Visual Impairment Sim

Our research team at the Live Well Collaborative created a Visual Impairment Simulation VR prototype to simulate glaucoma vision and peripheral vision loss in 2021. Glaucoma comprises a group of glaucomatous optic nerve damage and visual field loss disorders. It is a significant cause of blindness in the United States and is the most common cause of blindness among black Americans. An estimated 1 million Americans over 65 years of age have experienced the loss of vision associated with glaucoma, and approximately 75 percent of persons who are legally blind because of glaucoma are over the age of 65.[1]

A prototype of glaucoma VR simulation was developed by our team in 2021.  A virtual kitchen scenario was created to allow users to experience the challenges of a visual impairment person in an immersive environment. Hand-tracking technology with Oculus Quest 2 was used for creating interactions with virtual objects.

Team: Ming Tang, Ryan Tinney, Alejandro Robledo, Tosha Bapat, Linda Dunseath,  Matt Anthony @ Live Well Collaborative. 

Screen recording of VR prototype glaucoma scenarios in a virtual kitchen to study cooking activities.

  

Hand Tracking in VR.

[1] Pizzarello LD. The dimensions of the problem of eye disease among the elderly. Ophthalmology. 1987; 94:1191–5.