here, not only spatial accuracy, but also timing is essential. The time when the keys are touched must be recorded as accurately as possible. This is accomplished through the sensors on the wrist. Much better and more accurate than the camera. “
Another point Christian Holz sees is what’s called mobile virtual reality: “Our sensors are so portable that we can use virtual reality on the go in the future. With TapID, you can run apps on your hands or on your thighs – anywhere, anytime.” . Computer science professor Holz sees the future of virtual reality in the ability to work together regardless of physical situation – not limited to devices, but as if one were in the same room. Christian Holz concludes that “TapID can be an important step in this direction” and will continue the search with his team led by Manuel Mayer, Paul Streley and Andreas Fender. More news about the project can be found here.
