CHINMAYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

KANNUR

SEMINAR REPORT
ON

OCULUS RIFT
Presented by
NIKHITA SREEDHAR
Fourth Semester MCA
SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
AND
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

CHINMAYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

KANNUR
SCHOOL OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the Seminar Report titled OCULUS RIFT was
prepared and presented by Nikhita Sreedhar of the School of Computer
Science and Information Technology, Chinmaya Institute of Technology in
partial fulfillment of the requirement as a subject under the University of
Kannur during the fourth semester.

Faculty in Charge

Kannur
Date :

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
First of all, I express my sincere thanks to Principal Dr. K.K Falgunan for giving
permission to conduct this seminar and giving lot of encouragement.
I am greatful to Dr. Srivathsan, the Director of Chinmaya Institute of Technology for his
guidance and especially for his constant encouragement for developing a deep passion towards
research and emphasis on hardwork and rigorous experimentation.
I am thankful to all faculty members in MCA department for their cooperation towards this
seminar presentation.
I am thankful to Mr. Sibeesh Kumar, Lecturer, School of Computer Science and
Information Technology for his cooperation towards this seminar presentation.
Last, but not the least I would like to exrpess my thanks to omnipotent god give the
strength to conduct the seminar, and also sincere thanks to my friends, who have participated in the
seminar and encouraged me such.

ABSTRACT
The Oculus Rift, is true virtual reality. Virtual Reality can be defined as an
environment which is simulated by a computer system. Oculus Rift is a personal virtual
reality goggles for everyone to use. The screen displays two images side by side one for
each eye and focus and reshape pictures for each eye. In this technology we are completely
blocking our view of the real world and seeing a new digital, virtual world in its place. The
Rift uses stereoscopic 3-D rendering, a high-resolution display, a field of view 110 degrees
wide and ultra-low latency head tracking to immerse us in a virtual world that should prove
to be more believable than any VR most of us have witnessed before. The headset fits over
the eyes, completely covering the wearer's field of vision. Unlike the virtual reality
headsets of the past, it's light, with a screen that's easy to look at, since it's set up to appear
exactly as if the virtual world was being seen in real life.
Oculus rift is an upcoming virtual reality, head mounted display, being developed by
Oculus VR, a division of Facebook. Oculus rift is a virtual reality headset that lets players
step inside their favourite games and virtual worlds. Thus Oculus Rift enhance the
gameplay experience of the users and helps user to experience games in 3D. The rift uses
custom tracking technology to provide ultra-low latency 360-degree head tracking,
allowing us to seamlessly look around the virtual world just as we would in real life. Every
subtle movement of our head is tracked in real time creating a natural and intuitive
experience. Tracks movement using gyroscope and accelerometer. It has sensors to monitor
head motions and adjust the image accordingly. The Oculus Rift's main goal is to set on
video games but it also plans to impact other types of media, including movies.

INDEX
CONTENTS

Sl.No

Page No.

Introduction

Oculus Rift

Working

Interfacing

17

Adoption

18

Similar Technologies and Comparison

20

Comparison of Specification

25

Future Scope

26

Problems

30

10

Advantages and Disadvantages

32

11

Conclusion

33

12

Reference

34

1. INTRODUCTION
Virtual reality (VR) is a technology used for interaction with a computer generated
environment. It is a simulated version of the real environment and can be experienced in
three dimensions. Screens are used to display this visual experience. It also provides an
interactive experience wherein the display is according to the tactile feedback received
from the user. The idea of a lifelike experience in a simulated environment is what drives
the entertainment industry to evoke virtual reality concepts. Examples include the US air
forces who practice their parachuting skills by wearing a headset that simulates the
environment of the user jumping off a plane and flying through the air. Head mounted
display pieces have been used by wearers to place on their heads and see virtual reality in
its full glory.
Virtual reality has been described by some novelists as divided into seven different
segments- network communications, total body immersion, tele-presence, artificial,
immersion, interactivity and simulated reality. Previously the technology for VR was very
primitive and needed a boost. Fortunately, the team behind Oculus Rift realized this, and
the technology was finally here to do proper virtual reality. It is a head-mounted display
that works in tandem with computers.
Virtual reality is using computer technology to create a simulated, three-dimensional
world that a user can manipulate and explore while feeling as if he were in that world.
virtual reality and immersion go side by side. In a virtual reality environment, a user
experiences immersion, or the feeling of being inside and a part of that world. So,
immersion can be seen as a measurement for the level of virtual reality. For immersion to

