SILvr is an online, multi-user VR environment that acts as a testbed for experiments with social interaction technology in XR, created initially for the Dartmouth Extended Reality (DXR) course.
We explore how environments, avatars, and interfaces can be used for immersive social interaction and collaboration in virtual reality.
The goal is to deepen our understanding of what factors most influence the creation of social connections in a virtual environment. The research project is supported by a gift
from Meta (Facebook) and advised by Michael Cohen, Director of Computational Photography at Meta.
MY ROLE
As a teaching assistant for the DXR course, I became fascinated with the potential for social interaction in virtual reality. When the COVID pandemic forced
classes to be remote during the spring of 2020, I saw how difficult it was for students in the class to collaborate and connect remotely. Therefore, I helped create the initial prototype and first
release of the SILvr experience. For the initial release, I worked on multi-user networking, avatar movement, and voice chat integration. These features allowed us to conduct classes in SILvr during the final weeks of the spring course.
Since graduating, SILvr has continued to make substantial progress, implementing additional experimental features including interactive objects, customizable avatars, facial expressions and reactions, and group actions like high-fives
and hugs. I'm incredibly excited to see how future students continue to innovate in the space.
IMPLEMENTATION
SILvr is built using the following:
INITIAL RELEASE
One of the first working prototypes, with multi-user chat and avatars!
