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Cobalt Hardware Development Kits enable game-changing products
Our Hardware Development Kits (HDKs) allow manufacturers to develop VR and AR headsets that deliver the most compelling and immersive gaming experiences.
About cobalt HDK
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Our Cobalt HDKs are designed for the development of gaming-focused AR and VR headsets.
System architecture, display engine, waveguide, electronics
Including reference materials, technical support
Whether consumers are playing multiplayer table-top games or turning their living room into an alien battleground, gaming in augmented reality will deliver unprecedented immersive experiences for consumers. The only way to deliver these experiences is through holography, and the only way to bring holography to next-generation gaming headsets is through VividQ’s Cobalt HDKs.
“By increasing the comfort and realism of AR objects, holography has the potential to dramatically improve the kinds of AR games that can be built.”
Dustin Kochensparger
Co-Founder, DB Creations - award winning AR games studio behind 'Table Trenches'
Critical gaming features enabled by Cobalt
Natural and unlimited focal depth
Our technology presents virtual objects like avatars, enemies, characters, collectables, or scenery at any distance from 10cm to optical infinity. This unique capability enables players to naturally switch focus between multiple gameplay objects.
World-locking with no focal rivalry
Holographic images can be projected to any distance enabling digital objects or characters to be seamlessly locked within a player's real-world environment. This is critical for full immersion and to avoid issues such as focal rivalry, where digital and physical objects placed at similar distances are not in focus.
Benefits to Gamers
Arms' reach interaction
The most exciting interactions in AR/VR gaming occur within arm's reach - holding virtual objects in the palm of your hand, grabbing them from the table in front of you, or even applying digital effects to your own hands. Combined with third-party tracking technology, holographic display enables comfortable and natural hand and gesture interactions without handheld controllers or peripherals.
Epic AR/VR gaming sessions
Holographic objects are truly 3D, providing the most natural possible viewing experience and eliminating any visual discomfort, eye fatigue or nausea due to vergence-accommodation conflict (VAC). This unlocks the possibility for longer AR/VR play times and enables developers to create more interesting, complex, and story-driven experiences.
Cobalt HDK includes our ground-breaking 3D waveguide design
Waveguide combiners are the standard in the AR industry for their thin and lightweight form factor and their ability to create large ergonomic viewing areas. Previously it was judged “quasi-impossible” by researchers in the field to create a waveguide capable of accurately creating 3D depth, however, we overcame the core technical hurdles and in early 2023 we announced that we had designed, patented and manufactured a new type of 3D waveguide with our partner Dispelix.
defining a new era of ar
Cobalt-based devices will lead the market
AR/VR gaming headsets based on our Cobalt HDK will deliver market-leading capabilities over what has been seen to date. Below, we’ve compared the key capabilities that Cobalt enables with what is currently available.
The ability to use a range of cues for estimating distance, depth, and shape of any objects located in 3D space. Cues include: pictorial depth cues, accommodation, convergence and parallax.
The ability for the viewer to both fixate and focus on the object, i.e. accommodation distance and vergence distance are exactly matched.
Allows the viewer to switch focus on multiple objects at multiple depths.
The viewer can see unlimited depth producing a truly 3D image.
The ability to simultaneously focus on a real object and fixed focus virtual object.
other Applications
Automotive HUD
Holography allows vehicle manufacturers to place key information within the driver’s line of sight, accurately placed in the real-world ahead of them.
Holographic LCD
In the near-future, holography will bring exciting new capabilities to all types of displays for more immersive entertainment.
Download our holography
whitepaper
Find out more about Computer-Generated Holography and why it represents the future of AR/VR wearables. Includes contributions from Microsoft, HTC Vive and NVIDIA.