Aquarium: Ambient Experience for Large Displays
"Aquarium" is a virtual oasis of tranquility designed for the Libraries' numerous immersive media showcase spaces, including the Cyma Rubin Visualization Gallery and Teaching & Visualization Lab. This demonstration offers visitors a dynamic and soothing environment that transports them to an underwater world full of vibrant marine life. "Aquarium" utilizes the Visualization Gallery Development Kit (visSDK) for presentation in our high-tech spaces.
Overview
The "Aquarium" demonstration, developed by undergraduate interns Jayden Sansom and Elliott Schultz, is a prime example of the capabilities of the Hill Library's Cyma Rubin Visualization Gallery and visSDK toolkit. What makes this demo particularly pleasant is its immersive and calming experience, which transports users to a dynamic and soothing aquarium scene. The use of pre-existing media assets and the creativity of the student developers combined to create a unique and engaging experience that showcases the technical capabilities of the space while also creating an ambient experience that is entertaining and relaxing on its own.
How We Did It
Through the use of Unity Game Engine and the visSDK toolkit, the "Aquarium" demo offers a dynamic and ever-changing environment that provides a sense of realism and interactivity. The underwater world is populated by a variety of fish and marine life, all rendered in exquisite detail and in a way that simulates their natural movement and behavior. One of the most impressive aspects of the "Aquarium" demo is the ability to generate a unique configuration of fish with each visit, ensuring that the experience remains fresh and engaging. The inclusion of ambient audio and lighting effects further adds to the immersive qualities of the demo, allowing users to completely lose themselves in the experience.
The utilization of the visSDK media development toolkit allows this executable file to be easily edited to accommodate new and unique media presentation spaces such as the Visualization Gallery, iPearl Immersion Theater, Teaching & Visualization Lab, and others.
