New CI Exotendon System From Contact CI Offers More Lifelike VR Experience

CI Exotendon, one of this year's notable innovations, was launched during the 2016 E3 event. The developer kit by the small startup Contact CI from Cincinnati was introduced for the first time featuring a complex glove, which is designed to provide more lifelike VR interactions.

The CI Exotendon system to capture motions is used in the recently developed glove, making it entirely different from what has been used in the motion capture glove in the past.  As explained by co-founder Craig Douglass, this feature can capture all of the movements in real time, copying them in return to the game engine that is used for the headset. In addition, it has haptic feedback via the five actuators in the fingertips that provide the buzz interaction. Therefore, choosing an item can make a person feel like grabbing it and when it is released, it feels like it is leaving the hand.

However, the company is still in the stage of developing  the CI Exotendon, and the prototype on-display did not provide any of the haptic feedback. Another drawback is the issue of calibration that is comparatively a complex process that takes about five up to 10 minutes to complete. Being said that, the CI investments would not recalibrate it for each demo, News Thrive reported.

According to some experts, different hand sizes will have a huge impact on the Exotendom system's efficacy, as such, some independent demo has been reportedly frustrating. For those not good at shooting basketballs and lending short of calibration resulted in a piece of a mess, even when collecting the ball has also proved some difficulty. However, experts believe that the company has got its point across.

The CI Exotendon developer kit will soon begin to be delivered this fall for the price of $470 per pair and $250 per individual. The Contact Ci hopes to lower the price down to $299 for each pair, once the peripheral device begins shipping,  according to Age Times.