Did this man invent virtual reality glasses in 1963? 'Father of science fiction' Hugo Gernsback dreamt up 3D TV specs nearly 50 YEARS ago
- The inventor produced a mockup of the 'teleyeglasses' back in 1968
- The TV glasses included a screen for each eye and displayed tiny images
- Unfortunately the distinctive invention never actually went into production
- But it gives an early hint at how long ago VR headsets were beginning to evolve
The man who is widely credited with introducing the term 'science fiction' may have also invented virtual reality glasses around a half a century too soon.
As well as being a publisher and entrepreneur, Hugo Gernsback was an inventor who produced the 'teleyeglasses' in 1968, some 48 years before the Oculus Rift VR headset went on sale.
The TV glasses, which included a tiny screen for each eye, displayed stereoscopic or 3D images in much the same way as modern VR devices.
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As well as a publisher and entrepreneur, Hugo Gernsback was also an inventor and dreamt up the 'teleyeglasses' in 1968. According to a profile piece in Time magazine, Gernsback first thought up the concept in 1936 but ditched it as he deemed it to be too impractical
According to a profile piece in Time magazine, Gernsback first thought up the concept in 1936 but ditched it as he deemed it to be too impractical.
However, shortly before the Time piece was published he is said to have ordered some employees to build a prototype.
'The teleyeglasses weighed about 140 grams and were built around small cathode-ray tubes that ran on low-voltage current from tiny batteries,' reports IEEE Spectrum.
The bizarre goggles feature a dial and buttons on the front, along with a TV-style v-shaped antenna on top.
While the distinctive invention never went into production, it gives an early hint at how long ago VR headsets started to evolve.
A similar method has been used since the 1800s to display 3D images using stereoscopic viewers.
This involves looking at two near-identical images side by side, which when viewed through a viewer appear to show a 3D scene.
As a long-time stereoscopic photography enthusiast, Queen guitarist and astrophysicist Brian May launched his OWL stereoscopic viewer for smartphones earlier this year.
This enables people to take create the same 3D effect by taking two almost identical snaps on their handset.
However, while traditional stereoscopic viewers rely on still images, Gernsback's concept has more in common modern VR headsets like the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR.
Born Hugo Gernsbacher in what is now Luxembourg City, Gernsback later became a naturalised US citizen and a pioneering entrepreneur in the electronics industry.
In 1908, he founded Modern Electronics - the world's first magazine about the electronics industry.
The 'teleyeglasses' were invented in 1968, some 48 years before the Oculus Rift VR headset went on sale (Oculus Rift pictured)
Since the 1800s stereoscopic viewers have been used to view 3D images by looking at prints of two near-identical images side by side. Stereoscopic photography enthusiast and Queen guitarist Brian May launched his OWL stereoscopic viewer for smartphones earlier this year
As an inventor, he held around 80 patents including an electric hairbrush and a battery-powered light-up mirror.
Sometimes referred to as 'The Father of Science Fiction', he was also instrumental in the early history of sci-fi.
In 1926, he founded Amazing Stories, considered the first science fiction magazine.
The Hugo Awards, presented annually since 1955 at the World Science Fiction Convention are also named after him.
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