With Nimble Sense, You Can Explore VR Glove-Free


NimbleVrLast week I got excited about new waves being made in virtual reality. VR being only about seeing and hearing is in the past, and Dexmo wanted to make feeling the virtual realm the new norm with it's exo glove. Apparently, gloves aren't needed anymore (that was quick), because a new Kickstarter campaign for Nimble Sense hopes to use a Kinect-like sensor to create depth perception in VR. By affixing the sensor to a VR headset it can track your hand and finger movements, allowing for truly detailed hand control. Say goodbye to the limitations of VR. Now, natural exploration of the senses is possible.

NimbleVr2Very similar to Microsoft's Kinect camera, the smaller version of this sensor attaches to the top of any VR headset via 3D-printed mount. However, the hardware's 110-degree field of view is optimized for the Oculus Rift dev kit. More importantly, though, is Nimble Sense's software. Through its “skeletal-tracking camera/laser combination based on PMD Technologies' chip”, it tracks hand and finger movements on the skeletal level. You are able to manipulate a (blurry) version of the world as you naturally see it. You can even see your own body. It's enough of a connection “that you could, say, drink from a cup” (Engadget). This is possible because Nimble Sense can be more specific when inputting visual data, disregarding information that isn't “within a narrow spectrum of distance from, and angle to, the time-of-flight sensors”. Nimble Sense also promises the hand tracking system to be low-latency and high-accuracy, two very important features when it comes to interactive content.

NimbleVr1Although not open-source, Nimble Sense is offering the opportunity for developers to use an accompanying API for creating their own games, inventive worlds, and hand-controlled applications using the camera-based hand tracking. The next step, according to Venture Beat, may be the ability to feel actual surfaces in virtual reality. Think of how amazing it would be to walk up to a virtual tree, touch it with your virtual hands, but feel the sensations of that tree trunk! I can't wait for this to happen. It's only natural for us to want to jump out in the virtual world we're in and touch everything. For now, let's enjoy the advancements at hand (pun intended). Using game controllers to enjoy the virtual realm is so last week. Now we can just be human, a human with a headset and camera on their forehead of course.

Topics: Technology News Display Screen Technology Gadgets & Peripherals Inventions & Innovations Microsoft

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