Salvage quest

Summary: The Veil concept is basically an outward facing screen that covers the operators face. In order to see, the operator will have a stereoscopic screen (similar to VR headset) with a feed of the outside world. The initial hope was reusing the screen and optics from an existing used VR headset for this function to cut down on cost and complexity.

Problem: How to build a mixed reality platform on the cheap.


Solution: Scavenge parts from a Meta Quest 2 headset (lenses and view screen)

Approach: Used Quest 2 headsets have crashed in value. Widely available for $30 – $40 on ebay in used/acceptable condition.

Challenge: After disassembly, discovered that Quest 2 screen has proprietary connector. The only resuable parts are the mechanical view port and Fresnel lenses.

Commentary: Quest 2 is just eWaste if you don’t want to run Zuckerberg’s spyware!

More updates

  • FaceTook: Part 2

    Problem: ML Kit face capture works! However, displaying a static photo of a face on the external screen would be boring. Identity and agency are central to the message of Veil, so doing something more to the face than simply…

  • FaceTook: Part 1

    FaceTook: Part 1

    Image: Screenshot of Veil stereoscopic view with realtime facial recognition! Problem: The opportunity to make commentary art out of the vast surveillance apparatus that engulfs us is enormous. The Veil project starts with a cornerstone of the modern surveillance stack…

  • Mixed-Up reality

    Mixed-Up reality

    Problem: Wearer of the veil will have their face obscured by an outward facing screenSolution: Provide an MR-enabled immersive view on a high-refresh/hi-resolution screen Approach: Hi-res/hi-refresh screens are very expensive and may require specialized compute to run at peak performance.…