Photos of my HMD's

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Hello guys, today I decided to make some cool photos of my HMD's. I'm sure many of you seen these devices many times, sorry for that.
At least I tried to make photos which anyone can use to show how particular helmet or glasses looks like, compare them, etc. So here we go...

Vuzix Wrap 920 AR [2011]

http://maxim-lysak.deviantart.com/art/A ... -211006634

Vuzix VR920 [2008]

http://maxim-lysak.deviantart.com/art/A ... -211005418

Liquid Image MRG 2.2 [1993]

http://maxim-lysak.deviantart.com/art/V ... -211004007

VFX-1 [1995] (old photo, you've probably already seen)

http://maxim-lysak.deviantart.com/art/V ... -177500246

My comments on each particular HMD are in the link below picture, on my DA gallery.
Hope you liked photos, feel free to share your thoughts.

[cybereality]

Thanks for sharing. The VFX-1 really did have like the coolest design ever. With the images shown back to back, I am not sure I like the direction Vuzix (formally Forte) has gone with their Wrap line of HMDs.

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Yeah, VFX-1 nicely distributed weight around your head, had flippable visor, detachable cables, it blocked outside lights and had nicely designed headphones which totally cover users ears.
Besides it already had controllable IPD and independent focus adjustments! And 45 degree FOV (compare with todays 31-35 Wrap's).
Looking through users manual, VFX-1 had upgradeable LCD screens and optics. From the beginning Forte made its initial design upgradeable, however upgrade LCD's with higher resolution were never released. I heard that wider-FOV glass optics was released, but in small quantities.

And it looks cool even today, I'm not agree if someone call it bulky. MRG2.2, Flight helmet are bulky, but not VFX-1.
I know it will never happen, but wonder what if Vuzix decide someday to make some VFX "millenium edition", with old shell but new screens, etc.

Today Kevin Mellot http://mellottsvrpage.com/ makes hobby project on reviving VFX-1 by creating full-functional control box to link VFX-1 with modern computers. With stereoscopy, head-tracking, cyberpuck, etc. I really hope he will make it, and I hope to get my hands on such box!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNOB4FxC4io[/youtube]

However, from comfort point of view, Wraps are more comfortable than iWear VR920. And both of them are much easier and faster to wear than VFX-1

[bobv5]

How does the vfx fov look compared to the more modern headsets?

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Here is comparison scheme I gathered, calculated and combined some time ago for some HMD's.


Red is for VR920, which is very similar to Wrap 920 and other modern HMD's, and green schematically represents VFX1 FOV.
The biggest square on scheme is MRG2.2 FOV.

[bobv5]

Yeah, seen that, but thanks anyway. What I was really meaning to ask is if 45 feels like a big improvement over 30, or just a litlle bit better.

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Honestly feels like a bit bigger, not a breakthrough, but bigger. MRG 2.2 FOV feels like breakthrough comparing to VR920.

[martinh]

Where would my HMD fit on that picture? It's a Division dVisor:

Resolution - 345h x 259v
FOV - 105°h x 41°v
Stereoscopic with about 40 deg overlap iirc

Thanks,

Martin.

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Hi Martin!
I think it will be about like MRG2.2 FOV wise, a little narrower in height (MRG have about 100 x 60 FOV).
And it's from really old foundation of HMD's, so resolution is about half of what MRG or VFX1 have (~90k, which is about 10 times lower than modern HMD's).
90k was standard rez for late eighties and very early nineties. I believe this one of the helmets that had amazing LEEP optics, which allow to use high FOV stereoscopy.

Sorry I didn't put here nothing about stereo overlap. Consider all HMDs before MRG have 100% overlap, and MRG is monoscopic.

[martinh]

It definitely does have LEEP optics and "focus at infinity" collimation, and reading up about the "depixellisation" effect, this is just defocussing at -5 diopters at infinity.

It is possibly a re-shelled VR Flight Helmet, which from the early photos is what Division used before the dVisor.

[Johnny-Mnemonic]

Older helmets also used depixelation filters, to blur pixel edges over black spacings between them on LCD matrix.
For example MRG2.2 used some cool depixelation filter from "Kaiser optical systems inc.", it was named holographic diffusor.
This was needed to mask low resolution of LCD's, especially for big FOV.

Most modern HMD's do not use depixelation filters because they have high-enough resolutions and narrow FOV.
Considering collimated optics - it's still true for modern HMD's also, it's made for eye comfort.