T16 Infinite Stairs

Cyber Interface Laboratory, Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo.

Technical details

"Infinite Stairs" is a novel technique to simulate the sensation of walking up and down the stairs in a VE based on visuo-haptic interaction. The haptic stimuli provided by a small bump under the feet of the users correspond to the edge of the stair in the VE, and the visual stimuli of the stairs and shoes, provided by the HMD, evoke visuo-haptic interaction for the user. Because physical steps are not used, there is no physical risk for the user.
It is possible to express multiple hierarchies by placing the small angle bars at the end of the tracking space. As the space is expanded in the vertical direction, it is possible to make complete use of the VE consisting of a 3D space. "Infinite Stairs" also enables the user to experience any type of virtual stairs, including Penrose stairs, in a virtual reality setting.

Movies

Exhibition content

"Infinite Stairs" is a novel technique to simulate the sensation of walking up/down the stairs in a virtual environment, though the user walks on the flat floor in a real space. The main idea of this work is combination of haptic stimuli correspond to the edge of the stair in the VE and the visual stimuli via HMD. "Infinite Stairs" also enables the user to experience any type of virtual stairs, including Penrose stairs, in a virtual reality setting.