Augmented & Virtual Reality Osteoclasts
Playfully learn about the process of bone resorption by using augmented and virtual reality.
GTC Team
Jascha Grübel, Pascal Maillard, Violaine Fayolle, Fraser Rothnie, Prof. Robert W. Sumner, Dr. Fabio Zünd
Collaborators
Prof. Bernd Stadlinger (Center for Dental Medicine, University of Zürich),
Matthias Gauer, Thomas Kramer, Dr. Marko Reschke (interActive Systems),
Änne Kappeler, Dr. Alexander Ammann (Quintessence Publishing)
Prof. Reinhard Gruber (University Clinic of Dentistry, Medical University of Vienna)
AR Osteoclasts Application
This app accompanies the book “external pageCell-to-Cell Communication: Cell Atlas – Visual Biology in Oral Medicine” and allows the user to experience the process of bone resorption in augmented reality. AR Osteoclasts draws you into the microcosm of osteoclasts right above the bone surface. In the augmented display, you are zoomed in to the level at which an osteoclast precursor cell appears to be the size of a hand. You investigate the bone resorption process from all sides by moving around the augmented display on top of your book page and you interact with cells to learn more about their function.
The game was developed as part of a research collaboration between the Game Technology Center, the external pageCenter for Dental Medicine at the University of Zürich, external pageinterActive Systems, and external pageQuintessence Publishing.
AR Osteoclasts Images Gallery
Try out the AR Osteoclasts app on your smartphone or tablet!
- Install the app for external pageiOS or for external pageAndroid
- Launch the app
- After the introduction, point the device's camera at the image below or at Figure 1 in the book Cell-to-Cell Communication: Cell Atlas – Visual Biology in Oral Medicine on page 146.
- Follow the instructions and enjoy!
VR Osteoclasts Application
As a follow-up project to AR Osteoclasts, we developed a virtual reality (VR) version of the experience. In VR Osteoclasts, the story and educational content is identical to its predecessor, but the scale of the scene is increased and the players find themselves standing inside a bone landscape. While all interactions with cells in AR Osteoclasts are limited to touch and drag input on a mobile device, in VR, the players interact directly with the cells using their hands, for example, by grabbing and moving them around, using the VR headset's hand-controllers. Graphic assets with much higher resolution and fidelity are used in this version as the rendering is performed on a workstation PC and not on a mobile device.
The game was developed as part of a research collaboration between the Game Technology Center, the Center for Dental Medicine at the University of Zürich, and the University Clinic of Dentistry at the Medical University of Vienna. This work was supported by the Foundation for Research in Science and the Humanities at the University of Zurich (STWF-22-011).