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WormSlayer

Thats cool, we've seen many posts from people with visual disabilities over the years, and theres clearly a lot of potential for people like your gran.


G1NGERNAUT

It's amazing to me that her doctors - the specialists, even - never even countenanced the idea.


---fatal---

I don't know where do you live, but in my country I think most doctors has absolutely zero idea what a VR headset is.


[deleted]

Hell, in my country too (Canada)!


tangoliber

They have some products like this that are specifically designed for people with different types of blindness. [https://vixion.jp/](https://vixion.jp/) I'd assume that there are similar products somewhere in the US.


G1NGERNAUT

That's great. If there's something like that in the US that's affordable, even better.


-Sploosh-

[Here is a list I found](https://irisvision.com/electronic-glasses-for-the-blind-and-visually-impaired/)


cheesegoat

jfc those prices are ridiculous. I realize they're not mass-market entertainment devices but c'mon.


WillingnessSouthern4

Yes, but at 25,000$


tangoliber

I think that one is about $3,800 with tax


DudesworthMannington

She can probably see looking through the camera in a smartphone too. A friend of mine who is really nearsighted freaked out a bit when I showed her. Handy trick if you're looking for your glasses.


KyttKatt

yeah i used this to look for my glasses once lol, i dropped em in the morning and stayed in bed a while so i got up and just pulled up the camera to look around


AberrantRambler

Because the technology to make the cameras, screens, and batteries small enough to comfortably wear for longer periods (especially at reasonable price points, as good luck getting insurance to pay for experimental treatments that they deem quality of life) is newish thing. We always knew it was feasible science fiction-wise (as you pointed out with Star Trek). Additionally we aren’t totally there socially yet, it’s weird to see people with headsets. It’s weird to see people with google glass or the Snapchat glasses. People aren’t generally comfortable with the notion of someone possibly filming them surreptitiously.


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Easelaspie

it's because doctors know about the human body, not tech. You can't really expect them to know about everything


joesii

What screen techs were good for you? OLED? I would be guessing that the backlight of LCD would be the problem. Ever had problems with CRTs? Plasma? Is size or distance a factor?


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joesii

Huh I wouldn't have guessed 3D screens would be useful, that's weird. I'm not surprised at all about e-ink. I didn't even mention it because I knew it wouldn't be an issue.


Heroic-Dose

why would you be amazed by that? its new tech with no history of being used for such


hbarSquared

I'm sure they've considered it, but (at least in the US) getting a product FDA approved is absurdly expensive and time-consuming. This is why, for example, you see a lot of hype around volunteer orgs 3D printing prosthetics for pennies, but you never see them available commercially - the market is too small to support the red tape. And of course, if a doctor prescribes or even recommends a non-FDA compliant device they can be at big risk for litigation.


nicetriangle

Yeah I think VR presents a really exciting new set of opportunities for people with motor, mobility, or visual disabilities (and probably other issues I'm not thinking of). Beyond just being a fun way to game or all the dystopian FUD you hear people throw around, I think there's a lot of nascent potential here to improve some people's lives in a major way.


fantaz1986

Her real option is lynx , and if you push it to them maybe they will give it her for free for marketing , just imagine headlines , lynx make old woman see again


G1NGERNAUT

Thank you for pointing me to this! It looks like it could be perfect.


YeetusMyDiabeetus

This is really intriguing. I wonder how this could be used for the average consumer.


[deleted]

there's different types of macular degeneration but without details it's likely the brightness and fixed focal distance. her peripheral vision is likely significantly better than her central vision so I'd also experiment with disabling fixed foveated rendering.


SvenViking

So a higher contrast setting for passthrough video would probably be helpful?


[deleted]

Perhaps, tho I suggest not making too many changes too fast.


blue2coffee

A few companies sell products for low vision with video pass-through and VR. I started one myself called [OXSIGHT](https://www.oxsightglobal.com). We took the best bits of VR (large bright binoculars displays) and removed the bad bits (enclosed peripheral vision) and made a device just for the partially sighted. Other companies have used mobile phones and VR headsets. There are still issues. Cost, heat, nausea, battery, weight, complexity and feeling self conscious. The holy grail is to use large FOV AR glasses that look like sun glasses, but we are still a few years away from that.


Fortyplusfour

This is nothing short of incredible.


Breddit2225

Good for you! Wish you much success.


