BOSTON (PTC Live Global 2014) - Virtalis, the company best known for its million dollar immersive virtual reality rooms (which it calls Active Cubes or CAVEs, for computer augmented virtual reality) and ActiveWalls, now has a version of virtual reality for the desktop.Virtalis has ported its technology to the zSpace device, which with what appears to be an oversized iPad, a wired stylus and not-very-obtrusive glasses, to create a holographic image. Of course, you do have to give up the 1:1 scale provided by Virtalis flagship products but also downsized is the price. Starting at $33,000, this device suddently makes virtual reality far more approachable for engineers and designers.
With Virtalis ActiveDesk zSpace, you can pretend to be Luke Skywalker getting a message from Princess Leia even if you are pulling a car seat out of a convertible.
The zSpace is as close to natural 3D space as is currently available. Oculus Rift may have received a lot of attention lately, being bought by Facebook for $2 billion, but I've found the Oculus mask, like other 3D headsets heavy, cumbersome and disorienting, cutting you off from the real world. Meanwhile, the zSpace specs can pass for reading glasses.
Virtalis ActiveDesk is a combination of 3D virtual reality software, Visionary Render, and the zSpace desktop interactive display system, announced last month.
Virtalis also announced that PTC Creo users will now be able to view their CAD models in virtual reality its new VR Extension for PTC Creo View.
For more information:
http://www.virtalis.com/