Take an actual walk in virtual reality with String Walker
By Darren Murph 
posted May 6th 2007 11:13AM
posted May 6th 2007 11:13AM
SIGGRAPH has certainly been the home of many virtual reality demonstrations, and this year yet another contraption that (partially) removes us from the world we know will be on display. Similar to the Powered Shoes and Virtusphere seen in years past, the String Walker is a "locomotion interface that uses eight strings actuated by motor-pulley mechanisms mounted on a turntable" in order to let users walk through virtual landscapes. Proprioceptive feedback allows the VR system to translate actual footsteps into the digital world, giving participants a reason to stroll around rather than just twiddling their thumbs. Reportedly, the biggest challenge was mastering the floor, which enables omni-directional walking that simple "treadmill-like" surfaces don't offer and in a simpler fashion than the "complicated" CirculaFloor. Next-generation DDR, here we come.[Via Gizmag]
OMG THAT SOUNDS AWESOME!!!!! imagine that on the wii....you could have that and the controller and nunchuck for shooters and it would bring somthing awesomely extra to the game!!!
add this to a VR helmet and some motion tracking gloves I'd buy it in a second, Nex-Gen FPS here I come!
you know what will be cool levitation
magnetic shoes surrounded by square magnetic floor mat with 4 magnetic controller on each side ( to control movement).
sort of like bullet train in japan
when you walk forward it pull you back and so for left/right/backwards
the rumble pack will be letting magnetic field fluctuate =)
It could be used to make all the walking in Shenmue some kind of viable exercise.
I want videos!!! w00t!
And I can see a TON of potential for this...
Great Idea but there is a easier way of doing this
Why not have a rotatable treadmill. It would be much easier to interfaec it with anything as u can use the motors and generators and the turing can be done with gyros.
It's amazing how recently the human-computer integration has increased, I wonder what’s in store for the future.
I do see one major issue with this... what if you want to jump or cross your feet...? Your feet would get tangled up in the cords... Otherwise, it's a very cool concept, I'm glad they're at least trying to come up with a viable option
That socks-and-sandals look is brutal.
This is such a rip-off of the Activator.