Telepresence

Virtual reality is a computerized simulation of anything that can be described by our senses. It can be our real or fantasy world or scenario which is non-existent in reality. In virtual reality a user can interact with  objects or living things that are simulated in real time. More sophisticated virtual reality systems place sensors on the user’s body to

sense movements that are then interpreted by the system as movements in the simulated world; binocular goggles are sometimes used to simulate the appearance of objects in three dimensions.”

Virtual Reality or VR as it is also known is one of the hottest sciences that involve computer programmers today. The ability to create programs that provide a virtual environment adds excitement to the application and opens up new avenues and scenarios to the end result of the application.

While there was some research in the 1960’s that lightly touched on virtual reality, it wasn’t until the 1970’s when US government built its first flight simulator. Topographical data from certain areas was loaded into a rather large computer system and it allowed personnel to mock air flights to and from various locations. NASA also caught wind of this technology and began to use it as part of preflight space travels.

The general public generally caught wind of virtual reality when it was popularized by the media with movies such as The Lawnmower Man, Brainstorm and others. One may also remember the holodeck that was quite often used in the popular series “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” Howard Rheingold also wrote a non-fiction book called “Virtual Reality” which popularized the idea of this science. Others have written about this topic which provided more graphic and intellectual information on the topic of virtual reality.

In the mid 90’s, a game called Doom popularized virtual reality technology by creating certain rooms, characters and characteristics. It also created certain levels, although somewhat mocking each other in a certain way, allowed players to achieve success and move onto the next level. The technology of this game was sold to other companies where you began to see other games built in the same genre.

Today, the US military uses virtual reality to train it soldiers. Lately, it has been used to create certain scenarios in Iraq that allow the soldiers to actually encounter and then react to condition that may come across in the battlefield. This allows for them to be better prepared when they actually are sent into battlefield conditions.

It is somewhat hard to predict what future lies in the area of virtual reality. Currently several difference senses are approached in the field. Most simulators and games have gained access to addressing senses such as sight and sound. The use of Surround Sound technology can actually address the actual movements of a character giving it realistic movement.

One of the senses that is currently being studied is that of smell. The user may actually encounter the actual smells of the area however this could prove to be costly. Japan’s NTT Communications, of Tokyo, has just finished testing an Internet-connected odor-delivery system to be used by retailers and restaurants to attract customers. Taste is also a sense that could be address but we see no studies involved in this area.