Category: Voices of XR

Next Generation Display Technologies for Virtual and Augmented Reality Applications

Next generation display technologies expected to enhance our lives with Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications, which will revolutionize entertainment, healthcare, communication, and manufacturing industries among many others. In this talk, I will introduce the key challenges in designing near-eye VR/AR displays to meet the requirements of the human visual system. I will describe how we can address those challenges with our novel varifocal near-eye display designs. Key to our efforts is a novel see-through rear-projection screen. An image is projected to the see-through screen using an off-axis path, which is then relayed to the user’s eyes through an on-axis partially reflective magnifying surface. I will conclude by showing that this work forms a basis for new near-eye display designs that can meet human visual system’s resolution capabilities.

Kaan Akşit is an associate professor at University College London in the UK. Kaan conducts research at the intersection of light and computation. Kaan’s research includes computational approaches in imaging, fabrication, mobility, and displays dedicated to virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D with glasses and 3D without glasses applications. For more, please visit Kaan’s website at https://kaanaksit.com and follow his updates on twitter at https://twitter.com/kaanaksit.

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Wednesday, March 24th from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

Faces of Technology: Scientist Explores Solutions Through AR/VR

What do you want to be when you grow up?

This daunting question is often asked of children who have hardly been alive long enough to know about career opportunities other than public offices, celebrity platforms and what their parents do for a living. It often isn’t until much later in life – after their talents and desires are honed – when anyone can muster a well-informed answer.

This was the case for Cali Fidopiastis, who never pictured herself as the inspiring scientist she is today.

Cali’s life changed dramatically in 1991, when she sustained a tragic injury while playing tennis and was permanently blinded in one eye. Unable to accept the coach’s assessment that she hit the ball into her own eye, Cali set out to prove them wrong.

“I created a mathematical model of my injury and a dynamic physics model to demonstrate how the accident could have occurred,” explained the UCF School of Modeling, Simulation and Training (MS&T) Ph.D. graduate, who also holds bachelor’s degrees in psychology, biology and a master’s degree in sociology (experimental design) from the University of California Irvine.

During the modeling and simulation process, Cali realized a staggering 30 percent of children playing tennis could sustain the same injury when playing in the same place as she had been on the court. Understanding the ability of this type of simulation to impact lives, she was instantly sold on a new career path. “That changed my course,” said Cali, who originally set out to be a general medical practitioner.

Today, as innovator and chief scientist for Design Interactive, Cali is empowered in a role where her diverse educational backgrounds intersect. Serving an array of clients – from military to hospitals – Design Interactive specializes in virtual and augmented reality software solutions for human performance. Constantly assessing how to take her work “into the real world,” Cali has contributed to projects such as AUGMENTOR™, an augmented reality application for vehicle maintenance, and MedAR, an augmented reality battlefield trauma care trainer.

While Cali thrives in an environment where new technology is being researched and tested daily, it’s not just this aspect of the job that excites her. Rather, Cali enjoys the culture at Design Interactive, where collaboration is king from product conception to launch.

“Our team is extremely supportive and encouraging of each other,” she said. “We help each team member grow their capabilities to reach their highest potential – ultimately, this elevates our product line.”

Cali was eager to accept the job at Design Interactive largely for the opportunity to work with its founder, Kay Stanney, a veteran of Orlando’s multibillion-dollar MS&T industry. “Kay was a professor of mine at UCF… her 20-year career growth pattern was very empowering for me to see. It’s one reason why, when she asked me to come back as her chief scientist, it was an easy ‘yes.’”

Cali may consider herself fortunate to be back in Orlando at Design Interactive, yet surely, it’s the fortune of our region to have such a brilliant scientist call The Corridor “home.” Undoubtedly, she is pioneering a new career path for children to consider when they grow up.

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Monday, March 22nd from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

Interdisciplinary Approaches to Problem Solving through Innovation, Creativity, and Emerging Technology

Born and raised in Sacramento, CA, Steven Christian (he/him/his), grew up playing sports, spanning football, basketball, and baseball. His excellence in football earned him a scholarship to the University of Hawaii. During his college career, he injured his hips and had to get bilateral hip reconstructive surgery. During his recovery, he began to explore art, comics, and developing content for mobile devices.

His exploration of artistic development became an avenue of self-expression as well as therapy. Although he returned to the field after surgery, he understood that his time as an athlete would not last forever. Earning a Master of Arts from Oregon State, he focused on visual representation of social justice issues through an interdisciplinary approach, primarily with animation and illustration.

