Types of Virtual Reality

In 2014 when Mark Zuckerberg bought Oculus, he described VR with the following statement:

Imagine enjoying a courtside seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face to face – just by putting on goggles in your home

The above-stated words by Zuckerberg are sufficient to describe the scope of VR technology and its importance in various industry verticals in the coming future. There are numerous types of VR technologies that stimulate you according to the level of immersion. Below are mentioned the three categories that will give you a fine idea about the immersion:

Non- Immersive Virtual Reality

As its names suggest, the non-immersive VR is a type of technology in which the use of immersion is the least. non-immersive VR is the simplest form of all the types of VR technologies. It does not require the use of complex hardware. It only needs a desktop or monitor with a high standard resolution along with various interactive tools such as trackballs, keyboards or joystick. This is the most basic type of VR where merely subsets of user’s senses are stimulated.

Semi-Immersive Virtual Reality

Semi-Immersive VR is a kind that stimulates your senses on the next level. It keeps the simplicity of desktop VR but the immersion is high with the additional physical mode. In this kind, the user is partly immersed in the virtual environment. The types of equipment used in this technology are of higher performances than that of non-immersive VR, such as large screen projector, multiple television systems and etc. In this VR technology, 2 to 4 senses are stimulated.

A great example of semi-immersive VR is the translator app that shows objects' translation when a person looks at it. You can download app for free on iTunes.

Fully Immersive Technology

This is the most amazing type of technology. The level of immersion is highest. A user in this VR gets the most direct and fully immersed VR environment. Head Mounted Display (HMD) and motion detecting displays are two devices that play an important role in offering users the highest immersive simulation. Binocular Omni-Orientation Monitor that often referred to as BOOM is used to achieve the full simulation.

BOOM is used to show two identical 3D pictures at the nearest range of eyes in such a way that when it is perceived by the brain it seems single. Therefore the level of immersion enhances. The best example of fully immersive technology is the Cave Automated Virtual Environment (CAVE).

Uses of Virtual Reality

There is no doubt that Virtual Reality technology holds a huge potential and it has a shining future. VR technology has the capability to change the future of various fields such as medicine, business, architecture and many more. Car-makers can create safer vehicles, architects can build stronger buildings and travel agencies can use VR to give a fine idea about the intended vacations to their customers.

Let’s proceed further and discuss the various uses of Virtual Reality:

• Gaming – Gaming and VR technology has an old relation. Valve and Sony are major players in VR bases games.
• Movies – Watching movies or videos through VR technology makes you feel as if you are sitting in a cinema hall with the same ambiance.
• Tourism – VR is highly popular in the tourism industry these days. Virtual tourism can take you to various monuments, museums, and numerous popular destinations by sitting at one place.
• Solving Crime Cases – It can help police in solving the crimes by re-creating the same crime scene.
• Vehicles Showrooms – Through this technology, the display of cars and other latest vehicle models can easily be done.
• Healthcare – It facilitates doctors to check CT Scans with greater details and allows them to manipulate it in three-dimensional space as per wish.
• Training in Military – VR can help soldiers in their training. Virtual Reality can simulate all situations and enemies which a soldier faces on war ground.

Conclusion

The concept of Virtual Reality is widely accepted by almost all the industry verticals around the globe. From education to electronics to medicine to the military, each filed is adopting this emerging technology with all welcoming arms. There was a time when VR technology was the dream of the since fiction world, but today it is one of the highly accepted technologies which not only entertains but is also proving itself useful in the betterment of mankind.