In 1896, when the Lumiere brothers screened a scene of a moving train to an audience who had never seen motion picture before, most of them panicked and some even tried to run away from the theater thinking the train might crash into them. It’s been a long way since then and today, it takes a lot more than just moving images to thrill the average audience.
When even flat screens, high definition images and surround sounds were not enough, scientists decided that it’s time for yet another revolution in the history of television viewing. They’re making television which runs programs you can smell, touch and even taste – Freelyvision.
The British researchers from Sussex are delving into techniques that will let the viewer sense “raindrops” on their hands or feel the breeze against their face with ultrasound airflow and beams.
The incredible technology, according to the Dr Marianna Obrist, Reader in Interaction Design at Sussex, should be able to let broadcasters make programs that can grip complete attention of the audience by catering to their every sense. The team of researchers have been working on the project with a Bristol based start-up, Ultrahaptics, that uses ultrasound technology for enabling users to receive “tactile feedback” on their hands without wearing gloves.
The cutting edge technology that will redefine television viewing
Films such as Iron Man III had used “4DX” technology by making viewers sit on motorized seats and also sprinkling water at them while viewing. However, “9 Dimensional TV” is something is something that will break new grounds in multi-sensory viewing experience. The Computer Human Interaction Lab, headed by Dr Obrist is where the research is undergoing.
Obrist, who has been awarded a million Euros by the European Research Council for carrying on the project, believes that it’s possible to transfer human emotions with Haptics technology which is the technology used in the application of touch sensations in computer applications.
The technology creates a set of feelings by applying air in bursts or slow movements to stimulate the palms of the viewers.
They’re in progress to create a sense of smell, touch along with five tastes – bitter, sweet. sour and umami. The idea is to evoke emotions in audience as well as make them feel that they’re touching the objects shown on the screen. Therefore, if you’re enjoying a scene with rainfall, you can feel the raindrops on your skin even though, there will not be any actual water involved.
However, Obrist is cautious of the fact that even though the idea is to ignite emotions in audience, they should have the control of how enhanced their viewing experience is going to be so that it doesn’t get creepy.
Nothing seems far fetched anymore!