Posted August 28, 2023 by Nicholas Boersma
#Unity #VR #UTAS #KIT208
Working at heights is a leading cause of death and serious injury in Australia (Safe Work Australia, 2023). This application aims to provide an immersive simulated virtual reality (VR) experience to effectively train individuals in the safe operation of suspended working platforms (SWPs). Using a virtual reality system trainees can be effectively trained at a low cost in a low-risk simulated environment to improve on-site safety and safe operating procedure (SOP) effectiveness
Training for operating a SWP is necessary to facilitate safe and effective operation of the equipment. However, training usually requires access to a SWP, which can be expensive and comes with the real risk associated with operating a SWP. Alternatively, some training can be done on paper, but it is not significantly effective (Din and Gibson, 2019). A solution to this dilemma is using virtual reality (VR) to simulate the operation of a SWP. This is cost-effective, low-risk, and accessible (Rey-Becerra et al., 2021). Using a VR application allows for a realistic simulation of the high-risk environment (Rokooei et al., 2023) and can closely mirror the operation of a real SWP.
In the virtual reality application, the trainee is placed on a suspended working platform (SWP) on the side of a skyscraper. The trainee's goal is to complete a task (in this case window cleaning) that necessitates the safe operation of the SWP. By making the trainee operate the suspended working platform they are familiarised with the activity and can operate the SWP safely and effectively. This training is directly transferrable to real-life, on-site operation of a SWP
Using an immersive virtual reality environment trainees will have increased learning effectiveness, thereby improving safety quality when they perform the same operations on-site (Badr, 2023). To achieve an immersive environment, the trainee’s familiarity and sense of presence in the virtual environment is enhanced by background audio (Lu and Davis, 2016), including wind, machine operation, and city sounds.
To further emulate the experience of working at heights when operating a SWP, the trainee is placed high above the ground where interactions with the SWP system is required to complete a task (cleaning high-rise windows).
The interactions in this application are as follows:
Future revisions of the application could also include:
The interactions with the SWP control box are required for training in the use of the suspended platform system. By extending the functionality and variety of these systems in future revisions, training can be provided more completely for a wider range of systems.
The application was developed and tested using the Oculus Quest 2 VR headset with the included controllers.
To interact with the buttons on the suspended working platform control box, hold the grip trigger (5) to make a fist, then point with the index finger by not touching the trigger (6) to press the button.
To wash the window, grab the cleaning apparatus by holding the grip trigger (5), then wipe the dirty window.
The SWP is where the user is placed in the application from which they clean control the SWP to move up and down as needed to clean the high-rise windows.
The control box is where the user interacts with two buttons that move the SWP up and down.
The cleaning apparatus is the tool that the user can clean the windows with.
The dirty windows are intended to be cleaned with the cleaning apparatus while the user is trained to operate the SWP.
On the side of a skyscraper in the New York City asset is where the application is set.
BADR, S. 2023. VR-based Safety Training Program for High-rise Construction Projects. Master of Science Masters, American University in Cairo.
BBC LONDON 2019. Window cleaning London's tallest skyscrapers - BBC London.
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REY-BECERRA, E., BARRERO, L. H., ELLEGAST, R. & KLUGE, A. 2021. The effectiveness of virtual safety training in work at heights: A literature review. Applied Ergonomics, 94, 103419.
ROKOOEI, S., SHOJAEI, A., ALVANCHI, A., AZAD, R. & DIDEHVAR, N. 2023. Virtual reality application for construction safety training. Safety Science, 157, 105925.
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