Virtual Reality. The phrase is thrown around the world of tech and every now and then makes mainstream media and news, but what is virtual reality? VR, for short, is the art of producing a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional environment that can be interacted with in a seemingly realistic way. The idea at its core is to transcend the human experience with the use of technology. Virtual Reality allows people to go, see, or experience places that they never could in real life. VR has been a concept for many years, decades now, but it hasn’t been until the past couple years where VR has been developed to an exceptional level and be able for the general public to use. It is also special because it is so new. There are so many possible applications of VR, all of which can change the world and how we live for the better. For this project, I will be covering the history of VR, and how it is used today.
History:
Below is a timeline about the history of VR. The timeline covers all influential events in the creation of VR. The timeline goes more into breadth and then the paragraphs underneath the timeline go into more depth on influential moments.
The start of virtual reality can be traced all the way back to the 1800’s. As tech works, everything starts out as an outlandish idea and then through time these spectacles become reality. In 1838 Sir Charles Wheatstone was the first person to describe stereopsis. This is the sensation that the brain can combine two photographs, with each eye looking at a singular one, into a three dimensional experience. This is kind of the scientific theory that anchors the ability for virtual reality to exist. Below is a picture of the two photograph – two eye set up he talks about. When looking through goggles, the user should feel like they are looking at the Eiffel tower.
Following the discovery of stereopsis, the next major movement for VR came in 1956 when a cinematographer by the name of Morton Heilig created Sensorama. It was essentially the world’s first virtual reality set up. It attempted to show films while incorporating all aspects of real life like, audio, vibrations, smell, and other effects. He believed that it was the cinema of the future. I think to an extent he was right. I wouldn’t say we have gotten to the point of fully vr cinema but one can make an argument that IMAX movies, which are very popular, aspire to create the same sensations that Heilig strived for. Here is a picture of his The Sensorama.
Following the Sensorama, in 1968 the scientist Ivan Sutherland created the first virtual reality HMD, head mounted display. He named it The Sword of Damocles. It was basically a massive computer hooked up to two lenses in which you could see computer generated images through the lenses. This is really the first ever VR headset and sets a precedent for most of the VR advancements to come.
In 1985, Jaron Lanier and Thomas Zimmerman founded VPL Research. This is the first company that is known to sell VR equipment. I would say it is at the point where VR evolves from simply an idea to a piece of tech that can realistically become revolutionary. They made the term Virtual Reality famous.
As VR started to get more and more popular it started gaining a presence in military usage, specifically with the Air Force and NASA. In 1987 the British Airforce developed their own virtual cockpit. Then in the following years NASA started getting involved with VR. They gave a contract to a man named Scott Foster who created a VR training simulator for astronauts. A NASA scientist also created a VR system to drive the Mars rovers from earth. The system was called “Computer Simulated Teleoperation”
From 2000 to 2010 improvement in VR was a little stagnant but then in 2012 a kickstarter was created for the Oculus Rift. It raised 2.4 million dollars. In 2014 Facebook bought the company and VR rapidly gained momentum after this purchase as so many people follow Facebook. Facebook’s purchase led to a chain effect of big companies making big moves with VR. Sony started working on a VR headset with their PS4. Google created the Cardboard which allows the general public to have virtual reality at their fingertips. Samsung created their own VR headset which is compatible with its phones. After 2014 VR improvements have skyrocketed and so many more players are in the game now. If I talked about all of them my project would turn into a novel, the Facebook purchase was really the catalyst necessary to propel VR into a reality.
Application:
Virtual reality was first created with the intention of entertainment but it has taken many forms, especially in more recent years. One application that I have found interesting through my research is treating post traumatic stress disorder. I am sure that the original creators of VR did not have this in mind but that is the beauty of technology. A simple piece of tech can be advanced by others to solve issues the original creator did not see. The most common use of VR in treating PTSD is the act of desensitization. An already established therapy of PTSD is to show vets images and videos of war in order for them to normalize the thoughts of war. With VR, doctors can fully immerse their patient in whatever situation they deem necessary for their treatment. VR is not even comparable to images and videos in terms of applying realism and convincing the patient that they are in that certain position. The second application of VR that I find incredibly interesting is its role in education. VR helps in experiential learning and allowing students to be places where they could never actually go. Whether this means another country, or the inside of a cell, VR transcends the ability to learn. Being able to visualize certain things rather than just reading about them in books allows students to go in depth in certain subjects and receive a better understanding of the topic.
Below is an interview with the head of the IQ Center for Tech here at W and L, David Pfaff. We discuss virtual reality and how it affects life at W and L.
Here is the interview transcript: transcript
Works Cited:
Barnard, Dom. “History of VR – Timeline of Events and Tech Development.” VirtualSpeech, VirtualSpeech, 6 Aug. 2019, v virtualspeech.com/blog/history-of-vr.
Crawford-Holland, Sasha. “Virtual Healing: Militarizing the Psyche in Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy.” Television & New Media, vol. 20, no. 1, Jan. 2019, pp. 56–71. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1177/1527476417741199.
Klemm, E.Barbara, and Gail Tuthill. “Virtual Field Trips: Best Practices.” International Journal of Instructional Media, vol. 30, no. 2, June 2003, p. 177. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.asdirect=true&db=ufh&AN=10564712