HTC VIVE
Overview
One of the most advanced VR headsets on the market. With the help of two motion trackers it can create a play area to move around a virtual world in. The two controllers allow for even more complex level of interaction.
Demos
Everest VR - An example of the possibilities that VR can bring by taking you to an impossible landscape without the cost or danger. Everest VR takes you through the milestones climbing Everest from base camp to Hillary's Step. An example
Google Earth VR - A VR tour around the world. The most immersive version of Google Earth yet. Fly around the world and visit the sites from safety of the VisLab.
Richie’s Plank Experience - Experience walking on a plank, but at 160m off the ground. An interesting look into how VR can trick us into thinking we are in danger even though we are perfectly safe.
Star Trek Bridge Crew - One of the biggest hits in VR at the moment, Star Trek Bridge Crew puts you in the thick of the action as an officer on a mission to find a new home world for the dwindling Vulcan populace. Uniquely you can play cooperatively online.
The Body VR, Journey Inside a Cell - A demo from The Body VR, a VR healthcare company. A 12 minutes journey through the blood system. Also contains an anatomy viewer.
The Lab - Valve’s playful demo showing off a variety of uses for the VIVE. Set-up to show how different game genres could be used with VR. Includes playing fetch with a robotic dog, saving a castle from invaders, destroying Aperture Labs warehouse, exploring a scale model of the solar system and more.
Cut-Off VR - a short VICE documentary that puts the viewer in the midst of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit to Shoal Lake 40, a First Nation in Canada without access to clean water. Cut-Off demonstrates how VR can place the viewer in a documentary rather than merely be a spectator.
Setup
Before turning on workstation -
- Check that the two base stations are plugged in, turned on and facing one another. One should be labelled 'b' the other 'c' and both should have a green LED at the top.
- On the LinkBox next to the workstation all the wires attached to the headset should be connected the orange slots. The ones on the back should be plugged into the computer (bar the power connector which should be plugged in and turned on). Make sure that the HDMI cable is connected to the same graphics card as the display.
Booting up software -
- Start SteamVR. It shows the connectivity of each device (headset, two controllers and the two base stations), and will let you know if anything is wrong.
- If you haven't used the Vive before, you can run a tutorial by right clicking the panel and choosing "Run tutorial."
- Software is split across Steam and Viveport.