Research, Ideas and Proposal

Proposal 

My proposal is to come up with ideas and concepts to create a virtual reality headset that can create further immersion other than 3D sound and vision. A virtual reality that can simulate the feeling from weather and an environment from a game. It could have a way of simulating harmless pain for the player depending on what happens to their character in the game. 

Research

I will be looking in to different projects and experiences that involve immersive interaction using the ideas to apply to a VR headset. I will also be analysing different VR headsets themselves to generate ideas for my own headset design.

Stitches Great Escape 

In Disney World’s Magic Kingdom there is a 4D simulation ride that is based on the beginning of the movie Lilo and Stitch when Stitch escapes from the alien mother ship. The ride has the audience sitting in a circle around the room with their backs against the wall and during the simulation the room is dark with sounds of Stitch, creating the illusion that he is in the vents behind the audience. At times the sound of Stitch gets really loud suggesting he is right behind you with warm air blowing on the back of your neck to simulate he is breathing on you and it smells of specific foods like he has just eaten. When Stitch is in the middle of the room he spits his saliva which confuses the guns pointing at him, but when he spits a spray of water hits the audience.

The Battlefield 3 Simulator

The company “Running In The Halls” based in Huddersfield created the most realistic video game simulator based on the game Battlefield 3 in 2011. The simulation used paint ball guns that triggered to shoot the player when the character in the game was getting shot at.  

The Pain-station

The Pain station was developed in 2001 by two students and it is a interactive version of the game pong found in the video game museum in Germany but losing will inflict pain. Both players have to put one hand on a metal plate while the other hand is on the dial that controls their paddle in the game. The metal plate has two buttons on it that the player must keep pressed while their hand lies flat on the plate. On the screen will be the standard game of pong but if a player misses the ball, coloured power ups appear in a line behind the paddle and then if they miss the ball again and the ball hits one of these power ups the metal plate will cause pain to the hand that rests on it depending on the power up that was hit. The red power up causes a bulb to turn on under the plate burning the players hand, the blue power starts a whip to slash back and forth hitting the top of the hand and finally the green power up sends small amounts of electricity through the metal plate shocking the hand. The first player to remove their hand from the plate letting go of the pressed buttons will lose the game.

  

Playstation VR Headset

The PlayStation VR headset is the one that is considered the most comfortable. To put on it has a adjustable head band that can be pulled to make the head space bigger but goes back to its original shape when let go. This allows the user  to hold it over their head while pulling it so that when they let it go it stops at the shape of the head making it quick and easy to wear. On the front of the headset is five blue lights that the PlayStation camera detects and tracks while on the back of the headset there is another two blue lights that allows the player to look all the way around them. The player is very limited with the PlayStation VR however because they will always have to be in view of the PlayStation camera so sometimes the player might wander away from the camera or the camera can’t detect the lights because the room is too bright.

This type of headset for my concept won’t be ideal because there isn’t enough room on the back part that goes over the players head to add any external features to the device. The headset using light to track would also be a bad idea for external features because if the headset did lost track of the headset it couldn’t send the information to trigger the feature leaving the player with a frustrating experience.  

Oculus Rift

The Oculus Rift is much more expensive than the PlayStation VR but comes with a more reliable technique to track motion. First of all the Oculus Rift uses flimsy plastic that goes over the players head receiving feedback from irritation where wearing the headset is uncomfortable, the PlayStation VR on the other hand uses a solid plastic but layers it with cushioned leather. However the motion tracking is a constant wonder with no interruption because the tracking information comes through the same wire that the information to display the screen does. This gives the player more freedom so they can stand up while playing and also get low to the ground to check under objects like beds or desks in the game. 

Again the design of the headset wouldn’t work for external features because there is no room to attach external devices on it. The idea of motion tracking coming through the wire instead of using light to track might be the way to go because the trigger for the external features need to be constant and accurate to get the best experience.   

Star Wars Rebel Pilot Helmet

The VR headsets out at the moment won’t be suitable for my ideas but looking at the shape and design of the helmets actors would wear in the Star Wars movies seem to be a more feasible starting point. 

Speed Helmet

The speed helmet professional cyclists wear also has a good shape and design for a possible VR headset and it also looks more modern and attracting to my target audience.

