Designing virtual reality systems: a case study of a system with human/robotic interaction

Abstract

Issues related to the design of virtual reality systems are discussed in the context of the development effort for a virtual cockpit. Subsystems provide visual imagery, hand and head tracking, control logic and force feedback. The force feedback subsystem uses robotic positioning to place an assortment of knobs and switches into position to be touched: the user's hand trajectory is extrapolated and the correct type of control is placed just in time to be actuated. Discussion focuses on selecting among alternative system elements and configurations in arriving at an overall systems design.