Deforming virtual reality, on purpose

Summer series - Students projects. For his Master's project in computer science, Sidney Bovet developed a system that distorts - or more specifically, amplifies - an avatar's movements relative to the user's. The goal is to help physical therapy patients stay motivated throughout their treatment. It's a bit deceptive, but for the right reason. Restoring motor control after an accident can be a long, painstaking and often discouraging process. So for his Master's project in computer science, Sidney Bovet studied a way to help patients stay motivated by amplifying their movements in virtual reality. With his system, the movements made by patients' avatars are larger than the patients' actual movements - which should help encourage patients to keep pressing ahead with their therapy. The challenge for Bovet was to make sure the avatars' movements remain realistic and provide convincing haptic feedback.