VR Gloves (my project)

hardest part will be figuring out drift. I need to see how accurate the devices are with fast movement and get a basic model rigged up properly. We'll see. It's all about testing at the moment.

This might be off from your project but I do wonder whom would be interested in prototype-level vr gloves.

@dwood15

I suppose the most interested would be those with a VR system obviously, past that, people that want more immersion. The idea is to make you feel more in the world. Think of the people that have bought something like the Virtuix Omni. They are willing to strap into the device and everything so they have to run instead of pressing a key. It won't appeal to casual gamers that just play for a few minutes here and there. The market would be small for the time being, but could be large if vr does indeed take off.

Especially if you can get into things like haptic and force feedback. Stopping someones fingers when they do grab something. Making someone feel the heft of a broad sword they just picked up instead of the light daggers they just had. If this type of thing can be pulled off (and I have no doubt with servos and such that it can), immersion will be invaluable to any game.

Past that, you can then get into adding texture and temperature. You can make something feel wet just by making it cold, as long as it has a definite edge to the temperature.

O-o I'm rambling again I think. So many possible futures. Getting back on topic though, if you had asked two years ago, who would be interested in a prototype level vr headset, you'd probably not have as many as the oculus rift called in. If it's built right, and at a decent price, there will be a market for anything.

"CaliberMengsk" wrote:
Making someone feel the heft of a broad sword they just picked up instead of the light daggers they just had. If this type of thing can be pulled off (and I have no doubt with servos and such that it can), immersion will be invaluable to any game.

Well, that part is pretty much taken care of with something like Tactical Haptics' ReactiveGrip: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tacticalhaptics/reactive-griptm-touch-feedback-for-vr-and-video-ga

But yeah, being able to stop one's fingers when grabbing an object would probably be an even greater step forward.

I cant invest any more money into Kickstarter (lol) but what i mean is, how many people would be interested in Arduino compatible gloves like right now.

cool gloves. i've seen a bunch of cool gloves and input devices lately, this one looks pretty good too.

I'm glad you like it. (Sorry for the late reply. I'm still waiting on the parts to get here from china. T_T So I haven't been to active in this post.)

"CaliberMengsk" wrote:
I'm glad you like it. (Sorry for the late reply. I'm still waiting on the parts to get here from china. T_T So I haven't been to active in this post.)

May your parts arrive with haste and your project be successful.

T_T Unfortunately, it's been a month already and still haven't gotten the parts. I'm probably going to have to file a claim and order them again... or just get an extra set for christmas from someone in the US instead of china. T_T

I don't really know anything about making a VR glove. So, I'm not going to pretend to know things you don't about making one.

That said, if I were designing a VR glove, I'd prioritize being able to do the following (in order of most important to least):

Tracking the thumb and index finger
Tracking the hand
Tracking the body
Give accurate positioning of each in relation to one another
Emulate mouse movement based on index finger tracking
Emulate button and button combinations based on gestures

After fine tuning all of that, I'd add tracking for the other three fingers and work on releasing drivers and source code to allow developers to easily integrate it into their software and the emulation would be for those who cannot or will not add support. If you've ever heard of people using autohotkey scripts to change key bindings to other keys or other input devices, you can see how customization is critical.

As for tracking, I would think magnets would be the easiest way to handle it but, again, I don't know anything about actually developing VR gloves. I could see having a tracking ring/thimble on the end of each finger, one strapped to the palm and/or wrist and finally one near the chest or neck for body tracking. Though, the Oculus itself might end up providing a tracker for body positioning.

Personally, I don't think I'd want a bunch of stuff bulking up the back of my hand and fingers. Keeping the hand as mobile and unfettered as possible should be a priority if you want your glove to be a success. I only say that based off of how your prototype looks. Something to consider is moving the circuitry to a wrist band or a box that can be strapped on wherever the wearer considers convenient.

I don't know how helpful my opinions will be to you since I'm basically just telling you my wishlist for what I would want in a VR glove but good luck with your project.