Let’s Get Virtually Real

Virtual Reality (VR) has exploded this year and has made a significant leap from the gaming industry and into the corporate and industrial world. But what is virtual reality?

VR is the experience of being immersed into a computer-generated world that doesn’t exist. Ok, so that may not really sound like a new idea, but VR takes the immersion to many new levels. Once you put on the VR goggles, you feel like you have been teleported into a completely different environment. The experience appeals to your visual and auditory senses. You see and hear the environment in a 360 degree point of view. And what’s even better is you can interact with it.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, it’s time to explain how we applied this innovative technology to our next project…

Schlumberger developed a new production system which will provide a fully integrated facility, connecting the subsurface and surface. The process will begin with downhole real-time measurements and controls to manage and match production to optimally designed surface processing facilities. Prospects who wanted to visit the facility would have to travel to it. Geographically, this greatly limits its exposure and sales potential. Schlumberger wanted a more practical and cost-effective way to showcase the facility to prospects. That’s where Saba Studios comes in …

After much consideration, we decided that VR would be the optimal medium. We would use 3d software and VR programming to reproduce a model of the entire facility and downhole environment. It would allow prospects to virtually walk around the facility, stop at key stations and interact with them and even view their inner workings. Users could even teleport to the subsurface to observe how the system is integrated. The tour would be voice-guided and provide an optional heads up display (HUD) which would boast animated videos, charts and statistics based on the user’s location around the facility. As an added bonus, we added Schlumberger staff in coveralls and roaming wildlife to the environment to enhance the sense of realism.

Virtual reality made it possible for prospects to experience aspects of the facility that are otherwise not possible in real life. It not only made taking the tour more attainable, but also provided a deeper level of understanding through visual and audible interactions that the real world can’t offer.

The project was debuted at Schlumberger’s Technology Forum and was an outstanding success.