UHP seminar 2025

ARCH 3051 Spring 2025

UHP. Extended Reality (XR) Technologies for Real-World Problem Solving

Call for UC Honors Students.

Ming Tang. Director, Extended Reality Lab. XR-Lab
Professor,
Institute for Research in Sensing (IRiS); Industry 4.0 & 5.0 Institute (I45I)
School of Architecture and Interior Design, College of Design Architecture Art and Planning, University of Cincinnati
Class Time: T. TH 12:30 pm – 1:50 PM: 4425 E. CGC Lab at DAAP / on Teams
Office hours: T/TH 11:00 am-noon. Friday 11-noon on Teams

Course Description:

This seminar course delves into the practical applications of Extended Reality (XR) technologies to address real-world challenges, emphasizing the convergence of human-computer interaction (HCI) and immersive visualization tools such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), and the metaverse. Students will create novel embodied experiences and explore human perception, emotion, and reaction through analysis. Through ideation and prototyping, the course provides a solid foundation in theoretical frameworks and hands-on skills essential for XR development. The course aims to leverage gamification for skill and knowledge acquisition and immersive storytelling to foster empathy. Additionally, students will gain experience with advanced VR technology at UC’s Digital Futures building, with opportunities to undertake individual or collaborative projects tackling global challenges, prioritizing innovation, empathy, and inclusivity.

Software: Unreal Engine. This course is designed for non-STEM students, with no prior programming or 3D modeling experience required. AI tools and digital assets will be provided to aid content creation. STEM students are also welcome and encouraged to further develop their programming and modeling skills through Unreal Engine.

Hardware: Oculus Quest 2, Quest 3, and Quest Pro.

Course Goals:

By the end of this course, students will have developed a strong foundation in XR theories and research methodologies, with core topics including:

• Historical and Theoretical Foundations of XR: Understanding the evolution of XR within the contexts of digital innovation and inclusivity.
• Project Development: Creating individual projects that address global challenges through XR applications. Past projects have explored areas such as immersive storytelling, drone delivery simulations, music visualization, medical training, and digital heritage preservation.
• XR for Knowledge and Skill Acquisition: Recognizing the potential of XR to enhance technical and interpersonal skills.
• Applications in Social Impact: Investigating the use of XR to address empathy, for example, PTSD, xenophobia, anxiety, mental health, and other pressing social issues.

Through experiential learning and reflective practices, students will demonstrate proficiency in key XR development skills, including:

• Ideation and Concept Development: Using storyboarding and visualization techniques to develop concepts.
• Content Creation with Generative AI: Leveraging AI tools to produce digital content.
• VR Experience Design: Focusing on gamification to enhance learning outcomes.
• Entrepreneurship in XR: Exploring business and innovation opportunities within the XR industry.

Required Text(s): None
Recommended Text(s): Selected online lectures and readings

Students are encouraged to explore XR products and publications throughout their research. These resources will serve as both inspiration and motivation. The instructor will support students in experimenting with techniques beyond the standard curriculum, fostering a deeper and more innovative engagement with XR

Weekly Schedule

Details for Each Week

• Week 1: Introduction to the history and theory of XR. Students will gain foundational skills in Unreal Engine’s UI and GitHub for version control.
• Week 2: Focus on using VR for skill acquisition. Students will develop visualization skills.
• Week 3: Create digital assets using generative AI tools and a free 3D asset library. By the end of the week, students will submit a concept as the deliverable.
• Week 4: Introduction to storytelling in VR. Focus on interactive design and user interface.
• Week 5: Explore topics of empathy and inclusion within VR environments.
• Week 6: Potentially a flex week for independent work or exploring additional topics based on student needs.
• Weeks 7-15: Dedicated time for project work, where students will focus on developing their prototypes.
• Week 16: Final presentations, where students showcase their completed projects.

Last Year 2024 student projects

Reading List

Tang, Ming, Mikhail Nikolaenko, Evv Boerwinkle, Samuel Obafisoye, Aayush Kumar, Mohsen Rezayat, Sven Lehmann, and Tamara Lorenz. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Traditional Training vs. Immersive Training: A Case Study of Building Safety & Emergency Training.” Paper presented at the International Conference on eXtended Reality (XR SALENTO 2024), Lecce, Italy, September 4-9, 2024. The paper is published in the Springer Link proceeding book. 

Tang, M., Nored, J., Anthony, M., Eschmann, J., Williams, J., Dunseath, L. (2024). VR-Based Empathy Experience for Nonprofessional Caregiver Training. In: De Paolis, L.T., Arpaia, P., Sacco, M. (eds) Extended Reality. XR Salento 2024. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 15028. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-71704-8_28 

Jong, Steffi de. “The Simulated Witness: Empathy and Embodiment in VR Experiences of Former Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camps.” History and Memory: Studies in Representation of the Past 35, no. 1 (March 22, 2023): COV4–COV4. https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/3/article/885269/pdf 

Doyle, Denise. “Empathy VR and the BeAnotherLab Collective.” Virtual Creativity 10, no. 2 (December 1, 2020): 191–200. https://doi.org/10.1386/vcr_00032_1.

García-Betances, Rebeca I., María Teresa Arredondo Waldmeyer, Giuseppe Fico, and María Fernanda Cabrera-Umpiérrez. “A Succinct Overview of Virtual Reality Technology Use in Alzheimer’s Disease.” Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 7 (May 12, 2015): 80. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2015.00080.

Gillespie, Ciaran. “Virtual Humanity—Access, Empathy and Objectivity in VR Film Making.” Global Society 34, no. 2 (April 2, 2020): 145–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600826.2019.1656173.

Ho-yin Lai, Frank. “Supporting People with Dementia and Their Caregivers’ Everyday Occupations through Home Hazard Identification and Virtual Reality-Based Training.” Alzheimer’s & Dementia 16, no. S6 (December 2020): e036163. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.036163.

Mouri, Nene, Makoto Sasaki, Taichi Yagimaki, Marie Murakami, Kazuko Igari, and Keiichi Sasaki. “Development of a Training Simulator for Caregivers’ Toothbrushing Skill Using Virtual Reality.” Advanced Biomedical Engineering 12 (2023): 91–100. https://doi.org/10.14326/abe.12.91.

Russell, Vincent, Rachel Barry, and David Murphy. “HAVE Experience: An Investigation into VR Empathy for Panic Disorder.” In 2018 IEEE Games, Entertainment, Media Conference (GEM), 1–9, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1109/GEM.2018.8516461.

Salminen, Mikko, Simo Järvelä, Antti Ruonala, Ville J. Harjunen, Juho Hamari, Giulio Jacucci, and Niklas Ravaja. “Evoking Physiological Synchrony and Empathy Using Social VR With Biofeedback.” IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing 13, no. 2 (April 2022): 746–55. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAFFC.2019.2958657.

Trevena, Lee, Jeni Paay, and Rachael McDonald. “VR Interventions Aimed to Induce Empathy: A Scoping Review.” Virtual Reality 28, no. 2 (March 19, 2024): 80. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10055-024-00946-9.

Wang, Yanyun (Mia), Chen (Crystal) Chen, Michelle R Nelson, and Sela Sar. “Walk in My Shoes: How Perspective-Taking and VR Enhance Telepresence and Empathy in a Public Service Announcement for People Experiencing Homelessness.” New Media & Society 26, no. 7 (July 1, 2024): 3931–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448221108108.