Digital Fulldome as an Immersive Environment for Visualisation: Projects in 2009

Abstract:

I will present a number of projects from 2009 based around visualisation within hemispherical dome environments, most notably planetariums and the personal locally developed dome environment referred to as the iDome. These projects will include:

• A fulldome movie production in conjunction with Ajay Limaye, Tim Sendon, and Alexander Mitchell. This employed Drishi and is currently being shown daily at Horizon – The Planetarium (Perth).

• An interactive installation at the Wollongong Science Centre and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science.

• A remote operations proof of concept using the iDome as the remote interface and the LadyBug-3 camera as the capture device.

• The interfacing of game engines (notable Unity3D and Blender) to the iDome and their potential use for “serious games” in that immersive environment.

A description of the applications will be given, any key technologies or software development undertaken, and the perceived benefits derived by using a digital dome environment.