be effective, a user must be able to explore what appears to be a life-sized virtual

environment and be able to change perspectives seamlessly. Another important term related
to virtual reality is Latency. Lag time between when a user acts and when the virtual
environment reflects that action is called latency.
The Oculus Rift is a lightweight virtual reality headset that blocks your view of your
surroundings and fully immerses you in a virtual world. The Rift lets you step into a game,
look around in any direction and see the game environment all around you rather than on a
flat screen surrounded by your living room decor. And we can see it in 3D.

2. OCULUS RIFT

The Oculus Rift is a headset which allows its user to feel like they are actually in a
game just by wearing it. It is a set of ski goggles in which a large mobile phone screen
replaces the glass material. The screen displays two images adjacent to each other, one for
left eye and one image for right eye. The combination of lenses is placed above screen,
enabling the zoom in-out and re-shaping the picture for both the eye, thereby creating a
stereoscopic 3D image. Rift devices monitor the wearer's head motions by the embedded
sensor and accordingly adjust the image. The latest version of the Oculus Rift is bolstered
by an external positional-tracking accessory, which helps track head movements more
accurately. The result is the sensation that you are looking around a very realistic 3D world.
Oculus rift is an upcoming virtual reality, head mounted display, being developed by
Oculus VR, a division of Facebook. Oculus rift is a virtual reality headset that lets players
step inside their favourite games and virtual worlds. Thus Oculus Rift enhance the
gameplay experience of the users and helps user to experience games in 3D. The rift uses
custom tracking technology to provide ultra-low latency 360-degree head tracking,
allowing us to seamlessly look around the virtual world just as we would in real life. Every
3

subtle movement of our head is tracked in real time creating a natural and intuitive
experience. Tracks movement using gyroscope and accelerometer. It has sensors to monitor
head motions and adjust the image accordingly.
The Oculus Rift creates a stereoscopic 3D view with excellent depth, scale and
parallax. Unlike 3D on a television or in a movie, this is achieved by presenting unique and
parallel image for each eye. This is the same way our eyes percieve images in the
realworld, creating a much more natural and comfortable experience. The Oculus Rift
provides an approximately 110-degree field of view, stretching the virtual world beyind our
peripheral vision. Our view of the game is no longer boxed in on a screen and is only
limited by what our eyes can see. The combination of the wide field of view with head
tracking and stereoscopic 3D creates an immersive virtual reality experience.
Oculus rift is somewhat like ski goggles in which a large cell phone screen replaces
the glass. The screen displays two images side by side, one for each eye. A set of lenses is
placed on top of the screen, focusing and reshaping the picture for each eye, and creating a
stereoscopic 3D image. The goggles have embedded sensors that monitor the wearer's head
motions and adjust the image accordingly. The latest version of the Oculus Rift is
supported by an external positional-tracking accessory, which helps track head movements
more accurately. The result is the sensation that you are looking around a 3D world.
Oculus Rift produces a stable image even when we turn, ie no motion blur. Every
movement that the customers head makes is tracked in real time and changes the
orientation of the observer. This creates the most natural experience a gamer can have with
a headset. There are many advantages for the Oculus Rift. Better gaming experience

whereby visual display is instinctive, ie Gamers can orientate their perspective base on
head motion. Create the impression of an immense environment within a small physical
space, ie large field of view. Oculus offer low latency, fast head-tracking performance. Also
it allows adjustable focus for near-or-far-sighted gamers.
A consumer version of the rift is in development, which will be aimed at a general
market and feature improved components. Improved positional tracking, higher resolution,
and wireless operation are some of the features under considerations. The Oculus Rift's
main goal is to set on video games but it also plans to impact other types of media,
including movies.

