Football VR headset makes Hall of Fame
An Orlando entrepreneur partnered with a former NFL executive to build a virtual reality headset that the company showed off during this month’s Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Canton, Ohio.
Serious Simulations created a display mounted onto a helmet that gave fans a glimpse at life as a quarterback through a wireless helmet and a 40-foot-by-40-foot playing area.
During the five-day fan event, the setup attracted hundreds to the technology of the 4-year-old company, which is based at the University of Central Florida’s business incubator.
“Our technology lends itself to a variety of skill sets,” Serious Simulations CEO Chris Chambers said. “Sports had always been a target of ours.”
The company, which has a total of 12 employees and contractors, has previously built virtual reality hardware for the military.
In 2015, the company set its target on reducing “latency.” That is, the amount of time it takes for a visual display to respond to a head movement.
Experts have said that lag time has been one of the more challenging problems with creating a realistic feeling when people are in their virtual reality headsets.
The project started in early 2016, when someone recommended Chambers to former Denver Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist, who was planning to launch his Sports Virtual Training Systems in Colorado Springs, Colo.
In a special event that was closed to the public, members of the two teams playing in the NFL’s annual Hall of Fame preseason game – the Chicago Bears and Baltimore Ravens – took turns with the helmet.
“It’s a great feeling that it came together,” said Chambers, who noted that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also checked it out. “We didn’t expect to have to change so much from the military version. But it was good to see people react well to it.”
A major component of a new “Jurassic Park”-related virtual reality experience at Dave & Buster’s locations across the country was built in Orlando.
The startup Talon Simulations helped design the product, embed and test wires in the chair, and integrate hardware and software into the installation.
The new installation puts VR goggles on players who sit in a motion simulator as they run through a harrowing experience at the ill-fated park filled with dangerous dinosaurs.
Talon’s contribution earned praise from Kevin Bachus, senior vice president of entertainment and games strategy for Dave & Buster’s.
“The team ensured a design was developed that aligned with our vision while also taking into account specific requirements of utilizing virtual reality head-mounted displays,” he said in a release.
The game, first released in June at more than 100 locations, centers on a group of explorers trying to rescue animals inspired by the franchise’s most-recent film “Jurassic World.”