Virtual Research Environments
CSAGE – Collaborative Stereoscopic Access Grid Environment
University of ManchesterUniversity of Southampton
Virtual Environment Centres have been used for wide-screen presentation of numerous types of data; ranging from all scientific results to product design, and human computer interface reaction to initial experimental art and performance demonstrations. The number of centres has stated to increase in the last few years and is expected to continue as costs reduce. All these centres try to create a high level of ‘presence’ where a user, or a group of users, believe they are inside and part of the data they are interacting with and visualizing.
A key part of this project will be the construction and use of semi-immersive stereoscopic facilities to create an increased level of ‘presence’ within a portable system. Stereoscopic imagery although only giving a small amount of actual new information, does increase the presence considerably. The Access Grid environment, the next generation of video conferencing, has been chosen as the final area for this format so it can be used by a larger community base as and when required.
The project will be divided into two parts; the first part building a portable hardware and software extension to the Access Grid for full-sized stereo viewing, and a second part to construct a lightweight framework for storing the performances.
Since the conception of the project the community has expended to include test users from both the scientific community (Geology, Material Sciences) and the performing arts and humanities (Music, Dance).
Contact
Manchester Visualization Centre
Manchester Computing
University of Manchester
Manchester, M13 9PL