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Military VR Simulator Is Closest Thing Ever to Real-Life Halo 3
Posted by Jesus Diaz at 12:20 AM on October 27, 2007
This is the ultra-high resolution multi-projector VR system that will be used for training at the Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. Built by Lockheed Martin, it uses Mersive Sol Server technology to automatically and seamlessly combine multiple projectors in one gigantabolous immersive display, thanks to camera-based fully-automatic calibration, edge blending and colour correction. The result is stunning, but wait until you see it in motion after the jump.
The whole system will be used in the base's Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) Virtual Trainer Dome simulator, which is "primary training facility for the USAF JTACs."
JTAC is the link between the Army and the Air Force when combat requires the aid of close air support, is expected to maintain situational awareness, know the supported unit's plans, and validate and prosecute targets of opportunity. The I-JTAC TRS Proof-of-Concept Dome, built by Lockheed Martin, offers a high fidelity, realistic, fully immersive, real-time visual environment with sensor, simulator, and database correlation.
Although there are other multiple-projectors solutions in the market, the cool thing about Mersive's Sol Server technology is the automatic calibration to adjust the multiple projectors to the curved surface. Instead of using complicated procedures that can take weeks to complete, Sol uses a robotic camera to obtain reference points. After the screen is mapped in less than an hour, the Sol Server software corrects for "geometric distortion, intensity and colour variation in overlap regions that result from using multiple overlapping projectors on the spherical surface of the dome."
The Sol links to the MetaVR Virtual Reality Scene Generator (VRSG)™, which is the VR generator used by the JTAC unit, with zero latency to the display system.
Warping, blending and colour correction is accomplished by applying parameters supplied by the Mersive Sol Server to images generated by MetaVR directly on the graphics card used by the IG. No additional external hardware is required.Sounds cool, but really, could we drop the MetaVR and connect this thing to an Xbox 360 to kick Kotaku's arse again in Halo 3? That's what we want to know. In the meantime, see how the whole process works in the video.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
tin
Posted 5:12 PM 26/10/07
@DocGratis: Lol i wondered the same thing, WTH's with bincoulars, is it possible for it to be that high res??? If so..thats amazing...binoculars from like 1m away from the screen....
tin
Shane
Posted 3:41 PM 26/10/07
Military always gets the best toys and gadgets. :(
Shane
vagrant
Posted 2:44 PM 26/10/07
This would make for some sweet BF2 action.
vagrant
serious_sam
Posted 1:38 PM 26/10/07
Here's the direct link. This should work
Video
serious_sam
tchangtx
Posted 12:36 PM 26/10/07
Screw using this as training! Build it to be real-time video using UAV's and those ground bots with cameras. Then you can spread democracy from air-conditioned comfort. :-)
tchangtx
shaolinmonk
Posted 12:15 PM 26/10/07
remember when picard, riker and the gang dressed up like 50's gangsters? It's only a matter of time...
shaolinmonk
James
Posted 11:56 AM 26/10/07
mersive.com is toast. I'll go down the street here and let them know...
James
rrrebo
Posted 11:33 AM 26/10/07
Video worked for me, just took forevah to load. I work at the facility where they build those, and I got a tour of the sims 2 weeks ago. Awesome. The interoperability of that simulator with several other systems is amazing.
rrrebo
subino
Posted 11:20 AM 26/10/07
Looks like 'sweet cheeks' needs to do some upgrading so's he can see the full moon!
subino
hughjass
Posted 11:19 AM 26/10/07
@DocGratis:
Hey, I'm all for big images too. But I want a link to the larger version.
hughjass
DocGratis
Posted 11:14 AM 26/10/07
Now the movie plays on reload.. no controls, but other than that.
And personally I like the large images for the pictures that need it, and this one is one of those.
(of course I do run at 1600x1200 so I don't have to side scroll much)
DocGratis
car47
Posted 10:50 AM 26/10/07
you can see the movie here if you want. It's a link directly to the swf.
car47
hughjass
Posted 10:38 AM 26/10/07
Hey Giz, you guys don't really think the average Joe reading your website is using 1920x1200 resolution, do you? Because you keep putting up these massive pictures like you do. I believe I speak for everyone on the Internet when I say I hate horizontal scrolling. So I'm just saying...
hughjass
aaj111
Posted 10:37 AM 26/10/07
Looks cool. If you could play Halo 3 on that, it'd be great! Curved like that would seem life-like!!
Yeah, videos not working either.
aaj111
SpeneyG
Posted 10:29 AM 26/10/07
@SpeneyG: Still no controls in FF
SpeneyG
jesusdiaz
Posted 10:24 AM 26/10/07
Damn, it was working fine at the beginning. Fixing.
jesusdiaz
DustyButt
Posted 10:19 AM 26/10/07
@DocGratis: Those aren't 'nocs... He's just takin' the edge off, that's all. He said he can quit anytime he wants.
DustyButt
guojenman
Posted 10:15 AM 26/10/07
It's Flash and it throws an error on load,
Error #2044: Unhandled skinError:. text=[IOErrorEvent type="ioError" bubbles=false cancelable=false eventPhase=2 text="Error #2035: URL Not Found. URL: SkinUnderPlaySeekStop.swf"]
guojenman
SpeneyG
Posted 10:15 AM 26/10/07
@jesusdiaz: There's a box with a picture, but no controls and it's in the middle of the page using FF
SpeneyG
DocGratis
Posted 10:14 AM 26/10/07
Yep no video here either...
Man that must be a high resolution display.
In the first picture he is using binoculars...
What is he looking for, pixelization?
DocGratis
Rav3n
Posted 10:13 AM 26/10/07
IE6 doesn't display the video either. On another note, this technology has been used by the Air Force for years (toned down a bit) for weapons simulation training.
Rav3n
jesusdiaz
Posted 10:12 AM 26/10/07
You can't see the video or it's just the overlapping? I changed the original size to fix that.
jesusdiaz
jibbly
Posted 10:12 AM 26/10/07
Ditto, FF and IE7 (via IE Tab extension) both hate it and want to spit on it's grave.
jibbly
yacoub
Posted 10:11 AM 26/10/07
FF and IE7 - neither like the video embed.
yacoub
yacoub
Posted 10:10 AM 26/10/07
Firefox and IE7 both 'no-likey' the video embed.
yacoub
yvo_suave
Posted 10:10 AM 26/10/07
I can't get it to play in either Firefox, Opera, or IE. Do I need the Silverlight plugin or something? Safari! That's the ticket... :-/
yvo_suave
jakebathman
Posted 10:08 AM 26/10/07
same problem in safari....
jakebathman
impliedsurprise
Posted 10:04 AM 26/10/07
Is it me, or is the video all wonky in Firefox? No control handles and it's overlapping some text...
impliedsurprise
clex25
Posted 12:07 PM 27/10/07
Those binoculars, are they real, or some sort of computer simulated binoc's that have lcd screens or something inside them that show a zoomed in view. Surely you cant use them on a regular screen and be useful.
clex25
Atunu
Posted 7:54 AM 28/10/07
Daaaammmnn Son.. This is so sweet it brings out the "Ghetto" in me (although, I'm just some poor bloke from the indian sub-continent who has never been outside of his country in his life & possibly relies on movie references to establish his web-presence.)
Atunu
g8trtim
Posted 1:54 PM 29/10/07
@clex25: Correct, they are simulated M22 binoculars. This picture was taken at the AFA conference last month showcasing USAF DMO training incorporating 2 live F16s, 2 virtual F16s and 2 constructive F16s in a Close Air Support training mission.
g8trtim