The Oculus Rift promises to makeStar Trek TNG’s holodeck a reality, but only in your head. You can’t spend every moment of your life with a goofy visor strapped to your face, and that’s why this alternate approach to the holodeck — using projectors to make a tiny non-descript room appear massive — seems far more plausible.
The Mixed Reality Living Spaces, as artist Bernardo Schorr calls them, features bland white walls that create the illusion of extra space through projected imagery. Imagine how cheap a one-bedroom windowless apartment would be, but with a series of projectors on the ceiling you could create virtual windows that look out on Paris, New York and London — all at the same time.
And the system powering the projectors isn’t just loading up random images. It can accurately reflect the time of day and weather, and even change things up as you re-arrange the furniture. When a sofa bed is unfurled, it could make the room appear like a bedroom. But when it’s folded up, it would revert to a living room complete with a faux big screen TV. [YouTube via Taxi]