VISpro VR

Virtual RealityThis app allows users to watch 360° videos on demand and live.

VISpro VR - Virtual Reality

This app showcases research in the virtual reality field made by VISpro Video&Engineering.

-- 360° VIDEOS --

In this app you will see many 360° videos. But what is a 360° video? When you watch a 360° video you are not seeing a shot, a portion of what was going on at that moment but you are where the camera was. This means you are free to look wherever you want. In a traditional video is the director deciding what the viewer will watch. In a 360 degrees video instead, it’s the viewer deciding where to look. By doing this a new dimension is added allowing the spectator to feel “present”. The viewer has now the power of being an active part of the content by being free to look where he wants. A unique experience for each viewer.

-- MONO AND 3D STEREO --

Not all 360° videos are the same: they can be shot with various techniques. One main difference is if they are monoscopic or stereoscopic. Monoscopic videos are shot from a single point of view. Stereoscopic videos are shot from both the left eye and the right eye point of view. This kind of video is the most complex to shoot but it allows the viewer to perceive depth: dimensions, spaces and volumes literally pops out of the scene.

-- HOW TO WATCH A 360° VIDEO --

It's very easy to start: if you have a smartphone with accelerometer and gyroscope you're good to go. Choose one of the video from the Video On Demand section and tap the play button. Once the video has started move your smartphone in the air and use it as a window into the scene. The device knows where it is pointed at and the view will change accordingly.

You can also use your finger and move the view by dragging. You can also disable the sensor and navigate in touch-only mode.

There is a third way to watch a 360° video: the 3D stereo mode. This is essential to perceive the depth in a 3D stereoscopic video but you need a special virtual reality device such as the Google Cardboard or a high end version such as the Oculus or the Gear VR. The screen will split in two: one half for the left eye and the other one for the right eye. The subtle differences in the two views will be detected by your brain and transformed into a 3D scene just as what you see in real life. Devices such as the Google Cardboard are the entry level of virtual reality: to achieve better immersion into the scene a high end VR headset is needed. A dedicated app will be released shortly so stay tuned!

-- LIVE 360° VIDEOS --

A bold application of virtual reality is the live 360 videos. This means that you can see a 360° video that is being shot in real time in some other part of the world. It means that you can almost be where the video is being shot, right where the camera is. This opens mind boggling scenarios: sport matches, concerts, events, fairs... you can have a front row seat in every event of the world.

Download the app to live this new experience that technological evolution allows.