Virtual Reality Prototype Research Articles

Virtual reality for memory rehabilitation

This paper describes a prototype virtual reality (VR) system that has been developed to assist the rehabilitation of elderly with mild-to-moderate memory deficits. The use of virtual reality in rehabilitation is reviewed along with the clinical requirements to establish the framework for the proposed system. This framework is presented together with the use of the prototype system to perform a simple cooking task in a virtual kitchen. The evaluation results show that the completion time for the virtual task is dependent on the person's mobility and knowledge of computers. It was found that the mean completion time decreases significantly with more practices. Although the time taken for the completion of the virtual cooking task is longer than the average time needed to actually cook a package of instant noodle, the overall results give strong indication of the usability of the VR application for rehabilitation. The results are encouraging and show the potential of immersive virtual reality for memory rehabilitation.

Virtual reality in the product development process

Virtual reality (VR) is a rapidly proliferating technology whose usability is constantly on the increase. Some applications of VR technology have already matured, meanwhile others are still in their infancy. VR offers new possibilities in the field of product development by speeding up the pace and improving quality and usability. Three of the main applications of VR that present valuable opportunities for product development in general are: simulation, skills training, and communication with distributed colleagues or third parties (e.g. users, experts, and customers). With VR technology, prototypes and products can be tested 'virtually' (so-called virtual prototyping) before final verification with physical prototypes is performed. Additionally, users can 'virtually' test and train the use of the products before they exist, which can lead to improved usability and better ergonomic design. Customers and users can interactively influence the features of a product idea and the layout plans (e.g. for a factory, a hospital, or a city) by using VR. Especially for the development of complicated and even complex radical new products, the author recommends that brain-aided design and pencil-aided design, perhaps followed by model-aided design (MAD) should most often be carried out before VR is used. Ideally, for innovative product development, computer-aided design (CAD) should be used first after the modelling with MAD and/or VR has provided their contributions. For re-engineering, when CAD files exist, PAD is still supportive while MAD is often not needed because VR in that case uses existing CAD files, eventually after reversed engineering or scanning of paper drawings has been carried out.

Toward Strength and Stability

Complex Adaptive Systems (CASs) can be applied to investigate complex infrastructures and infrastructure interdependencies. Agent-based modeling (ABM) is a new CAS-based approach to the construction of models. The CAS agents within the Spot Market Agent Research Tool (SMART) and Flexible Agent Simulation Toolkit (FAST) ABMs allow investigation of the electric power infrastructure, the natural gas infrastructure, and their interdependencies. The Swarm-based SMART models use sets of agents and interconnections to represent electric power and natural gas systems. A prototype virtual reality (VR) interface has also been constructed for a version of the SMART model. This tool is intended to explore the use of advanced interactive three-dimensional visualization in agent-based modeling. The Java-based FAST model is currently under construction. FAST is a complete redesign of the SMART models that includes improvements in the modeling environment, model detail, and representational fidelity. Developing ABMs is difficult but can be rewarding.

Virtual design of multiengineering electronics systems

The authors describe a virtual reality prototyping (VRP) and virtual product design approach that uses a modeling strategy to design, test, and evaluate concepts and products in advance-before creating any physical design models. Their design decisions reflect solutions and practices derived from systems engineering and software engineering research. Close competition has forced companies to focus on tailoring technological products to meet customer preferences in user interface design, usability, and appearance. Often, implementing new features has assumed less importance than creating an optimal product variation for different customer segments in international markets. Modern computer-based systems result from a multidomain development process, and organizing this work requires developers to communicate, cooperate, and coordinate effectively with nonengineering teams. Early linking of product development to other company operations supports this activity. Geographically dispersed development teams must communicate and coordinate effectively. Extending the use of interactive, functional, and photorealistic 3D product models into other company domains can facilitate effective business practices that cover the entire value chain, from simulated product idea to Web-based customer support of the final product. This wider adoption of the VRP technology and process offers ample scope for further research.

The eJBJS (www.jbjs.org)

The eJBJS (www.jbjs.org)

A virtual reality module for intravenous catheter placement

Background: Virtual reality (VR) is a potential tool for technical skills training. We tested the validity and instructional effectiveness of a prototype VR module for learning intravenous (IV) catheter placement. Methods: First-year medical students (n = 37), third-year medical students (n = 14), and surgical residents (n = 9) attempted two pretest IVs into each other, used the VR module for 12 minutes, and subsequently attempted two posttest IVs. Success or failure were recorded for each attempt. For each successful attempt, time and global rating of IV insertion were also recorded. Results: The pretest success rate was significantly different between groups (chi square = 28.71, P <0.01). VR success rate was not significantly different between groups (F 2,57 = 1.47, ns). Although there was improvement in all groups during VR training (F 2,114 = 44.16, P <0.01), this did not result in improvement in posttest performance. Conclusions: Significant differences between groups were observed in performance of IV insertion in physical reality. However, no significant difference was observed in performance in VR. Thus, performance in VR demonstrated neither construct nor concurrent validity. While performance improved in VR, transfer of skill from VR to physical reality was not observed. Additional development and testing of VR as a training tool is warranted before its widespread use can be recommended.

