Research Uses Muscle Activity to Move Virtual Objects
From: University of Wisconsin-Madison - 03/21/2013
By: Marianne English

University of Wisconsin-Madison (UWM) researchers have developed a method to
move virtual objects in an immersive virtual reality environment through the
use of muscle activity. The research could have applications for people
recovering from injuries or people living with specific disabilities, in
addition to making virtual reality more interactive and realistic. "We’re
trying to add the dimension of movement and touch to allow people to exert
forces against things that are created in front of them with a projector and
virtual reality goggles," says UWM professor Robert Radwin. The researchers
developed the software and process for a pilot study in which participants
move virtual objects in the CAVE, a fully immersive six-sided room that
projects 3D environments on its walls. As part of the study, outside the
CAVE, participants’ arms were connected to an electromyography (EMG) device
that captures the electrical signals produced by muscles during physical
activity. They then lifted dumbbells while the EMG device recorded their
muscle activity to a nearby computer. The participants then performed the
same activity inside the CAVE, however instead of lifting a real dumbbell,
they lifted a virtual dumbbell instead. The results show that people can
adapt their lifting behavior to a virtual reality environment using the same
muscle groups used to lift real objects.

Read the entire article and view a video (1:41) at:
http://www.news.wisc.edu/21613

Links:
Robert Radwin
http://wid.wisc.edu/profile/robert-radwin/

Wisconsin Institute for Discovery (WID)
http://wid.wisc.edu/

Living Environments Laboratory (LEL)
http://wid.wisc.edu/research/lel/