Technical Specifications
The Oculus Rift Development Kit version 1.1 includes the Oculus Rift head set. The
kit also comes with a control box that's permanently attached to the headset via a 6-foot
(1.8-meter) cable, a removable over-the-head strap for added comfort and stability, three
pairs of vision lenses of different focal lengths, an HDMI cable, a USB cable, a DVI cable,
an HDMI to DVI adapter and a 5-Volt switching US-standard power supply along with
international power adapters. All of this comes housed in a hard case. The Oculus Rift dev
kit goggles weigh less than a pound -- a mere 369 grams -- and the future consumer model
may be even lighter. The developer headset allows for head-tracking with 3 degrees of
freedom (DOF), ultra-low latency and a field of view (FOV) of 110 degrees diagonally and
90 degrees horizontally for convincing immersion. The Rift incorporates a flat 7-inch
(17.8- centimeter) 60Hz LCD display screen with a resolution of 1280 by 800 pixels

(around 720p high-def resolution). The screen is divided into 640 by 800 pixels per eye,
with a 2.5-inch (64-millimeter) fixed distance between lens centers. The user views the
screen through two lens cups. There are plans to make the consumer model's resolution at
least 1080p, and the company has already demonstrated two 1080p prototypes (the HD and
Crystal Cove models). The display inputs include DVI-D Single Link, HDMI 1.3+ and
USB 2.0 Full Speed+, all fed to it through the single control box cord.

The Rift without its immersion-producing lenses

The Rift with its immersion-producing lenses

System Requirements
The Oculus Rift device and Software Development Kit (SDK) support Linux, Mac
OS and Windows operating systems. There are no specific minimum system requirements,

however some recommended guidelines include:

Windows (Vista, 7 or 8)

Mac OS 10.6 or higher

Linux (Ubuntu 12.04 LTS)

2.0+ GHz processor

2 GB RAM

Direct3D 10 or OpenGL 3 compatible video card

The Oculus SDK is publicly available and open source, meaning that anyone can

obtain, use and even modify and distribute the code.

3. WORKING
Orientation Tracking
The head tracking software in the Oculus Rift replicates the way the user would look
around in the real world thus allowing the user to look around the virtual world in the same
manner. The players head movement is continuously analyzed and used to control the
view, rather than relying on a mouse or analogue stick to turn your view in the game. The
new Oculus VR sensor supports sampling rates up to 1000 Hz, thus helping minimize the
time between the players head movement and the game engine receiving the sensor data to
roughly 2 milliseconds. Since the increased sampling rates provide a denser dataset to
integrate over, orientation error is also reduced, which syncs the players real-world
movements more with the game.

Motion Sensor

The Oculus Rift headset contains a gyroscope, accelerometer, and magnetometer. To

determine the orientation of the users head in the real world, we combine the information
from these sensors through a process known as sensor fusion. It is also used to synchronize
the users virtual perspective in real-time. The data provided by these sensors help to
accurately track and portray yaw, pitch, and roll movements.
8

A very simple model of the users head and neck is useful in accurately translating
sensor information from head movements into camera movements. This is denoted as the
head model, and it represents the fact that movement of the head in any of the three
directions actually pivots around a point roughly at the base of your necknear your
voice-box. Depth perception and the uncomfortable feeling normally associated with VR
when you rotate your head are solved by producing a translation at your eyes thereby
creating a motion parallax.

The Rifts orientation is reported as a set ofrotations in a right-handed coordinate system.

The most valuable data for head orientation tracking is provided by the gyroscope,
which reports the rate of rotation (angular velocity) around X, Y and Z axes in
radians/second. The Oculus SDK can determine the direction of the Rift relative to where it
began since it continuously collects angular velocity samples over time.

