VPL Research
VPL Research was one of the first companies that developed and sold virtual reality products. It was founded by computer scientist Jaron Lanier in 1984.[1] "VPL" stood for "Virtual Programming Languages".[1] The company was started in the corner of Lanier's cottage in Palo Alto, a city in the San Francisco Bay Area.[2]
| VPL Research | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Type | Private |
| Industry | Virtual Reality |
| Founded | 1984, Palo Alto, California |
| Founder | Jaron Lanier |
| Headquarters | California, United States |
| Notable Personnel | Jaron Lanier (Founder, CEO) Thomas Zimmerman (Co-inventor, DataGlove) Young Harvill (VP of Engineering) Ann Lasko-Harvill (Chief Designer of Data Suits) Chuck Blanchard (Software Developer) Jean-Jacques Grimaud (Engineer) |
| Products | DataGlove, EyePhone, DataSuit, AudioSphere, Body Electric, Isaac, Reality Built for Two (RB2) |
| Parent | Sun Microsystems (1998, acquired patents) |
History
VPL Research was founded in 1984 by Jaron Lanier, who is often regarded as the person who coined the term "virtual reality".[2] He is also credited with further popularizing the term.[2] The company received funding in part from Marvin Minsky.[1]
In 1985, Young Harvill joined VPL as their fourth employee after licensing his Swivel 3D software to the company.[1] Harvill had created Swivel 3D in his spare time as a program for creating computer art that gave users the ability to generate virtual worlds on a Macintosh computer.[1]
The company filed for bankruptcy in 1990.[1] In February 1998, Sun Microsystems announced it had acquired the patent portfolio and other technical assets of the former VPL Research Inc. from Thomson CSF and Greenleaf Medical.[3] Under the agreement, Sun acquired the worldwide rights to more than a dozen key patents and related technologies.[3]
Products
Hardware
| Product | Description | Key Features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| DataGlove | An input device using a glove form factor | • Used fiber-optic bundles to track finger movements • 6502 microcontrollers • Wired to computer • Allowed manipulation of virtual objects |
$10,000[1] |
| EyePhone | Head-mounted display (HMD) | • Color LCD displays (320×240 per eye)[4] • 108° field of view[4] • 30 Hz refresh rate (5-6 fps in practice)[1] • Used Fresnel lenses • Head tracking capability |
$6,000 (headset only)[5] |
| DataSuit | Full-body tracking suit | • Sensors for measuring movement of arms, legs, and trunk[1] • Developed circa 1989[6] |
N/A |
| AudioSphere | 3D audio rendering system | • Real-time 3D sound rendering • Created illusion of 3D sounds from all dimensions[2] |
N/A |
The complete VPL system, including the computers required to run it, cost upwards of $250,000.[1][7]
Software
Body Electric
Body Electric was a visual programming language used to control and program all other VPL components as part of the whole VPL virtual reality experience.[2] It was created by Chuck Blanchard.[8] According to Jaron Lanier, it was "a rare example of a successful visual programming language that is seductive at first approach, but also scales and has been used for industrial strength applications."[8]
Isaac
Isaac was a real-time 3D visual rendering engine that worked with Body Electric to create virtual environments.[2] It was written by Ethan Joffe and ran on Silicon Graphics workstations.[8]
Reality Built for Two (RB2)
"Reality Built for Two" (RB2) was described as the first networked VR system.[1] It was developed by Young Harvill along with Jaron Lanier and Chuck Blanchard.[9] RB2 was marketed as a complete off-the-shelf VR system.[10]
Swivel 3D
Swivel 3D was a 3D modeling program created by Young Harvill before he joined VPL.[1] It was one of the first 3D modelers for desktop computers.[9] The software was later sold as a stand-alone version by Macromedia.[8]
Key Personnel
- Jaron Lanier - Founder and CEO. Often credited with coining or popularizing the term "virtual reality".[2]
- Thomas Zimmerman - Invented the prototype of the DataGlove.[1] Co-authored the 1987 paper "A hand gesture interface device" presented at Graphics Interface 87.[11]
- Young Harvill - Joined as the fourth employee in 1985.[1] VP of Engineering at VPL. Created Swivel 3D and worked on RB2 and the DataGlove.[1][9]
- Ann Lasko-Harvill - Chief designer of data suits at VPL Research.[12] Spearheaded the development of VPL's "Reality Built for Two" (RB2) whole body VR suit.[12]
- Chuck Blanchard - Software developer who created Body Electric visual programming language.[8] Worked with Lanier on the Embrace visual programming language from 1988 to 1991.[1]
- Jean-Jacques Grimaud - Engineer who worked on multiple VPL patents including motion sensors and position tracking systems.[13]
- Jeff Wright - Worked with Lanier and Blanchard on the Embrace visual programming language from 1988 to 1991.[1]
- Mitch Altman - Joined VPL part-time to help program the 6502 microcontrollers for the DataGlove.[1]
Patents
VPL Research held numerous patents related to virtual reality technology, including:
- Motion sensors for detecting hand and body movements[14]
- Data flow networks for virtual world creation
- Head-mounted display technologies
- Position tracking systems
All VPL patents were acquired by Sun Microsystems in 1998.[3]
Cultural Impact
Mattel Power Glove
VPL licensed the DataGlove technology to Mattel, which used it to create the Power Glove for the Nintendo Entertainment System.[1] Based on VPL's $10,000 DataGlove, Mattel rushed its $90 Power Glove to market, becoming "one of the hottest gift items of the 1989 holiday season" and selling 1.3 million units worldwide.[1]
The Lawnmower Man
The DataSuit and EyePhone were featured in the 1992 science fiction film The Lawnmower Man.[1] The movie introduced the concept of virtual reality to a wider audience and was in part based on Jaron Lanier and his early laboratory days.[2] Real virtual reality equipment from VPL research labs was used in the film.[2]
Scientific American Coverage
The VPL DataGlove was brought to market in 1987, and in October of that year it appeared on the cover of Scientific American.[15]
Legacy
Despite filing for bankruptcy in 1990, VPL Research is recognized as one of the pioneering companies in virtual reality. The company developed some of the first commercial VR products and implemented some of the first applications of virtual reality.[2] Many of the first examples of VR applications were created using VPL software, including vehicle simulators at NASA and Boeing.[8]
After Sun Microsystems acquired VPL's patents in 1998, Jaron Lanier was allowed to provide low-level support for the resilient user community of VPL software.[8] However, Sun Microsystems was not known to have sold any virtual reality products using the VPL technology.[2]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 VPL Research - Wikipedia Cite error: Invalid
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<ref>tag; name "vrs" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Sun buys VPL research - jaronlanier.com Cite error: Invalid
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