Without wearable technology to bridge between the material and virtual worlds, the metaverse will be little more than a pipedream. The whole notion of the metaverse is to experience realism virtually. And the only way to do that is through virtual reality (VR) with wearables that can support the realism experience.
The most important tool for any metaverse or augmented reality (AR) experience is the virtual goggles. Virtual goggles have been around for several years. While there have been several use cases for them in gaming and the manufacturing industry, the metaverse is about to change the entire experience of the metaverse.
In fact, the manufacturing industry is already using several wearable tools fitted with sensors as well that not only collect data but also feed back data to users. While the technology has parallels, industrial wearables are not the same as wearables being designed for experiences in open virtual worlds like the metaverse.
Oculus, known for its VR headsets, was bought over by Meta (then known as Facebook) in 2014. Today, Oculus headsets are the prime ingredient for Meta’s metaverse with CEO Mark Zuckerberg announcing several upgrades to it to prepare for the new direction. The Oculus Quest 2 is already expected to be a hot-selling product during the upcoming holiday season sales, and also brings the user a step closer to Zuckerberg’s metaverse.
But while VR headsets enable one to enjoy the metaverse, the experience is still not as complete as one would expect. In the Steven Spielberg film Ready Player One, the focus was on players completing quests in the Oasis (the film’s version of the metaverse). In order to enjoy the complete experience in the Oasis, players wore sensor suits. These suits reflect the virtual surroundings of the metaverse.
For example, if a player was in a cold place in the metaverse, the suit would make them feel cold. And if the player fell down or bump their hand in the metaverse, the suit would also make them feel the minimal impact of that. Some cinemas have already created this ‘4D’ experience when watching movies, utilizing moveable seats and sensors that mimic the situation in films they’re watching.
While the sensor suits in Ready Player One are fictional, the reality is that these suits are also in the pipeline to give users a more realistic experience. Reports have shown that similar wearables that can inflict more sensation on users are in the pipeline, with several to be launched soon to fit seamlessly within the metaverse.
(source – Meta)
Haptic gloves
The haptic glove is one such wearable intended for the metaverse. No, it’s not like Thanos’s glove but more of Zuckerberg’s favorite hand sock. Designed by Meta Reality Labs, the glove enables users to touch and feel virtual objects in the metaverse. For example, a user playing with a virtual animal in the metaverse may be able to feel the texture of the virtual animal as they brush their hand against it.
According to Sean Keller, RL Research Director, the value of hands to solving the interaction problem in AR and VR is immerse. “We use our hands to communicate with others, to learn about the world, and to take action within it. We can take advantage of a lifetime of motor learning if we can bring full hand presence into AR and VR. People could touch, feel, and manipulate virtual objects …….
Source: https://techhq.com/2021/11/how-wearable-tech-will-make-or-break-the-metaverse/