Virtual Peranbulator - Japan 1995

An early Omnidirectional Treadmill prototype, built in Japan in 1995.
It used free-spinning rollers on the feet, so they slipped around quite easily. It had traction pads on the front of the foot, this both helped stop you from falling over and made it feel like the virtual ground was real and tangible. There's no active feedback system at all, you are held in place by a hoop around your waist.

This is the only video i was able to find of it. It doesn't look like the user is walking very naturally to me, but maybe they're new at this.



Quote:
"Simulation of virtual buildings, before they are physically constructed, is useful for designers and clients. With this novel interface device for walkthrough simulation, the user perceives a 360-degree image of virtual space and a sense of walking while the position of the walker is fixed in the physical world.

The walker wears a head-mounted display, foot-mounted omni-directional sliding devices, and a hoop around the waist, which limits the walker's position. A specialized roller skate equipped with four casters enables two-dimensional motion. The device has a brake pad at the toe. When the walker steps forward, the break pad generates friction force at the backward foot, and the friction force enhances haptic feedback.

The walker can freely change the direction of walking in the hoop. The length of the step is measured by an optical encoder connected to the caster. The virtual space is correlated with the motion of the feet and body and viewed in a head-mounted display. Novice users usually hold the hoop to maintain their balance. Experienced users can push their waists against the hoop and walk fast or even run.

The system enables remote collaboration between architects and their clients, who can experience a house or other building while it is still in the design process. The design can be interactively changed in real time by the remotely located designer. At SIGGRAPH 95, models of virtual buildings are delivered via the Internet."

Hiroo Iwata
Takashi Fuji
Institute of Engineering Mechanics
Virtual Reality Laboratory
University of Tsukuba

http://www.siggraph.org/s95/S95_V1/COMUNITY/PERAMBUL/PERAMBUL.HTL

http://intron.kz.tsukuba.ac.jp/~yano/MA.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omnidirectional_treadmill

Category:

Science & Technology

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