At the busy Creative MicroSystems table at the Tech Jam event Saturday in Burlington, a young girl stepped up from the crowd to try the Waitsfield company’s virtual reality headset.
The large, clunky helmet bobbled on her small head. Through the viewing glasses attached to the headset, the girl could see herself inside a virtual bus or military vehicle, with virtual soldiers around her. On a computer screen, other Tech Jam attendees could watch her point of view.
It was a demonstration of Creative MicroSystems’ latest project, a unique augmented-reality experience that allows users to integrate their real-world surroundings with computer-generated elements through the small glass screens on the headsets. The Waitsfield company develops high-level optics and augmented visual technology for training purposes mostly for the military, federal space programs and firefighters and first responders.
“Basically, we do fun things with lasers,” said Eben Gay, a senior engineer at Creative MicroSystems, as he held court from behind his company’s table during Tech Jam, an annual job fair that connects Vermont-based tech companies with prospective employees. The event took place at Hula, a lakefront innovation center and technology incubator in Burlington.
Creative Micro set up its VR show in a back corner of the expo. Its table and demo attracted a crowd among the tech enthusiasts, including young children with parents, who attended Tech Jam.
Even after nearly 20 years of operation, Creative MicroSystems flies largely under the radar in Vermont, and Gay said he hoped to share the company’s work with the general public, as well as potential workers. “We want people to know that we exist,” he said. “Right now, we’re looking for an electrical engineer.”
Creative MicroSystems was founded in 2005 by Julie and Bill Parker, a pair of technical and optical experts. Before that, Julie Parker worked with holograms, something that is imperative to the company today. A decade ago, while working on its augmented reality systems, Creative Micro had trouble finding a see-through display suitable for use in outdoor rugged environments and compatible with its customers’ existing equipment, so the company developed its own optic technology for that purpose, according to its website.
The new project allows users to experience and have full awareness of the real world while layering virtual reality into their view. It’s intended for Army combat training, but the company also anticipates that it could help with preparation for firefighting. The system is designed to work in full daylight, as well as in a smoke-filled room.
“We can also give this to the firefighters and put an infrared camera on the helmet, and they can see through the smoke,” Gay said. The collaborative viewing allows other members of the firefighting team to watch the action and see where their colleagues are, Gay added. “And they can work together to knock down the fire and rescue people.”