Difference between revisions of "Oculus Rift"

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The latest version is codenamed Crescent Bay, and was introduced in September 2014. The system features the head-mounted device, an infrared camera for position tracking and a wireless gamepad. Oculus also introduced it’s own controller, the Oculus Touch. These two controllers, one for each hand, will be available together with the consumer version of Oculus Rift. They offer movement tracking in all six degrees and haptic feedback through vibration and gestural recognition.
 
The latest version is codenamed Crescent Bay, and was introduced in September 2014. The system features the head-mounted device, an infrared camera for position tracking and a wireless gamepad. Oculus also introduced it’s own controller, the Oculus Touch. These two controllers, one for each hand, will be available together with the consumer version of Oculus Rift. They offer movement tracking in all six degrees and haptic feedback through vibration and gestural recognition.
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The consumer version of the device is scheduled to be released in March 2016.
  
 
=== History ===
 
=== History ===

Revision as of 08:52, 2 February 2016

Oculus Rift
Oculus 1.jpg
Category Vr device
Developer Oculus VR (Facebook, Inc.)
Announced 12 April 2012 [1]
Released Developers: 29 September 2014
Consumers: 28 March 2016 [2]
Price 600 USD (2016)[3]
Operating system Microsoft Windows
Display OLED
Resolution 2160x1200 [4]
Field of view 110° (rumoured)[5]
Weight 400 g (approximate)
Controls

inertial, positional tracking, peripherals

Data available good
Risk factor low
Not Standalone
https://www.oculus.com/en-us/rift/

Oculus Rift is a virtual reality head-mounted display device developed by the Oculus VR company. It originally started as a Kickstarter project by Oculus' founder and inventor Palmer Luckey in August 2012. The Kickstarter campaign reached its goal in less than 24 hours.[6]

The latest version is codenamed Crescent Bay, and was introduced in September 2014. The system features the head-mounted device, an infrared camera for position tracking and a wireless gamepad. Oculus also introduced it’s own controller, the Oculus Touch. These two controllers, one for each hand, will be available together with the consumer version of Oculus Rift. They offer movement tracking in all six degrees and haptic feedback through vibration and gestural recognition.

The consumer version of the device is scheduled to be released in March 2016.

History

The first mention of Oculus Rift appeared on the Meant to be Seen forums in a post made by Oculus inventor Palmer Luckey in August 21, 2009. In his post, Luckey writes about having already made good progress on his prototype and asks others to help him prepare his Kickstarter campaign.

Through the same forum discussion, John Carmack, a famous programmer and one of the authors of the computer game series Doom, found out about the Oculus prototype and offered his own experience with making HMDs. He was working on his own prototype but after testing out the Oculus Rift, he switched to it instead. His already famous persona helped advertise the Rift greatly and Carmack later left his software company to work on Oculus Rift full-time.

In August 1, 2012, the Kickstarter campaign for the device was launched. The goal was to crowdfund the developer version of Oculus called the Developer Kit 1, DK1 for short. Everyone who pledged at least 300 USD get the DK1. The pre-orders opened in September and they were quickly sold-out.

Oculus Rift went through several prototype stages. In January 2014, Oculus introduced the Crystal Cove prototype with new OLED displays and different movement tracking method now using an external infrared camera observing the movements of the device equipped with infrared diodes. The next iteration, the Developer Kit 2, was announced in March 2014. It featured improved resolution and a new, low-persistence AMOLED display. This version also left out the need to have the device connected to a control box first. Now it could be connected to the computer directly.

The latest prototype is called Crescent Bay and was introduced in September 2014. The infrared diodes are now present on the back of the device’s head strap as well. This way, a full 360-degree tracking was achieved. The new prototype also features new audio software that simulates binaural audio for more immersive experience.

In 6 January 2016, Oculus announced a new price of their consumer-ready model and costumers could pre-order the device which was planned to be released in 28 March 2016.[2]

Main Characteristics

Oculus Rift is a fully enclosed, fully featured HMD, that means it is a standalone displaying device unlike the models that require a smartphone to be inserted into them. It features two AMOLED displays, one for each eye. The resolution has not been officially announced yet, but it is rumoured to be around 2160x1200 pixels. The refresh rate is 90 Hz and the field of view is approximately 110 degrees. The head-tracking is done by a separate tracking unit that tracks the position of infra-red diodes on the head-mounted piece in full 360 degrees range. Unlike the previous models, Crescent Bay also features positional audio system and attached headphones. It is also lighter than the previous prototypes (less than 380 g). As of July 2015, Oculus did not provide official information concerning these technical characteristics.

Purpose

Oculus Rift is among the first consumer-targeted HMDs on the market. As such is marketed as an entertainment device (gaming, 3D video, virtual presence) with secondary enhancement or treatment possibilities (phobia treatment, empathy training, virtual training).

Company & People

Oculus Rift is being developed by Oculus VR, an american technology company founded by Oculus’ inventor Palmer Luckey and Brendan Iribe in 2012. In March 2014, the company was acquired by Facebook.

  • Palmer Luckey - The inventor of Oculus Rift and the original founder of the Oculus VR company.
  • Brendan Iribe - Chief Executive Officer
  • John Carmack - Chief Technology Officer
  • Michael Abrash - Chief Scientist
  • Michael Antonov - Chief Software Architect
  • Jack McCauley - Vice President of Engineering

Important Dates

  • Kickstarter campaign started in August 1, 2012.
  • Development Kit 1 available through the Kickstarter in August 2012. It was also available through later pre-orders starting September 26, 2012. It was made unavailable in March, 2014.[16]
  • Crystal Cove prototype introduced on Consumer Electronic Show in January 2014. It was not available to public.
  • Development Kit 2 announced in March 2014. Available to customers since July 2014.
  • Announced on Oculus Connect conference in September 2014, the Crescent Bay prototype is the latest (July 2015) version of Oculus Rift. It is not available to public.
  • Consumer version release date has been announced to be in the first quarter of the year 2016.
  • Pre-orders for the consumer version started 6 January 2016.
  • The device is planned to be available in 28 March 2016.

Enhancement/Therapy/Treatment

Ethical & Health Issues

Public & Media Impact and Presentation

TODO:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2062439/oculus-rift-is-mind-blowing-if-you-dont-barf-.html

http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/oculus-rift-hands-on/

Public Policy

Related Technologies, Projects or Scientific Research

References

  1. http://www.mtbs3d.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=140&t=14777
  2. 2.0 2.1 https://www.oculus.com/en-us/blog/oculus-rift-pre-orders-now-open-first-shipments-march-28/
  3. https://shop.oculus.com/en-us/cart/
  4. http://www.digitaltrends.com/virtual-reality/oculus-rift-vs-htc-vive/
  5. http://www.maximumpc.com/i-got-to-try-the-consumer-version-of-oculus-rift/
  6. Thank you! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1523379957/oculus-rift-step-into-the-game/posts/279771 (Retrieved Jul 8, 2015)