G1NGERNAUT

That is outstanding! I will definitely be looking into this.


sock2014

Phew! I was wondering when someone would post about these non-vr vision aids that have been around since the '80's.


Snoo62101

The upcoming Meta Cambria headset should have high def color pass through, it should be interesting for her. Do you have an understanding of why VR works for her? Is it because of high brightness maybe? Or because the focal distance is infinity? Does she see far away things clearly IRL?


Snoo62101

Ok I read your post again, it's thanks to both high luminosity and long focal distance.


octorine

I'm not as bad off as OP's grandmother, but I have a little bit of damage from glaucoma and I can't see up close. VR is a huge improvement for me, both because of the brightness and the fixed focal length. I think it's one part of why I like VR as much as I do.


no_modest_bear

Sounds close to my position. I don't officially have glaucoma yet but I've been dealing with it (eye pressure namely) in its early stages for years , and for me using a VR headset negates all of its symptoms. Give me higher resolutions, I can see for miles!


Netcob

The fixed focal length is what gives me headaches. But it's interesting that it can actually be a plus for some people!


[deleted]

>focal distance is infinity i *think* the focal distance is exactly 2 meters Edit: ±1.5 meters


Theknyt

Closer to 1.5 but yeah


staindk

Yeah that was my understanding as well - while some other headsets do have it set to infinity (think HTC headsets, not sure about others)


converter-bot

2 meters is 2.19 yards


SvenViking

Some early headsets (DK1?) were focused at infinity but after that most went down to something around 2m. Focal distance for Quest 1 and 2 is [1.3 metres.](https://twitter.com/id_aa_carmack/status/1371485209603022853?lang=en)


DJDarwin93

Have her try out Wander. She can travel the world from her couch, and it’s probably the most comfortable app on the Oculus store for someone her age. It also has a social function that lets her explore with other users, the people in there are some of the nicest I’ve ever met in VR. Squeakers are rare, people close to her age are actually pretty common, it’s perfect for her. It uses a combination of Google Earth and user-provided images, so basically anywhere on Earth is viewable. The user-uploaded images can sometimes be a little disorienting because they aren’t stitched together as well, but as long as she’s sitting down she should be fine. My own grandmother has used it without issue as long as she’s resting.


Hoylegu

I second Wander. In fact, it has multiplayer coop, which is just brilliant. Older people can really get into traveling around and talking to people about the places of their own past. Just brilliant.


searchingformytruth

Yeah, until they manage to port a copy of Google Earth VR to the Quest, Wander is the next best thing. I still use it occasionally to explore. It's one of the apps that everyone should always have on their Quest, in my opinion.


DJDarwin93

It’s probably the best app for non-gamers, and even as a huge gamer myself it’s probably my favorite app on the Oculus store. The social function on it’s own is worth the price three times over, I can’t believe it’s only ten dollars.


G1NGERNAUT

I'll definitely have her try that. Thanks!


scambastard

Wow! I'm so happy this has given her a new way to see and interact. Even though the quest 2 isn't ideal in its pass through it may well allow her to interact until you figure out a better AR solution. There is a new doubletap method to change the whole camera to pass through which she may want to make use of. As it stands if you move too far out of your play space the headset currently goes black but hopefully she can create a large plays pace that moves around the house. You can also interact in apps like vr chat, big screen etc where you can probably get some good value. Best of luck!


G1NGERNAUT

I did make that suggestion. My brother, who lives closer, is going to get her all set up and see what works best and if the IR pass-through the Quest offers is helpful enough to be worth using. In any event, the VR apps are going to be a huge hit for her!


SvenViking

> As it stands if you move too far out of your play space the headset currently goes black [Does this help?](https://skarredghost.com/2021/09/24/oculus-passthrough-guardian-everywhere/)


Teddeler

I've noticed something similar. I'm now a bit short sighted - things at a distance or in lower lighting conditions are blurry without my glasses but I don't need glasses in VR - everything's clear. That is awesome that it helps your grandma so much! As for apps - Wander is the obvious first choice. She can explore the world in full color. It's 2D but 360 so can be quite engrossing. Walkabout Mini Golf is a fun, low-key game that also has multiplayer options. If you got a Quest, too, you could play with her. It can even be played sitting down, if she wants. It's a little awkward but I'll do it that way if I don't feel up to standing up for a game. National Geographic Explore VR is good, if short. You get to kayak around the Antarctic, take pictures of penguins and whales, go ice climbing, and visit Machu Pichu. She can also watch movies she may not have been able to in the past. I load video files onto my Quest and watch them with Skybox (which is really cool if you can get ahold of 3D video files) but there are also apps for connecting to Netflix and Amazon Prime.


