This virtual reality demonstration supports infinite walking within a confined physical space using redirected walking, a class of techniques that introduce subtle discrepancies between physical and virtual motions. When employed properly, redirected walking can be stunningly effective. Previous research has made users believe that they are walking in a straight line when they are actually walking in a wide circle, or that they are walking between waypoints in a long virtual hallway when in fact they are walking back and forth between the same two points in the real world. While perceptually compelling, redirected walking is challenging to employ effectively in an unconstrained scenario because users' movements may often be unpredictable. This project focuses on dynamic planning and optimization of redirected walking techniques, enabling the system to intelligently apply redirection as users explore virtual environments of arbitrary size and shape.

Attendees explore a large-scale, outdoor immersive virtual environment in a head-mounted display. The demonstration supports natural walking within a physical area of at least 6x6 meters, using a wide-area motion-tracking system provided by PhaseSpace Inc. The virtual reality scenario instructs users to scout the environment while stopping to take panoramic photos at various locations in the virtual world. As users explore the environment, an automated planning algorithm dynamically applies redirection to optimally steer them away from the physical boundaries of the exhibit, thus enabling the experience of limitless walking in a potentially infinite virtual world.