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| yna@yna.co.kr 2025-04-11 15:18:41
*Editor’s note: K-VIBE invites experts from various K-culture sectors to share their extraordinary discovery about the Korean culture.
Chronicles of Metaverse: The Race of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality
By Noh Seok-joon (Master K-architect engineer)
The future Metaverse, which is about to unfold, is undoubtedly the culmination of cutting-edge technology.
The technology of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), developed over decades, along with various devices utilizing them, AI, big data, and devices that simulate all five senses, all come together as the pinnacle of 21st-century technology, making the Metaverse move forward into the future.
Even in its early stages, the AR and VR market is growing globally, currently reaching a scale of $105 billion.
As these technologies can be integrated into various fields of reality, the pace of technological development is fast, and their application is actively expanding. Especially during the recent COVID-19 pandemic, when outdoor activities were limited, virtual spaces created through AR and VR technologies saw a surge in demand.
So, what are AR and VR technologies, and what is the difference between them? As we discussed earlier, the Metaverse is categorized into AR and VR depending on how much it overlaps with the real world.
While VR is a completely virtual world detached from reality, AR refers to an additional world superimposed on the current world we live in.
◇ AR and VR: Past and Present
The term "Virtual Reality" (VR), often used for virtual reality, originally means "virtuality" that is materialized to resemble actual reality. The first person to use the term "Virtual Reality" was Antonin Artaud, a French actor, playwright, and director.
In his 1938 work The Theater and Its Double, Artaud used the term "virtual reality" to describe the theater.
The concept of "virtual reality" that is closer to what we use today began in the 1970s when VR researcher Myron Krueger coined the term "artificial reality." Later, in the late 1980s, American computer scientist and visual artist Jaron Lanier recognized "virtual reality" as the current concept of VR.
Currently, the fields where VR is used include video games, broadcasting, 3D films, and social virtual worlds, which are common entertainment applications. A representative device used for virtual reality is consumer VR headsets, which were first released by video game companies in the early to mid-1990s.
In the early 2010s, Oculus, HTC (Vive), and Sony (PlayStation VR) released next-generation commercial headsets, which led to the development of applications. Since 2015, VR has been integrated into roller coasters and theme parks to enhance the experience by matching haptic feedback with visual effects.
On the other hand, Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that allows users to experience digital content and information created by computers overlaid onto the real world, enhancing the sensory experience.
In other words, VR is a technology where computers create everything, while AR is a technology that superimposes computer-generated information onto the real world. As 3D virtual content is added to the physical space of the real world I stand in, the very nature of the space itself changes.
AR was first introduced in the early 1990s. In 1992, Dr. Thomas Caudell, who worked at Boeing, developed AR technology to help technicians more conveniently assemble wires in aircraft. This technology allowed virtual images to overlap with the actual screen, displaying augmented reality.
These days, AR is frequently used in scenes for games, TV commercials, and movies. In films like Minority Report and Iron Man, scenes where simple hand gestures control a computer display in mid-air also represent augmented reality.
The game "Pokémon Go" allows players to directly experience augmented reality.
Recently, companies have also started using augmented reality features in mobile apps to let consumers preview products. Swedish furniture manufacturer IKEA, for example, integrated augmented reality features into its existing IKEA Catalog app in 2014.
The app allows users to place 3D-rendered furniture, which closely resembles the actual pieces, into the space where they plan to use it, helping them assess whether it fits with the overall design. This service is revolutionary compared to the old way of purchasing furniture based on just a rough idea of how it might look.
Additionally, the 3D-rendered furniture is said to match 98% of the actual size, color, and texture when compared to the real-life product.
Moreover, Amazon's newly launched beauty salon service, "Amazon Salon," in 2021 uses augmented reality technology to let customers preview results before getting services like perms, hair coloring, or cuts.
Korean company Amorepacific also set up an unmanned makeup experience space in department stores, where customers can freely test different cosmetic shades on augmented reality screens and even preview their virtual makeup looks.
In this way, modern people are becoming more familiar with various metaverse technologies, like virtual reality and augmented reality, in their daily lives. They are preparing to embrace the digital virtual world that the future metaverse will bring. As technology advances, human consciousness will also progress, paving the way for a new world to be created.
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