Virtual reality show on focus at tech expo in Vancouver

Photo courtesy of www.siggraph.org

VANCOUVER — Ever wondered what it would feel like to fly like a bird? Here in Vancouver, at the SIGGRAPH 2014 conference, technology lovers are discovering exactly what it feels like to soar above city streets with a state-of-the-art flight simulator that offers a full-body virtual reality experience.

The SIGGRAPH conference draws many of the most respected technical and creative people from around the world to different host cities each year to spread their wings and showcase some of the top ideas and technologies across science, art, computers, animation, and the web.

Max Rheiner, from Zurich University of the Arts in Switzerland, brought his new “Birdly” flight simulator to Vancouver. His prototype quickly became one of the must-see, and must-feel shows at the conference.

He said he designed and built the prototype in only six months after a wildlife conservation group asked him for help with an exhibition on flying. They agreed that the best strategy was to have people experience flight for themselves.

“Birdly is actually a full body simulator, and we tried to simulate the experience you would get if you would be a bird. Of course, nobody knows, but we tried to make… simulate of flying like in your dreams, but as a bird,” Rheiner told Xinhua.

The ride is fully immersive, which can make the rider see, feel and experience everything that a bird would as it flies among the clouds.

“It was one of the best things I think I’ve ever experienced before. Basically, in the virtual world, I turn into a bird, and I was flying over San Francisco and I could see my wings. And so I was turning around 360 degrees. I was going down and then I was going up, and it just was amazing,” said Mona Nandigjav, who tried the ride on the Birdly.

Dave Shreiner, chair of the conference, said Vancouver has become one of North America’s hot-beds of digital design and technology. He said virtual reality is going through a renaissance these days and has become one of the more popular elements of the show, along with 3D printing and design.

Mike Gendimenico from Intel Corporation said: “It’s very valuable because you see, you come here, and I really like the emerging technology section because you see things that you don’t see anywhere else. They’re non-commercial applications that usually go to trade shows. You’ve got companies, you see commercial applications as something the university worked on and you’ve got people, small groups of people, working on these great technologies that are new and different.”

The five-day event wrapped up on Thursday in Vancouver. Organizers are also planning to hold another edition of the conference in Asia later this year.

Called SIGGRAPH Asia 2014, it will be held in south China’s Shenzhen City in December, and is expected to attract more than 7,000 attendees from over 60 countries.