An Iowa State professor is providing innovative solutions for industrial applications using virtual reality technology she invented at the University of Illinois.

Carolina Cruz-Neira, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, directed ISU engineers in the construction of C2, a virtual reality device housed in the Synthetic Environments Lab of the Black Engineering Building.

“When I came to Iowa State, my main interest was to put it to use,” she said. “The main goal we have here is trying to collaborate with industrial groups.”

C2 is comprised of two computers each with one gigabyte of RAM and 12 Silicone Graphics processors. The computer system uses cutting-edge video hardware and a high-speed network to produce life-like, three-dimensional images.

“[The two computers] are integrated through a very fast network,” Cruz-Neira said. “So when the system is running, you can’t tell that it is two computers. This system, which is a cubic projection system, is one of the standards to do virtual reality.”

C2 offers industry employees the ability to model systems in a 3-D environment.

John Deere is one company that works extensively with the lab to improve the design of its products. The flow of air through a tractor cab is modeled to improve air conditioning in tractors and is important to farmers spending long days in the field, Cruz-Neira said.

One of the latest C2 applications is helping Shell Oil locate and pump oil more efficiently. Currently, geological data is represented in a two-dimensional format and interpreted by officials, she said.

A three-dimensional representation of the geological data may be more accurate than the current techniques, she said.

“We think three-dimensional visualization is going to help them a lot,” Cruz-Neira said.

The C2 is a 12 cubic foot structure with white walls and a white floor. One of the system’s computers produces a front image, and the other computer produces the images to the user’s sides. The system uses a separate, smaller computer to produce three-dimensional sound.

Ricardo Menendez, graduate student in mechanical engineering, explained that the computer system generates images specifically for the user wearing a special tracking device.

“The point of view is [oriented in relation to] head position and orientation,” he said.

Users wear special glasses that help the separate images produced by the computer to converge. However, this is not to be confused with the well-known head mounted virtual reality systems popular in Hollywood depictions, Cruz-Neira said.

The C2 projects images onto a screen rather than through a head-mounted display, which allows for multiple users.

“You can point and say, ‘Look at that,’ and everybody can see what you are looking at,” she said.

With C2, a user is able to interact with the geometry of the landscape and control the scenario with a modified Nintendo 64 controller or with special gloves.

“Cyber gloves are what you use to interact with the geometry,” Menendez said.

This type of system also helps minimize the queasiness some people experience in virtual environments.

“In general, there is less sickness in this system,” Cruz-Neira said.

With the C2, a user can see his or her own body in relation to the virtual world.