Global blue chip companies are throwing their weight into VR development (hardware and software), Mark Zuckerberg believes “this kind of immersive, augmented reality will become a part of daily life for billions of people”.
Andrew Lockley (→ https://www.exponentialinvestor.com/author/andrew-lockley/ ) discussed this (3/o3/2017) with Eliott Myers from Roto VR, which is a small, innovative firm with designs on the related accessories market. He claims that “Roto enhances the seated experience with haptic feedback so dramatically you feel like you’re really there, in another world. Once you’ve tried Roto, VR feels empty without it. With Roto, you can add our Table accessory, so you can drive around 360 degrees with a steering wheel (and pedals). Roto also has “rumble shakers” which can be affixed to the underside and back of the chair for added sensations. It’s like 4D on steroids. Actually we should call it 360D!”
Sounds exciting!
But not if the chair is liable to induce backache (LBP) on prolonged use. Their picture ( http://www.rotovr.com ) shows an upright chair with their concomitant disadvantages and with it’s extra, probably excellent, VR additions.
A huge opportunity
VR and sitting, if prolonged, will be relevant to chair design. It would not be difficult to redesign this chair to take advantages of the 2T or 4M concepts and so correct it’s seemingly obvious, from the pictures, ergonomic deficiencies This would have the additional advantage that the firm would have the basis for an ergonomic optimised office work chair that would jump ahead of the field.
If you are in the mood have a look at ☛ The global future? →
Comment
From Gorman JD. MA (Cantab.) (Mechanical Sciences) MI.Mech.E (Member of Institution of Mechanical Engineers). MMCA (Member of the McTimoney Chiropractic Association) on 7/March 2017.
Yes I agree that a typical office chair and the typical office chair slump is wrong. Certainly semi reclined position is one solution. I have rather given up trying to predict how the sitting world (the world of Homo Sedens) will evolve. It is certainly slow in recognising the problem which would be the first step. This chair looks to me like a cheap after-market car seat. The computer people probably have no interest in the chair/seat so gave it no thought so long as it looked fairly high tech. john g.
Reply from Dr HA Sanford MA MB BChir (Cantab) D Phys Med (Lond).
You are probably right. Then, I am not an expert on car seating like yourself. Henry
Comment from Dr HA Sanford
Virtual Reality (VR) is taking me back to ‘The Brave New World’ of Aldous Huxley (1932) which I read at school. He described a dystopic utopian hierarchical society that kept control with consumerism, drugs (Soma) and VR (Feelies). Work was done by robots and everyone was free to relax and enjoy promiscuous sex. Sounds similar to what may happen now.
This work was superceded by ‘1984′ by George Orwell, who was at my Prep school some 20 years before me, and hated it. We all did but did not go into print so viciously. ’1984’ faced the more immediate threat of Marxism which has now intellectually collapsed due to it’s internal contradictions and misunderstanding of the human condition. So we are now back with ‘Brave New World’. It does not sound too bad but actually is a form of slavery. Those who objected, wanting to think, were regarded as barbarians and exiled. To Iceland (as far as I can remember). I used to run an annual course there (See the photographs in HOW WE SIT NOW→.) The people are wonderful and it is very pleasant (in summer).
So, VR, here we come! HAS