Virtual Reality Immersive Environments Research Articles

Immersion or social presence? Investigating the effect of virtual reality immersive environments on sommelier learning experiences

ABSTRACT We investigate the impact of immersive experiences on sommeliers’ learning in the wine industry, specifically examining the role of immersion and social presence. With the growing prevalence of digitally enhanced wine experiences, such as virtual reality (VR), understanding the effects of immersion and social presence on sommeliers’ learning outcomes becomes crucial. Drawing upon research on immersive technologies like VR headsets and cave automatic virtual environments (CAVEs), the study explores their potential in creating immersive wine tasting experiences for sommelier learning. It addresses the limited research on the impact of VR on sommeliers’ learning and training. An experimental study is conducted with sommelier training students, yielding results that are discussed in relation to the wine industry's workforce training and customer engagement strategies. The paper concludes by acknowledging limitations and suggesting future research directions.

Design of Immersive Information Simulation of Negative Pressure Isolation Room for Covid-19 Infection Patients Using Virtual Reality

This research aims to provide knowledge about how to create and the need for air circulation in negative pressure isolation rooms. If practiced directly, it will require large costs because it requires costs for procuring space and equipment. By using virtual reality (VR) technology, this problem can be solved because VR can provide an immersive environment like being in the real world. VR users will be able to experience how the requirements and how to create a negative pressure isolation room are like how it feels in the real world. So this can provide information and training on how to make a negative pressure isolation room before making an actual isolation room. Activities using VR will reduce the risk of errors and training costs on how to make an isolation room even without the cost of equipment. The purpose of this research is to provide convenience for health educators and the government on how to make negative pressure isolation rooms and the need for air circulation. So, it is enough to use VR technology, so the information on how to use VR is enough to make the isolation room and its needs work without having to use the right tools. This research method is descriptive and quantitative which begins with a literature review followed by an analysis of the need for isolation rooms and VR immersive environments. The implementation and testing process results in VR technology being able to help understand negative pressure isolation rooms for health workers.

HARNESSING MEDICAL INNOVATION: THE IMPACT OF ROBOTIC SIMULATORS AND VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) IN IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF MEDICAL EDUCATION

Medical education stands at the cusp of a transformative revolution, driven by the integration of cutting-edge technology. This article explores the profound impact of robotic simulators and virtual reality (VR) in enhancing the quality of medical education. Traditional medical education methods have their limitations, often constrained by a lack of hands-on experience and patient safety concerns. In response to these challenges, robotic simulators and VR have emerged as powerful tools, offering realistic, immersive, and safe learning environments for aspiring medical professionals. We delve into the world of robotic simulators, dissecting their mechanisms and outlining their versatile applications across various medical disciplines. These simulators provide aspiring medical professionals with hands-on experience, bridging the gap between theory and practice while eliminating the risks associated with real patient interactions. In the realm of virtual reality, we explore the innovative applications of VR in medical education. VR's immersive environments offer a unique platform for medical students and professionals to practice, learn, and refine their skills, all within a controlled and safe setting. We present case studies and learning activities that illustrate the efficacy of these technologies in teaching safety competencies, reducing medical errors, and improving patient outcomes. Keywords: Simulation-Based Medical Education, Virtual Reality, Robotic Simulators, Artificial Intelligence, Patient Safety, Healthcare Technology, Healthcare Innovation, Medical Simulation, Education Technology.

Mirror exposure therapies: Effect of the distance to the mirror on the attentional pattern in a Virtual Reality immersive environment

