Therefore, the primary target of this book is undergraduate students around the world. We cannot offer enough slots to come even close to meeting the demand.
I have never in my life seen students so excited to take a course. The Intended Audience The book is growing out of material for an overwhelmingly popular undergraduate course on VR that I introduced at the University of Illinois in 2015 (with hardware support from Oculus/Facebook). Online communities of hackers and makers, along with college students around the world, are excitedly following the rapid advances in VR and are starting to shape it by starting new companies, working to improve the technology, and making new kinds of experiences. At the same time, a new generation of technologists is entering the field with fresh ideas. This has mobilized leading technology companies to invest billions of US dollars into growing a VR ecosystem that includes art, entertainment, enhanced productivity, and social networks.
The latest technological components, mainly arising from the smartphone industry, have enabled high-resolution, low-cost, portable VR headsets to provide compelling VR experiences. Decades later, we are witnessing an exciting rebirth. This was particularly painful in the early 1990s when VR seemed poised to enter mainstream use but failed to catch on (outside of some niche markets).
The hype and excitement has often far exceeded the delivery of VR experiences to match it, especially for people without access to expensive laboratory equipment. At the same time, VR bears the stigma of unkept promises. We can even socialize with people inside of new worlds, either of which could be real or artificial. It is the next step along a path that includes many familiar media, from paintings to movies to video games. VR is like a waking dream that could take place in a magical cartoon-like world, or could transport us to another part of the Earth or universe. By artificially stimulating our senses, our bodies become tricked into accepting another version of reality.
LaValle 2015, 2016 Available for downloading at To be published by Cambridge University Press DRAFT October 31, 2016ģ vi CONTENTS Contents Preface 1 Introduction What Is Virtual Reality? Modern VR Experiences History Repeats Bird s-eye View Hardware Software Human Physiology and Perception The Geometry of Virtual Worlds Geometric Models Changing Position and Orientation Axis-Angle Representations of Rotation Viewing Transformations Chaining the Transformations Light and Optics Basic Behavior of Light Lenses Optical Aberrations The Human Eye Cameras The Physiology of Human Vision From the Cornea to Photoreceptors From Photoreceptors to the Visual Cortex Eye Movements Implications for VR ix 6 Visual Perception Perception of Depth Perception of Motion Perception of Color Combining Sources of Information Visual Rendering Ray Tracing and Shading Models Rasterization Correcting Optical Distortions Improving Latency and Frame Rates Immersive Photos and Videos Motion in Real and Virtual Worlds Velocities and Accelerations The Vestibular System Physics in the Virtual World Mismatched Motion and Vection Tracking Tracking 2D Orientation Tracking 3D Orientation Tracking Position and Orientation Tracking Attached Bodies D Scanning of Environments Interaction Motor Programs and Remapping Locomotion Manipulation Social Interaction Additional Interaction Mechanisms Audio Physics of Sound The Physiology of Human Hearing Auditory Perception Auditory Rendering Evaluating VR Systems and Experiences Perceptual Training Recommendations for Developers Comfort and VR Sickness Experiments on Human Subjects vĤ CONTENTS vii viii CONTENTS 13 Frontiers Touch and Proprioception Smell and Taste Robotic Interfaces Brain-Machine Interfacesĥ x PREFACE Preface The Rebirth of Virtual Reality Virtual reality (VR) is a powerful technology that promises to change our lives unlike any other.
LaValle University of Illinois Copyright Steven M.