On Integrating Multi-Sensory Components In Virtual Environments

Virtual environments can be useful in many applications. For one, they allow designers to carry out design tasks without actually creating a physical prototype. This virtual prototyping approach leads to lower cost and a shorter time-to-market product development cycle. In order for virtual environments to be useful, it must include and integrate a variety of sensory components for visual, haptic, auditory, and acoustic interactions. This paper discusses the challenges of integrating multi-sensory components to create virtual environments.