Virtual reality for interactive training: an industrial practitioner's viewpoint

The closing years of the 20th Century were associated with the advent of affordable Windows-based technologies for popular computer configurations, from powerful PCs in the home to workstations for small business communities. Such machines are readily capable of exploiting the power of real-time interactive 3D computer graphics, popularly referred to asvirtual reality (VR). VR has rapidly evolved into a technology that today offers a cost-effective means of supporting the development of human skills in all manner of applications, from automotive engineering to defence, surgery to education, retail, petrochemical exploration, and heritage to micro-robotics. This paper reviews some of the important human performance results to emerge from the academic and commercial application of VR technologies, and notes some ergonomic issues to be resolved in developing techniques for training and performance assessment that can be used cheaply and efficiently in industrial settings.

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