G1NGERNAUT

Thank you for the suggestions!


RookiePrime

Someone else posted about a similar revelation a year or two back, and I definitely had the same thought -- a company like Facebook or Google or whoever could get into the medical business by providing passthrough-dedicated HMDs. Strip out all the unnecessary hardware to reduce weight and cost. You don't need spatial tracking, you only need one camera for each eye, you don't need game controllers (probably just an untracked remote would do). Ideally you would arrive at something svelte and reasonably-priced, that could change the lives of so many people.


JoshuaPearce

Somebody did make a prototype of it: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/04/GeordiLaForge.jpg/220px-GeordiLaForge.jpg


G1NGERNAUT

Exactly this.


snakesoup88

Did you have her try walking around the house with the b&w passthrough in Q2? Besides daydream, which is discontinued, you can also get Google cardboard headset that's more portable. Some of their VR/AR libraries maybe interesting.


G1NGERNAUT

My brother and I both have old Daydream headsets just collecting dust, so we figure we can pull those out and give it a try. I wasn't there when she tried the Quest, so I don't know how much she tried the b&w passthrough, though I did suggest it for when she gets hers.


oculus

We absolutely need an update pic when her Quest 2 arrives 🙌


G1NGERNAUT

Will do!


azeottaff

Interesting that this even works. As far as I'm aware eyes should act the same even in vr. As an example without glasses things are blurry to me, I can properly see things upclose but that's it. It's the same for vr - without glasses it's blurry. Guess it depends on what's wrong with your eyes but still very surprised to hear this worked. Awesome find op!


LeopardHalit

Well, there is a thing. The place where your eyes’ lines of sight intersect vary, but the focal point is always at ~2 meters. Maybe she can stay focused on 2 meters? And the lack of variance of focal point could be why.


G1NGERNAUT

That's an interesting consideration.


FolkSong

Yeah I'm curious about this too - the brightness I can see being a factor, but the screen is not "inches away" optically, it's more like 6 feet. Maybe the simple Quest graphics make it easier to distinguish things than in the more complex real world?


sirhalos

Same for me, I am near sighted (-5.0) in both eyes so I can see perfectly fine for about 4 \~ 5 inches (10.16 \~ 12.7 cm) so you would think I should be able to see perfectly in VR, but I can't and just like the real world everything is blurry without my glasses on. It makes no sense to me since the screen it literally on my face but just happens to be the way it is.


devedander

The lenses in vr place your focal distance at About 8 feet. Not up close


aeschenkarnos

The physical object emitting light is ~5cm away from your eyes though, and that may be the relevant distance.


devedander

In what way?


---fatal---

Same here, I am near sighted too (-2.0/-1.75). I can see, but it's blurry in VR for far things, so at first I've played with my glasses, then I've ordered a pair of lenses from VROptician.


devedander

The lenses in vr place your focal distance at About 8 feet. Not up close


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---fatal---

Yeah maybe it was. I didn't tried without glasses for a long, I've just almost instantly realized that it's not as sharp as the world with my glasses, so then I installed the glasses spacer and it was better. So probably you're right. :) Maybe I wrote that, because the first thing what I checked was smaller text which looks "far" in VR. :) Anyway, it's far better with prescription lenses.


Chuck_Lenorris

I'm far sighted so things are actually blurry for me up close and need pretty high powered glasses. But I can actually see perfectly in VR without correction. Far and close up. Pretty weird.


kraenk12

Not sure your explanation makes sense. The lenses in a headset make it seem as if the image was 1.5 m away or so, that is also the reason why you still need to wear your glasses or lenses if you’re near sighted. The brightness is definitely possible though.


Raunhofer

Just to clarify for those that this info might have value: different HMDs have different fixed distances. Many of the older ones, like the Oculus Rift CV1 are 2m, but Oculus Quest 2 is 1.3m. Varifocal will have a varying distance (not yet released, but remember the term).


