— CONTEXT
Master's program project
for the "Design for Emerging Technologies" course
— ROLE
Project Manager
Interaction Designer
Hardware Developer
— DURATION
Feb-Mar 2023 (1 month)
— TOOLS & SKILLS
Virtual Reality (VR)
Unity (C#)
Arduino (C++)
Quest 2
The project task was to create an educational immersive virtual experience that incorporates Meta Quest 2, Unity, and tangible objects.
I'm thrilled to share our group's creation – SpaceX[R]. This mixed-reality prototype uses Virtual Reality (VR), hand-tracking, tangible objects, and haptic feedback to convey planetary properties and provide an immersive learning experience of our solar system🚀
I had several roles including ensuring team collaboration and communication between developers, designers, and researchers🤝
I also designed and developed a physical device that provides haptic feedback through heat and vibrations using Arduino👨💻
Delivering engaging experiences for the users with a 90% satisfaction rate in the public exhibition held at Stockholm University with Ericsson✨
Tangible Objects: Planets
Physical models were created to enhance the user's immersion in the VR experience – as the user grabs the virtual object, they also feel it in the physical world!😎
Adding to the immersion and sensory experience, we incorporated unique textures and weights into the physical models of each planet using styrofoam, modelling concrete, and sand. Thus, reflecting their unique size, density, and composition.
Haptic Feedback Device
As a hardware developer, I added haptic feedback to the experience using Arduino boards, the Arduino Studio IDE, a Peltier device, and a vibration motor to teach users about each planet's temperature and seismic activity through heat🔥 and vibrations💥
Working alongside our developers, we programmed the board to change temperature values and activate the vibration motor based on the planet the user grabs in the VR scene, which provides an interactive and engaging way for users to learn about each planet's unique characteristics🌍
According to our survey results, 80% of the testers thought that the planet models and physical gear enhanced the experience🎉.
VR Unity Scenes
Inside the VR environment, users are presented with planets in a semi-circle around the user, ordered by their distance to the sun. Stars and nebulae surround the user, and cosmic white noise adds to the immersion.
90% of testers agreed that the experience was educational and they felt fully immersed in the experience🤩
PROTOTYPE DEMO VIDEO
EXHIBITION DAY SNIPPET
“Was a fun experience, and has great potential with some more work”
– Ericsson Developer
(about the immersion)
"…it felt like I was in the galaxy atmosphere, removing the headset and hearing all the noise around us again actualy felt liberating… like oh I’m back (in the real world)"
– Stockholm University Student
“I think it’s really cool, a different experience for someone who’s not used to VR”
- – Stockholm University Student
- The
Contact
email@domain.com
000-000-000
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Embarking on this project has been a journey filled with personal growth, allowing me to expand my skillset and dive into the world of project management and development. Despite the constraints of limited resources and time, creating a completely immersive VR experience was a thrilling and gratifying endeavor🥇 It not only introduced me to the exciting realm of Extended Reality (XR), but also provided me with the opportunity to present to industry experts from Ericsson. This experience has been a fantastic learning opportunity and has left me eager to tackle even more challenging projects in the future🤩
Thanks for reading!
For any questions or even just a chat, contact me at lasin.meryl.ann@gmail.com or on my LinkedIn😁
