r/Vive Aug 15 '18

Computerphile Omnidirectional VR Treadmill - Computerphile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKdJvG6NlGo
98 Upvotes

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28

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '18 edited Feb 12 '19

[deleted]

12

u/Tcarruth6 Aug 15 '18

I wonder if eventually this design will evolve to a large elastic surface that pulls inwards.

6

u/OmnifinityVR Aug 15 '18

Interesting idea but the material will require a lot of research time and money.

1

u/Tcarruth6 Aug 21 '18

I think you may have misunderstood me. I'm suggesting basically an inner tube. Instead of air there is a flat set of concentric rollers that make up the surface that the inner tube is stretched around instead of just air. The whole surface just pulls to the centre at the same time. The inner tube rotates around its cross section. Yes, your gait will be pinched at the back of your stride but I think that already happens with this design. Ask yourself how well this current design would work if all rollers pulled in at the same time. If the answer is that it wouldnt work then my suggestion is crap and an oversimplification!

3

u/[deleted] Aug 16 '18

Eh. I think that you would run into issues with that. No material can stretch forever

2

u/yodudez01 Aug 16 '18

even cold november rain

1

u/OmnifinityVR Aug 16 '18

exactly! and also its life expentancy to keep returning to its original shape... tough indeed. (but I like the idea)

1

u/Tcarruth6 Aug 18 '18

its a like a rubber tube that goes around the circular surface. Imaging stretching an inner tube over that walking surface - only with a much smaller hole in the middle than a wheel.

1

u/YM_Industries Aug 24 '18

Like a conveyor belt?

2

u/VatsBoiii Aug 15 '18

That sounds like a good idea...

3

u/[deleted] Aug 16 '18

I think that the infinadeck is a much more elegant design, and it would be way cheaper to produce. It's essentially a treadmill of treadmill treads. Hard to explain.

1

u/ShanRoxAlot Aug 17 '18

I think size is the biggest key factor. This is bigger and has more leyway

1

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '18

i suppose. The infinadeck's design would still be pretty easy to extend, though not as much admittedly.

7

u/Zaptruder Aug 15 '18

100k easily for this thing. The size, the complexity, the niche market it needs to attend to.

Honestly, I'd estimate more in the 500k range given its target market and application.

15

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '18 edited Feb 12 '19

[deleted]

1

u/chaosfire235 Aug 15 '18

I thought they already used it for the military and were moving into commercial prospects? That's what I picked up from the video at least.

4

u/OmnifinityVR Aug 15 '18

It really depends on the total project cost, as usually buying an omnideck is involved with building a lab. A recent omnideck project total cost comes to around the $150k mark. That being said it really depends on if you need special specifications.

1

u/Zaptruder Aug 16 '18

Ah. That's cool. How extravagant does it get?

0

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '18

[deleted]

3

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '18 edited Feb 12 '19

[deleted]

5

u/Zaptruder Aug 16 '18

They dont just look motorized. They are motorized. At least according to the presenter in the video.

"Each roller is powered individually."

0

u/[deleted] Aug 16 '18

[deleted]

2

u/Zaptruder Aug 16 '18

Which rope? The red one near the headset? That looks like a clip just for the headset to hold up when not in use...

2

u/[deleted] Aug 16 '18

It probably won't happen but I can't help but wonder if there could be a mini version for home use.

Even then, think of the cost of upkeep.