ImmerSight is a positional tracking system, that can be used with any head mounted display, being produced by a company in Germany. Notably, this could be a solution for the Oculus Rift developer kit which currently lacks positional tracking. The tracking system, which utilizes a webcam and a fashionable pentagon worn on the head, tracks translational head movements which can be used to enhance immersion.
At first glance you might think that the ImmerSight sensor ring would be unwieldy, but it actually only weighs 100 grams (slightly less than an iPhone 5), according to Stefan Hörmann, one of three graduates in the University of Ulm’s Institute of Measurement, Control, and Microtechnology that are responsible for the system.
ImmerSight uses optical tracking from a 60 FPS camera that hangs above the user and tracks the white balls, made of cotton, that are mounted on the sensor ring. The camera detects the balls and the shape of the ring, and a computer does the computations to enable 6 DOF head tracking without an IMU. Hörmann has published a paper on the algorithm used for tracking which you can find here.
The walkable space is defined by the camera’s viewable area which has been seen in demonstrations as a circle about 6 feet diameter (though ostensibly it could be increased by raising the camera). A controller can also be used to navigate further inside the virtual world than the physical walking space would allow.
ImmerSight’s positional tracking can be paired with any head mounted display. So far it’s been shown off with the Carl Zeiss Cinemizer (check it out in our HMD comparison chart), but Hörmann tells me it could be adapted to the Oculus Rift as well. The system takes about 10 minutes to set up, making it a viable replacement for more complex CAVE systems.
See Also: PosiTTron DIY Oculus Rift Positional Tracking Prototype
The video below (in German), gives an idea of how ImmerSight works.
The system is currently positioned for the architectural visualization field with small and medium sized businesses in mind. Hörmann told me that ImmerSight could potentially work for individuals as well, but they’re still working out the price.
For now, ImmerSight is likely to be optionally bundled with the PaletteCAD architecture software. With a one click, users of PaletteCAD can render their architectural plans with textures and lighting to be viewed in the ImmerSight system.
The company is currently running five pilot projects with customers in Austria and Germany and expects ImmerSight to be available alongside PaletteCAD in October 2013.