VirtuSphere is a virtual reality

Virtual reality

Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...

 device. It is, as the name suggests, spherical. It consists of a 10-foot hollow sphere, which is placed on a special platform that allows the sphere to rotate freely in any direction according to the user’s steps. dIt works with computer based simulations and virtual world

Virtual world

A virtual world is an online community that takes the form of a computer-based simulated environment through which users can interact with one another and use and create objects. The term has become largely synonymous with interactive 3D virtual environments, where the users take the form of...

s, and rotates as the user walks, allowing for an unlimited plane

Plane (mathematics)

In mathematics, a plane is a flat, two-dimensional surface. A plane is the two dimensional analogue of a point , a line and a space...

 upon which the user can walk. A wireless head-mounted display

Head-mounted display

A head-mounted display or helmet mounted display, both abbreviated HMD, is a display device, worn on the head or as part of a helmet, that has a small display optic in front of one or each eye .- Overview :...

 with gyroscopes is used to both track the user's head movement as well as display the environment of the virtual world. VirtuSphere can serve many purposes, including exercise, video gaming, military training, and virtual museum tours.

The VirtuSphere is a creation of Ray and Nurulla Latypov, whose company, VirtuSphere Inc, is based in Redmond, Washington

Redmond, Washington

Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 54,144 at the 2010 census,up from 45,256 in 2000....

.
VirtuSphere also refers to the manned simulator developed by Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....

 at the Mounted Warfare TestBed at Fort Knox

Fort Knox

Fort Knox is a United States Army post in Kentucky south of Louisville and north of Elizabethtown. The base covers parts of Bullitt, Hardin, and Meade counties. It currently holds the Army Human Resources Center of Excellence to include the Army Human Resources Command, United States Army Cadet...

, KY. This simulator incorporates the sphere into a single-soldier simulator that is compatible with the Distributed Interactive Simulation

Distributed Interactive Simulation

Distributed Interactive Simulation is an IEEE standard for conducting real-time platform-level wargaming across multiple host computers and is used worldwide, especially by military organizations but also by other agencies such as those involved in space exploration and medicine.-History:The...

 and High level architecture (simulation) protocols. The simulator is composed of the sphere, a pair of infrared mice to track the sphere’s movements, Intersense trackers on the user’s head and weapon, an image generator on a laptop, display goggles for the user, and a simulator host computer, all on a wireless network.
Using this simulator, the user can interact with other simulated entities, whether provided by separate manned simulators like the Advanced Concepts Research Tool (ACRT), or by computer-generated forces systems like OneSAF. The simulator is used at the MWTB for experiments that examine future weapon systems and tactics and for evaluating soldiers.
VirtuSphere was showcased at IIT Bombay's annual technical festival, Techfest

Techfest

Techfest is an independent body run by students of Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai. It was started in 1998 with the aim of providing a platform for students to showcase their technical skills...

 from 7th January 2011 to 9th January

Applications

Markets and applications for Virtusphere include but are not limited to:

• Military, law enforcement , and other dangerous occupations for safely training,practical skills of users preparing for dangerous environments


• Gaming and entertainment
• 
  
• Health and fitness


• Education and museums


• Architecture and construction-site 3D model walk-through


• Virtual travel and tourism


• Events and Shows


• Home gaming

External links

• Official Site
• Cybersphere, a similar device developed by the University of Warwick
  University of Warwick
  The University of Warwick is a public research university located in Coventry, United Kingdom...
  
  and virtual reality company VR Systems UK.
• 7 min. video and interview with creators of VirtuSphere and transcript.