by Juanita Nonwo – EM TV Online
Facebook is planning on creating a device that will give its users a teleporter-like experience using virtual reality technology.
Chief technical officer, Mike Schroepfer, made the announcement at a press event yesterday before the Dublin Web Summit.
According to the social media company, the virtual reality technology will give users the experience to be transported to any place they want, with anyone regardless of geographic boundaries, in simple – tricking your senses into thinking you’re somewhere you’re not.
Facebook has already acquired Oculus VR, an American Virtual Reality Technology Company and is making plans for next year to release the Oculus Rift VR headset – a head mounted display for immersive VR technology.
The Oculus Touch, a device that imitates users’ natural movements, was revealed in June this year. The device provides an in-depth VR experience by allowing users to see their own hands.
The touch will be accompanied by another tool known as the Medium, or as Oculus calls it “digital clay” which allows sculpting of 3D objects; see video here.
Oculus has also teamed up with a computer vision company, Surreal Vision, who specialises in real-time 3D scene reconstruction. Apparently the two are working on a technology that involves live streaming your actual environment into virtual reality; taking into advantage some of the VR’s concept of manipulating objects that are not actually there and adding them to your real-time virtual world.
