ITcon Vol. 23, pg. 179-194, http://www.itcon.org/2018/9

Immersive VR in the construction classroom to increase student understanding of sequence, assembly, and space of wood frame construction

submitted:November 2017
revised:May 2018
published:July 2018
editor(s):Turk Ž.
authors:Jason Lucas, Assistant Professor
Clemson University
jlucas2@clemson.edu
summary:The use of Head Mounted Displays (HMD) to view Virtual Reality (VR) environments has increased in the recent years with the introduction of high-quality economic devices that offer a quality user experience. Within the design and construction industries, the use of HMD-VR is growing and has proven to be a powerful visualization tool for helping clients understand space. This research is looking at the potential introduction of HMD-VR into the construction education classroom in the context of wood frame construction assemblies. A study was conducted using commodity HMD-VR headsets powered by mobile devices. A pre and post survey was conducted by allowing the students to navigate around a virtual environment using the device, document perceptions pertaining to VR in the classroom and the students’ ability to understand qualities of the model’s construction when in the simulated environment. This paper discusses the development of the HMD-VR environment, the user experience, and the results of the pre/post surveys. The results conclude that the students had an overall favourable view of implementing the technology into the construction curriculum. Additional survey analysis is included in the paper.
keywords:Virtual Reality, Immersive, Construction, Education, Head Mounted Display
full text: (PDF file, 0.657 MB)
citation:Lucas J (2018). Immersive VR in the construction classroom to increase student understanding of sequence, assembly, and space of wood frame construction, ITcon Vol. 23, pg. 179-194, https://www.itcon.org/2018/9