mike@ai.mew.mei.co.jp (R. Michael Taylor) (03/27/91)
>>>>> "RW" == kddlab!lkbreth.foretune.co.jp!trebor@uunet.UU.NET (Robert
J Woodhead) <19048@milton.u.washington.edu
RW> On a more serious note (?) I went to a place in Shinjuku yesterday
RW> where they are using VR (standard VPL stuff) to sell, are you ready for
RW> this, kitchens and dining rooms. It's an experimental program (natch)
RW> and probably just a high tech tax dodge, but you just choose which
RW> components you want in your dream kitchen, donn the eyephones, and off
RW> you go.
RW> Some nice touches; there are stereo music cues (you can pick up the
RW> radio and hold it at either ear) and objects can be manipulated (a
RW> little). The sink works too -- but it wouldn't let me toss an ashtray
RW> across the room.
RW> Free and open to the public; appointments reccomended. In the building
RW> behind the Keio Plaza Hotel across the street from the new Metropolitan
RW> Government Center; 4th floor.
This information is basically correct except for the tax dodge remark. It
is free and open to the public during normal business hours. To the best
of my knowledge it is the only commercial application of VR in existence.
The final goal is to have a user design his/her own kitchen and then be
able to experience it inside of VR. The entire design/conversion process
will eventually take as little as 4 hours, but right now it takes a couple
days.
--
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R. Michael Taylor, Virtual Reality Researcher
mike@ai.mew.mei.co.jp
Matsushita Electric Works, ISC
1048, Kadoma, Kadoma-shi
Osaka 571, JAPAN
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