Contributing

The data in the database are collected by volunteers, who own the headsets in question, by using hmdq tool. Then they pass the data (which are saved in a JSON file) to me and I update the database. If you would like to help by providing data from your headset, you will need:

  • OpenVR/SteamVR compatible headset, or
  • Oculus headset
  • Windows 10, 64-bit (not tested, but may work on Windows 7/8 64-bit)

then please follow this procedure:

  • First check if your headset is already in the database. If it is, there might still be a good reason to submit a new data, but you could only find this out after proceeding with the following steps. The good reasons to provide the new data:
    • Your data are significantly newer than what is stored in the database (check the “Timestamp” in the Geometry listing on the configuration page of the particular headset).
    • Your data are significantly different from what is stored in the database.
  • Download the latest version of the hmdq tool from here.
  • Activate your headset (if it needs any activation) and:
    • if it is a SteamVR supported headset, start SteamVR
      • Change the settings related to the recommended render target resolution to their default values:
        • In SteamVR change the supersampling factor to 100%.
        • If you are using a Pimax headset set also PiTool Rendering Quality to 1.0.
    • if it is a Oculus headset, just make sure your Oculus runtime is running.
  • Run hmdq from the command line (console) by using this command: 
    hmdq -n --out_json <model_name_config_ipd_etc>.json

    Differentiate the file name by the configuration options if there are any (parallel projection, FOV, IPD, etc.).

    • -n parameter will anonymize the serial numbers in the output data, and
    • --out_json will save the data into a JSON file. This is a text file so you can review it easily in any text editor.
  • Alternatively, you can run the script save_data.cmd which will run hmdq.exe with the command line arguments mentioned above and will save the data into hmdq_data.json file in the same directory. Then you just rename the file to better describe the configuration.

If you have a headset which allows an IPD adjustment (either mechanical or in software), I would like to ask you to run the above steps for the minimal and the maximal IPD setting your headset supports. It may turn out that the data will be exactly the same (and they usually are), but without actually testing it we cannot tell.

Then send me the files.