Virtual reality

Virtual reality, or VR, is the latest buzzword in the wonderful world of technology. Don't be fooled into thinking it is a new technology though, it isn't, but that's not to say it isn't something to get excited about.
For those who are wondering what on earth VR is and why you should be getting your knickers or pants in a twist over it, you've come to the right place.
We are about to tell you what virtual reality is, how it works and what devices there are currently out there using this wonderful technology that you should make it your business to know about.
What is virtual reality (VR)?
First things first, you're going to need to know what VR actually is. The clue is in the name - it's the experience of a world that doesn't actually exist. We aren't talking about getting yourself lost in a book or day dreaming about a photo or painting however, even if these technically are also experiencing some sort of virtual reality.
The virtual reality we are talking about is one created by computers that allows you to experience and interact with a 3D world that isn't real by putting on a head-mounted display and some form of input tracking. The display will typically be split between your eyes, creating a stereoscopic 3D effect with stereo sound, and together with the technology and the input tracking, it will create an immersive, believable experience, allowing you to explore the virtual world being generated by the computer.

VR will make you feel like you are there mentally and physically. You turn your head and the world turns with you so the illusion created by whatever world you are in is never lost.
Watch a film in the cinema and the split-second fear you might feel when a devastating earthquake happens on screen will very quickly disappear if you turn your head to see the person next to you munching away on their popcorn. Films and books take you to different fictional worlds, but they are not world's you change based on your actions.
There are various kinds of virtual reality from fully immersive and non-immersive to collaborative and web-based. The VR everyone is excited about is the fully-immersive variation because this is the explorable and interactive 3D computer-created world that can take you to places reality might not allow for, be that walking on Mars or driving around the mountains in a sportscar.
Where did virtual reality come from?
VR as we know it today has been kicking around for decades. To give you an idea, the first head-mounted display wasn't Oculus, even though this is the device that arguably drove the VR renaissance, it was a device called Headsight that was created in the 1960s. But there were non-digital predecessors, all the way from 360 degree paintings that had the same aim: to take your experience to another place. VR is the wise guy in tech and not just because it is old.
The technology has been used for all sorts of things over its 200 years from science and medicine to training pilots and helping architects present their latest skyscraper, allowing people to experience walking through it before a brick has been laid.
Yes, the current focus might be largely on gaming, but that's not all that VR is good for. VR has plenty of applications and this is only likely to expand as the technology develops further.
Audi recently announced it would be putting VR in some of its brand stores for example, allowing customers to experience any of its 50-something models in the colours they want, the extras they might add and in the surroundings they might drive in. Go ahead, take an A1 to the moon to visit the John Lewis advert's man and his balloons.
How does virtual reality work?
The virtual reality we have been referring to in this feature typically requires some form of head-mounted display, a computer, smartphone or console that creates the 3D world and some form of input tracking, which could be hand tracking, voice or head.
There are currently a number of head-mounted displays all using this set-up including Oculus, which is the system Facebook bought in a deal worth $2 billion in 2014, HTC Vive, Sony PlayStation VR, Google Cardboard and Samsung Gear VR, and others.
As we mentioned, some of the VR devices contain a display, splitting the feed for each eye. In these cases, a cable (usually HDMI) will transfer the video from your PC or console to the screen(s) in front of your eyes. For the likes of Google Cardboard and Samsung's Gear VR and some of the more affordable options, a smartphone is slotted into the headset and used as the display with the content already loaded on.

That's only part of the story though as there is plenty more that goes into creating the fully immersive experience many companies in this field are aiming for. For example, there are lenses for reshaping images into a stereoscopic 3D image, while 100 or 110-degree field of views are on board to ensure whichever way you look, the world created follows you. A high frame rate (minimum of 60fps) is also important to ensure the world reacts as it would in reality in order for the illusion to remain intact.
In terms of input tracking, there are several variations, all of which contribute to creating this fully-immersive world, whether that's individually or in a combination of forms. Different devices use different components in order to achieve this, ranging from sensors and LEDs to wireless controllers.
For example, Sony PlayStation VR offers 360-degree head tracking by monitoring signals from the nine LED lights around the headset with a PS4 camera. When it comes to head tracking, low latency is a must to ensure there is minimal lag between you turning your head and the world you're experiencing responding. Some devices are better at this than others, with Oculus being one of the better ones offering only a 30-millisecond lag.
Motion tracking has been seen in a variety of forms from smart gloves to the likes of Oculus Touch, Valve's Lighthouse and HTC's controllers for its Vive headset. Each of these things work slightly differently but the idea is to ensure you feel as though you are using your hands during your experience. We won't go into the ins and outs, but a plethora of sensors are involved, as well as lasers emitted from base stations in some cases, all of which helps with the detection the precise position of your head and hands.
In terms of the most popular head-mounted displays that are currently being talked about, that's pretty much all that's involved. But there is one more thing that could add to the VR experience in the future and that's eye tracking. The benefit of eye tracking would be to deliver a more realistic depth of field, resulting in a more true-to-reality experience. For example, the crowd-funded FOVE headset uses an infrared sensor to work out where your eyes are looking in the VR world to then recreate what your eyes would see if in reality, by focusing the foreground or background accordingly.

Why is everyone talking about VR?

VR is at an exciting time in 2016. Many of the devices that have been in development over the last few years are almost at launch point, which means in the next few months, this virtual reality experience we have been banging on about is something you'll be able to experience yourself. Some have been available for some time, but as the VR hype builds, so too do those experiences.

There are plenty of options coming, but the main ones you'll hear about are Sony PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Google Cardboard and Samsung Gear VR. You can find all our first experiences, second experiences and in some cases even third experiences with these as they have developed in our Virtual Reality hub.

1.Go and Enjoy