There are two components of Virtual Reality. First if Hardware components and second is Software components.
1. Hardware components:– The hardware components are divided into five sub-components: computer workstation,
sensory displays, process acceleration cards, tracking system and input devices.
1.1 Computer workstation
A computer workstation is a high-end microcomputer designed for technical or scientific
applications. Intended primarily to be used by one person at a time, workstations are
commonly connected to a local area network and run multi-user operating systems. The
term workstation has also been used to refer to a mainframe computer terminal or a
personal computer (PC) connected to a network.
1.2 Sensory displays
Sensory displays are used to display the simulated virtual worlds to the user. The most
common sensory displays are the computer visual display unit, the head-mounted display
(HMD) for 3D visual and headphones for 3D audio.
1.3 Process acceleration cards
These cards help to update the display with new sensory information. Examples are 3D
graphic cards and 3D sound cards.
1.4 Tracking system
This system tracks the position and orientation of a user in the virtual environment. This
system is divided into: mechanical, electromagnetic, ultrasonic and infrared trackers
1.5 Input devices
They are used to interact with the virtual environment and objects within the virtual
environment. Examples are joystick (wand), instrumented glove, keyboard, voice
recognition etc.
2. Software components:- The software components are divided into four sub-components: 3D modeling software, 2D
graphics software, digital sound editing software and VR simulation software
2.1 3D modeling software
3D modeling software is used in constructing the geometry of the objects in a virtual world
and specifies the visual properties of these objects.
2.2 2D graphics software
2D graphics software is used to manipulate texture to be applied to the objects which
enhance their visual details.
2.3 Digital sound editing software
Digital sound editing software is used to mix and edit sounds that objects make within the
virtual environment.
2.4 VR simulation software
Simulation software brings the components together. It is used to program how these
objects behave and set the rules that the virtual world follows.