Event report: Top 5 experiences at the Virtual Reality Show

This month, London hosted a ground-breaking Virtual Reality Show giving 10,000 attendees the opportunity to try out VR products, and meet the top brands and innovators working in VR today. Our team went to investigate…

StarTracker brings full movement to VR

Mo-Sys Engineering, the London-based developer of StarTracker, demonstrated its automatic, real-time optical camera tracking system for use in VR and AR production at the show.

StarTracker was purpose built for virtual studio camera tracking. This, the company said, makes it particularly good for use in virtual and augmented reality production.

Since StarTracker’s introduction last year, Mo-Sys said it has found a home at BBC, FOX, Telemundo, NHK, Sky Sports, ZDF in Germany and ESPN. Mo-Sys systems are now in use in over 40 countries.

StarTracker uses a single optical sensor on one navigation camera and retro-reflective stickers that are peeled from a roll and placed as a “constellation” on the studio ceiling. LED light reflected by the ‘stars’ is detected by the navigation camera.

Hololens ‘mixed reality’ proves popular

Microsoft presented a range of (fully booked up) HoloLens demonstration suites at the show, where trained Microsoft experts will be giving demonstrations of HoloLens in a realistic setting. Mixed reality encompasses a wide range of experiences that previously were considered to be only augmented reality or only virtual reality. In mixed reality, people, places, and objects from your physical and virtual worlds merge together in a blended environment that becomes your canvas.

View a demo of the Hololens experience below:

Healthcare 2.0: Beyond training and into self-diagnosis

Medical illustrator, health educator and co-founder of Embodied Labs, Carrie Shaw brought her team to London to take part in the VR event’s Hospital feature. VR tech within medicine and healthcare, provides opportunities beyond treatment, into self-diagnosis and the integration of AI tech.

Alzheimer’s Research walks viewers through dementia sufferer’s eyes

Alzheimer’s Research UK created a feature space that allows you to discover the effects of Alzheimer’s disease and in doing so, gain some insight into the challenges of living with the condition. A Walk Through Dementia uses a combination of computer generated environments and 360 degree video sequences to illustrate in powerful detail how even the most everyday task of making a cup of tea can become a challenge for someone with dementia.

The app features a compelling voiceover from Olivier Award-winning actress Dame Harriet Walter, who lost both her parents to dementia, and an introduction from broadcaster Jon Snow whose mother died of Alzheimer’s disease – the most common form of dementia.

Go virtual skydiving with the Para Parachute

If you’ve ever wanted to try a skydive, but been too scared jump out of a plane, this could be for you. Cooler Master’s Para Parachute utilises the unique combination of an Oculus Rift headset, a Cooler Master hardware system and an interactive suspension frame, which allow you to feel the drop of freefall. You can then ride through the sky, using the system to navigate and just like a real-life parachutist, land on your mark. This tech is an incredible example of how physical experience, integrated with VR tech can give access to experiences that are out-of-reach to so many of us.