VR Prototype

This early VR prototype gives me the idea to give the pieces that stick out at either side a purpose for my idea. Maybe the pieces could shoot water or warm air on to the front of the faces.  

Ideas

Horror Shivers

A head massager inside the VR headset. A head massager when it is pushed on the scalp sends a sensation of shivers down peoples spine and it is known that if someone sees a ghost or there is a disturbing presence near by people get the same feeling. If the game is a horror game that uses ghosts, when the ghost gets near the player it sends a signal to the headset to drop the head massager on the players head to send the shiver down their spine. In a more casual scenario the massager could be used for building tension in any horror game when the player senses something scary is going to happen. 

Warm Climate

A VR headset that takes the shape of one of three helmets above. This is so the helmet goes over the entire back of the head and then having four small heaters on the four quarters of the inside of the headset that discretely warms the air inside the helmet which could simulate the player being in a hot moist rainforest or a desert. It could also simulate someone breathing on the players if something came up behind them.

Water Gun

A VR headset that is similar to the warm climate idea in the term of a helmet shape and on the inside going around the inside of the headset will be little nozzles that spray water on to the player. If the player’s character in a game goes underwater or gets water poured on them the nozzles activate and spray water around the players head. 

Hyperrealities Research

Hyperreality is when there is a perfect blend between reality and fiction to an extent where it is difficult to determine what is real or not.

There are tons of examples of hyperreality especially when it comes to stories used in movies, animations and games.

South Park

A couple of episodes of South Park point out very interesting incidents with hyperreality that could happen if technology advances to a certain point where separating reality from virtual reality is mere impossible.

Series 18 Episode 7 - Grounded Vindaloop

The episode is about Eric Cartman playing a prank on one of the more innocent South Park characters  Butters. Cartman makes his own DIY fake oculus rift virtual reality headset and convinces Butters that it is real and that it works. The clip below is one of the incidents I mentioned that looks at an interesting theory where Butters feels so immersed that he can't tell that he is in the real world (even though he has being in the real world all along but Cartman has told him that he has being transported into a virtual world of his own life) so he starts to cause mischief thinking that there are no consequences. This theory is a perfect example of hyperreality and it could be a possible future if technology advances as fast as it is doing so.



The other incident during the episode happens towards the end where we realise that Cartman pranking Butters is not real and that is the virtual reality of another character, and then that character realises that they aren't in the real world but in a virtual reality of another character. This keeps going until the 4th or 5th character and by then as the viewer you are so confused and don't know what is real or not anymore. The south park team Trey parker and Matt Stone pull off this modern idea of hyperreality to the "tee" because they manage to trick the audience into believing that they don't know what it is real anymore and how they feel because of this is a legitimate reaction from if this actually happened to them. At the point when reality and virtual reality in the South Park universe is a blur the South Park team decide to end the episode with a "thinking outside of the box" trick and the last person to take the virtual reality headset off is the character Stan but this Stan is a live action Stan which means that the whole cartoon was virtual reality and the real real life was reality.



PlayStation VR

PlayStation very recently released their first virtual reality headset before known as "Project Morpheus". Released on the 13th October 2016 PlayStation VR as it is now simply called promises players that they can be realistically immersed in their favourite video game universes through a headset that uses the PlayStation Camera that tracks the players movement by tracking the lights that protrude from the headset itself. The months running up to the headsets release PlayStation showed some interesting advertisements focusing on how the headset can immerse players into the world and the adverts are a great example of Hyperreality as is the purpose of PlayStation VR itself.





Unlike augmented reality where the virtual comes to you in the real world, virtual reality takes the player into the virtual world and both of these PlayStation advertisements try to capture that. Of course virtual reality could work for movies where the user stands in the middle of the action and can look around but eventually they will feel like they are not really there because no one is interacting with them. Now games that use virtual reality is where it will work best because the player will be able to interact with objects and people in the game and the response from these virtual characters  will create the real immersion required for virtual reality.

Idea: Simulating pain and other feelings in VR.

Virtuix Omni

A big question we all have when it comes to Virtual Reality and that is how do we simulate moving around in a VR experience? A man named Jan Goetgeluk also asked himself the same question and started to research and experiment in to finding a solution. Jan continues to find the Virtuix Omni a invention that allows players to safely walk on a treadmill while wearing the Oculus Rift VR headset to simulate the immersion of the game they are playing.



