Seamless transition from real to virtual

The French crime series uses a dark room and a pair of ‘normal’ looking spectacles to immerse the cop investigating the crime into a virtual ‘reality’.

Immersive reality creates a new virtual reality by using 360-degree space (Photo | Pexels)

The latest Netflix crime series, Vortex, shows the police using immersive technology to recreate the 3D image of a crime scene and, due to a glitch in the system, accidentally transporting the protagonist into the past, when his wife met with an accident at the same spot.

The French crime series uses a dark room and a pair of ‘normal’ looking spectacles to immerse the cop investigating the crime into a virtual ‘reality’. 

The sci-fi series might have gone too far by allowing the protagonist to use a glitch in the technology to travel back in time to the past, but ‘Immersive Reality’ is already a reality in the present.

What is Immersive Reality?
Immersive reality creates a new virtual reality by using 360-degree space. Like in Vortex, one can recreate a physical space, and enhance it with virtual objects to create an entirely new world with a perfect blend of real and virtual objects.

According to Mckinsey, immersive-reality technologies use sensing technologies and spatial computing to help users see the world differently through mixed or augmented reality or see a different world through virtual reality. In short, you are immersed in a new reality using special and sensing technologies and augmented reality.

Underlying technologies

•  Virtual Reality: Using this technology, a user is completely transported to a virtual world surrounded by contents by use of a head-mounted display.
• 360 VR: This technology allows the user to be in the middle of a scene that has been created virtually.
•  Augmented Reality: This technology is used to add digital images on top of real-world scenarios. The Snapchat filters are a great example of augmented reality.
• Mixed Reality is a mix of virtual reality and augmented reality.
• Spatial computing allows you to use computer graphics, images and other functions in the backdrop of a physical space instead of a computer screen. Use cases
•  Immersive learning experiences: Instead of boring 2D diagrams and pictures, students can make use of immersive reality to attain a better understanding of the machines or creatures they are studying.
•  Virtual fitting rooms: Instead of trying out dozens of dresses before buying one, once use a virtual fitting room to choose the best-fit dress.
•  Virtual layouts: While buying an under-construction flat, one can now take a virtual trip of the house, the residential society and the locality that may come up in future.
•  Interactive ads: Immersive reality can be used to create advertisements for products to generate better recall value.