Virtual Reality for Ticino Turismo at the Swiss Museum of Transport

Screenshot from the VR application of a typical Ticino grotto.Anyone who has already taken a foray into virtual reality with an Oculus Rift VR goggle can understand the great hype surrounding the new 360° world. Since March 23, others can also be convinced by this technology. At Museum of Transport Lucerne one of the world's first Oculus Rift 3D virtual reality applications is available to the general public.Journey through space and timeAt the new special exhibition "NEAT - Gateway to the South", visitors may take a seat on one of the three VR stations and experience an impressive journey through space and time in a particularly detailed 360° world. The agency specialized in online, mobile and VR applications Responsive has for the customer Ticino Turismo designed the entire VR appearance on site and designed and implemented the application in-house - 100% Swiss Made. The stations were built in style with discarded original SBB lounge car seats by object builder Cyrus Schwabe, also completely in Switzerland. The extremely powerful PCs from Brentford are built into the bases of the chairs as well as into the cases, so that they are invisible, just like the sensor for head tracking and all cables. To give visitors an impression of what to expect after putting on the Oculus glasses, Responsive also created an animated film for the info screen.The application refers to the "Discover the other side" campaign by Ticino Turismo for the opening of the Gotthard Base Tunnel in 2016. After the visitors are shown the construction of the two Gotthard railroad tunnels by means of impressive 3D animations with 360° view, they are immersed - typically blinded by the sun during the tunnel exit - in the wonderful landscapes and well-known highlights of Ticino. After arriving in Bellinzona, for example, they enjoy a private screening at the Festival del film Locarno - the entire Piazza Grande has been recreated in 3D for this purpose. A short time later, after a picnic on Monte San Giorgio, you find yourself in a hot air balloon next to San Salvatore high above Lago di Lugano with a correspondingly spectacular view, then in a typical Ticino grotto and finally, after about five and a half minutes and further highlights, at the literal final bouquet on a boat in the bay of Lugano. The appropriate audio effects and animations underscore the intense experience.Experience also at home and on the roadAt vr.ticino.ch you can find the complete application for download. With VR glasses and the appropriate hardware, you can also enjoy Ticino from home. A reduced version due to hardware limitations - without 3D animations - for mobile VR glasses, such as the Google Cardboard available in the museum store, also works directly in the browser and without additional downloads. This is also considered a technical milestone. Last but not least, a desktop version is available for those who do not yet own VR glasses.The exhibition and the virtual reality application can be experienced until October 23 at the Museum of Transport in Lucerne and at any time at Responsive AG.More information about Virtual Reality: www.responsive.ag/service/virtual-reality/Making of Virtual Reality at the Museum of Transport: