What attracted me was this really awesome new technology that Disney Research created called AIREAL, which allows for "Interactive Tactile Experiences in Free Air" at very low cost. A quick synopsis, for those interested:
"AIREAL is a new low cost, highly scalable haptic technology that delivers expressive tactile sensations in mid air. AIREAL enables users to feel virtual objects, experience dynamically varying textures and receive feedback on full body gestures, all without requiring the user to wear a physical device. AIREAL is designed to use a vortex, a ring of air that can travel large distances while keeping its shape and speed. When the vortex hits a user’s skin, the low pressure system inside a vortex collapses and imparts a force the user can feel. The AIREAL technology is almost entirely 3D printed using a 3D printed enclosure, flexible nozzle and a pan and tilt gimbal structure capable of a 75-degree targeting field. Five actuators are mounted around the enclosure which displaces air from the enclosed volume, through the flexible nozzle and into the physical environment. The actuated flexible nozzle allows a vortex to be precisely delivered to any location in 3D space."
But I digress... Anyone remember when SGI (Silicon Graphics Inc.) had a big, honkin' Onyx2 system for VR (Virtual Reality) in Communicore West (from 12/95 to 10/97)? It was a forward-thinking, highly technological showpiece... Unlike, say, the current IBM "Think" exhibit.
Why doesn't Disney showcase many of the really neat areas of research that they're involved in, at Innoventions? It seems like a no-brainer to me. They don't have to involve third parties necessarily, can showcase their own in-house work, and will have a never-ending supply of fresh, new ideas? You know, the principle behind Innoventions and the greater Future World?
Anything's got to be better than the "exhibits" that are Innoventions today, which I hate to say - I skip over entirely. The last time I spent any time in Innoventions... Was when it was Communicore!
"AIREAL is a new low cost, highly scalable haptic technology that delivers expressive tactile sensations in mid air. AIREAL enables users to feel virtual objects, experience dynamically varying textures and receive feedback on full body gestures, all without requiring the user to wear a physical device. AIREAL is designed to use a vortex, a ring of air that can travel large distances while keeping its shape and speed. When the vortex hits a user’s skin, the low pressure system inside a vortex collapses and imparts a force the user can feel. The AIREAL technology is almost entirely 3D printed using a 3D printed enclosure, flexible nozzle and a pan and tilt gimbal structure capable of a 75-degree targeting field. Five actuators are mounted around the enclosure which displaces air from the enclosed volume, through the flexible nozzle and into the physical environment. The actuated flexible nozzle allows a vortex to be precisely delivered to any location in 3D space."
But I digress... Anyone remember when SGI (Silicon Graphics Inc.) had a big, honkin' Onyx2 system for VR (Virtual Reality) in Communicore West (from 12/95 to 10/97)? It was a forward-thinking, highly technological showpiece... Unlike, say, the current IBM "Think" exhibit.
Why doesn't Disney showcase many of the really neat areas of research that they're involved in, at Innoventions? It seems like a no-brainer to me. They don't have to involve third parties necessarily, can showcase their own in-house work, and will have a never-ending supply of fresh, new ideas? You know, the principle behind Innoventions and the greater Future World?
Anything's got to be better than the "exhibits" that are Innoventions today, which I hate to say - I skip over entirely. The last time I spent any time in Innoventions... Was when it was Communicore!
