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| Facebook wants to compete with Microsoft Mesh |
At this year's Facebook Connect conference, Facebook announced the Presence Platform, which gives developers a way to create a new mixed reality experience for their Oculus Quest VR headset.
Presence competes with Microsoft Mesh that was announced earlier this year. Microsoft Mesh is a collaboration and communication platform developed by Microsoft Corporation.
It has been described as the company's attempt to unify virtual 3D collaboration across multiple devices, whether it's virtual and immersive headphones, laptops, or smartphones.
The Presence Platform's functionality also includes scrolling, spatial stabilizers, and scene understanding. The combination of a number of AI tools makes the mixed reality experience more immersive and helps connect the virtual world with physical reality.
The system includes three main toolkits: Insight SDK, Interaction SDK, and Voice SDK.
The Insight SDK is based on the Traffic API introduced this summer that allows developers to overlay virtual objects on an Oculus Quest transit video source.
Facebook has also added a system called Spatial Anchors that allows developers to lock virtual objects into specific physical areas so that the objects can maintain their position in the world.
The transit API is unique to the Oculus Quest 2. However, Facebook said that the new platform supports two generations of Quest headphones.
Scene understanding technology is part of the Insight SDK. It enables developers to create a virtual reality experience that matches the size of a player's room.
Facebook has indicated that you can, for example, mount a virtual screen on a user's wall or animate a virtual character on the floor.
Facebook is adding a mixed reality platform to the Oculus Quest
The Interaction SDK is designed to make it easy for developers to integrate hand-centric consoles and interactions.
Most importantly, Facebook will make the Unity library available to developers over the next year. In this framework, developers can integrate ready-made interactive elements. This improves hand tracking and allows developers to create their own gestures.
The Voice SDK is a toolkit powered by the natural language platform Wit.ai via Facebook.
It can provide users with a hands-free virtual experience. The developers were able to create navigation and voice search functions. In addition to the Frequently Asked Questions about the audio, players can also access it by asking questions.
It also enables users to use their voices while playing the game. It's like talking to an avatar or doing voice magic.
According to the company, platform presence is key to feeling connected in the Metaverse. It enables developers to integrate virtual content into the real world.