G1NGERNAUT

Yeah, that is a very good point about the lenses. This should honestly have a lot of research dedicated to it, considering the potential.


bahala_na-

Happy to hear that! I understand her joy, I have a different eye problem…essentially it’s called lazy eye, I primarily see out of one eye, and if I don’t intervene I will lose vision in my “bad” eye. I definitely think the brightness of VR screens makes a big difference. If I block my good eye, vision is VERY dim. It’s a thing. Blasting it with light works on some level, and while playing Walkabout Mini Golf, I shit you not, I saw depth for the first time in my life!! Truly an amazing feeling, my friends were like wtf are you doing. I was walking up to plants and pottery in the game, swaying around because —- this is depth perception!!! It’s not something that “sticks”, I have to actively work on this to see depth again each time I put on my headset. I wear my glasses with VR. I told my doctor about it and she said, between golf (you have to look at different distances constantly), and the bright screen, it would be a great eye exercise for me to continue doing.


bandwidthcrisis

VR is used for treating lazy eye [https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/20/22736894/fda-vr-tv-movies-treatment-lazy-eye-amblyopia](https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/20/22736894/fda-vr-tv-movies-treatment-lazy-eye-amblyopia)


bahala_na-

!!!!! I gotta try this... I'm in my 30s, not a child (diagnosed in my 30s). Wonder if my HSA would pay for this... thank you for the link!


Kartoffel_Mann

Does your grandmother also have better peripheral vision? Mine also has MD.


G1NGERNAUT

I'm not sure. It's possible that her peripheral vision was the last to go, but at this point it's pretty poor all around as I understand it.


devedander

The thing is that in vr your focal distance is actually about 8 ft away. So it’s really odd that it would work well with close sightedness


Raunhofer

It's closer to 4.3 ft (it's optimized to hands so that you won't feel eye strained watching something you're holding), but other than that, yeah, if the grandmother only sees inches away then this can't be it — although she may be exaggerating it a bit, as seeing only at 4.3ft would be quite limiting too and I'm sure that if her reality is blurred, something that's less will actually feel sharp.


aeschenkarnos

The object emitting the light is a few cm away, the optical focus distance is just a visual trick not much different from looking at a poster on the wall that shows a large distant object; the image is designed to have a visual focus of a few km away, but that doesn’t stop it from actually being an object on a wall.


devedander

Lenses are not the same as a picture on a wall. That's why glasses can let farsighted people see a picture of a city when it's close to them while just having a picture of something distant doesn't.


aeschenkarnos

If what you describe were the case, then it would work like this. There are two pictures on the wall: the Mona Lisa and Starry Night. A near-sighted person would be able to clearly see the Mona Lisa as she is depicted a metre or so from the viewer. But they would see the city (and not the frame) of Starry Night as blurry as it is a few hundred metres away. (Or vice-versa, for a far-sighted person.) You might say “that doesn’t make any sense”, and yes, that’s my point. In both cases there is a flat picture in a frame a few cm away.


devedander

What you are describing is what you said would happen above if a lens was just a trick like a picture on a wall. >a poster on the wall that shows a large distant object; the image is designed to have a visual focus of a few km away, You're mistake is that a picture on the wall does not have a focal distance of a few km away. It has a focal distance of however far the wall is. That is why a far sited person will still not be able to see the picture clearly even though the picture is of a distance city. If what you were saying above was true, that it's just a trick, then a near sighted person would not be able to see a picture of a city even though it was on a close wall. But we know they can because the focal distance of the picture of a city is still close, not several km away. A lens actually changes the focal distance of an object. That's how eyesight is corrected. The distance of the subject in a picture does not change the focal distance of the picture. >the optical focus distance is just a visual trick not much different from looking at a poster on the wall that shows a large distant object; That is where you a fundamentally wrong. A poster on a wall is at the focal distance of the wall no matter what the subject. The lens can make an item on a wall have the focal distance of the city which is in essence what is happening in VR headsets. A screen 2 inches from your eyes has a visual focal distance of several feet.


heinternets

This focal distance talk is irrelevant when people have cortical visual impairment. You are thinking about refractive impairment which is most common, and corrected by glasses. Having a screen an inch from someones face really helps with the former types, most common in the elderly.


bandwidthcrisis

Everything that you suggest sounds like possible explanations. One other thing could be the lack of peripheral light. Perhaps having the edges of her vision completely dark is somehow avoiding glare that normally reduces her clarity. I don't know what types of vision problems could be affected by that (floaters or maybe cataracts could cause diffuse glare, I don't know about macular degeneration itself), but it's just an additional idea.


bandwidthcrisis

Aside from the great suggestion of Wander, Brink Traveler is worth considering. You're only fixed to small regions, but it has quite detailed environments.