The beauty about this device is it has a treadmill that allows the player to walk 360 degrees so they can move in any direction in the game they are playing. Special shoes must be worn with a sole that matches into the grooves of the treadmill to ensure precise balance and friction which prevents injury. Another idea has being passed around that uses the principle of motion capture to capture the players movement as a whole. Cameras surrounding the player are able to track even more precise movements of the player than just walking. The treadmill on its own only moves the characters in the game when the treadmill is moving not what the player themselves are doing so having the cameras around allows the player to jump or move one leg out in front of the other for the game to recognise what the player wants to do and simulates the same movement in their character.

Idea: Having a device that simulates hot or cold temperatures, wind, rain, even maybe a impact system for when objects touch the player in the game.

MyndPlay

MyndPlay is a UK based company that are experimenting and researching into mind control. This topic is very interesting as we only can imagine this kind of stuff to be real in movies and fictional stories. MyndPlay began using technology that appears to be a simple headband but can measure brain waves depending on what the user thinks about and during the task they are doing at the time.



The showreel shows MyndPlay recording brain activity during various tasks for example a man driving a Mercedes at intense speeds. The data they gathered from these different activities allowed them to invent a way for the user to interact with digital content with their minds. The showreel continues to show a man creating art on a TV screen just by thinking and another case where a man is watching a fight scene from 47 Ronin where he chooses what happens and how the fight turns out just by thinking about it. The headband can track very specific brain waves people create when they think about certain things, it reminds me of finger prints because each and everyone of us can be identified through a very unique pattern in our finger prints and the head band detects very unique brain waves which allow us to interact with our minds. This discovery leaves so many questions about the future: How will the experience in cinema's change? Will we all be able to change what happens in a movie just by thinking about it? Will we ever have to use a mouse or keyboard or a TV remote or even our mobile phones again? When you think about having ultimate privacy inside your minds might also change, imagine if people can then read other people's minds without them knowing. I can imagine if that is the case everyone would have some kind of pin number or password they have to think of before they can proceed.

Resident Evil 7 Demo: Kitchen

One of the first demos for PlayStation VR and the first real horror experience in PlayStation VR. Resident Evil 7: Kitchen Demo presents a very immersive, scary simulation of a women gone mad provoking the player while they are tied to a chair. This reaction video from the members of IGN proves the game does it justice but what happens if we could further the immersion? The idea comes from a similar video where a women says "It would be more scarier if I could feel the pain of getting stabbed" during the part the player gets stabbed in the leg with a knife. This gives me the idea of creating virtual gear that could also simulate feelings from the game's surrounding.




Rooster Teeth's Immersion

Rooster teeth are a company who host web shows and make animations to entertain an audience. Rooster Teeth have a running show called "Immersion" which bring the ideas and mechanics from a video game to reality by performing experiments show what these would look like in real life.


In video games there are at most times objects that can be destroyed very easily and normally have items inside for the player to collect. For example vases in the famous video game The Legend of Zelda are destroyed by the player by picking them up and throwing them to collect rupees the game's currency that lie inside. This episode of Immersion sees the "lab rats" Michael and Gavin put in various rooms full of real life objects that are commonly found in games, where they use weapons and tools to smash them open to find a key which allows them to proceed in to the next room. The experiment is to see if destroying these objects in real life acts in the same manner as when they are destroyed in the games. In most games the player can just touch the object and it shatters but in real life it could take much more effort to get inside crates or vases. 

The Middle East

Ottoman Empire owned most of Europe and Africa until the Europeans started to come and claim land which is where Spain, France and England came in. Ottoman then sided with the Germans during World War 1. 

The Problem in the Middle East

Arab states went to soviet union for weapons and America sided with Israel to stop it. The world runs on oil, it is used in just about anything. In the 1950s the middle east was really important because there was a lot of oil and it was easy to extract. There is just about 50% of the planets oil in the middle east.

Hubbert Curve Scenario 

A line graph that is used to predict when the worlds oil will run out depending on the country and how much they use. The graph measures how much reserve of oil there is around the world. 

Why Does It Affect Me?

Designers have an important need for oil because it makes all the tools like pens, printing and inks, packaging etc. Start to prepare using more technology in your work practices like drawing tablets because in years to come the lack of oil will create a big problem. 

