Page 149 - Intelligent Communication Systems

128 INTELLIGENT COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS
view from front or side, depending on our viewpoint, just as in the real world.
The ability to enter and walk through the virtual world and handle virtual objects
using hand gestures makes VR interactive, and this is one of its most important
features.
Communication can be human-human communication, human-environment
communication, or human-computer communication. In the case of human-human
communication, a variety of means are at our disposal. We talk together to com-
municate. We write letters or draw pictures and sometimes communicate using
images and motion pictures. In human-environment communication, we recognize
our environment via our five senses: feeling, touch, taste, vision, and smell. In
human-computer communication, we interact with a computer by means of a mouse,
a touch pad, or a keyboard.
Human-human communication and human-environment communication have
been developed over a long history of interaction. It is desirable to provide human
beings with a human-friendly environment where we can interact with computers
just as easily as we interact in human-human communication or human-environment
communication.
The goal of VR is to provide human beings with a virtual environment where
we can interact with a computer just as we do in the real world, that is, by talking
with a virtual human in a spoken language, by writing a letter, or by drawing a pic-
ture. We can grasp a virtual object by hand gesture and bring it to another place.
In a human-friendly virtual environment, we can interact with a computer without
any difficulties or barriers. When a virtual landscape is generated by VR technol-
ogy, we can go there just as if it were a real landscape. Providing not only a 3D
image of the landscape but also sound and smell helps us enjoy the scenery.
In Oita prefecture, Japan, there is a museum where visitors can experience a
virtual world. Upon entering the museum, we see a large screen in front of the
seats. By sitting on a seat and wearing special glasses, visitors can enter a large
virtual flower and smell it.
At ATR Communication Systems Laboratories, Kyoto, Japan, a virtual space
teleconferencing system was developed in 1992. This next-generation video con-
ference system provides participants a human-friendly environment for meeting
and collaborating. They can view objects stereoscopically and have front or side
views of the objects depending on their viewpoint. They can handle an object by
means of hand gestures. In this system, each participant is at a different location,
and all sites are connected via the network. Each site has a virtual conference
room with a large screen in front of seats. On the screen, 3D images of real
human beings are displayed stereoscopically, and participants can have stereo-
scopic views of various objects displayed on screen. They can have eye contact
with each other. They can conduct a meeting as if they were gathered in the same
place.
The image's motion is controlled by the real human's motion. The participant
wears shutter glasses and has sensors on face, hands, and body to detect motion.