Virtual Reality for Business

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Virtual Reality for Business Leisure April 2001

• Janice Webster
• Director
• Virtual Reality Centre
• University of Teesside
• Middlesbrough TS1 3BA UK
• tel [phone]
• fax [phone]
• email j.webster_at_tees.ac.uk
• http//vr.tees.ac.uk

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Overview of the presentation

• Virtual Reality Centre, University of Teesside
• VR terminology..the tools..the people
• Range of activity, funding
• Case studies
• Questions

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Virtual Reality CentreVirtual Reality Centre at
Teesside Ltd Company of the University of
Teesside Thirty staff, HemispheriumTM,
Auditorium, Labs,VR software and VR interfaces
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Virtual Reality CentreUniversity of Teesside
Regional Centre of Expertise

• Aims
• work in partnership to raise awareness of state
  of the art interactive technology to recreate
  the past, to visualise the present and virtually
  create the future.
• grow the commercial opportunities
• support VR research development in the region,
  win European contracts
• be a resource for staff students at the
  University
• work in partnership with the public and private
  sectorMission to continue to define the
  applications of VR remain financially
  viable

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Virtual Reality Centre - 30 experts

• Management - the vision, liaison, strategic..
• Technical - operational
• Technical development - people friendly
  interfaces
• Business development - marketing, sales
• Contracts - customer care
• Virtual environment creation - VR developers
• Administrative support - financial, PA, etc

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VR terminologysoftware

• virtual environment modelling software- pseudo
  3D panoramas- 3D VR models- programmed
  geometry, behaviours
• special effects/simulation software- digital
  photography/painting- computer graphics
  animations- real-world simulation effects, eg
  smoke, people
• multi-media software - digital film,
  photography, sound

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VR terminologyhardware

• computer with graphics card- laptop, PC, SGI,
  ES
• interaction tools- mouse, joystick, haptic
  pen, pinch gloves
• screen display- computer monitor, large flat
  screen, curved screen, cube(cave), dome
• projectors- CRT (from 1 to 7)- LCD (1 or 2)

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HemispheriumTM - world-class, unique
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Uses - business and leisure

• Imagining, explaining, visualising, realising,
  persuading, promoting, marketing, training
• Concept design, design evaluation, design
  development, design to market, scenario planning
• Business to business, global dissemination
• VR is a real-time, interactive tool for managers
  and decision makers. VR crosses age and structure
  boundaries.

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Current status 1997 - 2001

• ERDF - European Regional Development Fund
  projects- IDT, RD for SMEs (2.1million ERDF
  4.8million total)- Enhanced Marketing (250,000
  ERDF 580,000 total)- Virtual Environments RD
  (340,000 ERDF 700,000) - Virtual Tourism
  (27,000 ERDF 63,000 total)- Virtual
  Northumbria (502,000 ERDF 1.125,000 total)
• RESIDER - regeneration (634,000 grant
  1.321,325 total)- scenario planning eg
  Millennium Greens- community business -
  technology workshops
• Commercial (450,000)- construction,
  architecture, design, artworks- training and
  simulation, eg once only chance- greenfield
  brownfield site visualisation

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ERDF projectsover 1500 SMEs
Integrated digital technology transfer to SMEs in
the North East Region - concept, product and
process visualisation, marketing/promotional.
Awareness workshops. Enhanced Marketing in the
Tees Valley taking product to marketplace
company information on the web. Virtual
Environments RD for companies involved in in
cleaner air, waste recycling etc Virtual
Northumbria VR exhibit in museums, culture and
tourism - visit our ancestors, discover
artefacts
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RESIDER
Scenario planning, consultation within the
Community Technology workshops for Community
Businesses Promotion, marketing, fund-raising,
profile building Inclusion, not exclusion
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Commercial , case study one CVO Fires Ltd
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Commercial, case study two Teesside Airport -
South-side, Moor-field plc
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Commercial, case study three South Tees NHS Trust
- Trauma Unit
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Heritage, case study four Guisborough Priory -
reconstruction
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Commercial, case study five Simulating operator
training scenarios
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Any questions ?