18.12.2014 change 18.12.2014

Immersed Spatial Visualization Laboratory at Gdańsk University of Technology

Fot. Fotolia Fot. Fotolia

Gdańsk University of Technology opened the unique Immersed Spatial Visualization Laboratory, a virtual cave, where you can see, for example, simulations of the real world. The laboratory can be used by IT specialists, but also, architects, doctors and firefighters.

Virtual CAVE (the acronym CAVE stands for Cave Automatic Virtual Environment) is a cube with 3.4 meter sides. One wall of the installation is movable, allowing entry to the inside. The walls (including ceiling and floor) are made of acrylic and act as screens that display high quality 3D images.

"A person watching a simulation in the CAVE has the impression of being in another world. Moreover, he sees spatially and may also move: the computers detect motion and create the image as seen from the user\'s perspective" - told PAP the originator of the lab, Dr. Jacek Lebiedź from the Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics, Gdańsk University of Technology.

In Poland there are already several similar installations, including the one at Silesian University of Technology, but - according to Lebiedź - none of them is not as technologically advanced as the lab in Gdańsk. "Only in our CAVE all the walls are screens, which allows you to display a full image of the virtual world. In other installations, the simulations are displayed not on six, but three or four walls" - explained Lebiedź.

Another advantage of the Gdańsk CAVE over other Polish, as well as foreign systems of this type, is that it is equipped with a spherical gait simulator. "It is a transparent sphere located inside the cave, which, like a hamster wheel, rotates while walking. Unlike the wheel, the sphere allows for movement in all directions, and each step results in changing images around the user as if in real space" - said Lebiedź.

Gait simulator theoretically offers unlimited mobility. "Borders are determined only by the scope of the programmed virtual world, the simulation of which is displayed inside the CAVE" – Lebiedź told PAP.

He explained that virtual "walks" are possible in many other virtual caves - including those in Poland - but the movement is simulated by hand-held controllers - so-called wands, which makes the "walk" less natural and spontaneous. "It\'s more like a Segway ride" - explained Lebiedź.

Scientists and students from University already have their own simulation, which allows to take a virtual stroll through Gdańsk Coal Market. In the future, this square will gain one frontage - not rebuilt after the war. Three building proposals developed by the architects from Gdańsk University of Technology have been "pasted" into the simulation. "During the virtual walk through the Market, we can see these objects from different perspectives, moving around the square to see how each one fits into the existing space" - said Lebiedź.

In his opinion, the practical use of the virtual CAVE is almost endless. "It will not only help architects and IT professionals who want to improe their programming skills, but it can also be used by engineers and designers to create virtual prototypes of various devices, as well as a training field for engineers, firefighters, military, doctors, etc. You only need to develop the program reproducing, for example, the interior of a burning skyscraper or an operating room with the patient with specific symptoms" – Lebiedź told PAP.

He believes that the CAVE may also be useful in the treatment of people suffering from various types of mental disorders, including phobias. "You can imagine, for example, a person with arachnophobia and a simulation, which - presenting virtual spiders in a skilful manner and under the supervision of an expert - will help get used to the fear" - explained Lebiedź.

Laboratory was established behind the building of the Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics. The value of investments exceeded PLN 14.6 million. The university acquired the funds for this purpose from the European Union. The project was one of the tasks carried out in the framework of the project "Modern auditoriums of Gdańsk University of Technology", in which the five departments of the university upgraded seven auditoriums and nine lecture halls.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland, Anna Kisicka

aks/ mrt/ zan/

tr. RL

Przed dodaniem komentarza prosimy o zapoznanie z Regulaminem forum serwisu Nauka w Polsce.

Copyright © Foundation PAP 2024