Although the gyroscope provides orientation relative to the starting point, it poses
two challenges: it cant provide the original orientation of the headset and it is subject to a
small amount of drift over time i.e. imagine re-orienting your head back to perfect center
but in the game youre now looking slightly left or right. These are obviously significant
issues for any VR game with a fixed reference point (i.e. a game with a cockpit, where your
heads orientation does not affect the position of whatever car/plane/mech youre piloting).
Nevertheless, by leveraging the accelerometer to estimate the down vector and our
magnetometer to measure strength and direction of the magnetic field, we can combine
them to allow for correction of drift in all three axes.
Thus the Oculus Rift headset contains a gyroscope, accelerometer, and
magnetometer. The information from these sensors are combined through a process known
as sensor fusion to determine the orientation of the users head in the real world, and to
synchronize the users virtual perspective in real-time. These sensors provide data to
accurately track and portray yaw, pitch, and roll movements.
A very simple model of the users head and neck to be useful in accurately
translating sensor information from head movements into camera movements have been
found and this is referred in short as the head model, and it reflects the fact that movement
of the head in any of the three directions actually pivots around a point roughly at the base
of our necknear our voice-box. This means that rotation of the head also produces a
translation at our eyes, creating motion parallax, a powerful cue for both depth perception
and comfort.

10

Position Tracking
Position tracking opens new possibilities for more comfortable, immersive
experiences and gameplay elements. For example, a cockpit console can be examined by
the players by leaning in, they can peer around corners with a subtle shift of the body, or
sidestep projectiles by moving out of their way, to name a few. DK2 introduces 6-degreeof-freedom position tracking to the Rift. Underneath the DK2s IR-translucent outer casing
is an array of infrared micro-LEDs, which are tracked in real space by the included infrared
camera. Positional tracking should always correspond 1:1 with the users movements as
long as they are inside the tracking cameras volume. Augmenting the response of position
tracking to the players movements can be discomforting.
The SDK reports a rough model of the users head in space based on a set of points
and vectors. The model is defined around an origin point, which should be centered
approximately at the pivot point of the users head and neck when they are sitting up in a
comfortable position in front of the camera.
Here we have to give users the ability to reset the head models origin point based
on where they are sitting and how their Rift is set up. Users may also shift or move during
gameplay, and therefore should have the ability to reset the origin at any time. Also should
provide users with some means of guidance to help them best position themselves in front
of the camera to allow free movement during our experience without leaving the tracking
volume. Otherwise, a user might unknowingly set the origin to a point on the edge of the
cameras tracking range, causing them to lose position tracking when they move. This can
take the form of a set-up or calibration utility separate from gameplay.

11

The head model is primarily composed of three vectors. One vector roughly maps
onto the users neck, which begins at the origin of the position tracking space and points to
the center eye, a point roughly at the users nose bridge. Two vectors originate from the
center eye, one pointing to the pupil of the left eye, the other to the right. More detailed
documentation on user position data can be found in the SDK.
Position tracking opens new possibilities for more comfortable, immersive
experiences and gameplay elements. Players can lean in to examine a cockpit console, peer
around corners with a subtle shift of the body, dodge projectiles by ducking out of their
way, and much more.
Although position tracking holds a great deal of potential, it also introduces new
challenges. First, users can leave the viewing area of the tracking camera and lose position
tracking, which can be a very jarring experience. (Orientation tracking functions inside and
outside the cameras tracking range, based on the proprietary IMU technology which has
carried over from DK1 to complement new camera-based orientation and positional
tracking.) To maintain a consistent, uninterrupted experience, we should provide users with
warnings as they begin to approach the edges of the cameras tracking volume before
position tracking is lost. They should also receive some form of feedback that will help
them better position themselves in front of the camera for tracking.
This also recommend fading the scene to black before tracking is lost, which is a
much less disorienting and discomforting sight than seeing the environment without
position tracking while moving. The SDK defaults to using orientation tracking and the
head model when position tracking is lost. While this does merely simulate the experience

