Perception Neuron finally delivers on the dream of full-body virtual reality in every home

SIGGRAPH is where the world’s leaders in the field of 3D motion graphics convene once a year to assess the state of the industry and showcase the latest technologies. This year’s conference was held in Vancouver, BC, home to a growing number of prominent 3D film studios and digital arts schools. This could not have been a more ideal real world setting to launch the next revolution into its virtual counterpart.

“We are beginning to have some great visual tools to experience virtual reality,” explains Dr. Tristan Dai, developer of Perception Neuron, “but we are still stuck in a chair, unable to move. To truly experience virtual reality we need the freedom to move, walk, touch, jump, crawl, climb — literally transpose our entire bodies into the digital realm. Until we do that, all we are doing is tantamount to a small fraction of the promise of virtual reality.”

This is what Dr. Dai and the Noitom team demonstrated at the show with the unveiling of Perception Neuron. The diminutive motion capture system is modular — made up of little “block-like” sensors that you place anywhere on your body. When we mean diminutive, we truly mean it. Each Neuron sensor is about the size of a fingernail. They all connect to the wireless Hub that is just slightly bigger. It can handle anywhere from 1 to 30 Neuron sensors allowing the users the flexibility of customization — from 10 for hand movements, to 20 for full body movements to 30 for a combination of both. They can even be placed on accessories for added interaction.

Each Neuron sensor is equipped with a gyroscope, magnetometer, accelerometer and MCU that processes all the information. The data is then sent to the Hub which then sends the 60 frame per second industry standard BVH stream via WIFI to any router and on to your computer. At the other end, a professional software designed by the Perception Neuron team not only allows you to record and export the data as FBX file for use in Maya and MotionBuilder, but it gives you advanced control over every aspect of the system including rapid 15 second calibration. The software also allows you to easily reconfigure your capture needs through a “drag-and-drop” system where Neuron sensors simply get assigned to locations on a human skeleton model. The packages all come with SDKs for Unity, Oculus Rift, Windows, OSX as well as open source games designed to be used and abused, making this the ideal platform for anyone from beginner “makers” to advanced developers and animators.

On demo at the booth was a 17-Neuron sensor setup on an actor which gave him full body control. He was able to jump, spin, and spent a lot of time blasting a wall Dragon Ball style. He was linked wirelessly via WIFI. In the adjacent area, the crowds were allowed to test a glove system with 10 sensors which allowed you to practice your skills at virtual basketball using in addition to the Perception Neuron, an Oculus Rift goggle headset. The system was very responsive and the accuracy of the finger movement amazing. Grabbing the ball took some getting used to since there was no tactile feedback, but once you realized that it became very easy and addictive. Other games included hitting a set of gongs with stones or throwing bean bags at cans. One of the coolest though was the soccer game. This was played on the big screen using the full body Perception Neuron system and simulated a ball the player kicked into a goal or aimed at a gong. Also on display were the final molds for the Neuron sensors, connectors and Hub — and they looked sleek — all black with the logo etched and a tiny LED.

One industry professional visiting the booth said it best — “this is game changing!” This pretty much sums up the feedback from the crowds who felt they had finally experienced an evolutionary leap in virtual reality and motion capture, but most importantly a revolution by making the technology so affordable anyone could own it.

With more restrictive existing and bulkier technologies starting in the $50Ks and easily going in the millions, it is no wonder Perception Neuron shocked everyone when it announced it was launching on Kickstarter its 10-Neuron package at an unprecedented price $200. With a $375 pledge delivering a 20-Neuron package and $550 giving you a 30-Neuron package, they are delivering a professional system at a mere percent of competitors. In addition, the packages come with all the accessories, software and are ready to go out of the box. There is even a better deal. If you backed Oculus Rift on Kickstarter and use the same account to back Perception Neuron you can get the 30 for the price of the 20 — that is $175 off. Delivery of the production units is slated for February 2015.

So the big question is what is this for and, more importantly, who is this for? This is a tool for anyone who needs to do serious motion capture — 3D animators, game designers, visual effects creators and virtual reality developers. Anyone operating in those fields will have worked with high-end equipment and will benefit from having a smaller, portable and affordable option. It will also allow a lot of startups and smaller studios around the world access to a technology that had been out of their financial reach in the past. This is also a tool for academia, from biomechanics to sports and all the way to health and rehabilitation, Perception Neuron is an open platform and therefore allows the manipulation and customization of the system and its data.

Now for the fun aspect. It comes with games that can be played with right out of the box, but it is not a toy. Not yet at least. It won’t take long though if our predictions are correct. As an open platform and with full support for Unity and Oculus, game developers will rapidly fulfill its destiny of becoming a full body virtual reality controller to transpose the body into new and existing games and online worlds. In the meantime, it is the ideal and affordable way to get introduced, play and tinker with a technology that will undoubtedly drive our future.

The Kickstarter Campaign can be found at Perception Neuron