WoodWorks VR

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  WoodWorks VR

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  Bookshelf made with blueprint

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  Miter saw cutting wood

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  Bird house made with blueprints

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  Table clamp for holding wood in place

Inspiration

The inspiration for this started for my love of woodworking in high school. I've always wanted to make this more of a hobby, but the issue is the cost of everything involved in it, which includes machinery, and lumber. After doing a thorough search for any VR or AR woodworking simulators, and not finding anything like it, I decided this would be the perfect idea for this competition. My thought for this project is to make something that I and others can use to fulfill our hobby of woodworking.

What it does

WoodWorks is a woodworking simulator where you can machine wood to your liking.

• Tools: Utilize a variety of tools including a Hand Saw, Miter Saw, Planer, Chisel, and Table Clamp to craft your projects.
• Construct: Build whatever your mind desires using different wood types (Oak, Cherry, Walnut, etc.) or follow guided projects with the Blueprint Manager.
• Realism: The simulation features accurate scaled board sizing and physics based interactions for a grounded experience, while also making it easy to interact with.

How I built it

• Engine: WoodWorks VR was built entirely in Godot 4.5, using the OpenXR plugin to bring the whole experience into virtual reality.
• Physics: I utilized Jolt Physics for stable and responsive object interactions, ensuring that stacking and manipulating boards feels solid.
• XR Features: I used Meta's Hand Tracking and Passthrough to make the experience as immersive and accessible as possible.

Challenges I ran into

Making this in a month was difficult, but I scoped the project to include everything essential for a woodworking simulator.

• Optimization: Optimizing for mobile VR rendering while maintaining visual fidelity was a constant balance.
• Mechanics: Creating responsive tool mechanics, such as the hand saw and accurate grab systems, required significant iteration to ensure the woodworking process feels natural and satisfying in VR.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

I am proud that this is my first official VR experience and my second published app. I have grown a lot in my development journey, and I am excited about what I built. I am also happy with the hand tracking and AR features which make the experience feel real. The snapping mechanics for joining pieces and the cutting system took a lot of work to get right, and I am proud of how clean and optimized they are.

What I learned

I learned a lot about scope, as this was my first timed software development project. There was a lot I needed to learn to get this done, so keeping a task sheet from the beginning really helped me to define what I should do and in what order.

What's next for WoodWorks VR

Looking ahead, I plan to add new machines such as a lathe, a drill, and a bandsaw to give players even more ways to shape and refine their projects. Another major goal is to make the experience educational, giving woodworking students a safe and engaging way to learn core skills and practice real techniques in a virtual space.

Built With

• github
• glsl
• godot
• hand-pose-detector
• jolt-physics
• openxr