12

of using the DK1, moving with the expectation of position tracking and not having the
rendered scene respond accordingly can be discomforting.
The second challenge introduced by position tracking is that users can now move the
virtual camera into unusual positions that might have been previously impossible. For
instance, users can move the camera to look under objects or around barriers to see parts of
the environment that would be hidden from them in a conventional video game. On the one
hand, this opens up new methods of interaction, like physically moving to peer around
cover or examine objects in the environment.
On the other hand, users may be able to uncover technical shortcuts that might have
taken in designing the environment that would normally be hidden without position
tracking. We have to take care to ensure that art and assets do not break the users sense of
immersion in the virtual environment.
A related issue is that the user can potentially use position tracking to clip through
the virtual environment by leaning through a wall or object. One approach is to design your
environment so that it is impossible for the user to clip through an object while still inside
the cameras tracking volume. Following the recommendations above, the scene would
fade to black before the user could clip through anything. Similar to preventing users from
approaching objects closer than the optical comfort zone of 0.75-3.5 meters, however, this
can make the viewer feel distanced from everything, as if surrounded by an invisible
barrier. Experimentation and testing will be necessary to find an ideal solution that
balances usability and comfort.

13

Although we encourage developers to explore innovative new solutions to these

challenges of position tracking, we discourage any method that takes away position
tracking from the user or otherwise changes its behavior while the virtual environment is in
view. Seeing the virtual environment stop responding (or responding differently) to
position tracking, particularly while moving in the real world, can be discomforting to the
user. Any method for combating these issues should provide the user with adequate
feedback for what is happening and how to resume normal interaction.

Low Persistence
Low persistence relates to how quickly the displays refresh. The switch from LCD
(in DK1) to OLED (in DK2) displays played a big role in doing away with the smearing or
ghosting of objects. Now only the updated frames are displayed to the user, as they are
drawn by the GPU only the updated frames are displayed to the user. DK2 uses a low
persistence OLED display to eliminate motion blur and judder, two of the biggest factors in
causing simulator sickness. This newly-introduced feature helps makes the scene appear
visually stable.
The new hardware has HD displays, suspected to be 720p display, as the individual
pixels could still be seen, creating a "screen door" effect. The goal of the Oculus team is to
accomplish greater resolutions and attain even lower latency. Their aim is to lower the
current number from around 30 ms to under the sub-20 ms range for the final consumer
version.

14

The Oculus Rift DK2 will sport low-persistence displays, which will reduce the
nausea-inducing motion blur produced by fast-paced games.

Oculus VR defines latency as the total time between movement of the users head
and the updated image being displayed on the screen (motion-to-photon), and it includes
the times for fusion, image transmission, rendering, sensor response and display response.
Reducing latency is critical to a comfortable and immersive VR experience. One of the
unique points that separate Rift from its competitors is its low latency head tracking.
Thus for understanding the working of Oculus Rift, we first need to understand the
working of any head mounted display in VR. The principle in general is called as closed
(video only) HMD. Here, the monitor is mounted very close to the eye.

Creating VR with a HMD

15

The Oculus Rift works like a conventional head-mounted display, but packs a few
features that make it ideal for gaming. For example, the Rift offers impressive headtracking capabilities; stereoscopic 3D rendering; a wide field of view (110 degrees -- most
headsets only offer around 40 degrees); and several inputs (DVI/HDMI and USB). When
wearing the Oculus, each eye gets close and personal with a 640x800 LCD screen for a
total resolution of 1,280x800 (720p).

Oculus Rifts Massive field of view

16

4. INTERFACING
The Oculus SDK can be currently run in Mac OS, Windows (Vista 7, 8) & Linux.
There are no specific computer hardware requirements for the Oculus SDK; however, a
computer with a modern graphics card is recommended. A good benchmark is to try
running Unreal Engine 3 and Unity at 60 frames per second (FPS) with vertical sync and
stereo 3D enabled. The following components are provided as a guideline:

Linux: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

2.0+ GHz processor

2 GB system RAM

Direct3D10

OpenGL 3 CVC

Windows: Vista, 7, or 8
Many lower end mobile video cards, such as the Intel HD 4000, consists graphics

that can run minimal Rift demos, their rendering throughout may be inadequate for fullscene 60 FPS. The SDK also supports gaming controllers which include Xbox 360 wired
controllers for Xbox and the Sony play station DUALshock3 controller for Mac OS. To use
the headset the control box is connected with the computer via the USB port using Digital
Video Interactive (DVI) or High Definition Multi-media Interface (HDMI).

