Motion Driven eXperience

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With the recent increase in popularity that virtual reality has seen, the demand for more than just visual stimulation has also increased. Every major VR headset manufacturer has now allowed us to touch and feel the virtual world with our hands, and some even have ways for us to walk around and explore.

The Motion Driven eXperience is the next step in that progression - it’s a modular system that can translate movement from the virtual to the real world, such as the motion of a roller coaster or a race car. It is an inverted stewart platform, where actuators pull instead of push to create motion. Actuation is done via pneumatics, using industry standard components from Festo; six pneumatic muscles driven by proportional directional valves and controlled by a Festo PLC. Operating pressure is limited to a safe 6 bars.

Our most popular experience is a VR roller coaster on both real and conceptual tracks. As well as immersing the user in a virtual reality landscape by means of an Oculus Rift headset, the platform stimulates multiple senses simultaneously by moving through 6 degrees of motion. Due to the geometry and 800mm muscles; the range of pitch, roll and yaw is quite significant.

The team designed and made two new motion platforms which were exhibited at New Scientist Live in Excel London, on one of the many Middlesex University stands. They have since been used at numerous outreach events such as World Skills UK, SMASHfest UK, STEM Festival, and Science week at Thorpe Park.

This project was a great experience and gave us the opportunity to collaborate with experts from other fields such as computer science, design engineering and product design that we would not otherwise work alongside.