“PROvision” by Grimsdale
Conference:
Type(s):
Title:
- PROvision
Program Title:
- Demonstrations and Displays
Presenter(s): Presenter(s):
Project Affiliation:
- Division Limited
Description:
In this installation, three different systems illustrate an integrated yet modular approach to virtual realities.
In “Virtual Environment Interaction.” users may interactively design their own virtual world using the metaphor of connected rooms. Many rooms are supplied pre-built. The kitchen features virtual food, beverages, and household appliances. In the radiosity room, users walk through a pre-computed radiosity environment. The B-O-I-N-G room features a set of autonomous, interactive, bouncing entities. With StEM (Steve’s Environment Manager), users control the environment through object manipulation and world scaling. “Protein Folding” is a Monte Carlo simulation that derives the tertiary 3D structure of a protein from its amino acid sequence. On a VAX 11/780, the simulation takes many seconds per iteration, but in the SIGGRAPH ’91 demonstration it unfolds in real time. Users interact with the simulation to optimally guide it toward its goal, cutting out dead-end configurations.
In “Advanced Mechanical Simulation,” a deformable virtual object interacts very accurately with its surroundings, using a non-linear tensor model to achieve numerically robust behavior under high degrees of deformation. The simulation allows the user to throw the object around a virtual room.
The TELETACT feedback glove demonstration provides a tactile display to the user’s hand via a pneumatic control system. The user experiences delicate and accurate tactile responses to interactions between the virtual hand and objects in a virtual environment.
Other Information:
Hardware: DIVISION Limited PROvision virtual reality computer, VPL Research DataGlove and Eyephone, Polhemus Isotrack 3Space digitizer, AirMuscle Ltd TELETACT feedback glove
Application: Engineering, molecular modeling, architectural, entertainment
Type of System: Authoring and player, multi-user
Interaction Class: Immersive, inclusive
Acknowledgements:
Protein Folding: Courtesy of University of Bristol Biochemistry Department
Mechanical Simulation: Courtesy of University of Bristol Department of Computer Science
