Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Science/2022 January 2

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January 2

What are the main ways to do virtual reality?

I understand that "modern virtual reality games" are typically played with an headset and with one to four motion controllers (one for each limb), rather than with a keyboard and a mouse.

Is there anything else needed to play "modern virtual reality games" besides that?

And not less importantly, what is the "next stage" which is possibly already described deep in the engineering literature, I mean, what might be even more "realistic" than headset and motion controlling? Is there some "brain activity reading device" already under at least theoretical, development?

About the first question, I assume that Haptic suit and a Joystick may also come handy (if indeed, a joystick can't be virtualized), but about the second question I don't know. 109.64.238.180 (talk) 23:24, 2 January 2022 (UTC)

In a laboratory setting, researchers have successfully used a non-invasive brain–computer interface (BCI) to make a mouse control a cursor.^[1] For the state of the art in human BCI research, see Brain–computer interface § Non-invasive BCIs. Apart from practicality (is it wearable?) and cost, it is not immediately clear that applying this to controlling a virtual avatar will result in a more immersive experience; the proprioception is absent. What is missing most in current virtual reality game set-ups is haptic feedback, and the awkward existing technology that requires donning a full-body suit only provides a sense of touch with subtle forces. A player in a haptic suit may try to open a (virtual) door that is stuck by pushing hard, but there is no force pushing back, so then they cannot push hard either.  --Lambiam 11:22, 3 January 2022 (UTC)

Please elaborate a tiny bit more about "there is no force pushing back", what exactly did you mean physicswise and what do haptic-suit engineers are researching aiming to develop a solution for this problem? Thanks, — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.64.133.223 (talk) 18:14, 4 January 2022 (UTC)

Initial high resistance to movement that becomes less when a button or lever is moved, simulating a return spring with negative spring constant, is a desirable characteristic of pushbuttons since it gives the operator an Illusion of control. Philvoids (talk) 23:25, 4 January 2022 (UTC)

Newton's third law: "To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction"; see Reaction (physics). This applies to an equilibrium situation. If (in reality) you push against a body, the force should normally cause the body to accelerate (according to the equation $F=ma$). If the body cannot move, as with a door that is stuck, $a=0,$ which implies $F=0.$ Your force is cancelled by an opposite force that is equal in magnitude. To make virtual reality feel realistic in this scenario, the player needs to experience an opposite force, a force that is actually pushing back, and pushing harder as the player pushes harder. Imagine that you are in a virtual reality environment that is pitch dark. This you can easily simulate by standing in the middle of a dark room – you won't notice the difference. Now imagine that you are standing before a door – in reality there is no door. Push hard against it. You can‘t. Neither could you if you had a headset and a haptic suit.  --Lambiam 23:33, 4 January 2022 (UTC)

Of course with doors, the player's imagination can usually fill in the blank, but it becomes more serious in situations where, in real life, you depend on that force feedback.

I've worked on training simulations that involve putting a wrench into a tight spot in an engine. In real life it's a little tricky, but you can mostly do it by "feel". But in VR, without feeling the wrench hitting the engine it's virtually impossible. The simulation creator often as to "cheat" and make the tool 'jump' to wherever it needs to be, or pass through obstacles. Depending on the type of training being done, that can be a problem. We don't realize how much we depend on our sense of touch until we have to do tasks without it.

A more game-realated example is swordplay. If you swing your sword, and the bad guy blocks it, your real-life hand keeps going, because nothing blocked your real-life hand. Now your simulated sword, and your real-life hand are in different positions. There are different ways of dealing with that in-game, but none are perfect. It would be nice if a real force could be applied to your sword hand. ApLundell (talk) 05:52, 5 January 2022 (UTC)

See Holodeck accident.  Card Zero  (talk) 01:04, 6 January 2022 (UTC)

Did you mean Holodeck malfunction?  --Lambiam 14:59, 8 January 2022 (UTC)