G1NGERNAUT

I will add that to the list. Thank you!


ScientiaEtVeritas

I don't think there's a cheap solution that doesn't require a lot of engineering, work and expertise. For depth, you need at least two cameras and a reconstruction algorithm to make up for the distortions. The upcoming Cambria headset (high-quality colour passthrough, standalone) will probably be best for this task.


poetbluestar

Optics are hard. I am near sighted and using Google Cardboard with my glasses off everything was clear and sharp because I assumed the image was very close. But on my Quest I need prescription lenses installed to be able to see anything. There are probably many variables involved.


Ninlilizi

The focal distance of a VR headset is about 2 meters. So the image is technically 2 meters away.


converter-bot

2 meters is 2.19 yards


heinternets

It is technically and in reality an inch away from the eyes, and in the case of people with retinal detachment, macular degeneration or non refractive error vision impairment, this matters a lot. For people with the usual short or long sightedness, the focus distance matters, but OP is not talking about this type of vision impairment.


largePenisLover

Depending on her type of macula degeneration you could add the lenses of these glasses into the mix, possibly with some off the shelf lens insets http://www.e-scoopnl.com/ What these glasses do is bend the light around macula black spots that are in the fovea, the effect is like shifting the black spots away from your center of vision. They aren't gone, just no longer in the most annoying spot.


G1NGERNAUT

I'll look into this, thank you!


[deleted]

Get her virtual desktop. I'm a developer, and my eyesight is getting bad. With VR, I'm 20 again.


itsbroken

A few years ago I was at a fund raising event for the Foundation Fighting Blindness, (I was teaching modified board games for the sight impaired) and during the event someone was demoing a VR headset for a similar purpose to what you are describing. I don't know the details, but maybe someone at the FFB would know more?


G1NGERNAUT

That's fascinating. I'm actually encouraged to know that some people have been making strides down that path with this technology (even if it doesn't get much attention), because there are so many people who could probably benefit in one way or another from it. I may reach out to the FFB and see if they know anything.


jqubed

I happen to be with my in-laws and brought my oculus, so I’m definitely going to try this with my mother-in-law, who has macular degeneration and is legally blind.


G1NGERNAUT

Would you follow up and let us know how that goes?


Ceno

Thanks for posting this. We don’t talk enough about how VR can have an impact on people with disabilities (and frankly oculus’ accessibility efforts leave much to be desired) so sharing stories like this is really valuable I think


G1NGERNAUT

Absolutely, and I agree.


[deleted]

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G1NGERNAUT

Thanks for the suggestions! I didn't see in the video with the Skyzone SKY03O where he showed the pass-through function of the forward facing camera - was that in there and I just missed it?


[deleted]

When my grandfather was alive I always wanted to see if one of these would work for his macular degeneration. I'm guessing they'd work for the same reason. https://esighteyewear.com/


G1NGERNAUT

Outstanding find. Thank you for this.


KillerCheeze439

I’m a kitchen designer in the uk and we use an HTC vive in our showrooms. A few months back we had a legally blind customer in with her husband. He was describing everything to her as I was designing. I suggested trying the VR because the screen is so close to your eyes that she may be able to actually see her kitchen design and the depth etc. She was dubious but blown away when she tried it. On the verge or tears happy as it’s been a long time since she could see anything so clearly. I told her about the Quest and apps like Wander. They emailed me a few weeks later saying they’d bought a quest purely for the experiences and it had changed her life massively.


G1NGERNAUT

Wow. What a heartwarming thing to experience!


twonha

Does macular degeneration get worse from here on out for your grandmother (and in general), or is it degeneration until this particular point? A former colleague of mine might be helped with a similar solution, and I wonder whether anyone's going to tell her. How aware are professionals concerning this seemingly simple (if partial) solution?


