Virtual Worlds: Practical Application
The virtual worlds used since 1990 in the army and medicine attracted the attention of the masses in 2003, when Linden Lab launched the famous Second Life . Following them, new worlds appeared (among those who are at the hearing - OpenSim, Blue Mars, Open Wonderland) - just over a hundred can be counted. The boom was in 2006-2008. Copies of hundreds of famous museums and art galleries from around the world, the embassies of Sweden, Serbia, Macedonia, the Philippines — dozens of countries — opened virtual doors for virtual worlds to consult on the visa issue, and archaeologists modeled prototypes of ancient settlements.
“Augmented reality” was supposed to be a new stage in the evolution of corporate intranet systems and promote the development of remote work and cooperation. One of the most “full-fledged” virtual offices is the project of SUN Microsystems , launched in 2008 on the basis of Wonderland.
')
In this 3D space, employees can move between departments and even between SUN campus buildings, post documents for sharing, watch product samples, and communicate with the same virtual “voice” colleagues. However, in 2010, after the merger of SUN and Oracle, funding for the project was suspended.
In 2007, Gartner predicted that by the end of 2011, 80% of active Internet users would have a “virtual self”. However, as early as 2008, Linden Labs reduced the development staff by a third, commercial companies began to gradually close their representative offices, and recent studies have shown that only 4% of people have virtual “I” among adult audiences. Virtual worlds in business and education have been shaken in a crisis when organizations and universities began to cut budgets and sum up the first years of introducing “augmented reality” platforms. In 2009-2010, $ 250,000,000 was spent on the virtualization of the 16 campuses of the University of Texas - 3 “islands” costing $ 700 per campus, and $ 1,770 would be worth the annual support fee. However, the University administration did not consider the virtual world to be an effective tool for achieving its goals - strengthening teamwork, distance education, and virtual scientific work.
Today, virtual representations of companies on public platforms are more like “ghost towns”, however, “closed” “augmented reality” programs continue to be created to address domestic needs. We decided to see what progress is being made on this front today. In general, there are two main vectors - commerce and education.
In this area, virtual spaces serve two tasks at once:
• Training of doctors
The field for development in this area is quite extensive - with the help of virtual programs, you can train young doctors, work out team operations, gather scientists from different parts of the world "over one patient" to work together to solve a medical problem, while everyone would have access to the results of tests and virtual copy of the patient and so on.
From the recent in this area - the European Space Agency is working on the creation of an augmented reality system for training astronauts to assist and diagnose each other's diseases in space. The prototype system was successfully tested at the University of San Pierre in Brussels
• Customer consultation
You are a diabetic and you hear that the level of glucose in the blood jumped to a dangerous level. You are a drug addict who has started a party, where you meet a hospitable dude who is ready to entertain you with a joint. You have a post-traumatic shock after a bomb exploded under the wheels of your car, and suddenly you see yourself again in the war zone on the very same road - such situations were presented at the last HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) conference in Las Vegas
Psychology, diseases of the nervous system, chronic diseases that require constant monitoring of doctors - these are the few areas where immersion in the virtual world can speed up the healing process.
Virtual reality is widely used in training soldiers and preparing for operations - literally every six months the headlines about “ even more reality, unattainable by previous systems ” flash.
And recently, the US Agency for Security Research (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), known as the "Department of Mad Scientists" has developed 3D contact lenses for the military. The next step in the evolution of their scientific thought is transparent equipment that transmits visual data, graphics and information from satellites and cameras to a soldier right on the battlefield.
A program for training experts in this field was developed at the US National Forensic Science and Technology Center. A virtual instructor shows how to collect evidence, fingerprints and DNA samples:
Holiday Inn launched a virtual copy of the hotel to entertain guests of the 2012 London Olympics. With the help of smartphones and tablets, guests can watch the "sports stars" at the reception, in the corridors of the hotel and even rooms. In particular, it will be possible to see how the British surfer Nick Depsie puts a sheet instead of a sail, and the record holder in long jump Chris Tomlinson "trains" in the lobby. With virtual athletes you can take pictures and share photos with friends on social networks.
Canadian realtors are renting virtual homes with Google Street View. If, for example, you decide to move to Canada, you can make a virtual tour of the area without leaving your home and find out where the store is nearby and where the pharmacy is.
With the help of the virtual world, built on the basis of OpenSim, Siemens employees are studying product prototypes. “If the virtual world is created on the company's own platform, it is no less protected from third-party interference than the traditional intranet,” says Steven Russell, specialist of corporate research at Siemens (Siemens Corporate Research, ”At the same time, the introduction and maintenance of such systems is cheaper than travel and“ holographic technology, as in Star Trek ".
Augmented Reality is a haven for marketers and advertisers. Here, technology has already gone beyond the screens of computers and moved directly into the trading rooms and much less expected places.
Many people remember the success of the Korean supermarket, the virtual shelves of which suddenly appeared in the subway. (Having considered the QR code of the desired product, it was automatically entered into the basket, an online purchase was made, and then the goods were delivered to the house at the specified time). Although the technology is simple - product posters were placed in lightboxes, which created a volumetric effect, the passengers were impressed. So, without opening additional stores, the company increased online sales by 130% and came out on top among online stores in South Korea.
Later this trick was repeated by the Australians.