A Practical Example Using VR in the Assessment of Brain Injury

Virtual Reality (VR) as a complementary tool for medical practitioners in the assessment and rehabilitation of people who have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) is discussed. A pilot-study has been undertaken on a prototype VR assessment tool. The design involved nine occupational therapists with expertise in the care of traumatic brain injured patients and one (computer experienced) patient. The aim was to begin a dialogue and to ascertain the potential of a VR system. A common method for occupational therapists to assess function and ability is to ask a patient to brew coffee. From the performance of such a task, an individual's "functional signature" can be determined. The prototype was built using Superscape, a personal computer based VR system, to be close to the real coffee making task, including effects of making mistakes, realistic graphics and sound effects. The world was designed to be as easy to use and intuitive as possible, though problems of mental abstraction level, transfer of training and realistic interaction have yet to be resolved. The comments from the test participants have highlighted problem areas, given positive insight and pointed out other scenarios where VR may be of use in the rehabilitation of people with a traumatic brain injury.

An image-based virtual reality prototype system

The most important goal of virtual reality is to create a virtual world by computers where users are allowed to view the environment and control the virtual objects interactively. Traditionally, virtual reality systems use 3D computer graphics to model and render a virtual environment in real time. However, this approach usually requires laborious modeling and expensive special-purpose rendering hardware. Image-based rendering is a new approach in composing a virtual environment in which a set of panoramic images is used to compose the virtual environment and walking in the space is accomplished by “hopping” to different panoramic points. This paper introduces an experimental image-based VR system. The techniques utilized in the system, in particular the authoring and interactive control tools of the system, are described in detail.

Virtual reality

Virtual reality (VR) is gaining recognition for its enormous educational potential. While not yet in the mainstream of academic medical training, many prototype and first-generation VR applications are emerging, with target audiences ranging from first- and second-year medical students to residents in advanced clinical training. Visualization tools that take advantage of VR technologies are being designed to provide engaging and intuitive environments for learning visually and spatially complex topics such as human anatomy, biochemistry, and molecular biology. These applications present dynamic, three-dimensional views of structures and their spatial relationships, enabling users to move beyond "real-world" experiences by interacting with or altering virtual objects in ways that would otherwise be difficult or impossible. VR-based procedural and surgical simulations, often compared with flight simulators in aviation, hold significant promise for revolutionizing medical training. Already a wide range of simulations, representing diverse content areas and utilizing a variety of implementation strategies, are either under development or in their early implementation stages. These new systems promise to make broad-based training experiences available for students at all levels, without the risks and ethical concerns typically associated with using animal and human subjects. Medical students could acquire proficiency and gain confidence in the ability to perform a wide variety of techniques long before they need to use them clinically. Surgical residents could rehearse and refine operative procedures, using an unlimited pool of virtual patients manifesting a wide range of anatomic variations, traumatic wounds, and disease states. Those simulated encounters, in combination with existing opportunities to work with real patients, could increase the depth and breadth of learners' exposure to medical problems, ensure uniformity of training experiences, and enhance the acquisition of clinical skills.

MASSIVE

We describe a prototype virtual reality teleconferencing system called MASSIVE which has been developed as part of our on-going research into collaborative virtual environments. This system allows multiple users to communicate using arbitrary combinations of audio, graphics, and text media over local and wide area networks. Communication is controlled by a so-called spatial model of interaction so that one user's perception of another user is sensitive to their relative positions and orientations. The key concept in this spatial model is the (quantitative) awareness which one object has of another. This is controlled by the observing object's focus and the observed object's nimbus , which describe regions of interest and projection, respectively. Each object's aura defines the total region within which it interacts. This is applied independently in each medium. The system (and the spatial model which it implements) is intended to provide a flexible and natural environment for the spatial mediation of conversation. The model also provides a basis for scaling to relatively large numbers of users. Our design goals include supporting heterogeneity, scalability, spatial mediation, balance of power, and multiple concurrent meetings; MASSIVE meets all of these goals. Our initial experiences show the importance of audio in collaborative VR, and they raise issues about field of view for graphical users, speed of navigation, quality of embodiment, varying perceptions of space, and scalability.