Comment Re:Wish my dentist had this... (Score 1) 64
My company, Firsthand Technology, built the version of SnowWorld, in the video (and most of Dr. Hoffman's VR applications since about 1995).
Funny you should mention dentists... Our most recent application (not for Dr. Hoffman) is a Science Fiction game: "Attack! of the S. Mutans," a stereoscopic 3D multiplayer game with 11-foot screens and WiiMotes that is part of an oral heatlh education exhibit. We have contemplated using VR in dentists offices many times over the years. The issue that keeps stopping us is that the analgesic effect relies on wide field of view (> 60-degrees diagonal). HMDs with this FOV start at about $35k and have a 100% failure rate within the first year. Recently we decided to make our own better, cheaper, non-head-mounted display for pain control. This device is suitable for pain control, but is probably too bulky for the Dentist's chair.
See Firsthand's website for more info
Funny you should mention dentists... Our most recent application (not for Dr. Hoffman) is a Science Fiction game: "Attack! of the S. Mutans," a stereoscopic 3D multiplayer game with 11-foot screens and WiiMotes that is part of an oral heatlh education exhibit. We have contemplated using VR in dentists offices many times over the years. The issue that keeps stopping us is that the analgesic effect relies on wide field of view (> 60-degrees diagonal). HMDs with this FOV start at about $35k and have a 100% failure rate within the first year. Recently we decided to make our own better, cheaper, non-head-mounted display for pain control. This device is suitable for pain control, but is probably too bulky for the Dentist's chair.
See Firsthand's website for more info