IntroductionMirror exposure therapies (MET) have been proposed to reduce symptomatology in patients with Anorexia Nervosa. However, most MET protocols or related studies do not specify the patients’ distance to the mirror, or when they do so, such a distance may differ significantly (from 0,5 to 3 meters). Such modifications of mirror positioning could imply variations in patients’ fixation patterns on different body parts (i.e., attentional bias between weight-related and non-weight related body parts), since previous studies shown that dissociated neural systems (either in left or right cerebral hemispheres) are involved in the attentional patterns and scanning strategies depending on the distance (i.e., in near and far space). Furthermore, as the body-related attentional bias (AB) has been shown to be a part of the maintenance mechanism of AN symptomatology, any modification of attentional patterns due to mirror’s distance variations may influence the efficacy of MET.ObjectivesThis study aims to use Virtual Reality (VR) and Eye-Tracking (ET) technologies to precisely analyse the effect of the distance to the mirror on the attentional patterns.Methods137 female college students were immersed in a VR environment in which they could look in the mirror at their respective avatars created from the measurements and photos of their real bodies. The mirror was positioned at 3.30m in front of the participants in “group 1” (n1 = 54), and at 1.54m in front of the participants in “group 2” (n2 = 83). Eye-Tracking feature and OGAMA software (Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany) were used to record and process the visual attentional pattern of each participant, during a 30-second free viewing task at her avatar. Complete Fixation Time (CFT) was assessed as the fixation time difference between weight- and non-weight- related body parts, defined from the weight scale of the PASTAS questionnaire. Independent Sample t-Test was conducted to analyse CFT mean difference between both groups.ResultsIndependent Samples t-Test shows statistically significant CFT mean difference (F (1, 135) = 1.571, p < 0.001, 95% IC [1717; 5581]) between both groups. While fixation pattern of the group positioned further to the mirror (group 1) was more focused on weight-related body parts (CFT mean = 2282ms, SD = 809), the fixation pattern of the group positioned closer to the mirror (group 2) was more focused on non-weight-related body parts (CFT mean = -1367ms, SD = 587).ConclusionsThis study shows new opportunities to use VR and ET technologies to precisely analyse the variations of fixation patterns as a function of mirror position in MET. Such information may contribute to adapt and develop new MET’s protocols for AN patients, optimizing the distance to the mirror. It also underscores the importance of specifying the distance to the mirror in MET-related studies to improve replicability.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

A Virtual Touch Interaction Device for Immersive Applications

Traditional interaction devices such as computer mice and keyboards do not adapt very well to immersive envi-ronments, since they were not necessarily designed for users who may be standing or in movement. Moreover, in the current inte-raction model for immersive environments, based on wands and 3D mice, a change of context is necessary in order to execute non-immersive tasks. These constant context changes from im-mersive to 2D desktops introduce a rupture in user interaction with the application. The objective of this work is to study how to adapt interaction techniques from touch surface based systems to 3D virtual environments to reduce this physical rupture from the fully immersive mode to the desktop paradigm. In order to do this, a wireless glove (v-Glove) that maps to a touch interface in a vir-tual reality immersive environment was developed, enabling it to interact in 3D applications. The glove has two main functionalities: tracking the position of the user's index finger and vibrating the fingertip when it reaches an area mapped in the interaction space to simulate a touch feeling. Quantitative and qualitative analysis were performed with users to evaluate the v-Glove, comparing it with a gyroscopic 3D mouse.

Software for math and science education for the deaf

In this article, we describe the development of two novel approaches to teaching math and science concepts to deaf children using 3D animated interactive software. One approach, Mathsigner™, is non-immersive and the other, SMILE™, is a virtual reality immersive environment. The content is curriculum-based, and the animated signing characters are constructed with state-of-the art technology and design. We report preliminary development findings of usability and appeal based on programme features (e.g. 2D/3D, immersiveness, interaction type, avatar and interface design) and subject features (hearing status, gender and age). Programme features of 2D/3D, immersiveness and interaction type were very much affected by subject features. Among subject features, we find significant effects of hearing status (deaf children take longer time and make more mistakes than hearing children) and gender (girls take longer than boys; girls prefer immersive environments rather than desktop presentation; girls are more interested in content than technology compared to boys). For avatar type, we found a preference for seamless, deformable characters over segmented ones. For interface comparisons, there were no subject effects, but an animated interface resulted in reduced time to task completion compared to static interfaces with and without sound and highlighting. These findings identify numerous features that affect software design and appeal and suggest that designers must be careful in their assumptions during programme development.