Virtual reality (VR) systems come in two general flavors: desktop and immersive. Desktop VR generally consists of virtual environments (VEs) rendered from a first-person perspective which are viewed on a standard computer monitor. The user moves (walks, flies, rolls, etc) through the virtual environment via mouse or keyboard navigation. Immersive VR involves real-time tracking and dynamically coupling the delivery of information with the user’s position and heading in the environment. Visual information is delivered through a head-mounted display (HMD) which updates the view based on the user’s position and orientation in the world.

In contrast to desktop VEs, users in immersive VEs can freely move around in 3-D space and directly interact with objects in the environment, creating a compelling sense of “presence" or feeling of being immersed in the virtual world. Headphones can be used to provide 3-D spatialized audio and haptic gloves can be introduced to create a multimodal virtual experience or to study the effects of sensory-specific input.

The VEMI lab houses UMaine’s first fully immersive virtual reality system, including 7 PPT optical tracking sensors, 2 Intersense inertial sensors, a head-mounted display (HMD), and a 20 x 20 foot fully tracked workspace for carrying out untethered VR-based spatial learning and navigation studies. The VR system is run by a quad core rendering PC, with an HT Omega Claro 7.1 Plus sound card and an Nvidia GTX 285 graphics card driving the audio and video processing. A dedicated position-tracking computer synchronizes the real-time position data captured from 4 cameras with the rendering machine, ensuring that what is heard or seen is simultaneously updated with user rotations and translations.

The lab has multiple development workstations for designing and conducting experiments. A host of software packages are available to facilitate experimental design, 3-D rendering, data analysis, modeling, prototyping, and accessibility testing. Software applications include: the Vizard 3-D rendering package (the heart of our VR system), 3D Studio Max, Matlab, Adobe Creative Suite, Systat, SPSS, Omnipage, Jaws, and the MS Office suite. We also have access to departmental site licenses for ArcGIS, ArcView, and AutoCAD.

Other resources in the lab supporting multimodal spatial cognition research include wired and wireless speaker systems for 3-D virtual sound experiments and a 20 channel multiplexer for driving multiple auditory or visual stimuli. For haptic research, we have a Tiger tactile graphics embosser, Graphic Window professional dynamically-updated tactile display, and tactile and force-feedback mice. The lab has various devices for capturing and recording data, including a laser-mounted protractor for distance and azimuth measurements, several Wii remote controllers for wireless input modules and haptic/auditory output devices, and a host of other custom equipment.

We believe that rigorous research requires ready access to food and drink; thus, there are several tools of daily sustenance in the lab, including a fridge, microwave, coffee machine, and hot-cold water bubbler.