Interactive has penetrated into the clothing stores - the queues in the fitting room are replaced ... queues to the screen. Here, too, I would like to recall the sensational campaign of the Wildlife Protection Foundation (one of the prizes of the Cannes Lviv festival, won by the Russian advertising team). Wearing a T-shirt with the image of an Amur tiger, the buyer became a “victim of a poacher”. Barely approaching the "mirror" (the screen with the camera), the "shot" was heard.
“Augmented reality” was supposed to be a new stage in the evolution of corporate intranet systems and promote the development of remote work and cooperation. One of the most “full-fledged” virtual offices is the project of SUN Microsystems , launched in 2008 on the basis of Wonderland.
')
In this 3D space, employees can move between departments and even between SUN campus buildings, post documents for sharing, watch product samples, and communicate with the same virtual “voice” colleagues. However, in 2010, after the merger of SUN and Oracle, funding for the project was suspended.
In 2007, Gartner predicted that by the end of 2011, 80% of active Internet users would have a “virtual self”. However, as early as 2008, Linden Labs reduced the development staff by a third, commercial companies began to gradually close their representative offices, and recent studies have shown that only 4% of people have virtual “I” among adult audiences. Virtual worlds in business and education have been shaken in a crisis when organizations and universities began to cut budgets and sum up the first years of introducing “augmented reality” platforms. In 2009-2010, $ 250,000,000 was spent on the virtualization of the 16 campuses of the University of Texas - 3 “islands” costing $ 700 per campus, and $ 1,770 would be worth the annual support fee. However, the University administration did not consider the virtual world to be an effective tool for achieving its goals - strengthening teamwork, distance education, and virtual scientific work.
Today, virtual representations of companies on public platforms are more like “ghost towns”, however, “closed” “augmented reality” programs continue to be created to address domestic needs. We decided to see what progress is being made on this front today. In general, there are two main vectors - commerce and education.
The medicine
In this area, virtual spaces serve two tasks at once:
• Training of doctors
The field for development in this area is quite extensive - with the help of virtual programs, you can train young doctors, work out team operations, gather scientists from different parts of the world "over one patient" to work together to solve a medical problem, while everyone would have access to the results of tests and virtual copy of the patient and so on.
From the recent in this area - the European Space Agency is working on the creation of an augmented reality system for training astronauts to assist and diagnose each other's diseases in space. The prototype system was successfully tested at the University of San Pierre in Brussels
• Customer consultation
You are a diabetic and you hear that the level of glucose in the blood jumped to a dangerous level. You are a drug addict who has started a party, where you meet a hospitable dude who is ready to entertain you with a joint. You have a post-traumatic shock after a bomb exploded under the wheels of your car, and suddenly you see yourself again in the war zone on the very same road - such situations were presented at the last HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) conference in Las Vegas
Psychology, diseases of the nervous system, chronic diseases that require constant monitoring of doctors - these are the few areas where immersion in the virtual world can speed up the healing process.
Army
Virtual reality is widely used in training soldiers and preparing for operations - literally every six months the headlines about “ even more reality, unattainable by previous systems ” flash.
And recently, the US Agency for Security Research (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), known as the "Department of Mad Scientists" has developed 3D contact lenses for the military. The next step in the evolution of their scientific thought is transparent equipment that transmits visual data, graphics and information from satellites and cameras to a soldier right on the battlefield.
Forensics
A program for training experts in this field was developed at the US National Forensic Science and Technology Center. A virtual instructor shows how to collect evidence, fingerprints and DNA samples:
Hospitality Industry
Holiday Inn launched a virtual copy of the hotel to entertain guests of the 2012 London Olympics. With the help of smartphones and tablets, guests can watch the "sports stars" at the reception, in the corridors of the hotel and even rooms. In particular, it will be possible to see how the British surfer Nick Depsie puts a sheet instead of a sail, and the record holder in long jump Chris Tomlinson "trains" in the lobby. With virtual athletes you can take pictures and share photos with friends on social networks.
The property
Canadian realtors are renting virtual homes with Google Street View. If, for example, you decide to move to Canada, you can make a virtual tour of the area without leaving your home and find out where the store is nearby and where the pharmacy is.
Corporate systems
With the help of the virtual world, built on the basis of OpenSim, Siemens employees are studying product prototypes. “If the virtual world is created on the company's own platform, it is no less protected from third-party interference than the traditional intranet,” says Steven Russell, specialist of corporate research at Siemens (Siemens Corporate Research, ”At the same time, the introduction and maintenance of such systems is cheaper than travel and“ holographic technology, as in Star Trek ".
Retail
Augmented Reality is a haven for marketers and advertisers. Here, technology has already gone beyond the screens of computers and moved directly into the trading rooms and much less expected places.
Many people remember the success of the Korean supermarket, the virtual shelves of which suddenly appeared in the subway. (Having considered the QR code of the desired product, it was automatically entered into the basket, an online purchase was made, and then the goods were delivered to the house at the specified time). Although the technology is simple - product posters were placed in lightboxes, which created a volumetric effect, the passengers were impressed. So, without opening additional stores, the company increased online sales by 130% and came out on top among online stores in South Korea.
Later this trick was repeated by the Australians.
Interactive has penetrated into the clothing stores - the queues in the fitting room are replaced ... queues to the screen. Here, too, I would like to recall the sensational campaign of the Wildlife Protection Foundation (one of the prizes of the Cannes Lviv festival, won by the Russian advertising team). Wearing a T-shirt with the image of an Amur tiger, the buyer became a “victim of a poacher”. Barely approaching the "mirror" (the screen with the camera), the "shot" was heard.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/140081/
All Articles