This document discusses the potential of virtual reality (VR) technologies for health applications. It provides an overview of the VR landscape, including different display and tracking technologies. It also discusses how VR is more viable now than in the past due to improved quality, lower costs, and a developer community. The document argues that with AAA game titles and therapeutic/training applications, VR adoption will continue to increase for both entertainment and health purposes. It also highlights several emerging areas within VR that show promise for health, such as social platforms, virtual robots/entities, and quantified self-tracking devices.

1. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Howard Rose
President, Design Director
hrose@firsthand.com
www.firsthand.com
@FirsthandTech
Virtual Worlds, Simulations, Games for Health
Copyright 2014 All Rights Reserved Firsthand Technology Inc.

2. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
What were we thinking?
Lawnmower Man Trailer: http://youtu.be/3LNvXjb44-U?t=19s

3. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Power of Immersion
Pain Relief

4. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
TheVR Reboot
1.TheVirtual Landscape
2.What’s different this time
3. Flyover of newVR technologies
with potential for Health Games
Military has been the biggest driver forVirtual
Reality technology - now giving way to games.

5. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
TheVirtual Landscape
Intimate External
Simulation
Augmentation
Virtual
Worlds
Virtual Entities
& Robots
Augmented
Objects & Views
Quantified Self
Lifelogging

6. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Virtuality
•Real-time Interaction (low latency)
•Data producing or data driven
• YOU are the focus AND the device knows you
•Animated = familiar + enhancement
•Interactive: Give and Take (gives a sense of agency)
•Perceived of as “Real” (authentic), fools the senses

7. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Looking Back
Virtual IO Failed HMD company1995 Promo Video: http://youtu.be/YbNUIwi5F6g?t=9m9s

8. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
What’s Different This Time?
We are!

9. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
What Else?
•Internet sales and delivery channels (AppStore, Steam)
•Full Consumer Solution: good-enough quality at a consumer price
•Unity 3D is the defacto standardVR development platform
•Community & Resources: crowdfunding, investment, meet-ups
•Known Beneficial Uses: therapy, pain control, training, performance
•Mainstream Content: AAA titles, indie developers, 360˚ movies

10. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Virtual Displays
Military legacy
Instrumentation HUD
META Glasses3D Workspace with StylusImmersive VR on a Laptop
Sony Morpheus Personal AR on a surface

11. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Tracking Unplugged
GPS
circa 2000
Untethered
HMD
gaming
Natural Point Optical
Tracking
Kinect 2

12. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Input & Interaction
360˚ treadmill
Walk or run in the virtual worldFull body tracking, very wide rangeVirtual articulating hands
Wireless haptic game controller
STEM: Wireless controllers

13. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Quantified Self (Lifelogging)
DIY EEGEmotiv EEGApple’s Going Big in Biosensors
Sleep Analysis Google Glass

14. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Augmented Objects
Amazon Phone: Mixed Reality Information overlay on mobile

15. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Social
Second Life Realtime Social Platform
with emotive avatars

16. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Virtual Entities & Robots
AnyBots
Baxter trainable robot Atum health eating coach.
Nao robot for Autism
Humanoid Robots
Paro, Elderly Companion
Wrist Pet

17. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Gartner Hype Cycle

18. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Gartner 2013 Hype Cycle

19. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Gartner 2013 Hype Cycles
New-breed HMDs
Oculus, Morpheus
Augmented
Reality
Health
Robots
Second
Life
Quant. Self Devices
Motion Capture
Full Motion
Immersive VR
Haptics
Google Glass
CastAR
Unity 3D
Mobile device
Virtuality
Walking
Input Systems
Old-breed HMDs
Howard’s Best Guess

20. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
The UncannyValley
The Uncanny Valley
“Compellingness”
Realism
100%Realistic
100% Compelling
After Mori, 1970

21. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
The Magic Mountain
The Uncanny Valley
“Compellingness”
Realism
100%Realistic
100% Compelling
The Magic Mountain

22. Howard Rose hrose@firsthand.com
Howard Rose
President, Design Director
hrose@firsthand.com
www.firsthand.com
@FirsthandTech
THANKYOU