Virtual Reality has a lot to offer especially in an industry in which actually experiencing the products plays an important role. Zreality GmbH and Assyst, a company of the Human Solutions Group, have developed the globally unique Digital Showroom (VR), a virtual meeting place for all those involved in collection development. Manufacturers, their dealers and suppliers meet virtually to review sketches, make live alterations, specify products and order directly from the room. «In this case, virtual reality not only supplements existing analog processes, it even surpasses them» says Dr. Andreas Seidl, CEO of the Human Solutions Group. «Virtual Reality makes the apparel industry a winner in digitization if data consistency, system integration and 3D simulation with realistic data are available. Companies who fulfill these conditions and use the appropriate technologies can develop a decisive advantage when it comes to getting their clothing to the market fast, because the production and shipping of samples – and consequently process interruptions – are completely eliminated».
Here is one possible scenario: in the Digital Showroom, a moderator conducts the VR meeting. The participants put on VR glasses and enter a virtual room, where they see a virtual mod- el. The moderator presents the collection and triggers the changing of the outfits. The light changes. The clothing is photo- realistically simulated with Vidya, the lighting effect is real. Questions are asked, alterations are suggested and documented, variants are shown and orders are accepted, just like a face- to-face meeting. The moderator stresses special aspects of his models using a laser pointer. He marks alterations directly on the virtual garment, visible to all. Participants can get very close to the model or walk around it. It’s digital, but it’s real.
