FIVR: Difference between revisions - VR & AR Wiki - Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality Wiki

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==Full immersion VR==

Full immersion VR is a virtual reality experience that perceptually surrounds the user. In this virtual environment, the users cannot distinguish what is created from what is their everyday reality, since all of the human senses would be transferred to the avatar. Their sense of presence would be increased to a level that has not been achieved with the current technology. This level of deep immersion has also been called “Full dive VR” (FDVR) <ref name=”1”></ref> <ref name=”2”></ref> <ref name=”6”> Costello, P. J. (1997). Health and safety issues associated with virtual reality – A review of current literature. Retrieved from http://www.agocg.ac.uk/reports/virtual/37/37.pdf</ref>. FDVR pushes the boundary of a FIVR by going beyond headsets and haptic feedback technology into a direct connection between the user and the computer through a Brain Machine Interface (BMI). This ultimate level of FIVR is still not possible <ref name=”7”> Eisenberg, A. Full dive virtual reality – Coming soon to a brain near you. Retrieved from https://appreal-vr.com/blog/full-dive-virtual-reality-how-it-works/</ref>. Some of the suggested required technologies to achieve FIVR are fiber optics, quantum computing, and brain interfacing. Indeed, in some fields there have been considerable advancements while in others breakthroughs are still necessary <ref name=”2”></ref>. A lower level of FIVR can be achieved by using full-body motion sensors, high definition audio, and VR headsets. This leads to more immersive gameplay, for example, but it is not considered true full dive. This last one can be said to be more of a full mind immersion that full body immersion <ref name=”7”></ref>.

Full immersion VR is a virtual reality experience that perceptually surrounds the user. In this virtual environment, the users cannot distinguish what is created from what is their everyday reality, since all of the human senses would be transferred to the avatar. Their sense of presence would be increased to a level that has not been achieved with the current technology. This level of deep immersion has also been called “Full dive VR” (FDVR) <ref name=”1”></ref> <ref name=”2”></ref> <ref name=”6”> Costello, P. J. (1997). Health and safety issues associated with virtual reality - A review of current literature. Retrieved from http://www.agocg.ac.uk/reports/virtual/37/37.pdf</ref>. FDVR pushes the boundary of a FIVR by going beyond headsets and haptic feedback technology into a direct connection between the user and the computer through a Brain Machine Interface (BMI). This ultimate level of FIVR is still not possible <ref name=”7”> Eisenberg, A. Full dive virtual reality - Coming soon to a brain near you. Retrieved from https://appreal-vr.com/blog/full-dive-virtual-reality-how-it-works/</ref>. Some of the suggested required technologies to achieve FIVR are fiber optics, quantum computing, and brain interfacing. Indeed, in some fields there have been considerable advancements while in others breakthroughs are still necessary <ref name=”2”></ref>. A lower level of FIVR can be achieved by using full-body motion sensors, high definition audio, and VR headsets. This leads to more immersive gameplay, for example, but it is not considered true full dive. This last one can be said to be more of a full mind immersion that full body immersion <ref name=”7”></ref>.

It will be possible to exactly replicate the real world and the user’s body in the virtual environment. The opportunity to improve or modify specific characteristics in the VE will also be available, even things that would be impossible in the physical world. Although physical connections between the computer and the brain are not required, there is a need to have a mode of detection and interpretation of the user’s thoughts by the computer, and a way for the computer to send sensory data directly into the nervous system. [[Brain-computer_interface|Brain-computer interfaces]] have existed for several years, in various experimental stages. When applied in a FDVR concept, there is the added component of virtual reality <ref name=”7”></ref> <ref name=”8”> The Nano Age. The future of virtual reality. Retrieved from http://www.thenanoage.com/virtual-reality.htm</ref>.

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There have been progress in several areas that will converge to promote the development of a complete FIVR. Brain scan techniques will allow for the detection and analysis of thought patterns; full-body VR is being tried with the Virtuix Omni, a “virtual reality rig, which features 40 capacitive sensors in its base to track your every step and move your character inside a game.” This is combined with a headset for a richer experience in the virtual world <ref name=”9”></ref> <ref name=”10”> Flitman, S. S. (2000). Survey of brain imaging techniques with implications for nanomedicine. Eighth Foresight Conference on Molecular Nanotechnology, Bethesda, MD</ref> <ref name=”11”> Hamburguer, E. (2014). Full-body virtual reality is here, but try not to puke. Retrieved from http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/8/5289186/the-virtuix-omni-is-full-body-virtual-reality-but-try-not-to-puke</ref>. Another thing that needs improvement is computer processing speed, in order for a truly full immersive virtual experience to be generated <ref name=”8”></ref>.

