Virtual Reality for Continuing Professional Development

Charles E. Baukal; Bjorn Anthony Olson; Richard Nelson Ernst

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Conference: 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Tampa, Florida
Publication Date: June 15, 2019
Start Date: June 15, 2019
End Date: June 19, 2019
Conference Session: Continuous improvement of programs, practices and people.
Tagged Division: Continuing Professional Development
Page Count: 13
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--33536
Permanent URL: https://strategy.asee.org/33536
Download Count: 421

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Paper Authors

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Charles E. Baukal Jr. P.E. John Zink Co. LLC

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Charles E. Baukal, Jr. has a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, an Ed.D., and Professional Engineering License. He is the Director of the John Zink Institute which offers continuing professional development for engineers and technicians. He has nearly 35 years of industrial experience and 30 years of teaching experience as an adjunct. He is the author/editor of 13 books on industrial combustion and is an inventor on 11 U.S. patents.

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Bjorn Anthony Olson Flint Hills Resources

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Richard Nelson Ernst

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Abstract

The use of virtual reality (VR) has been growing rapidly as the costs of hardware and software continue to decline. VR is well known for its use in airplane simulators where conditions can be simulated that pilots rarely and hopefully never encounter while flying planes full of passengers. However, if those conditions should arise, the pilots are prepared to handle them because of the exceptional realism of the simulations. Those simulators are beyond the reach of most training budgets so an alternative is needed to make VR a viable option for continuing professional development.

VR is particularly well-suited for training situations involving very large (e.g., constructing large buildings) or very small (e.g., nanotechnology) scales which may be very expensive and logistically challenging to replicate in a training environment. Another situation where VR is preferred is in dangerous environments. These may be difficult if not impossible to reproduce in live training because of the costs and potential danger. That is the type of training that will be considered in this paper.

A simulation of a fired heater explosion was developed to help operators avoid potentially disastrous conditions that could produce severe injuries and even fatalities in addition to significant equipment damage. Unfortunately, these explosions continue to occur despite more focused attention in the industry to prevent them from happening. While there are many possible explanations for this, an important mitigating factor is proper training. It is not possible to produce the conditions in fired heaters in an operating plant that might lead to an incident. This would unnecessarily expose plant personnel and equipment to potential harm, in addition to adversely affecting production which would be very costly. Instead, plant personnel can go through fired heater VR simulations so they can see the results of improper operation to help them avoid incidents. This paper will include the results of a survey given to students who went through the fired heater VR simulation. It will also include the estimated costs and equipment needed for this type of VR simulation.

Citation
Format

Baukal, C. E., & Olson, B. A., & Ernst, R. N. (2019, June), Virtual Reality for Continuing Professional Development Paper presented at 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Tampa, Florida. 10.18260/1-2--33536

TY - CPAPER
AB - The use of virtual reality (VR) has been growing rapidly as the costs of hardware and software continue to decline. VR is well known for its use in airplane simulators where conditions can be simulated that pilots rarely and hopefully never encounter while flying planes full of passengers. However, if those conditions should arise, the pilots are prepared to handle them because of the exceptional realism of the simulations. Those simulators are beyond the reach of most training budgets so an alternative is needed to make VR a viable option for continuing professional development.

VR is particularly well-suited for training situations involving very large (e.g., constructing large buildings) or very small (e.g., nanotechnology) scales which may be very expensive and logistically challenging to replicate in a training environment. Another situation where VR is preferred is in dangerous environments. These may be difficult if not impossible to reproduce in live training because of the costs and potential danger. That is the type of training that will be considered in this paper.

A simulation of a fired heater explosion was developed to help operators avoid potentially disastrous conditions that could produce severe injuries and even fatalities in addition to significant equipment damage. Unfortunately, these explosions continue to occur despite more focused attention in the industry to prevent them from happening. While there are many possible explanations for this, an important mitigating factor is proper training. It is not possible to produce the conditions in fired heaters in an operating plant that might lead to an incident. This would unnecessarily expose plant personnel and equipment to potential harm, in addition to adversely affecting production which would be very costly. Instead, plant personnel can go through fired heater VR simulations so they can see the results of improper operation to help them avoid incidents. This paper will include the results of a survey given to students who went through the fired heater VR simulation. It will also include the estimated costs and equipment needed for this type of VR simulation.

AU - Charles E. Baukal Jr. P.E.
AU - Bjorn Anthony Olson
AU - Richard Nelson Ernst
CY - Tampa, Florida
DA - 2019/06/15
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Virtual Reality for Continuing Professional Development
UR - https://strategy.asee.org/33536
DO - 10.18260/1-2--33536
ER -