Nov.27, 2014 | By Alec
3D printing is a revolutionary technology that is perfect for creating affordable and detailed housings for electronics, so it's hardly surprising that developers of other revolutionary technologies rely on it for custom-made covers. And virtual reality (VR) is no exception. We already reported on a 3D printed headset a few months ago, and now the Canadian interactive media company Cordon Media have started an Indiegogo campaign for their own and very intriguing 3D printed VR headset: the Pinć.
For those of you who haven't been following this particular technology, virtual reality is booming and expected to invade our lives in 2015. The commercial version of the famous Oculus Rift is set to be released in a few months, while development on Samsung's Gear VR and Sony's Project Morpheus has already resulted in some very promising prototypes. And of course, there's the DIY Google Cardboard, that provides some level of VR through apps and a smartphone container you can wear over your eyes.
Cordon's Pinć (pronounced as 'pinch') might remind you of that last option, as it also involves a headset that holds your phone up to your face, but then comes in a endlessly better looking case and promises to be a very interesting and exciting virtual reality platform. Essentially, it promises to be everything that a high-end pair of VR goggles is, but then for just $100. As Andrew Bezpiatko, one of its developers, claimed: 'Never before has VR been delivered in this type of package. Our goal was to deliver a VR headset to the masses for under a $100 dollars. introduce is a patent-pending case for your phone. It contains the same type of optics used in VR headsets. The difference is that it folds into a more natural form factor for consumer glasses.'
However, the whole concept behind the 3D printed Pinć is also intriguing. While most VR systems are focussed on gaming, the Cordon team is looking to introduce virtual reality in all aspects of computing. As Milan Baic, president of Cordon Media argued, 'What if we could bring [virtual reality] interactivity to mobile? The only way VR can become mainstream if it's optionally available at all time and fits in your pocket, […] that's focussed outside of gaming, and into everyday computing, things like browsing, viewing a video or the next killer app in VR. […] We almost approached VR as an accessory.'
To enable users to take their whole media experience in VR, the Pinć will come with a free app that will let you experience smartphone functions in virtual reality. Based on the images included in the crowdfunding campaign, this could be compared to a series of VR widgets. Its functions will include a video section, a paint application, a shopping portal, keyboard, photo gallery and more. As they characterized it themselves, 'Pinć is a ground-breaking iOS platform built on the concept of spatial computing, turning browsing, multitasking and shopping into an immersive virtual reality experience.'
So what is it exactly and how does it work? Well, the Pinć is a 3D printed, brightly-colored case for the iPhone 6 (not included) that fits over your head with a thin elastic band. However it's much more than a 3D printed knock-off of the Google Cardboard, as it comes with a unique input system: a pair of LED-studded rings you wear on your forefingers.
These will let you manipulate the virtual reality in front of your eyes with various pinch and slide motions reminiscent of the movie Minority Report. The rings also feature a button that also interacts with the VR goggles. As this just involves a few LED lights and a camera tracking them, this whole control system isn't as much as a drain on your phone's battery, and could therefore be a very interesting addition to the spectrum of commercial VR technology.
All this makes it very interesting and promising 3D printed innovation, though we'll have to see if the crowdfunding campaign will be successful. With a little less than a month to go (the closing date is 23 December), the Cordon team hopes to raise an ambitious sum of $100,000. At the time of writing, they were already at edging towards a completion rate of 14%, so who knows? Pledges of $99 and up will get you your very own 3D printed VR headset, which are set to ship in the spring of 2015.
We'll thus have to wait six months or so before these 3D printed sets will even become available on the market. For now, the Cordon Pinć is still completely in its development phase. A reporter from the Verge was privileged enough to test an early version of the prototype, and he wasn't at all wowed by the ergonomic fit or the LED controls. However, as development isn't completed yet, this could still change for the better in the coming months. This could very well be the VR tool that brings smartphone convenience to the next level.
For more, check out this promotional clip:
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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