Virtual Reality

United 3D Labs develops virtual reality solutions including:
  • industrial VR training simulators;
  • virtual reality simulators;
  • museum exhibitions and interactive VR installation;
  • virtual tours;
  • games.
We work with most popular VR headsets available: HTC Vive, HTC Focus, Oculus Rift, Samsung Odyssey, Windows Mixed Reality. We exploit VIVE Tracking system as well as Kinect, Leap Motion and Myo controllers. Furthermore, we develop our solutions with Unreal Engine, Unity and Unigine software.

Unraveling the mystery of virtual reality  

Virtual reality (VR) is perhaps the most enigmatic and popular area of computer graphics. Lots of fantastic books and movies are devoted to it: they do both - extol the benefits and intimidate its side-effects. 
Virtual reality takes users into an artificial world created by developers. Unlike augmented reality, which is still based on a real image transmitted by video cameras, in virtual reality all objects are created using computer graphics programs. 

Virtual reality technologies have been known for several decades: they have been actively used in the military sphere, space industry and medicine. Nevertheless, general users have really faced virtual reality just a while ago, when virtual reality goggles Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, as well as other types of VR headsets for mobile phones (naturally, Samsung Gear VR is above all). 

Not only VR headsets

It should be noted that virtual reality involves not only headsets and helmets. Multi-screen configurations (CAVE Automatic Virtual Environments), Virtual Reality Video Wall angle of view of more than about 180°, etc. All these solutions are also designed to provide users with full immersive experience in virtual world. These systems are very expensive and extremely complex from technical point of view. However, they have a number of advantages. The main one is that there is no need to wear virtual reality head mounted displays. 

Applications of virtual reality

The first ones to take full advantage of VR headsets were computer games developers: immerse into this make believe virtual world of the game is, of course, much more interesting (and promises much greater profits) than to show this very world on the screen. Yet relatively cheap virtual reality headsets have a more serious application. What used to be available only to the military is now accessible to museums, schools, universities. Photorealistic quality VR simulators, objects and events reconstruction, virtual experiments or an opportunity to observe with your own eyes what is impossible to see in real life - that's just a small part of the scope of possibilities opened up by VR headsets. Moreover, industrial enterprises also grabbed unique opportunities offered by VR for creating simulators.

Standalone virtual reality headset

It is worth paying special attention to the wireless VR headsets, such as HTC Focus or Oculus Go. Obviously, the quality of graphics is lower than in Oculus and HTC Vive. However they offer users a huge advantage of mobility. These HMDs are not tied to a desktop computer. What is more, they have enough computing power for demonstrating architectural visualization or simple simulators.

United 3D Labs invites you to visit our showroom! We will be glad to show the VR solutions we have developed. Moreover, we could demonstrate you top VR headsets and to clarify their distinctive strengths and weaknesses.