In this group assignment, I gained a lot and learned a lot of new knowledge. The part I am mainly responsible for is the animation of transfer nutrition, physical interaction and VR device connection.

Among them, I think the most time-consuming part is the connection of VR devices. Since our VR headsets have been changed three times, from Oculus Quest to Oculus Rift, due to the RAM problem of the computer, we have changed three computers successively. This resulted in a reconfiguration every time the device was connected, which took us about two weeks.

Secondly, I also learned a lot of new Unity functions, such as how to use the particle system to animate the growth of tree roots, how to use Shader Graphs to make illuminants, how to adjust the animation of small animal models in Unity, and so on.

From the perspective of teamwork, I think our team’s previous cooperation has been good, but it may be that there is a lack of time control over the progress, resulting in some tasks being carried out very slowly, which caused some confusion in the division of labor at the end. But it also taught me a lot, such as how to get along with team members, how to express my ideas accurately, how to communicate efficiently with others, etc.

In general, I am very grateful for this opportunity to work with classmates from different majors and backgrounds. This is a valuable learning experience, and I will continue to grow and develop in my future work and life.

Apr 27, 2023

In addition to the virtual reality scene in VR headset, we will also provide some physical interaction for players outside the field. For example, some weather changes, such as rain and wind, or the interaction with small animals, can be realized through physical feelings. In this way, the virtual scene combined with the player’s own feelings can make them more immersed in the whole experience.

Rain

There will be changes of four seasons in the whole scene experience, and there will be weather changes such as rain and snow. When it rains, our team members will spray water on the players outside the venue, which makes them feel as if they are really in the rain.

Wind

When the scene changes from day to night, there will be wind blowing from time to time. Our team members will adjust the gear of the electric fan outside the field to bring players a real blowing experience.

Animals

When a little squirrel jumps to a branch, or a bird flies to a tree, our team members will pat the player at the corresponding position, for example, if we see a bird appearing on the left hand side of the screen, we will pat her her left hand, making her feel as if she was really a tree, as if there were really birds sitting on her branches.

Apr 25, 2023

In this part, I mainly animate the growth of tree roots. The whole scene gradually brightens from pitch black. As a tree, the player can see that his roots are gradually expanding. The blue-green fluorescence represents the transmission of nutrients, and when the big tree is burned, nutrients and information will be passed to other young trees through the root system.

When the player looks around his root system back and forth through the VR headset, he will move along one of the growing root systems. With the extension of this tree root, the player will also switch to the next scene, which is the small tree that is being transmitted nutrition.

In Unity, I use the particle system to complete the animation of tree root growth, adjust the shape change of the root through the particle system curve, and control the growth speed and sequence of different root systems through the delay time.

After the player explores for 20 seconds on their own, I add an animation of the camera to follow the trail of tree roots growing, which allows the player to feel the nutrients being transported through the roots from the first perspective.

     

I use shader graphs to create the glowing effect of the nutrition, and give the ball a blue glowing material. I use the Sample Texture 2D, Multiply and Unlit Master modules in shader graphs, then adjust their connections according to the tutorial, and finally adjust the color of the illuminant.

Then I add animation and set the timeline of each small ball, in order to let them circulate along the root of the tree over time.

Video: https://youtu.be/yU4OwkgqeTw

Apr 25, 2023