Virtual Reality Windows

Steph and I were out walking this morning and enjoying the superb views of the estuary from the Humber Bridge, it got me thinking about the prospect of virtual reality windows some time in the near future.  I imagined being able to replace all the windows in a home with ‘retina’ displays, with integrated eye tracking cameras which would ensure that the virtual views moved in a way that we would expect as we moved around the room. 

I know this is possible because I’ve seen lots of compelling demonstrations of simulated 3D effects created by using a Wii remote to track the position of a persons eyes and this has now been implemented by Amazon in their Fire Phone, and is close to being implemented at room scale by Microsoft with their Kinect sensor.  Within 10 years it’s going to be possible to achieve this for something like £10K, which is probably cheaper than windows.  The other role of windows, ventilation, will be better achieved by whole house fresh air distribution systems that cool/warm the air as required through heat exchangers, like this and not having windows will significantly improve insulation levels.

Such relatively cheap systems will significantly reduce the value of a house’s views, especially for people who don’t enjoy the outside as much as I do.  I’d really love to be able to ‘transport’ my home to space, Mars, under water, or to a cliff top depending on my mood.  It would be great for people who do shift work as well.  Anyway I did a quick google search when I got back to Caffe Nero and was surprised to see the first hit was a demonstration system that was exactly as I’d imagined.

Roll on living in a concrete box.

The photo is of the view we were enjoying during this discussion