While brain mapping studies allow for a greater understanding of the human nervous system, the development of alternative designs for computer chips - that are inspired by biological brains – will enhance [[artificial intelligence]], blurring the boundary between silicon and biological systems <ref name=”12”> Humphries, C. (2014). Brain mapping. Retrieved from https://www.technologyreview.com/s/526501/brain-mapping/</ref> <ref name=”13”> Hof, R. D. (2014). Neuromorphic chips: Microprocessors configured more like brains than traditional chips could soon make computers far more astute about what’s going on around them. Retrieved from https://www.technologyreview.com/s/526506/neuromorphic-chips/</ref>. Brain-computer interfaces keep evolving, and it was possible, in a 2013 study, for humans to control other animals with thoughts alone <ref name=”7”></ref> <ref name=”14”> Anthony, S. (2013). Harvard creates brain-to-brain interface, allows humans to control other animals with thoughts alone. Retrieved from http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/162678-harvard-creates-brain-to-brain-interface-allows-humans-to-control-other-animals-with-thoughts-alone</ref>. This demonstrated that human thought can be correctly interpreted by a computer and, in this case, used to control a rat’s brain. Also, the experiment was non-invasive for both the human and the rat involved in the study, using instead focused ultrasound to transmit the control signals <ref name=”7”></ref>.

While brain mapping studies allow for a greater understanding of the human nervous system, the development of alternative designs for computer chips, that are inspired by biological brains, will enhance [[artificial intelligence]], blurring the boundary between silicon and biological systems <ref name=”12”> Humphries, C. (2014). Brain mapping. Retrieved from https://www.technologyreview.com/s/526501/brain-mapping/</ref> <ref name=”13”> Hof, R. D. (2014). Neuromorphic chips: Microprocessors configured more like brains than traditional chips could soon make computers far more astute about what’s going on around them. Retrieved from https://www.technologyreview.com/s/526506/neuromorphic-chips/</ref>. Brain-computer interfaces keep evolving, and it was possible, in a 2013 study, for humans to control other animals with thoughts alone <ref name=”7”></ref> <ref name=”14”> Anthony, S. (2013). Harvard creates brain-to-brain interface, allows humans to control other animals with thoughts alone. Retrieved from http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/162678-harvard-creates-brain-to-brain-interface-allows-humans-to-control-other-animals-with-thoughts-alone</ref>. This demonstrated that human thought can be correctly interpreted by a computer and, in this case, used to control a rat’s brain. Also, the experiment was non-invasive for both the human and the rat involved in the study, using instead focused ultrasound to transmit the control signals <ref name=”7”></ref>.

In 2015, another experiment used an EEG device (electroencephalogram) and advanced software to detect human thought, making it possible – by placing electrodes on the head and legs of a paraplegic man – for the subject to walk for the first time in years. The signals from the patient’s brain were detected, interpreted, and sent to his legs, bypassing the damaged spinal cord. The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) is investing in studies to develop “a high-resolution, wide-bandwidth intracranial electrode array for recording and stimulating brain activity.” This would be a minimally invasive device that can be compared to a brain modem, and a possible step to achieve a full dive experience <ref name=”7”></ref>.

In 2015, another experiment used an EEG device (electroencephalogram) and advanced software to detect human thought, making it possible, by placing electrodes on the head and legs of a paraplegic man, for the subject to walk for the first time in years. The signals from the patient’s brain were detected, interpreted, and sent to his legs, bypassing the damaged spinal cord. The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) is investing in studies to develop “a high-resolution, wide-bandwidth intracranial electrode array for recording and stimulating brain activity.” This would be a minimally invasive device that can be compared to a brain modem, and a possible step to achieve a full dive experience <ref name=”7”></ref>.

Two Estonian researchers founded the Virtual Neuroscience Lab to develop ways to convince the human brain that the virtual environments that users experience are real, and elicit physical responses from them <ref name=”15”> Javelosa, J. (2016). Researchers are studying how they can achieve matrix-level immersion in virtual reality. Retrieved from https://futurism.com/researchers-studying-can-achieve-matrix-level-immersion-virtual-reality/</ref> <ref name=”16”> Durbin, J. (2016). European psychology lab working toward matrix-level VR immersion. Retrieved from http://uploadvr.com/this-european-lab-is-working-toward-matrix-level-vr-immersion-through-psychological-research/</ref>. They have created two methodologies to prove the potential of responses among test subjects. The first one is a gradual approach, in which subjects are exposed to stimuli like flashing screens or quick images that become more immersive as the study goes on. The goal is to find the minimal amount of input that elicits a physical response. The second methodology involves a series of experiments that cannot be repeated. For example, there was a study where they used a realistic virtual fire. The subject would hold one hand over the virtual flame and report any sensation. Most reported a feeling of increased heat on the hand, but the experiment could not be replicated because once the brain realizes it has been tricked, it will not work again <ref name=”15”></ref>.