Chapter 7 - Public Safety and Military Applications

Abstract

Virtual reality is being applied in a variety of ways to contribute to the public safety and military operations. One of the highest uses of any technology is to save lives. Virtual reality is used to help save lives indirectly by training firefighters, police, and military personnel, as well as in educating the general public, in how to respond in various dangerous situations ranging from natural disasters such as tornados and earthquakes to acts of terrorism. Many applications appropriate for public safety and military have a requirement of being very closely coupled to the physical world. As such, hap- tic feedback and locomotion feedback devices can be very important. Much like commercial pilots learning to fly a Boeing 747 in a flight simulator, military pilots can learn how to fly an F-117A, and they must learn not only the flight control operations but also combat maneuvers under military conditions. For instance, the Virtual Reality/Intelligent Simulation (VR/IS) team at Sandia National Laboratories created a system for VR Assault Planning Training or Rehearsal (VRaptor). VRaptor is a system that provides the capability for end user instructors to create scenarios for situational training, including options to manipulate the environment as the training is taking place.