Electricity

Through the day the price of electricity changes depending on how many people are using it a different times of the day. At times when no one is using it because they are at work or asleep is the time electricity is at its cheapest. This might be the best time to do work or render a animation.

Alternative Energies 

There is Nuclear that include Thorium like Nuclear power plants and nuclear reactors. Then there is Plasma Fields which is basically a mini sun, pressurising a lot of power in one area and then containing it with a plasma field that surrounds it. 

Russia

Russia started off a very small country and are and have always being trying to expand. Russia started at the west side of Siberia and have expanded to the East ever since. Russia have an aggressive way of solving their problems politically and conflict with other civilisations always leads to violence because they only know force.

Economics

Russia have always considered the East (like China) as the enemy until recently when they realised they need resources from China. People with in the Russian government don’t like this and the politics are often in conflict with each other because they both don't agree with trading with China. They believe they are doing unique things in their country (like their building structures) making them believe they are very important people for the world but their desire for western culture ruins their image because they won't be a unique civilisation. 

Economic Management 

Russia works where there a various leaders in different parts of Russia who enforce laws and rules from a overall power of Russia, people who don’t follow their own laws and work as a mafia style upper class of the country. Russia have a much desire to have a western style culture but they are heavily influenced by eastern culture. For example the way finance works in the east isn't very stable or reliable and resulting in payment not being fulfilled or agreements being ignored so people may have to do additional jobs to their original to get paid.

What does this mean for me?

In the future I may have to trade with Russia depending on the job I have. People aren't saying not to trade with Russia just be aware with them because they may not keep to the trades agreement.

3D Logo

This process and production session used Cinema 4D but from a designer's point of view. We looked at how a designer would approach the software to produce their work and ideas in 3D. Using Illustrator we were tasked with creating a simple logo using the pen tool and then import that file into Cinema 4D to make it a 3D object.

A important note before starting the project is to create a folder and naming it the name of the project and then create another 3 folders inside naming them "Illustrator", "Cinema 4D" and "Output". This prevents confusion with file types as the Illustrator logo will be saved in the Illustrator folder and the Cinema 4D logo saved in the Cinema 4D folder then the output folder will be used for saving the final movie or image file of the project.

Starting with opening Illustrator I used the pen tool to experiment drawing shapes until I was happy with one I wanted to use as a logo. The logo could be separate objects which will be seen as one group in Cinema 4D but the drawings couldn't over lap each other. I had one shape for my logo but I did make the mistake of drawing another shape inside my original shape thinking that it will be apart of the logo in Cinema 4D and I soon realised that it wasn't there when it becomes a 3D shape because it fills the original shape hiding the additional shape inside.

Now I have my logo so I start up Cinema 4D and go to "file" and then "merge" which imports my Illustrator file of the logo into Cinema 4D. Next I set up the render settings so it saves my project as a image and not a movie by setting the rendering output to current frame and not all frames to save the first frame that my logo will be on. My next task is to make my flat 2D logo in to 3D, to do this I select the extrudes nurb bringing it in to my object manager where I drag my 2D logo (in the object manager) in to the extrude nurb. This applies the extrude feature to the logo now making it a 3D object.

Next I needed to set up the environment for the project. I started by adding a background and floor to my scene then creating a material that I applied to both objects so they are the same colour. At this moment in time even though the floor and the background have the same material they are both different colours and that is because the floor is not apart of the background and cinema 4D is showing this by purposely making the floor a different colour so I don't get confused with which is which. To change this I needed to add a compositing tag to the floor object and then in the attributes manager of the tag I ticked the "comp background" box to allow the floor to be apart of the background.

Next I could add colour to my project. I went in to the material that I already had for the background and floor and changed the colour to a light blue. I created another material and changed the colour to an orange and applied it to my logo. The next part was to add text to our logo giving the brand a name. On the tool bar at the top it says "MoGraph" then I went down to "MoText" to add the MoText object to my object manager. In the attributes manager I typed "Curse" because I decided that is what my pretend my brand was going to be named and the text in y scene became "Curse". Next I created a new material making it a lime colour and applied it to my text, then choosing a font for my text.

