Developers at the Digital Design Studio at Glasgow School of Art are working on a technology that will allow up and coming surgeons to train their skills on 3D virtual patients using a virtual scapel. The technology involves Hi-tech glasses and special sensory gloves which relay signals between the virtual body and the surgeon. The sensory gloves allow surgeons in training to touch and feel both the soft tissues and hard structures of the body in a fully-interactive, 3D environment, much like a digital hologram.
One of the interesting aspects of this technology, is that if the surgeon makes a mistake in the 3D virtual world the virtual patient could actually die. The obvious benefit is the student can experience failure without the loss of human life.
The cost of the technology has been listed at around $20,000, with an intent to market to medical universities throughout the world.
3Dwalkthroughs.com is confident this technology will be modified to accomodate other industries as well. Any industry which requires fine motor skills could benefit from this type of 3D virtual training. Along with being safer, as in the medical industry, making mistakes in a 3D virtual world is also a lot cheaper.
Source: BBC NEWS
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