MIT researchers develop flexible optical sheet that could enable full-body VR tracking
Engineers at MIT have built a sheet of optical fibers that can digitally map how it bends and folds. The team suggests the technology could become a wearable garment for accurately mirroring real-world movements in VR. The prototype still works after being punctured, and an algorithm interprets light passing through the fibers.
MIT engineers have built a flexible sheet of optical fibers that can computationally reconstruct its own bending and folding. Light passing through the fibers changes as they deform, and a custom algorithm reads those changes to reconstruct the sheet's 3D shape. The prototype kept working after an engineer punched a hole in it.
The team says the technology could eventually become a wearable garment for VR, tracking surface deformation instead of only fixed points. The team reports its reconstruction error was under 0.4 centimeters, compared with roughly 1 to 2 centimeters for rigid-sensor designs. Current fibers are about 1 millimeter thick, though alternate fabrication might make them thinner than a human hair.
If refined, this technology could affect VR players, virtual performers, and motion-capture actors by making full-body tracking more natural and resilient. It may also help physical-therapy patients and clinicians monitor movement during rehabilitation. Because the current version is bulky, real-world adoption may depend on making the fibers and garment comfortable, durable, and affordable.