In Space, a Laptop Doubles As a VR Headset

Nerval's Lobster writes: On Earth, the engineers and developers in charge of building the Oculus Rift and other virtual-reality headsets are concerned about weight: Who wants to strap on something so heavy it cricks their neck? But in space, weight isn't an issue, which is why an astronaut can strap a laptop to his head via a heavy and complicated-looking rig and use it as a virtual-reality device. NASA astronaut Terry Virts recently did just that to train himself in the use of SAFER (Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue), a jetpack worn during spacewalks. (In the movie Gravity, George Clooney's character uses a highly unrealistic version of SAFER to maneuver around a space shuttle.)

inertia?

[Anonymous Coward]

Wouldn't it still have a much higher inertia and put a heavy strain on the neck after a short period of time?

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[binarylarry]

Gorilla Neck.

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[jellomizer]

I looked at the image it appears the laptop bulk is directly over the head so turning your head left and right shouldn't be a big issue, Up and Down may put a little more strain.

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[Guspaz]

You're still moving that mass, regardless of how it's mounted on the head.

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[Anonymous Coward]

I'm one of the guys that worked on this. And yes, moving the mass does take force, but how it is mounted does matter. Having more of the mass over the axis of rotation significantly reduces the angular inertia.

Up next: Apple Sues NASA...

[pin_gween]

for violating its patents.

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[kesuki]

my best guess is that 'ig no run ce' has to do with a Personal Digital Assistant running windows CE. i spelled it out because someone thinks PDA means public display of affection. which is possible but just guessing randomly is going to cause crashes!!! I should Know I Used Windows 95 on a pentium 120! with F00F bug!

Um angular momentum anybody?

[monkeyxpress]

Swinging your head around to shoot at the zombie behind you with that contraption stuck to your head is probably not going to be quite the immersive experience this article makes it out to be...

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[garyisabusyguy]

better be strapped down to something

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[Anonymous Coward]

I'm one of the guys that worked on this. Angular momentum is reduced by keeping as much of the mass near the axis of rotation as possible. Most of the mass is in the laptop base, which we try to keep right above the head. Since operators rarely need to pitch their head, the momentum in that direction is not of much concern.

Also, when flying SAFER, or doing EVAS in general, there is not very fast or far yaw motion of the head. If you yaw too far, you will be looking at the inside of the helmet, as turning

mass

[magarity]

In space, weight's analogue is called mass, and it does matter.

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[tlhIngan]

In space, weight's analogue is called mass, and it does matter.

No, there is no weight in space. Weight is a force that pulls in the direction of local gravity. Yes, we use the wrong units for weight - weight is mass times acceleration (usually gravitational). So the real unit for weight is actually the newton.

Mass is conserved, but as you enter and leave acceleration, the weight changes as the acceleration changes.

Strap a laptop to your head on Earth and you still have to contend with the mass of the laptop

Glasses with screens in them work well enough.

[Anonymous Coward]

But in space, weight isn't an issue

It's less of an issue, but inertia will still cause the device to resist turning your head -- or stop turning your neck.

I'd rather have a crick in my neck than a broken neck because some zombie jump-scared me into twisting my head right off.

Actually, I'd rather just use the VR and AR gear I already have been using for years, since they are portable, work with my phone and look like a pair of sunglasses. [vuzix.com]

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[Guspaz]

A 35 degree diagonal field of view isn't a virtual reality headset, it's a portable personal display. If the manufacturer is citing "equivalent to an X inch screen at a distance of Y feet away", then it's not for VR.

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[wonkey_monkey]

Twin high-resolution WVGA (852 x 480) LCD displays

When was this written? 1992?

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[bughunter]

For space-hardened laptops, that is high-resolution.

Clooney is using an MMU, not a SAFER in Gravity

[Anonymous Coward]

Clooney's character in Gravity is using an updated version of the old Martin-Marietta MMU, Manned Maneuvering Unit [wikipedia.org], originally used on some early Shuttle missions. It is not, no way, no how, a "highly unrealistic version of SAFER" as the idiot poster suggests. SAFER is a highly stripped down, emergency-only version of the MMU -- it compares to the MMU the way a life preserver compares to an inflatable boat with an outboard. (The wikipedia article on SAFER calls it " a small, simplified version of the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU), which was used for regular maneuvering." )

The device used in the movie is an upgraded version of the MMU apparently with greater fuel reserves (possibly using chemical rockets rather than pressurized nitrogen thrusters).

Did You?

[tquasar]

Did you just say "strap on"? Let the hilarity begin.

In space...

[oldmac31310]

no one can hear you screeeeeeee-------------

This is a dup

[neo-mkrey]

but I'm too lazy to search for the original post.

Newton's laws of physics still apply

[aklinux]

An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.

It could get a little rough on the neck at times. Starting to move, stopping, changing direction, getting accidentally bumped by a fellow astronaut.