This is a hand-built, prototype headset for one of the first "Virtual Reality" displays ever built. Developed at the NASA-Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California and completed in 1985, it was intended to test concepts of presenting visual information to pilots or astronauts, by creating a computer-generated image of an artificial reality. Sensors tracked the movement of the wearer's head, so that the images displayed moved accordingly, as if he or she were looking out a real cockpit during a flight.
James Humphries donated this to the Museum in 1997.
Display Status
This object is on display in Human Spaceflight at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA.
Object Details
Country of Origin
United States of America
Type
EQUIPMENT-Training Devices
Manufacturer
NASA Ames Research Center
Dimensions
Other: 1 ft. 5 in. diameter x 5 in. tall x 1 ft. 1 in. wide (43.2 x 12.7 x 33cm)
Materials
Armature - Styrofoam on which it is mounted
Frame - metal
Headphones - metal, plastic
Inventory Number
A19970613000
Credit Line
Gift of James Humphries
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
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