All about Virtual Reality-VR

What is Virtual Reality ?

Virtual Reality (VR) is the use of computer technology to create a Simulated environment.

This immersive environment can be similar to the real world or it can be fantastical.

Major Concepts

VR must allow the user to view the environment from any point and at any angle

VR must allow the user to interact with objects in the environment.

Why VR?

               VR is able to immerse you in a computer-generated world of your own making: a room, a city, the interior of human body !

With VR, you can explore any uncharted territory of the human imagination.

Brief History

In 1950s, flight simulators were built by US Air Force to train student pilots.

In 1965, a research program for computer graphics called “The Ultimate Display” was laid out.

In 1988, commercial development of VR began.

In 1991, first commercial entertainment VR system "Virtuality" was released.

Sensorama - world 1st VR system

§  The Sensorama was a machine that is one of the earliest known examples of immersive, multi-sensory (now known as multimodal) technology. 

§  This technology, which was introduced in 1962 by Morton Heilig, is considered as one of the earliest virtual reality (VR) systems.

§  It simulated a motorcycle ride through New York and created the experience by having the spectator sit in an imaginary motorcycle while experiencing the street through the screen, fan-generated wind, and the simulated noise and smell of the city.

Sensorama - world 1st VR system

Components of VR Systems

1.  Input Processor

Control the devices used to input information to the computer. 

Keyboard, mouse, 3D position trackers, a voice recognition system, etc.

2.  Simulation Processor

Core of a VR system.

Takes the user inputs along with any tasks programmed into the world and determine the actions that will take place in the virtual world.

3.  Rendering Processor

Create the sensations that are output to the user.

Separate rendering processes are used for  visual, auditory, haptic and other sensory systems.

4.  World Database

Store the objects that inhabit the world, scripts that describe actions of those objects.

Types of VR System

1. Windows on World (WoW)

·        Also called Desktop VR.

·        Using a conventional computer monitor to display the 3D virtual world.

·        Does not require special hardware

·        Low Cost, Low Performance, Less Immersion

2. Telepresence

·        Real-time telepresence

·        Interactions are reflected to some real world objects.

·        Delayed telepresence

·        Interactions are recorded, and after satisfaction is applied to the real-world object.

3. Immersive VR

·        Completely immerse the user's personal viewpoint inside the virtual 3D world.

·        The user has no visual contact with the physical word. 

·        Often equipped with a Head Mounted Display (HMD).

4. Mixed Reality(Augmented Reality)

·        The seamless merging of real space and virtual space.

·        Integrate the computer-generated virtual objects into the physical world which become in a sense an equal part of our natural environment.

5. Distributed VR

·        A simulated world runs on several computers which are connected over network and the people are able to interact in real time, sharing the same virtual world.  

Popular VR Handset

1.      Google Cardboard

2.      Samsung Gear

3.      Oculus Rift

VR Applications

Entertainment

–       More vivid

–       Move exciting

–       More attractive

Medicine 

–       Practice performing surgery.

–       Perform surgery on a remote patient.

–       Teach new skills in a safe, controlled environment.

Manufacturing

–       Easy to modify

–       Low cost

–       High efficient

Education & Training

–       Driving simulators.

–       Flight simulators.

–       Ship simulators.

–       Tank simulators.

Current problems & Future work

L Cybersickness / simulator sickness

L  Low-fidelity

L  Expensive

L  Lack of integration between application packages

J  High-fidelity system

J  Cost-saving

J  Collaborative

J  High-level contact between participants in distributed VR

Conclusion

VR introduces a new way of interacting with computers

The best of VR is yet to come

Web is very suitable for VR applications, but the proper technology is not yet there

We hope you will get better understanding from “All about Virtual Reality”. 

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All about Ambient intelligence(AmI)

What is Ambient intelligence(AmI) ?

   Ambient intelligence(AmI) is an emerging discipline that brings intelligence to our every-day environments and makes those environments sensitive to us.

   Ambient Intelligence is a network of hidden intelligent interfaces that recognize our presence and mould our environment to our immediate needs.

    AmI refers to an exciting new paradigm in information technology, in which people are empowered through a Digital environment that is aware of their presence and context and is sensitive, adaptive and responsive to their needs, habits, gestures and emotions.

It reduces the stress leading to an overall higher quality of life.

Characteristics:

Embedded, aware, natural, personalized, adaptive, anticipatory

AmI stems from the union of three key technical areas:

•         ubiquitous/pervasive computing

•         ubiquitous communication

•         intuitive and intelligent user interfaces

The convergence of such technologies would lead to the development of a seamless environment that is constantly aware of the presence of people, their needs and desires and is capable of intelligently responding via intuitive and natural user interfaces such as gestures, speech, etc.

The following issues have to be addressed as well: energy, environment, social sustainability, privacy, social robustness and fault tolerance.

 Requirements of Ambient Intelligence

Interaction in-between AmI and other disciplines

Ambient Intelligence aims to enhance the way people interact with their environment to promote safety and to enrich their lives.

A Smart Home is one such system but the idea extends to hospitals, public transport, factories and other environments. The achievement of Ambient Intelligence largely depends on the technology deployed (sensors and devices interconnected through networks) as well as on the intelligence of the software used for decision-making.

Ambient Intelligence (AmI) is growing fast as a multi-disciplinary topic of interest which can allow many areas of research to have a significant beneficial influence into our society. The basic idea behind AmI is that by enriching an environment with technology (mainly sensors and devices interconnected through a network), a system can be built to take decisions to benefit the users of that environment based on real-time information gathered and historical data accumulated. AI is used in a broad sense, encompassing areas like agent-based software and robotics.