G1NGERNAUT

My understanding is that it can still get worse - to where all someone can detect is light and shadow. As this is still fresh news for me and I haven't been able to dig very deep, I don't know how much professional research has gone into this solution, but what I do know is that my grandmothers doctors and specialists who deal with this for a living never even thought of the idea (and as far as I know are still unaware unless she's already told them).


tangoliber

I have an acquaintance who works on a solution like this in Japan: https://vixion.jp/


ImpracticallySharp

> everything is blurry unless inches away The Quest 2 has a focal distance of 1.3 meters, so she must be able to see things farther away than a few inches.


G1NGERNAUT

She can detect objects, but it is shadows and light, as if in a dense fog.


ImpracticallySharp

What I'm saying is that her vision with the Quest shouldn't be better than her vision in a brightly lit room when looking at things 1.3 meters away.


G1NGERNAUT

I understand what you're saying, and I can't explain to you why things are necessarily different, but they are. I can speculate as to why, and I would honestly love to know why. All I know for now, beyond my speculation, is that this is a real thing that has happened.


RampagingViking

A Geordi La Forge visor needs to be made!


GrowCanadian

My friends brother is also legally blind. He can see but to give you an idea how blind he is if we put a computer screen in front of him he needs to be about an inch or so away to see the text. We put him in my CV1 and he was blown away that he could finally see things clearly in the “distance”. I’m sure tech like this can drastically improve the lives of some people like this.


M1ghty_boy

A vive flow with colour pass through would be perfect for her


rcampbel3

As I've gotten older, I now need bifocals or progressive lenses which require me to learn to do strange head tilting tricks to see things in focus. In addition, I almost never wear contact lenses anymore because they just don't seem to work well for me. I've tried toric lenses and they just seem like a less bad compromise to my progressive glasses lenses compromise. About a month ago, when I still had my contact lenses in after a special occasion, I put on my Quest 2 and noticed that I could see everything clearly with no compromise while working in Immersed -- better than with glasses, almost more comfortable than without VR. I think VR's future and being able to compensate for hearing and vision issues is going to be a very big deal.


hipdashopotamus

Could she wear VR and use pass through to see sometimes? (assuming quest has the pass through camera mode like my rift S does)


G1NGERNAUT

That's my hope. Ideally, a device that offers a higher quality pass-through than the Quest 2 would be the way to go (I also have a Rift S, and I believe it's roughly the same in that regard). Some of the other people here have made some really good suggestions along those lines that I'm going to have to dig into.


JoshuaPearce

I'm moderately near sighted, and in VR I can see everything sharply. Basically, this works because the light isn't *really* coming from an arbitrary distance, it's still focused and projected as if it were something like [1.3m for the Quest 2]. Some people will use a smartphone camera to get a sharper image than they would using their eyes. It's a handy trick if you have a good phone camera and forgot your glasses. It's your brain which adds the 3d effect. While "blurriness" is one cue your brain uses for 3D perception, the parallax is far more important.


Aquareon

Bless you for caring to help your grandmother see better and enjoy life more.


lemlurker

Now you just need to 1:1 map her room into vr and she'll be set


GoldSrc

Makes sense, considering the focal plane of the lenses. This is still an amazing thing for her though.


FooFatFighters

There’s an Android app that can be used with Google Cardboard devices that allow folks with limited Field of View to get a better look via the image from a smartphone projected onto its screen. If I remember correctly it’s a free app. Lots of super cheap Google Cardboard type holders for smartphones at Goodwill, Salvation Army. It has to be a headset that doesn’t cover-up the rear camera on the phone.


G1NGERNAUT

Okay, good. I was hoping there would be something like that as a cheap first step while we sort the rest out.


FooFatFighters

Check this thread, though links are old and may not work. Might have to search for the apps online.: [https://www.reddit.com/r/Blind/comments/5o5lci/use\_your\_phone\_and\_a\_google\_cardboard\_as\_a\_low/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Blind/comments/5o5lci/use_your_phone_and_a_google_cardboard_as_a_low/) Here's SuperVision http://supervisioncardboard.com/index\_EN.html


Thecid0

But wait, I also can't see shit unless I have glasses on, but I still need them to use an oculus or I see blurry like i would by looking at a distant object. I think it's the lenses "mimicking" distance with the technology that lenses use to makes it possible to have a decent fov using a visor. Maybe the bright graphics and absence of lines to separate polygons that game use to hide the lack of resolution is the biggest factor. Probably she sees the immage quite blurry but when compared to what she sees normally, aka basically nothing it's like regaining sight!


