Day 1 of OC6 is officially a wrap, we heard from Facebook and Oculus leadership share a number of developer-focused announcements in the official keynote, the show floor provided numerous opportunities to check out the latest content and technology demos, and OC6 programming delivered insights on how to maximize success on the Oculus Platform.
See below for a few of the technology announcement highlights from Day 1 at OC6 and be sure to keep an eye on this blog, the
Oculus Developer Facebook and
Twitter channels for more updates on Day 2.
Hand Tracking on Quest
When many of us tried VR for the first time, we looked at our environment, then down at our hands to begin to experience a sense of embodiment in the digital world. Today at OC6 we announced our next technology that will enhance the sense of immersion for users and for developers, with
hand tracking on Oculus Quest.
To bring this feature to life, our computer vision team developed a new method of applying deep learning to understand the position of your hands and fingers using the monochrome cameras built into Quest. This system requires no active depth-sensing cameras, additional sensors or extra processors; instead, deep learning algorithms along with model-based tracking work to predict the location of a user’s hands along with specific landmarks on the hands to reconstruct the pose in a 3D model. This is all done on a mobile processor, without compromising resources we’ve dedicated to user applications.
We can all begin to think through the new possibilities this technology will open for VR development, immersive entertainment, and enterprise applications. Hand tracking will be launched as an experimental feature for consumers and as a developer SDK early next year, while you can check out the full OC6 presentation on the topic below.
Oculus Link
Being able to access PCVR content directly on the Quest has been one of the most requested features to date. That’s why we’re launching Oculus Link: A new way for people who own a Quest headset to access Rift content and experiences from their gaming PC. It gives you the richness of Rift games when you’re connected to a PC, with the Quest library when you want the portability of untethered gaming on-the-go.
Starting in November we are opening up beta access to Oculus Link via a free software update. All you will need is a compatible high speed USB-C cable, a Quest headset and a gaming PC. Oculus Link will be compatible with the Oculus Unity +Unreal plugins, and over a 1000+ Rift S titles. You can also preview your applications directly on the Quest using the ‘Play’ button in your editor. This, we hope will enable you to spend less time with APK’s and more time building great experiences for your users.
Go App Compatibility on Quest
As of next week, we are enabling consumers to enjoy more than 50 Oculus Go and Gear VR apps on Quest. In addition, for those Oculus Go and Gear apps that have an Oculus Quest version, consumers who have purchased the version prior to September 25, 2019 will receive the updated Oculus Quest version free of charge starting next week, until the end of the year. We have reached out to those of you whose apps are affected by this latest announcement, and will be sure to follow up for any future updates.
Facebook Horizon
The AR/VR Team at Facebook is working to create a new social VR experience that will enable people to play, explore, create and connect in a massive virtual world. In Horizon, audiences will be empowered to use drag-and-drop mechanics to build VR games and experiences without writing a single line of code. These user friendly, integrated tools will allow for an ever-expanding VR universe, driven by creativity and a passion for immersive technology.
This world is built with safety and inclusion in mind from the start, and coming to a VR headset near you in 2020. Sign-up today for a chance to take part in our closed beta, and be sure to check out the OC6 session above: Facebook’s Future in Social VR.
Passthrough+ on Quest
Launching next week on Oculus Quest, Passthrough+ gives you a comfortable, stereo-correct view of your surroundings when you step outside your playspace, reducing depth disparity and increasing overall comfort. Initially launched on Rift S, Passthrough+ relies on advancements in high-performance image processing and 3D computation. Later this year, we’ll also be launching passthrough “on demand”, which will give you the ability to trigger passthrough any time you want.
Half Dome 3
It’s been over a year since we first unveiled the Half Dome Prototype, and the team at Facebook Reality Labs (FRL) has continued to test, develop optimize and learn from this initial “proof of concept”. At OC6 we presented the latest version of the Half Dome device which is now fully electronic, with no mechanical parts, and includes a liquid crystal lens. This lens switches between multiple focal states, while the headset is even more ergonomic with a significant reduction in weight.
It will offer effortless, zero friction engagement, weigh practically nothing, and just work
- Ryan Ebert, Mechanical Engineering Lead
Check out the full
Half Dome 3 blog post for more on this ongoing research. We look forward to providing you future updates on this advancement in VR hardware.
Questions/feedback on any of the above? Feel free to share them in the comments section below or in our developer forums, and be sure to keep an eye on the
Oculus Developer Facebook +
Twitter channels for more updates from OC6.