Sony Virtual Reality

Sony today surprised visitors to the GDC 2014 exhibition by showing a prototype of the Morpheus virtual reality helmet. This helmet will track the movement of the head with the help of built-in inertial sensors and a PS4 video camera. If a person turns his head or turns around, the picture of the computer world changes in real time, providing a natural perception of the matrix of the virtual space.

The helmet will be used both in games and in training simulators: representatives of NASA participated in one of the projects with Sony.


One of the prototypes of 2010
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It turns out that Sony has been experimenting with virtual reality helmets for several years. In 2010, engineers made several prototypes using Sony components and PlayStation Move controllers. These controllers are motion sensitive, like the Wii Remote. The player can take the controller in hand - and use it as a weapon, sports equipment or something else. In the virtual world, he will see his hand with a sword or a tennis racket.

Sony has developed a three-dimensional sound technology that is able to recreate sounds not only from the back and front, but also below and above. For example, the player will hear the crunch of glass under their feet or the steps of an enemy climbing up the stairs. The sound engine also takes into account the rotation of the head.

Sony is ready for the final production phase. In the near future, we will finish the work on the SDK so that the developers start porting games for the VR helmet.

The presentation of "Morpheus" was held by Shuhei Yoshida, President of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide. He recalled that many Sony inventions have become standards in the market, such as Blu-ray discs. The future of computer games is behind virtual reality, Yoshida is sure, and Sony is hoping for the status of a technology leader.

Having our own material and technical base is Sony's advantage over competitors who are working on similar projects. For example, John Carmack will have to order electronics for the Oculus Rift helmet from a third-party manufacturer. In addition, the Oculus Rift does not have a controller like the PS4, although the camera for tracking the head has already appeared . In addition, Sony has 6 million PS4 owners.

Technical characteristics of the prototype Morpheus
Display: LCD
Display Size: 5 inches
Resolution: 1920xRGBx1080 (960xRGBx1080 per eye)
Field of view: 90 degrees horizontal
Sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope
Interfaces: HDMI + USB

UPD. Oculus representatives said that the more competitors they have the better. They are only afraid that Sony will make a bad VR helmet and kill public interest in this technology right at the start. There are grounds for such concerns, judging by Carmack's statements about the Sony HMZ-T1 head-mounted display.

UPD2. Oculus today began to accept pre-orders for the second version of Oculus Rift Developer Kit 2, the developer kit. See package bundle and specifications . Price $ 350, delivery in July.