Masters Thesis Defense “A Comparative Study of Display Devices for Virtual Experiments with Varying Design Configurations” By Madison Glines

Committee:  Drs. Thomas Wischgoll, Advisor, Pratik J. Parikh (BIE), and John Gallagher

ABSTRACT:

Virtual Reality capabilities have vastly improved in recent years, allowing for it to become more popular, with many different types of displays and products now available. Virtual reality allows for research on a plethora of realistic environments, and conditions, without requiring large physical space or commitment to any permanent design before testing can begin. It is important to know which product or display type is best suited for the research task at hand. The purpose of this research is to analyze various display technology such as the Distributed Interactive Virtual Environment, Oculus Rift and Vive, as well as to briefly discuss the code used to render the environments. This paper will compare each of these devices by cost, limitations, safety concerns, and unique characteristics, concluding with a discussion regarding the types of experiments would work best with each type of display.