DisneyVision - Imagineering VR Lab EPCOT '94

The DisneyVision / Imagineering lab that was at EPCOT in 1994...
A bit of history on the lab: (Geeking-out a bit here!)

The DisneyVision Lab was joint venture between Disney Imagineering and Silicon Graphics Computer Systems (AKA: SGI). Disney used the lab to develop their VR app for DisneyQuest and SGI used the opportunity to write extensions to their IRIS Performer package and gather data for the next generation of graphics hardware. The SGI graphics hardware used a custom board called "Tri-clops"...as far as I know SGI only produced 5 of them. The Tri-clops board allowed the output of the three graphics pipes in the SGI Onyx systems to be summed into one full rez HDTV (keep in mind this was 1994!), stereo (120Hz) display. Due to the rez, pixel depth and refresh rate of the HMD (Head Mounted Display), motion sickness was a problem and barrels were added to show for to accommodate sick guests. Also, the temperature of the lab was kept quite low to help minimumize the effects the motion had on guests...a practice that is still used today in DisneyQuest...well, the barrels are not in use, but the temp is quite chilly. Disney and SGI displayed DisneyVision at the 1994 Siggraph show in Orlando.

The current VR attraction @ DisneyQuest is (as 07/98) is MUCH lower quality than that of the EPCOT lab. Where EPCOT was running one SGI Onyx with three graphics pipes summed into one pod, the DisneyQuest attraction has one Onyx2 with one graphics pipe running 4 pods. The DQ attraction removed the Mickey Mouse hands from the edge of the magic carpet...sad to see that touch did not make it into the attraction.