Disney’s research team is pushing augmented and virtual reality to the next level with a jacket that let the wearer immerse his senses into whatever game he is playing. The Force Jacket on a volunteer (left and right), one of the 26 bags inside the jacket (middle). (Image via Disneyresearch.com)
Even though Virtual Reality has not taken over the world completely yet, companies are still working to improve the experience for the users who are already hooked on VR. One such company is Disney, which recently introduced “Force Jacket,” a jacket designed to engage the senses of the users a lot more.
Invented by engineers of Disney’s research department along side with experts from Carnegie Mellon University and MIT, Force Jacket is revolutionary because contrary to other devices with the same function on the market, it uses a different technology to send tactile feedback to the user. While other VR-related devices use haptic motors to influence users’ senses during the game, Force Jacket has a set of bags inside the inner layer of the jacket, that inflate or deflate based on the amount of pressure the user’s body is experiencing. The bags are connected to an air compressor and a vacuum pump through a system of tubes. Now, even though the jacket has a total of 26 bags, not all bags deflate or inflate at the same time. The reaction of the bags depends on the type of stimuli (intensity and speed) they receive and the part of the user’s body that receives the stimuli. For example, when the bags on the side of the torso will inflate quickly if the user experiences a punch in the game; and they will inflate slowly if the user experiences a hug. The user gets to experience the movement in the bags thanks to the vibrations they create while inflating or deflating.
Once the jacket built, engineers needed to test it out. For that purpose, they turned to sixteen volunteers who played some relatively violent games which allowed the researchers to observe and create similar sensations such as insects climbing the user’s body, getting hit by a snowball or even a tap on the shoulder. The vibrations the movement of air in the bags created mimicked sensations from a bike ride, rain falling on shoulders, or a racing heartbeat. Everything about the Force Jacket functions in a way that the user is truly experiencing another reality with all the possible emotions and sensations. However, given the complexity of the mechanism that makes the jacket work, it would take a while for users to have that device for their personal use at home.
On a side note, the word Force associated with the jacket is driving speculations about whether the jacket has something to do with Star Wars; especially since a recent patent for a light sword was filed with a few allusions to the jacket. Could Disney be thinking of creating a new attraction related to Star Wars with the jacket at the center?
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