INDUSTRY

Mechdyne Corporation today announced that its VRCO software division released Conduit for Google Earth Pro 4.0, a visualization middleware package that enables stereoscopic display of desktop-based imagery and viewing in multi-planar, large-scale immersive and interactive displays such as the walk-in CAVE and reconfigurable FLEX wall-size display systems available from Fakespace Systems, VRCO's sister company. A 3D interface to the planet, Google Earth Pro is used to visualize a wide spectrum of geo-referenced data exported from GIS, civil engineering, energy exploration and other applications. With Conduit for Google Earth Pro, applications can leverage ultra-high resolution stereoscopic display capability and a range of advanced 3D visualization features. The Conduit middleware package enables a desktop application, like Google Earth Pro, to natively drive advanced visualization environments. This maximizes the potential insight and data interpretation accuracy, since stereoscopic viewing provides a realistic sense of depth that is especially useful when experiencing spatially complex datasets. Conduit makes it possible to use the multiple graphics outputs of PC clusters to drive the multiple projectors used for large-scale walls or walk-in immersive rooms, creating life-size experiences that completely fill peripheral vision and engage more of the senses. The Conduit package supports ultra-high resolution displays, using a series of tiled projectors or new 4096 x 2160 native projection technology, such as the Sony SXRD projector that forms the core of Fakespace's Beacon 8MP stereoscopic PowerWall display system. It also enables user motion tracking that provides real-time, realistic perspectives as the viewer physically moves around when viewing the data. For intuitive navigation and manipulation of models, the middleware enables the use of wireless virtual wands, gloves and joysticks either on the desktop or in large-scale displays. "Working with the LANL High Performance Computing Visualization team and VRCO software engineers, we have begun preliminary testing of Conduit to enable the use of Google Earth Pro in our immersive environments," said Steve Smith, Lead Visualization Scientist, Decision Applications Division, Threat Reduction Directorate, Los Alamos National Laboratory. "We hope to use this extensively in support of our advanced analysis, modeling and simulation of infrastructures, social and economic networks, and military and Homeland Security applications. We find that the addition of stereo, tracked head and tools, and very large field of view combined with multi-resolution, continuously rendered terrain models is promising to advance our capabilities significantly. Integrating Google Earth Pro into our facilities via Conduit has helped us understand how we might integrate other commercial applications into our facilities. This has been problematic in the past, usually requiring us to develop our own custom applications." "VRCO developed the Conduit interface to Google Earth Pro in response to our customers' need to leverage this tool in high-end displays," said Julien Berta, Conduit product manager at VRCO. "We are excited to provide this capability, and to see how users are applying it to gain a better understanding of their data." Available now from VRCO, Conduit for Google Earth Pro can be integrated into existing software and/or visualization environments. Mechdyne can design and provide complete, turn-key visualization solutions that incorporate VRCO software and Fakespace display systems to meet specific customer requirements.