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VR without the headset: Illuminarium opens with safari experience

New Illuminarium experience opens in 8,000 square-foot entertainment complex in Atlanta, Georgia, powered by Mover transducers from Powersoft

Experiential entertainment company, Illuminarium Experiences, has opened its first 8,000 square-foot ‘Illuminarium’ entertainment complex in Atlanta, Georgia, with its debut feature, WILD: A Safari Experience.

The WILD spectacle transports visitors to Africa using cinematic content of the wildlife shot by RadicalMedia on location across South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania, with immersive and authentic “sounds and scents” to create an experience it suggests is “VR, without the glasses”. WILD will be followed by a SPACEWALK feature which journeys through the Solar System giving audiences the experience of what it’s like to walk on the surface of the Moon and Mars.

Powersoft’s involvement in the project comes by way of its linear transducer, Mover, which was used to design a haptic infrasound floor to create realistic sensations such as the ground-shaking feel of an elephant‘s stomp or the low-end rumble of a lion’s roar. Illuminarium features 162 Movers together with 12 Quattrocanali 4804D amplifiers for “the best low frequency reproduction possible”.

Mover is a compact linear transducer designed to deliver sound through ‘haptic perception’; by vibrating the surrounding environment, which the human body picks up and, through bone conduction, translates the vibrations into perceivable frequencies. At Illuminarium, this linear motor/shaker has been used in its Inertial Drive version, which can be mounted directly on surfaces, including underneath floors.

“Illuminariums are places that can take you any place, in a manner never before experienced, through state-of-the-art technology that literally allows the audience to feel an elephant walking in front of them, or leave footprints on the simulated dirt floor beneath them,” said Alan Greenberg, CEO of Illuminarium Experiences.

“Through this collective team of best-in-class partners, we are ultimately building a new media model to support Illuminarium’s completely unprecedented experiences and spectacles. And, this format is so exciting because it creates endless opportunity for content creators and makers who want to push the boundaries of tech and media experiences.”

Powersoft US general manager, Tom Knesel, explained: “Mover was engineered to provide the best and most realistic immersive experience to users. We are incredibly proud to be providing our patented haptic infrasound technology to help reproduce realistic sensations for visitors in what is set to be the next generation of entertainment venues.”

Following Atlanta, Illuminarium will open in Las Vegas at AREA 15 in January 2022 and in Miami, at Mana in the Wynwood Arts District, in the autumn. Other North American locations under consideration are New York City, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, Los Angeles, and Austin.