17

5. ADOPTION
Games and game platforms must be specifically designed to work correctly with the
Oculus Rift. Oculus is producing a software development kit (SDK) to assist developers
with integrating the Oculus Rift with their games. The SDK will include code, samples and
documentation. Since its introduction, many developers have been working on integration.
Team Fortress 2 was the first game to add support for the Oculus Rift, and is currently
available to play with the Oculus Rift
development kit by use of a command line option. Although at the time of this writing the
consumer version of Oculus Rift isn't out yet, there are already some games from major
developers that have been created or ported to work with the device. These include:

Doom 3 BFG Edition by id Software - the first Oculus-ready game.

Eve: Valkyrie by CCP Games - an exclusive launch title for Oculus Rift.

Team Fortress 2 by Valve - a port that can be played in VR mode.

Half Life 2 by Valve - another port that can be played in VR mode.

Hawken by Meteor Entertainment and Adhesive Games.

6 Team Fortress 2 on Oculus Rift

18

Unfortunately, not just any 3-D game can be played with the device just yet. Due to
the unique properties of the Rift, including its wide field of vision and head-tracking
abilities, games and other applications will have to be specifically made to work with the
device.

19

6. SIMILAR TECHNOLOGIES
Google glass
Google Glass is a type of wearable technology with an optical head-mounted display
(OHMD). It was developed by Google with the mission of producing a mass-market
ubiquitous computer.

Google glass
For some reason people always compare Oculus Rift with Google glass. Apart from
the fact that they both are a type of Head Mounted Display, they are completely different
and they were built for totally different purposes and for different audience too. Oculus Rift
is designed explicitly for gaming purposes, whereas Google glass is built for a more
general purpose of mobility and connectivity.

Sonys Project Morpheus

Project Morpheus is the codename for an upcoming virtual reality headset produced
by Sony Computer Entertainment. It is designed to be fully functional with the Sony
PlayStation 4 and work with the PlayStation Vita. It is currently a prototype and will be
released sometime after 2014.

20

Project Morpheus
Project Morpheus can truly be considered as a competition to Oculus Rift. Like
Oculus Rift, Project Morpheus is designed primarily for gaming purposes and also both the
products will be targeted to the same audience. Neither headset is anywhere near the
finished product though and both companies insist that the design and technical
specifications may change significantly before release.

The Sixth Sense Technology

Sixth Sense is a wearable gesture based device that augments the physical world
with digital information and lets people use natural hand gestures to interact with that
information.

Sixth Sense Technology

21

It was developed by Pranav Mistry, a PhD student in the Fluid Interfaces Group at
the MIT Media Lab. A grad student with the Fluid Interfaces Group at MIT, he caused a
storm with his creation of Sixth Sense.
Oculus Rift and Sixth Sense are by no means competitors, in fact, there is a
possibility that both technologies can work in unison and complement each other. The
introduction of the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset is a particularly exciting development
for Sixth Sense because the headset is a natural match for the 3D input devices.

