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An Australian man has been able to 'attend' the birth of his son from a distance of 2,500 miles thanks to a virtual reality headset.

An unavoidable work commitment meant that electrical engineer Jace Larke wouldn't be with his wife Alison in their home town of Perth on their son’s due date. Instead he'd be in a remote mining town in Queensland, 4,000 kilometres away (2,485 miles).

Despite not being in hospital in person on the day Alison went into labour (20 February), he was able to witness the event remotely thanks to virtual reality.

A Samsung team rigged up Alison's hospital room with a range of cameras, microphones and streaming equipment to document the birth of third son Steele. These linked to a virtual reality headset that Jace had in the remote mining town.

(Image: Youtube)

As soon as Jace got the call saying Alison had gone into labour, he was able to put on the headset and view the birthing room - he could even interact with Alison in real-time.

"After we found out I was five weeks pregnant with our third child, we watched our baby grow, found out he was a boy and dreamed about what the future may hold," said Alison.

"Then at 30 weeks pregnant, Jace's contract roster was confirmed and it was more than likely he would miss the birth of our baby, pending a miracle. But that's exactly what we got."

(Image: Youtube)

Samsung contacted the couple and offered them the chance to be involved in the experiment.

"Jace was able to see our son born and experience the birth as if he was in the room with me even though he was working away on the other side of the country," she added.

"For me it was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders knowing he would not be missing out on such a precious moment in our lives and we would virtually be experiencing the birth together."

Jace flew back to Perth a week later and was able to meet his son in person for the first time.