Amazon’s Sumerian Is A Web-Based Development Service For VR/AR Apps

Amazon revealed its new Web-based AR and VR editor called Sumerian.

The new tool looks like it could be aiming to lure away developers from software like Unreal Engine and Unity which are used to make the majority of VR and AR apps currently available. Sumerian requires no downloading of software — it is entirely Web-based — and “customers pay only for the storage used for 3D assets and the volume of traffic generated to access the virtual scenes they create.”

Apps created in Sumerian are said to work in “any browser that supports WebGL or WebVR graphics rendering, including Daydream, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and iOS mobile devices.” Sumerian also takes a note from Unreal’s Blueprints interface, allowing creators with no coding experience to use a visual scripting tool to put together all the logic needed to make the world interactive.

The service includes a library of pre-built objects to use but according to Amazon you can also use assets from Sketchfab or Turbosquid. Google also recently launched Poly, its 3D object library. Poly combined with VR creation tools Tilt Brush and Blocks could let creators build objects and environments intuitively in VR and then use those creations in Sumerian.

Sumerian is also said to be integrated with Lex and Polly, two Amazon services “which provide automatic speech recognition (ASR), natural language understanding (NLU), and text-to-speech capabilities, so that Amazon Sumerian characters can understand and respond to users in lifelike conversations.”

Lenovo Mirage Solo

Lenovo’s Mirage Solo is poised to send the mobile VR scene for a loop. First seen at CES 2018, it’s the first Google Daydream standalone headset to hit store shelves, meaning you don’t need a compatible smartphone to insert into it. All you need is the headset itself, which happens to be much more capable than what any phone can provide today.

In close collaboration with Google, the Mirage Solo features WorldSense, its six degrees-of-freedom technology that lets you move around in a virtual world as if you’re really there.

Essentially, there’s a flagship smartphone packed inside of the Mirage Solo. That, combined with inside-out positional tracking, not only makes Daydream apps and games that are available now even better, but it blasts away the gates that have previously kept mobile VR from being more interactive, like PC users currently enjoy with the HTC Vive.

The Mirage Solo is almost like the lovechild of the PSVR headset and the Google Daydream View, combining their sheer simplicity in design with impressive functionality that enhances the VR experience during marathon sessions. Given that all of the hardware is stuffed into the headset itself, the comfort yielded here is remarkable, but expected since PSVR employs a similar solution of front-loading the weight of the Mirage Solo on the top of your forehead.

A twisting knob brings the headset around your skull, making it fully adjustable – friendly even to those who wear glasses. On front of the headset, there are two cameras, which undoubtedly will be used to merge Google’s AR and VR aspirations.

Moving around the device, one side plays host to a power button and a microSD slot that’s handy for loading VR180 videos captured by the Lenovo Mirage Camera. Around to the other end, you have your volume controls and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Loaded with the Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of RAM and Daydream OS, the Mirage Solo is ready to get down with the latest and greatest VR apps and games – even those that aren’t out just yet. The fact that it’s running on its own operating system without worrying itself about phone calls and what not in the background means that more resources can be dedicated to whatever it is you’re doing with Mirage Solo.

The visual fidelity provided by the wide 110-degree field of view of its 2,560 x 1,440 LCD display was immediately noticeable. Because it’s integrated into the device, pixels are almost indiscernible to the degree that you won't find yourself trying to readjust the headset to get a better look. The fact that the headset provides almost perfect isolation from light also plays into this gain in immersion.

Everything comes with a price, and the Mirage Solo is expected to come in under $400 (about £300, AU$500). A first look at the tag might shock you, but based on the powerful tech that’s been implemented and acknowledging just how well it’s been done, this seems like a sweet spot.

Training in Construction with VR Simulators

Everyone’s heard the term virtual reality, but despite the relatively relatable state of the art, for many it still conjures up images of science fiction. In “reality,” the technology is becoming increasingly prevalent in our day-to-day lives. One area where this is particularly true is in equipment training.
“Traditional, conventional training is somewhat flawed – and can be really boring,” says Jim Colvin, CEO of Serious Labs, which officially introduced its new simulator at the IPAF Summit in Miami in March. “Quite frankly, one reason people come into our industry is because they don’t like sitting in classrooms, they want to be physically engaged."

He continues, “The workforce is changing. There’s such a lack of skilled training in the world right now. How are we going to get through to young people about the workplace of the future unless we train them in the way they want to be trained? People learn by doing. It’s the best way to teach.”

A VR simulator is a completely immersive experience, Colvin explains. “You feel like you’re on an actual worksite, you can feel a visceral effect,” he says. “And it enables us to track everything the operator does. If you’re assessing someone from the ground and he’s up in a 150-foot lift, you don’t know where he’s looking. And how you judge compared to another instructor is not objective. A simulator is completely objective, however. It measures every way the operator leans, everywhere they look, how they do things and in what order.”

“What if you could put people into dangerous situations, and be able to track their behaviors in those situations, but not actually put them in danger?” asks Colvin. “I personally believe VR should be mandatory in aerial equipment training. It’s ludicrous to suggest a pilot would ever be able to get into a plane without getting enough seat time, and this is no different. The ‘just enough, just in time’ training philosophy doesn’t work.”

Brad Boehler, president of Skyjack, which assisted Serious Labs in the development of its new simulator, says virtual reality has great potential for aerial equipment training, but stops short of suggesting it can replace on-machine practical training entirely. “I’m not sure if in five years we’ll get to where VR will fully replace practical training, but for ongoing training purposes, if we can actually look at what the operator’s skill set is in an actual operating environment, and evaluate how they react in that environment, that’s pretty invaluable,” he says. “I envision that as the next step.”

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