AmI systems provide flexibility, adaptation, anticipation and a sensible interface in the interest of users. Here we expand Raffle’s definition to emphasize Intelligence as a fundamental element of an AmI system:  “A digital environment that proactively, but sensibly, supports people in their daily lives.” 

Importance for AmI are the “5Ws” (Who, Where, What, When and Why) principle of design :

Who: the identification of a user of the system and the role that user plays within the system in relation to other users. This can be extended to identifying important elements like pets, robots and objects of interest within the environment. 

Where: the tracking of the location where a user or an object is geographically located at each moment during the system operation. This can demand a mix of technologies, for example technology that may work well indoors may be useless outdoors and vice-versa.

When: the association of activities with time is required to build a realistic picture of a system’s dynamic. For example, users, pets and robots living in a house will change location often change location and knowing when those changes happened and for how long they lasted are fundamental to the understanding of how an environment is evolving. 

What: the recognition of activities and tasks users are performing is fundamental in order to provide appropriate help if required. The multiplicity of possible scenarios that can follow an action makes this very difficult. Spatial and temporal awareness help to achieve task awareness.

Why: the capability to infer and understand intentions and goals behind activities is one of the hardest challenges in the area but a fundamental one which allows the system to anticipate needs and serve users in a sensible way. 

Applications of Ambient intelligence(AmI)

•        Health-related applications

•        Public transportation sector

•        Education services

•        Emergency services

•        Production-oriented services

Biggest adopters of AmI:

•        Healthcare

•        Home automation

•        Health-related applications: Hospitals can increase the efficiency of their services by monitoring patients’ health and progress by performing automatic analysis of activities in their rooms. (Sensing and monitoring)

•        Emergency services: Safety-related services like fire brigades can improve the reaction to a hazard by locating the place more efficiently and also by preparing the way to reach the place in connection with street services.

•        Production-oriented places: Companies can use RFID sensors to tag different products and track them along the production and commercialization processes.

•        It helps improving the process by providing valuable information for the company on how to react to favorable demand and unusual events like products that become unsuitable for sale.

Imagine in the future…. Intelligence Are Embedded

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All about Internet of Things - IOT

All about Internet of Things - IOT

What Is the Internet of Things?

•        The Internetof Things (IOT) is the network of physical objects—devices, vehicles, buildings and other items embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and network connectivity—that enables these objects to collect and exchange data.

•        The Internet of Things is the intelligent connectivity of physical devices driving massive gains in efficiency, business growth, and quality of life.”

IoT is a conceptual framework

It’s about enabling connectivity and embedded intelligence in devices

Some of these devices are connected today, but MANY are not…

Not strictly machine-to-machine (M2M) – also machine-to-people, people-to-machine, machine-to-objects, people-to-objects

Creates the ability to collect data from a broad range of devices

Data  can be accessed via the cloud and analyzed using “big data” techniques

IoT can be used to provide unique value propositions and create complex information systems which are greater than the sum  of the individual components.

Various Names,  One Concept

•        M2M (Machine to Machine)

•        “Internet of Everything” (Cisco Systems)

•        “World Size Web” (Bruce Schneier)

•        “Skynet” (Terminator movie)

How are you reading this post right now? It might be on desktop, on mobile, maybe a tablet, but whatever device you’re using, it’s most definitely connected to the internet.

An internet connection is a wonderful thing, it give us all sorts of benefits that just weren’t possible before. If you’re old enough, think of your cell phone before it was a smartphone. You could call and you could text sure, but now you can read any book, watch any movie, or listen to any song all in the palm of your hand. And that’s just to name a few of the incredible things your smartphone can do.

The Internet of Things is actually a pretty simple concept, it means taking all the things in the world and connecting them to the internet.

Why IoT Matters

When something is connected to the internet, that means that it can send information or receive information, or both. This ability to send and/or receive information makes things smart, and smart is good.

Let’s use smartphones (smartphones) again as an example. Right now you can listen to just about any song in the world, but it’s not because your phone actually has every song in the world stored on it. It’s because every song in the world is stored somewhere else, but your phone can send information (asking for that song) and then receive information (streaming that song on your phone).

To be smart, a thing doesn’t need to have super storage or a super computer inside of it. All a thing has to do is connect to super storage or to a super computer. Being connected is awesome.

In the Internet of Things, all the things that are being connected to the internet can be put into three categories:

1.      Things that collect information and then send it.

2.      Things that receive information and then act on it.

3.      Things that do both.

And all three of these have enormous benefits that feed on each other.

Why be concerned about IoT?

•        It’s just another computer, right? 

•        All of the same issues we have with access control, vulnerability management, patching, monitoring, etc.  

•        Imagine your network with 1,000,000 more devices

•        Any compromised device is a foothold on the network

Does IOT add additional risk?

•        Are highly portable devices captured during vulnerability scans? 

•        Where is your network perimeter? 

•        Are consumer devices being used in areas – like health care – where reliability is critical?

•        Do users install device management software on other computers? Is that another attack vector?

Attacking IoT

•        Default, weak, and hardcoded credentials

•        Difficult to update firmware and OS

•        Lack of vendor support for repairing vulnerabilities

•        Vulnerable web interfaces (SQL injection, XSS)

•        Coding errors (buffer overflow)

•        Clear text protocols and unnecessary open ports

•        DoS / DDoS

•        Physical theft and tampering

Plan for IoT growth:

◦        Additional types of logging, log storage: Can you find the needle in the haystack?

◦        Increased network traffic: will your firewall / IDS / IPS be compatible and keep up?

◦        Increased demand for IP addresses both IPv4 and IPv6

◦        Increased network complexity – should these devices be isolated or segmented?

Threat vs. Opportunity

          If misunderstood and misconfigured, IoT poses risk to our data, privacy, and safety

          If understood and secured, IoT will enhance communications, lifestyle, and delivery of services.

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