NVIDIA is trying to fix the VR headset limits

July 29, 2017, 11:54 a.m. By: Pranjal Kumar

NVIDIA VR headset

VR is evolving at a fast pace. All the big companies are working on VR or AR technology or headsets. Yes, we have improved a lot in terms of the quality of headset but still, there are many issues that we need to sort out if we want to get anywhere close to the capabilities of the human eye. The current VR headsets can make users believe that they are in a virtual world but they cannot reproduce the exact way as their eyes see t5he real world. The new research from NVIDIA aims at fixing that thing.

NVIDIA is demonstrating two ways to solving the issue of vergence accommodation conflict. Our eyes have a evolved way of bringing objects at a different distance into much higher clarity which involve both pointing together (vergence) and focusing the lens (accommodation). The current VR headsets use glass lenses that tend to make users eyes focus at a fixed distance which makes the eyes relaxed. But, as you look at objects at different distance simultaneously using a VR headset then your eyes will be strained as these two features in your eyes are in conflict.

There are companies like Magic Leap who are working on solving the similar issue. But, the headsets have yet not arrived at the general customers. According to NVIDIA, the Varifocal Virtuality is an optical layout for near eye display. It uses the transparent holographic back projection screen to display the virtual images". The use of hologram can lead to AR and VR display that will be thinner and lighter than the today’s headsets. Also, According to recently conducted research, our brain uses chromatic aberration which causes color fringes to appear on the edges of an object. This helps the brain to understand where an image is in the 3D space.

NVIDIA is also using the same concept. Virtual objects at a different distance are rendered with stimulated defocus blur that accounts for the internal optics of the human eye. So, when the user will see the distant object, it will be in focus and the nearby objects would appear more blurry, just like in real life scenario. This case will be reversed in the case of the user looking at the nearby object.

Also, Membrane VR uses a deformable membrane mirror for each eye which can be adjusted based on where the user is looking. NVIDIA is working to make sure that the users can see the virtual objects similar to that of the real objects that they see every day.

These researchers can lead to the development of AR and VR headsets that can provide better immersive experience to the users without them feeling any difference between the real objects and the virtual objects.

Image Source: shiropen