G1NGERNAUT

That is possible, but when I asked her, on a scale of 1-10, with 1 being blind and you can't see anything, and 10 being able to see like before any of the blindness set in, where it landed, she said 9/10. You don't understand. It's crystal clear! She went on to say that she still does have the black spots, but everything else so much better. It's possible it's been so long that she doesn't quite remember what everything looks like, but that would be an easy thing to test.


Thecid0

Well, time so tech up your granny it seems. For 300$ I think it could be worth it, through *some* means you could also side load most visual experiences for free so she has lots of things to try out


[deleted]

Thanks for sharing something positive and interesting in the cesspool of negativity these VR subreddits can be from time to time.


G1NGERNAUT

People will howl at the moon until the whole world knows of their woes. Meanwhile, there is a whole lot of good going on that we either miss altogether or simply fail to share. I'm happy to share this :)


[deleted]

She gonna be walking around looking like briarios from Appleseed, but that awesome she can see something again


G1NGERNAUT

I joked with her that she could just put googly eyes on the front and nobody would notice XD


TechDova

Meta’s new headset next year will provide exactly this.


G1NGERNAUT

That is excellent. I hadn't looked for the anticipated features, but I had hoped it would offer something like this.


Seraphina77

Maybe I'm missing something and someone can ELI5. I'm nearsighted. Can't see well without glasses. I have good nearsight though without glasses. I HAVE to wear glasses in the headset or I can't see well. I just recently got snap in prescription lenses for my headset which are a game changer. I can finally use my headset without glasses with the lenses. How does my situation differ?


Musicmonkey34

What if she held an iPhone in camera mode in front of her face? Could that work in a pinch? That’s what I do when I can’t find my glasses.


G1NGERNAUT

She used to do that, but then that stopped working very well. Then she started using her iPad, since it was bigger, but then that stopped working for her as well. It's definitely a really good idea, though!


LessAbbreviations

I had a similar revelation when my brother who has always had 20/200 eyesight (maybe worse now, I’m not entirely sure) tried my rift. I was planning to get a special attachment so he could use his glasses for it, but he told me he doesn’t need his glasses with it. It’s pretty cool, maybe someday they’ll have things using similar technology that project an image close to the eye and help the visually impaired.


DamageParty101

I think I read that the pro version that is coming out later this year is going to have full color in passed through. This is something you should contact oculus about. It being capable of assisting someone with a disability opens a lot of doors for them to expanding the technology past gaming and into everyday life.


G1NGERNAUT

Very true. I think I will reach out to them.


[deleted]

all you need is to make sure the outer cameras dont get damaged by the sun. but great discovery!


KyttKatt

I've wanted to have AR full color passthrough for cool fun stuff, but this implementation could be really cool and useful too. AR could be useful for productivity and this that and the other, but helping people with disabilities could be such an interesting and great use for this sort of technology.


DOOManiac

My mother in law had a similar experience. She used to love watching the stars, but hasn't been able to see them 20+ years. We put her in VR w/ Google Earth and zoomed out and she started crying with happiness.


G1NGERNAUT

Oh wow. That is wonderful!


CanonOverseer

Having heard of the passthrough on some of those business varjo headsets, give it a few years and she'll have some pretty damn good sight if she got one with that kinda tech in it lol ​ But maybe look into cambria when it comes out, that one was rumored to have better color passthrough from what i remember


G1NGERNAUT

Definitely will.


jr23160

At this point your almost talking about AR not VR but yeah the tech is almost there to be able to help people that have near sighted issues, I think the biggest draw back as if now is battery life.


Soldiumek

I wish I was among the group of visually impaired people that actually saw well with VR. Sadly reading text is less than pleasant, I guess nystagmus will always be bad. It's awesome that it helps someone though. I always wondered whether it's actually helpful to scrap high res screens to someone's eyes.


blord86

I've always suffered myopia, not too much but I need glasses to drive, and watching TV feels blurry without them. And in VR I still need my glasses, it feels the same than in real life: distant objects are blurry. Now I'm older and I've started suffering presbyopia too, but I was surprised to check that in VR my presbyopia is gone, and I can perfectly focus on objects that are very close to me, unlike real life where I must take my myopia glasses off when I focus on very close objects, like my watch or my phone. Half Life Alyx's hands look crispier than my own hands lol!