22

COMPARISON
Comparative study of Oculus Rift DK 2 and Project Morpheus
The Oculus Rift Development Kit 2 is the second generation or second iteration of
virtual reality from Oculus VR and it is head-mounted display that will be sold to
developers who want a head start in making virtual games for the device. It has an OLED
display designed to use low-persistence-of-vision to smooth motion, & also a full
positional tracking system with an update rate of 60Hz. Sony's VR system is currently
termed as Project Morpheus, and it will work exclusively with PS4. The headset integrates
with the PlayStation Camera for tracking and PlayStation Move for motion control. While
the currently it uses a 5-meter cable, Sony would like to make it wireless by its release
date.
There is more to Virtual Reality than hardware. The compatibility of the devices in
terms of software libraries is also essential. Which is where Oculus Rift DK2 is winning
because of its previous iteration it is compatible with most popular games incorporating
virtual reality. The Oculus Rift, shows its roots as a homemade solution and easier to use as
the Oculus Rift's use of elastics is simple.
Project Morpheus has a sleek and futuristic exterior appearance that will definitely
attract gamers. It requires a two-step process of getting it on your head and then adjusting
the depth of the display into your face.
Morpheus also uses new 3D audio technology that re- creates stereoscopic sounds in
all directions and changes in real-time depending on the wearer's head orientation, which is
not used in Rift. The device is also compatible with the DualShock 4 wireless controller
23

and PlayStation Move makes for a never seen before VR stimulation.

Project Morpheus appears to suffer from less of a screen door effect. But there is
image persistence in Sony, so Oculus Rift wins in this area. Despite this Oculus Rift is
pretty uncomfortable to use if one wears glasses. By comparison Project Morpheus is very
ergonomically designed, and very easy to adjust. Oculus Rift is for PC and Project
Morpheus is for Play Station 4.

Sonys Project Morpheus

In the early stages, more innovation may come from Oculus Rift simply from the
strength of the free open source community, but eventually Sony's product will have some
amazing blockbusters from its AAA developers. Neither headset is anywhere near the
finished product though and both companies insist that the design and technical
specifications may change significantly before release.

24

7. COMPARISON OF SPECIFICATIONS

25

8. FUTURE SCOPE
Though the Oculus Rift has huge implications for the gaming industry, its potential
stretches way beyond games. The Oculus Rift offers unprecedented levels of simulation
that can be useful in nearly every core industry. It may even prove more revolutionary than
the smart phone.

For Remote Interactions

The magic of Oculus Rift and virtual reality in general is how it grants us the
ability to be present in another world. That concept can be taken and augmented by the
global interconnectedness of the 21st Century to provide for some mind-blowing
experiences. In some ways, the Oculus Rift can be used to project oneself to places that
may not be reachable otherwise.

Virtual tourism
When Google Street View debuted in 2007, it amazed everybody. It was the

natural next step after satellite map technology, and the Oculus Rift will drive that
evolution one step further. Rather than simple street views, imagine virtual recreations of
entire Earth locations. Imagine being able to explore those locations in real-time down to
the finest details.
This is great news for those who are physically unable to travel (e.g. due to
physical injury) or limited by the financial costs of travel. It could also allow us to explore
places of the world that are inherently dangerous (like remote jungle areas) or impossible
to reach (such as mountain ranges or undersea caverns).

26

Patient care
It can be a real pain for incapacitated or unstable patients to constantly travel

back and forth to doctors and therapists. At first, the Oculus Rift could provide a way for
doctors and patients to meet regularly for sessions, but as the tech advances, it could even
allow for remote examinations.

For Education

Classrooms
While online courses are nothing new, they still have a long way to go before

theyll be seen as equal to live classrooms. The Oculus Rift might be the key to providing a
better environment for remote learners. Combined with the aforementioned virtual
tourism, classrooms could embark on high-tech field trips to foreign lands for a fraction of
the cost.

Creative exploration
The Rift opens up dozens of new ways for children to explore creative

education. Educational Minecraft is gaining ground as a viable teaching tool, currently

utilized in 40+ countries.

Special learning
The Rift has also shown to be an effective tool in situations that involve

special needs children or kids with social anxiety.

27

For Training and Simulation

The simulation aspect of the Oculus Rift can be put to use as a tool for training. Its
one of the more obvious non-gaming applications for the device, mostly because non-VR
simulations already exist in many fields, but the quality of simulation is whats important
here.

