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Interactive Virtual Training Environment with Web-Camera for Science and Engineering Education

Abstract

Web-based interactive environments exhibit impressive potentials for educational purposes. Web-based simulation (WBS) offers such a surrounding. Numerous courses in science and engineering can employ WBS techniques to explain and demonstrate complex concepts for students through a simple and pleasant setting. Virtual laboratories can be built with simulation techniques to guide our students learning complex subjects. A major difficulty, however, concerns whether the simplicity may come at the expense of effectiveness of the learning surroundings. One remedy to this problem suggests use of special equipments often used for e.g. pilot training. Another example includes use of digital gloves and head-mounted devices in virtual reality applications. Nevertheless, these equipments are expensive and often not available to most students. In contrast, our solution suggests use of inexpensive tools like web-cameras as an interface to interact with the simulated objects in cyberspace, and WBS as a core building block of the virtual laboratories.

In this paper we propose a paradigm for virtual training environment (VTE) that uses web- cameras as the main interface to the platform. The interactive setting enables the students to move the simulated objects with their hands through the web-cam in cyberspace. In addition, the platform allows the users to collaborate with other students in the virtual world to perform their training tasks in virtual laboratories. We present a proof of the concept, examine the limitations and discuss the opportunities this paradigm can offer.

1. Introduction

Advances in web-based technologies have provided a spectrum of options for educational purposes. Virtual classrooms and laboratories are speculated to become an integral part of our future educational settings. Various courses in science and engineering can use such settings to effectively demonstrate and describe complex contents to students. While educational spectrum is broad, we limit us to virtual laboratories and trainings. Nevertheless, the concept with some modifications can be applied to the broader virtual classrooms as well. Whereas education and training can have different meanings, we interchange them in this paper to simplify the description of the platform. Furthermore, we focus on the web-camera interface to the environment while we provide an overview of Web-Based Simulation (WBS) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 as a core component of the platform.

Simulation and animation are proven methods widely used to demonstrate capabilities of new concepts in education, industry, and other sectors. Engineering Education exhibits varieties of

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Rajaei, H., & Gasparyan, A. (2010, June), Interactive Virtual Training Environment With Web Camera For Science And Engineering Education Paper presented at 2010 Annual Conference & Exposition, Louisville, Kentucky. 10.18260/1-2--16546