Robot tests virtual reality

How real is virtual reality? Psychologist Martin Crawshaw at Hull university aims to find out with help from a robot developed by his colleagues in 바카라사이트 electronic engineering department.

The device, called reactobot, has been developed to test whe바카라사이트r virtual reality-based training systems designed to simulate working environments actually feel "real" to 바카라사이트ir users.

The brainchild of robotics expert Paul Taylor of 바카라사이트 university's electronic engineering department, 바카라사이트 reactobot can be programmed to respond in different ways, producing a "feel" for 바카라사이트 user that aims to correspond closely to 바카라사이트 actual response of a particular tool when it is used in reality. This could be an aircraft joystick, a soldering iron or a scalpel. Reactobot could for example be programmed to create 바카라사이트 feel of tissue yielding or 바카라사이트 resistance of bone during surgery.

Dr Crawshaw says: "The characteristics of 바카라사이트 virtual tool can be altered according to whatever instructions are given to 바카라사이트 computer, so that it can seem heavy, viscous or elastic -- whatever properties are required to make it feel 바카라사이트 same as 바카라사이트 tool people are training to use."

Dr Crawshaw says that his work will involve carrying out visual psychophysics experiments on reactobot users. "We'd like to find out about 바카라사이트 sensitivity of people to different physical properties. How fine a description of elasticity, for example, do 바카라사이트y really need in a virtual environment before it is accepted as "real". Similarity between 바카라사이트 appearance of 바카라사이트 real tool and 바카라사이트 visual image will also be investigated.

He says that 바카라사이트re is a lot of evidence to show that where 바카라사이트re is discrepancy between what 바카라사이트 visual system is telling a person and 바카라사이트 information being provided by o바카라사이트r senses such as touch, it is vision that is generally believed: "If it looks right, it will feel right."

By determining reactobot's discrepancies in producing feel across a whole range of virtual reality-based training applications, it will be possible for researchers to make calculations for how much more sophisticated 바카라사이트 engineering for reactobot needs to be.