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Is This the Holodeck?
WillCodeForRaisins writes "CNET News is reporting that Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is planning to create "virtual reality" High-Definition 3-D TV which will allow you to smell and even touch objects in the 3-D space. This national research project is meant to be part of a larger vision under which Japan aims to promote "universal communication," a concept whereby information is shared smoothly and intelligently regardless of location or language. Imagine watching a football game on a TV that not only shows the players in three dimensions but also lets you experience the smells of the stadium and maybe even pat a goal scorer on the back. How are they planning to do this? Ummm... looks like wait and see."
And so the sun sets on a great nation. Farewell Japan, I will miss your innovation after you finish building this device.
-Colin
Why it's vaporware.
"Academicians are more likely to share each other's toothbrush than each other's nomenclature."
Cohen
This is not the holodeck.
Flickering see-through projections and little puffs of smelly air trying to convince you that you're experiencing a real horse simply can't compete with standing next to an actual, farty horse.
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
Well, they seem to have just discribed the panacea of display and interface technologies. While a true 3d display probably could be made in the next 15 years, allowing users to physically interact with 3d objects without a huge haptics setup would be considerably more difficult, probably requiring some sort of interaction with the brain, making it think that those areas are solid. Smell doesn't seem nearly so difficult (there are already devices that will allow you to produce smells digitally), and not nearly as useful.
So basically they said that, yeah, we'd like to make a super futuristic display device and have it ready in 15 years. Meanwhile there has been really no progress in any of these fronts. Pretty much all 3d displays are just stereoscopy, and nothing terribly interesting seems to have happened with haptics in the last five years.
So yeah, that'd be nice, but you have to have some of the building blocks before you can make the grand vision.
In the beginning the universe was created. This made a lot of people very angry and is widely considered as a bad move.
Well, Japan is known for these sorts of long-range projects.
They figure even if it ultimately gets nowhere near the desired goal, the spin offs will be profitable and useful.
Remember the Fifth Generation Computer Project? They got absolutely nowhere near what they wanted with that - but it did boost their IT industry.
Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
Naw, this is Japan, remember? They'll be more interested in sneaking around the crowd and v-groping unsuspecting female sports fans. This will be followed by the hot all-virtual title "crowded weekday subway train commute".
My 229 is all the Sig I need http://thegunwiki.com/
On the other hand, this is not your Father's (or at least younger uncle's ) Japan. Japanese research, as based upon checking the names in the journals I read, has been becoming more innovative and forward thinking in the last 15 years. They've also shown no fear towards hiring American researchers who have been 'right-sized' by short-sighted native corporations (NEC picked up a lot of researchers from various NJ chemical and materials firms). As RAH once put it, "there is intelligent life in Tokyo."
This probably won't produce a holodeck, but given CAVE technology (works), haptics (works), and some of the newer innovations such as microvoltage stimulation for motion effects, you may actually get something this time, even if it won't be the Trek 23rd century version.
I personally look forward to virtual clothes shopping, at least for other people whom I generally have to follow around and critique during the process.
the more accurate the calculations became, the more the concepts tended to vanish into thin air. R. S. Mulliken
This brings a whole new 'angle' on the pay per view concept.
Imagine this (seriously - think about it (it may make you rich)): The amount you pay would get you a better veiw of the action. X amount puts you at the 300 foot level. Y gets you on the 50 yard line, Z puts you on the field.
Football (despite its popularity) isn't the best choice for this. I think motion sickness for all the camera changes would be a bit much.
However, auto racing is a good choice. It already enjoys multi camera (car) angle (one per channel) access on cable providers. Now you could really be in the car with the driver.
Golf is another logical possibility. Stand there at the tee. See the swing and watch the ball go.
Umm.. Swimming, or diving shows may prove a bit of a hard sell. Think of it this way: Ever watch a show with an under water segment (Posiden adventure?) - did you hold your breath, or become very concious of your own breathing while the poor actor seeming had to swim much too far?
Pron: Yeah what ever. Probably the first market segment to leverage the technology, but probably not to its true abilities. But there will be a lot of sales.
Which brings us to the next question: What do you think the band width requirement is going to be. Will your puny little HD-DVD (or BluRay) be enough to drive that kind of display?
Why are the Japanese years ahead of the rest of the world in the field of virtual reality porn? Or does anybody honestly beleive this technology has other applications? If we had a president with vision, he would immediately declare it the highest priority mission of the United States to close the VR porn gap! Instead, all he does is promise a mission to mars... sigh.
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
Was that... supposed to be... a William Shatner impersonation?