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September 2016 • The PCB Magazine 19 ability to roam and interact in a fully computer- generated world and overlay computer-generat- ed information on the real world. Imagine look- ing out your window and seeing a new Lambo- rghini (wish) or having a virtual criminal break into your house so you can test your mettle with your virtual Glock. How about your favorite rock band playing in your living room or danc- ing with the movie star or anyone else of your choice. All that and more is coming—and soon. The HoloLens is in development but those who want to become part of the development effort can now get one; the cost is a mere $3000 and you have to wait in line. OK, so besides taking a virtual roller coaster ride, dancing with your idol, fighting very real looking aliens, touring very realistic underwater seascapes or mountain tops, or being immersed in and perhaps part of the next Harry Potter movie, or being on field at the 2020 Super Bowl, what else will this all lead to and how does it change the military and aeronautical world? As you might expect, a great deal. Some of the applications already in use and growing rapidly include military training pro - grams; the military are supporters of VR technol- ogy and development. Training programs can and will increasingly include things from vehi- cle simulations to ground and in-the-air combat. One would expect that VR/AR systems are much safer and are considered actually less expensive than traditional training. I have read that sol- diers who have gone through extensive VR train- ing have proven to be as effective as those who trained under traditional conditions. And now add in AR where they can practice an assault on a known target as if they were really there and they can do it with much less risk. Additional military uses for VR and perhaps soon AR, in addition to battlefield simulation include: • Flight simulation. This is in fact an area where VR has been in use for quite some time. Flight simulators have been widely used by both the military and commercial aviation for many years to learn to handle emergency issues as well as flight skills. VR is used to train combat pilots, for example helicopter pilots who have to navi- gate in difficult conditions, such as night flying, bad weather and under fire. They use a flight sim- ulator and wear a head mounted display (HMD) which enables them to experience a change in perception as they move their head. • Teamwork. Learning to work together as a unit, using VR weapons together which feel, look and act as real weapons. • Battle field medical training. VR is now used to train medics in battlefield situa - tions. Medical personnel have to be able to deal with a wide range of injuries caused by exposure to gunfire, unexploded devices, mines etc. Us- ing VR enables realistic training covering a wide range of injuries—far more than could be dupli- cated in a lab or training operating room. Using a VR multi-platform system—which is extremely immersive—lets trainee medics engage in com- plex medical situations and do so over and over again with no additional expenditure of valuable or scarce resources. • PTSD treatment. Per the Virtual Reality Society, "Soldiers suffering from battlefield trau- ma and other psychological conditions can learn how to deal with their symptoms in a "safe" en- vironment. The idea is for them to be exposed to the triggers for their condition which they grad- ually adjust to. This has the effect of decreasing their symptoms and enabling them to cope with new or unexpected situations." [1] DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES—VR, AR AND STAR TREK