Now I needed to set up the environment for my scene so my logo casts a shadow with correct amounts of lighting. I start by bringing in a standard camera to my scene and position it in the centre facing my logo. Next I bring in two standard lights in to my scene and I name one "key" and the other "fill". The key light is placed to the right of the camera at the same height and then the fill light goes to the left of the camera but the height of this one is between the camera and the floor.

After rendering the logo as a finished image we continued to animate it for animators and motion graphics. The plan was to have the logo rotating at its position. In the object manager I selected all the objects that makes up the logo including the text and grouped them so Cinema 4D recognises them as one object to animate. On the timeline at 0 frames I select the grouped object of my logo and set the rotation on the y-axis to 0 degrees and then I go to the end of the timeline (the last frame) and change the rotation on the y-axis again to 360 degrees. This now rotates my the logo.






What Have I learnt?

During this session I learnt how to import Photoshop and Illustrator files in to Cinema 4D and I also learnt the benefits of using Illustrator to prepare a project for Cinema 4D. If I want to render out 1 frame as an image I now have more of an insight on how to to do that and not make the mistake of rendering hundreds of frames as high detailed images. Another technique I learnt and was starting to wonder how I would do this is creating a all in one background it is one colour without the floor and background interfering with each other.

After Effects 2.5 Dimension

In this process and production session we learnt about the 3D aspect in Adobe After Effects. In Adobe After Effects 3D is known as 2.5D because as the software focuses on 2D it can't produce the full dimensions of 3D. Our task had us creating art in illustrator with a theme of Huddersfield and then we used 2.5D in After Effects to zoom out of the art board to create the illusion the camera was passing the buildings in a 3D environment.

The first step was choosing a scene in Huddersfield to draw into Illustrator.  I chose a common building seen in Huddersfield but with a very old style which includes very big windows to be the first building at the back of my scene. Next I decided to include the Sainbury's next to the main road  with the store's building, a Sainbury's sign, a street light and a red bus stop, followed by the road. My plan is for the camera to zoom out showing each of these objects to be in a distanced order.

The next step is to import my illustrator file into After Effects and set up the composition. When I have my imported files in to a composition I needed to activate the 3D feature in After Effects. The feature changes the composition depth which allows you to have layers behind each other with controllable distances between them. The button to activate the feature is found in the layer manager next to each layer and it looks like a 3D cube.

Now I needed an additional view which looks down at my project so I can see and organise my layers  on the Z-axis. At the bottom of the composition window there is a drop down box that can split the window into multiple views of the project. I clicked on 2 views and changed the 2nd view to top so I could see my project from above.

This is the top view of my project. The white lines are the different layers I imported from Illustrator. The layers are 2D flat pages so from above they would appear as thin white lines like looking at paper stood up from above. The next step was to organise the layers in to position starting with the old building at the back, followed with the Sainbury's store, then the Sainbury's sign, then a bit more distance in front of that the street light and bus stop next to each other and finally the road.

Next I needed a camera that will do the animation by zooming out of the Z-axis to create the illusion that the layers have distance between them, one by one revealing them into the scene. The camera is a layer of its own so I created a new layer and selected camera. The camera appears as a red triangle in the top view, the point at the bottom is the camera itself and the lines protruding out is what the camera sees. 

Finally I needed to change the position of the camera and put keyframes for these movements on the animation timeline. At the beginning of the timeline I moved the red triangle right to the top past the white line at the top of my "top" view and added a key frame. I moved to the end of the timeline and then moved the red triangle down so it was completely visible and added another keyframe. Now when I played the animation the camera would start zoomed in past all of the layers and slowly zoom out passing each layer while keeping each one in view.

What Did I Learn?

This session in After Effects taught me that the program had a 3D feature that I didn't know about. Working with the 3D feature gave me more understanding with what I should use it for as it isn't true 3D because you can't see the layers from the left or right only backwards and forwards in a 3D space. Additional to this I also learnt how to apply textures to layers and backgrounds allowing me to personalise my projects.

Business Planning

What is your purpose for setting up a business?

Is it for a profitably income so you can by a car or other luxury items? Is it to pay money to a charity? 

What type of business do you want?

A freelancer? Ltd? Semi-partnership/Partnership?

What is the nature of the business?

What is it your business will be doing? It must be a legal trade. Think about what you can do, what is feasible? Not just what you want to do.