Steve uses his variety of skills to give back to his community because fostering a strong community is of the utmost importance to him. He works with various non profit organizations that serve underserved communities from Portland to Seattle, and he works as a teaching artist and mentor for Portland Public Schools and Portland Community College. He works with students to inspire them to think beyond stereotypes.

This path has led him into the augmented reality space where he is empowering Black communities to express themselves through creativity, art, and technology. As a visual artist, Steven aims to create content that reflects his environment and inspires and promotes creativity. He founded Iltopia Studios, a creative studio to scale his artmaking into a platform that empowers people from his community to push beyond what is expected of them. Emerging technologies have a notorious record for evolving without including Black and Brown communities. That has social and economic consequences that negatively impact their career opportunities. With Iltopia Studios, Steven’s goal is to disrupt that by lowering the bar of entry into this space. He creates revolutionary and impactful work at the intersections of culture, creativity, and technology. He then builds curriculum from those projects to educate and train the next generation of Black and Brown creators.

Steven lives by the motto: “Create and Conquer!” which means creating opportunities that overcome stereotypes and conquers adversity. Steven wants to do that for Black creators in the arts and tech industry. He believes that scaling Iltopia can provide additional opportunities for Black creators to work and build their skills. By creating projects like Eyelnd Feevr and expanding on the already built world, Iltopia has the potential to compete with other studios for a share of the emerging technology market, and also be uniquely positioned as a leader in culturally relevant storytelling. In addition to those pursuits, Steven is also pursuing enrolling in Medical School. He hopes to integrate his creative and technical skills into his work as a physician to combat health disparities in marginalized communities.

Read more about Steven and Iltopia Studios in this River Campus Libraries news story.

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Wednesday, March 17th from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

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Voices of XR is a Studio X speaker series, presented in collaboration with the Goergen Institute for Data Science. Speakers are scholars, artists, and extended reality professionals who discuss their work with immersive technologies across disciplines and industries. All talks are free and open to the general public. See the full spring 2021 series. 

AR/VR Sensing and Computing Technologies

Dr. Chiao Liu is responsible for research direction and technology roadmap for future generations of AR/VR devices at Facebook Reality Labs. He leads a team of brilliant research scientists, system architects, technologists, and research engineers in innovating, prototyping and delivering solutions for future products.

At heart, Dr. Liu is a technologist and innovator with extensive experience in sensors, signal processing algorithms, silicon, and system architecture. He has developed numerous technologies and products across consumer, medical, scientific fields, most of them ahead of the curve.

Dr. Liu has been actively engaging and contributing to the broader research community, serving as guest lecturer, speaker, technical journal reviewer, conference committee member, and sponsor. He has trained and mentored numerous brilliant young researchers. 

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Monday, March 15th from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

AR/VR for UX

Dr. Yan Xu is a research scientist from Facebook Reality Labs. Her current research intersects AR, AI, and HCI, focusing on identifying and improving user experiences that can benefit the most with AI and AR. Previously, she led the design and UX work for several product features on Magic Leap One, leveraging eye tracking and hand tracking as input. She has also worked and published on the following topics: user-generated content by camera array, social interactions during augmented reality games, persuasive games for health. Her career focuses on bridging the gap between the physical and digital world with a human-centered lens.  

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Where: Zoom
When: Monday, March 8th from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

Making Reality More Accessible

Renée Stevens is an interactive and immersive designer, educator, author, and speaker. Her creative work focuses on innovative ways design can help overcome learning disabilities and create more accessible and inclusive learning environments. For over a decade, she has run her own interactive design studio. You can find her teaching at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, where she is the Associate Chair of the Visual Communications Department, overseeing the undergraduate and graduate design programs. In 2017, she was named an Educator to Watch by GDUSA. She has been invited to speak around the world about her work in XR. She is the author of two books, Powered by Design and Designing Immersive 3D Experiences: A Designer’s guide to creating 3D experiences for extended reality. You can learn more at reneestevens.design

Where: Zoom
When: Wednesday, February 17th from 10:25 to 11:40am
Register: bit.ly/XRVoices

This series is generously supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Traineeship (NRT) program as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Training in the Science, Technology, and Applications of Augmented and Virtual Reality at the University of Rochester (#1922591).

Recorded Event:

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Join Studio X at the River Campus Libraries in conversation with invited scholars, artists, professionals, and more, who will discuss their work with immersive technologies across disciplines and industries. These events are virtual, free, and open to all members of the campus community and the general public. View the full spring 2021 Voices of XR series.