Medicine
Modern surgery simulations are actually quite sophisticated already; in fact,

theyre so sophisticated that the field doesnt actually need a device like the Oculus Rift.
However, the Rifts price tag is extremely appealing, especially as a tool for showing
student surgeons the perspective of a surgery-in-progress.
As far as Oculus demos go, the surgery isnt a particularly advanced use of
virtual reality. Its basically just a widescreen video playing in front of your eyes, with the
ability to lean in for a closer view of the action. But compared to just watching the video on
a computer screen, the Oculus video is arguably better at blocking distractions. Plus, it
shows you exactly what the operating surgeon was seeing during real-world procedures.

For Architecture and Modeling

While the exploration of fantasy environments is an obvious selling point for the
Oculus Rift, some are using the device to explore environments before theyre constructed
in the real world.

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Architecture
A lot of resources are expended when designing and prototyping buildings,

but the Oculus Rift allows architects to build and explore their creations in a virtual
environment without the need for any physical resources. As it turns out, this can be
extremely convenient.

Modeling
Virtual sculpting is another way in which the Rift provides an outlet for

creative exploration. As the above video shows, the virtual environment allows for a unique
approach to 3D modeling, which has implications for digital art (though it probably wont
catch on until precision and workflow are improved).

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9. PROBLEMS
The "screen door effect" refers to a distracting phenomenon people experience when
fine lines between individual pixels comprising the image on a monitor become visible.
This appears because projector optics mostly has higher pixel density than the projected
image, which allows these fine lines, which are much smaller than the pixels themselves, to
be seen. The fine lines or the small separations between these pixels give the stimulation or
sensation of watching an image through a mesh, & thereby the name.

Example of screen door effect as seen in Oculus Rift

This happens because of the empty space between pixels - a characteristic of a

display known as pixel fill factor. Most displays that use real pixels (as opposed to
projection) have some amount of space between pixels. On an LCD display, each pixel is
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made up of three sub- colored pixels red, green, and blue which are lit at different
intensities to make the human eye perceives whichever color is intended for that pixel. The
pixel pitch or dot pitch of a display indicates the distance between sub pixels. Higher
pixel pitch generally correlates with higher pixel fill factor.

Pixel fill factor

The Oculus Rifts display has a decent pixel fill factor but because its proximity to
the users eyes, the screen door effect becomes quite critical.

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10. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

Advantages:
Oculus Rift provides better gaming experience whereby visual display is instinctive,
ie Gamers can orientate their perspective base on head motion. Also it create the
impression of an immense environment within a small physical space, ie large field of
view. Oculus offer low latency, fast head-tracking performance. Head movement tracking
without motion sickness. Adjustable focus for near-or-far-sighted gamers.

Disadvantages:
In Oculus Rift it lacks compatible games. Also not enough content.

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11. CONCLUSION
VR holds out the promise of allowing us to literally show one another what we mean
rather than merely describing it with crude verbal approximations. VR offers the possibility
of evolving our communication into a kind of telepathy, ultimately bridging the gap
between our discrete imaginations. This is what virtual reality holds out to us - the
possibility of walking into the constructs of the imagination. And in this field rapid
advancements are being made by Oculus VR and Sony entertainment. Though both very
similar , but made for different platforms herald in the VR age with their futuristic looking
devices , and are also playing a major role in making Virtual reality available to general
public . Both the devices have some drawbacks which have been said to be removed by the
time the devices reach the consumer market.
Early impressions of the developer model have been largely positive. Many people
think the Rift is incredibly cool. On the other hand, there have been the expected
complaints about nausea and dizziness, and some concern about using glasses with the
Oculus Rift. The Rift lets you step into a game, look around in any direction and see the
game environment all around you rather than on a flat screen surrounded by your living
room decor. And you see it in 3D. Not quite the technology that we see in fictional movies
yet, but a good step in that direction.
As it always does, technology has improved by leaps and bounds, graphics have
gotten better, and now with the Oculus Rift, it sounds like more enjoyable and believable
VR is within our grasp.

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12. REFERENCES
https://www.oculus.com/rift/
www.dmarlett.com/s/Paper183196-3200.pdf
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-amazing-non-gaming-ways-peopleusing-oculus-rift/

inpressco.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Paper903589-3592.pdf

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