Where will your business be based?

Where geographically do you want this business to be? Be realistic you won’t be able to open a business in New York (yet). Build skills and trades for the time being and stick to the UK. When thinking about the location of the business do research on your trade in that area, look at other businesses you will be competing with to determine if you will get good business.

These questions will lead to success but if you have no direction, you will drift and be unlikely to succeed. Having the knowledge of where you are gives you the knowledge of where you want to be.

After having the knowledge you can start to develop a plan.

Developing a business plan

Plans should deal with 3 scenarios: The GOOD, the BAD and the UGLY.

• The GOOD is when the plan is going well and the business grows.

• The BAD is when something crops up that can cause the plan to drift and critically damage the business.

• The UGLY is when you have opened the business and nothing happens no work is coming in.

During the planning make two groups of income. Group A will look at the budget of your personal life to live comfortably. Group B will be the income saved to start the business and get it up and running. Keep these two incomes separate to prevent confusion.

The three scenarios the GOOD, the BAD and the UGLY helps you realise when the idea of the business needs to be cut loose because its direction may destroy you finically.

Media Types

Media Categories

• Outdoor
• Print
• Broadcast
• Cinema
• Performance
• YouTube
• Games
• Social Media

Outdoor Media

• Billboards
• Adshells (electronically moves)
• Posters
• Vehicle Wraps
• Bus/Train Wraps, “T” Sides, “Rears”

Outdoor media normally lasts two weeks because after sometime people are known to ignore the advertisements because they know that they are there.

Some outdoor media have lighting because during winter it gets dark earlier and gets light later in a morning.

There is a six week deadline to plan, design and get a outdoor media up because other companies book them to put up their own advertisements.

Issues for outdoor media includes: 

• The advert getting dirty making them hard to see. 
• The visibility of the advert can be difficult when it is dark. 
• The choice of colour needs to be considered because of the lighting and dirt. 
• Sometimes the council is needed to clean the billboards.

Outdoor media on the motor way needs to say a quick obvious message because drivers don’t get long to view this advertisements.

Print Media

• Magazines
• Newspapers
• Journals/Newsletters
• Books

Print media need five weeks notice before they can publish any material (except newspapers that can have a  24 hour notice).

Circulation - The number of people who BUY it.

Readership - The number of people who READ it. (E.g. Dentists waiting room)

The price depends on the numbers above for this type of media when it hits the market.

Broadcast Media

• ITV (channel 4 & 5)
• Sky
• BT
• Netflix
• Amazon Prime

Adverts in terms of scripts must be put in front of the BACC (British Advertising Clearance Centre), they accept or reject scripts but not images.

Advertising Standards Authority are the guardians of acceptable ads, they can pull off ads from the air immediately.

Cinema Media

• Ads before a film
• Not really a time limit, better for a story ad.

Audience is “captured” by showing advertisements that have less reality from outside of the cinema and have more of a story to tell.

Entertainment New Media

• Netflix
• Amazon
• Blu-ray/DVD/CD

There is an average of 3 adverts that are shown before a movie on the applications that allow you to stream movies online. The DVDs and Blu-Rays have adverts for other movies that share the same age certificate.

Social Media 

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Instagram

A form of self publication which means there is a issue of anything that is put on these social networking websites has a risk of the creator being liable for: bullying, Plagarism, Theft etc. Depending on what is published.

Budgeting

What is a budget?

A budget is a allocation of money (or resource) needed and managed to undertake a particular task. It may be over a specific task (a project) or a time period (a holiday).

A budget is a proposed idea for a specific amount that has to last you through the task, during the task there will be another figure known as the the actual amount which is the actual amount spent compared to the budget plan. Both figures will be compared to get a cumulative variance which will be used to see if money was saved or if the spent amount went over. 

Example: There is a budget of £100, the actual amount spent was £102 so the cumulative variance is -£2.

Tips using budgeting

Budgets are meant to be a supply of information on the real use of resources. Over time, this information is used to improve future budgets because the more budgets are used the better the understanding is of using them.

If you have a really big budget to spend in a company always take 10% out to save for insurance if things go wrong.

Keep a close eye on the budget list plan when purchases go through because the actual cost may be different by the time purchasing goes through, this will need editing on the budget list to keep up to date.