G1NGERNAUT

That is so cool!


The_Radian

I have old eyes. I have trouble reading anything unless I hold it at arms length. In Vr this does not happen. Even inches away (in vr), I can see everything like I was 18 again. Pretty cool.


G1NGERNAUT

That's awesome!


NMe84

I'd be surprised if the next Oculus headset doesn't have a much improved set of AR capabilities including full color passthrough. But even if I'm right that's this a ways off, obviously.


przemo-c

Well... I don't know what is the mechanism by which she's able to see better. But distance to the screen is likely not the characteristic as due to lenses its as if it was 3m away. But there's a fixed distance for all objects regardless of if it's near or far. Th FOV is way narrower than IRL... perhaps light from rest of the FOV is misfocused blurring stuff up but in VR since everything outside the 90*fov is pretty much black it doesn't interfere. And oculus has limited stereo overlap so that may also decrease issues from there. You could try doing some form of googles that narrow the fov like blackened tubes that limit peripherial light. That's still a bit odd. But I'm glad she's able to enjoy it.


[deleted]

[удалено]


G1NGERNAUT

I said legally blind; it isn't pitch darkness for her, but it is very, very bad. She cannot walk around her own home without assistance, she cannot read anything, and she cannot even see her own food when she eats. She also cannot even discern what an object is unless it is brightly lit by a flashlight and inches from her face. She has had surgery and has doctors who, I promise you, would give her a pair of special glasses if that would actually help. TL;DR: She has macular degeneration. You are incorrect.


ringolennon67

So you thought that it never occurred to them to try to give their legally blind grandmother glasses? lol Jesus Christ


reachedsoftware

I’m nearsighted but I still can’t see in a headset without glasses, because the focal point of the lenses simulates a distance that’s outside of the range I can see clearly in (VR headsets simulate about 2m away, I can’t see anything further than my phone close to my face), despite being right up to my face. Unless she was mildly nearsighted she still wouldn’t be able to see, so that’s not the problem here.


hallitralli

I have the rift and if you look out of the play area you can see stuff


AnimeRequest

Varjo is sooo clear MR, I bet that would be insanneeee


Raunhofer

Could it be that as the Quest 2 looks quite a bit clearer than her reality, she concludes it to be sharp, even though there might be still some blurriness present? Quest 2 focuses at 1.3 meters (4.3 ft) which while being much further than inches away, surely makes the overall look of the world seem much clearer. I wonder if the upcoming (some day) varifocal HMDs will have a feature to lock on the focus at fixed distances? That could be a pretty interesting accessibility point. Someone, call Carmack!


G1NGERNAUT

>Could it be that as the Quest 2 looks quite a bit clearer than her reality, she concludes it to be sharp, even though there might be still some blurriness present? I had the same thought, so I asked her, "On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being blind and you can't see anything, and 10 being able to see like before any of the blindness set in, where would you say this lands?" She answered, "9/10. You don't understand. It's crystal clear!" She went on to say that she still does have the black spots, but everything else is completely different.


athey

We’ve got a box of google cardboard sitting in storage. Not sure what size phones still fit into it. They’re quite a few years old at this point. But I could always send one along.


[deleted]

So have you considered turning on the passthrough mode? Itll make her able to see the whole house albiet in black and white if she can see everything else through it.


G1NGERNAUT

Definitely have. That was actually the feature that got me thinking about full color pass through and how much that would help. I made the suggestion to he to try that out more when it gets in.


[deleted]

Itd be so cool if oculus just became glasses for sight impaired ppl. Full color passthrough would be a huge step


mormondad

There are companies that sell expensive products for this. But your idea is not far off. See the first one in this list of 5 products. https://irisvision.com/electronic-glasses-for-the-blind-and-visually-impaired/


G1NGERNAUT

Oh wow, you weren't kidding about them being expensive! Still worth adding to the list, but... Wow.


cold-flame

Amazing. Also, can she look at dark VR environments relatively better than dark environments in real life? Curious as in, is the VR game itself very crisp itself, because most are. Games don't have real life visual complexity and lighting.


G1NGERNAUT

That's a good question. I want to say yes, but I'll have to ask her when she gets her own VR soon.


The-Tree-Of-Might

I wonder if passthrough could be developed to be clear enough to help her see in the real world better, just like glasses on any other person with typical poor eyesight