By Janice Phelan,
December 2, 2020
A new Mixed Reality Studio, located at the University of Central Missouri’s (UCM)
Lee’s Summit campus, made its debut to the community during a Nov. 20 Virtual Sneak
Peek.
During the launch event, co-hosted by Velocity Lee’s Summit, presenters talked about
the equipment available at the new studio, shared examples of virtual reality (VR)
and augmented reality (AR) potential projects and discussed the future of this growing
technology. Presenters included Joe Mullins of UCM, Jeff Danley of VMLY&R and Ashley
Smithson of Velocity.
“The Lee’s Summit studio is one of the most advanced mixed reality labs I’ve ever
seen,” said Danley. “The opportunity to innovate with these technologies is tremendous
for students and entrepreneurs in our area.”
“The Mixed Reality Studio aims to advance state-of-the-art technology in VR and AR
by developing new applications and educating the next generation of researchers, developers,
entrepreneurs and technologists while collaborating with industry,” Mullins said.
At this flexible space, students, instructors and industry innovators will be able
to explore cutting-edge immersive technologies as they create, develop and deploy
new applications, products and services.
The facility is equipped with various software and design platforms, multiple headset
configurations, workstations, filming and graphic resources. Equipment available includes
Dell workstations, HTC Vive VR headsets, Oculus Quest headsets, Microsoft HoloLens2,
Magic Leap 2 glasses, HTC Vive Trackers and Lightform LF2 with New HP Reverb GT to
be installed soon.
The Mixed Reality Studio was made possible by MoExcels funding, a Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (MDHEWD) initiative to facilitate development and expansion of employer-driven education
and training programs to substantially increase educational attainment.
For more information about the Gigabit Lab and Mixed Reality Studio, contact Joe Mullins
of UCM at jmullins@ucmo.edu or (816) 441-2861. For information about partnering with Velocity Lee’s Summit to
access the Mixed Reality Studio, contact Ashley Smithson, info@velocity.org. Anyone interested in visiting the Mixed Reality Studio for a one-one-one or small-group
socially distanced tour may contact Mullins.
