Real-time Visualization & Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality
Explores the interactive virtual reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) system, and real time rendering for architectural visualization, Human Computer Interaction, spatial behavioral and way-finding studies.

VR Egress Training

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Immersive vs. Traditional Training​ – a comparison of training modalities​

Industry 4.0/5.0 grant. 2023

PIs: Tamara Lorenz, Ming Tang

  • Dr. Tamara Lorenz. Associate Professor. Embodied Interactive Systems Lab, Industry 4.0 & 5.0 Institute (I45I), Center for Cognition, Action, and Perception (CAP)
  • Ming Tang. Professor. Extended Reality Lab, Industry 4.0 & 5.0 Institute (I45I), Institute for Research in Sensing (IRiS)

Consortium Research Project: evaluate the effectiveness of an immersive training protocol against different traditional training modalities. 

Grant. $40,000. By UC Industry 4.0/5.0 Institute 01.2023-01.2024

Open Questions​

  • Is immersive training equally as effective or better than traditional training? ​
  • Is immersive training beneficial for specific types of training (skill, behavior), while other modalities are better for other types (e.g. knowledge acquisition)?​
  • Does the benefit of immersive VR training warrant the initial investment in equipment and subsequent investment in project building, running, and sustenance?​

Proposal​

  • Evaluation of the effectiveness of an immersive training protocol against different traditional training modalities. ​
  • Evaluation of modality-dependent benefits for different learning goals. ​
  • Derivation of assessment metrics for VR training against other training modalities. 

Training scenario: DAAP Fire Evacuation

traditional training with slides and maps.

VR training with an immersive and interactive experience.

 

 

Thanks to the Institute’s Industrial Advisory Board (IAB) and industry patrons, including Siemens, Kinetic Vision, John Deere, Stress Engineering Services, Innovative Numberics, and Ethicon. 

Next Phase experiments

Multi-player test



 

Links

Ming Tang, Mikhail Nikolaenko, Evv Boerwinkle, Samuel Obafisoye, Aayush Kumar, Mohsen Rezayat, Sven Lehmann, and Tamara Lorenz. (2024). Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Traditional Training vs. Immersive Training. In: De Paolis, L.T., Arpaia, P., Sacco, M. (eds) Extended Reality. XR Salento 2024. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 15030. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-71713-0_7

 2017 Virtual DAAP Fire Evacuation project.

 

At UC News

New UC institute looks ahead to ‘Industry 5.0’. UC will harness collective talent across campus to help companies solve new challenges. by Michael Miller.  December 8, 2022

 

 

Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Simulation. P1,P2

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VR-based Employee Safety Training. Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Simulation 

Grant:

  1. Virtual Reality for Employee Safety Training. Phase I. Sponsored research by the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. PI. Ming Tang. $16,631. Period: 6.2022- 09.2022.
  2. Virtual Reality for Employee Safety Training.Therapeutic Crisis Intervention Simulation-Phase II.  Sponsored research by the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. PI. Tang. $22,365. Period: 2.2023- 12.2023.

Under the leadership of Ming Tang, the XR-Lab is collaborating with the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) to develop a VR-based simulation to enhance employee safety training. This initiative involves creating a virtual hospital environment with interactive characters to facilitate research on diverse scenarios encountered during therapeutic crisis interventions. A vital feature of this simulation is the VR dialogue between a staff member and a teenage patient exhibiting aggressive behavior and mental illness. The primary objective is to equip staff members with the necessary skills to de-escalate tense situations effectively and adhere to appropriate protocols, thereby ensuring a safer and more controlled environment for staff and patients.

Team:

  • Ming Tang, Nancy Daraiseh, Maurizio Macaluso, Krista Keehn, Harley Davis, Aaron Vaughn, Katheryn Haller,  Joseph Staneck, Emily Oehler
  • Employee Safety Learning Lab, CCHMC
  • Extended Reality (XR) Lab, UC

Field of research: Virtual Reality, Safety Training, Therapeutic Crisis Intervention, Mental Health,  Human Behavior Simulation

screenshots from  Mobile VR Quest 2 headset.

 

Visual Impairment Sim

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Our research team at the Live Well Collaborative created a Visual Impairment Simulation VR prototype to simulate glaucoma vision and peripheral vision loss in 2021. Glaucoma comprises a group of glaucomatous optic nerve damage and visual field loss disorders. It is a significant cause of blindness in the United States and is the most common cause of blindness among black Americans. An estimated 1 million Americans over 65 years of age have experienced the loss of vision associated with glaucoma, and approximately 75 percent of persons who are legally blind because of glaucoma are over the age of 65.[1]

A prototype of glaucoma VR simulation was developed by our team in 2021.  A virtual kitchen scenario was created to allow users to experience the challenges of a visual impairment person in an immersive environment. Hand-tracking technology with Oculus Quest 2 was used for creating interactions with virtual objects.

Team: Ming Tang, Ryan Tinney, Alejandro Robledo, Tosha Bapat, Linda Dunseath,  Matt Anthony @ Live Well Collaborative. 

Screen recording of VR prototype glaucoma scenarios in a virtual kitchen to study cooking activities.

  

Hand Tracking in VR.

[1] Pizzarello LD. The dimensions of the problem of eye disease among the elderly. Ophthalmology. 1987; 94:1191–5.

NSF: Future of Work

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Ming Tang worked as a co-investigator on the project funded by the NSF Grant. 

Future of Work: Understanding the interrelationships between humans and technology to improve the quality of work-life in smart buildings.

Grant: #SES-2026594 PI:  David W. Wendell. co-PIs: Harfmann, Anton; Fry, Michael; Rebola, Claudia; co-Is: Pravin Bhiwapurkar, Ann Black, Annulla Linders, Tamara Lorenz, Nabil Nassif, John Seibert, Ming Tang, Nicholas Williams, and Danny T.Y. Wu.  01-01-2021 -12-31-2021 National Science Foundation $149,720. Awarded Level: Federal 

 

The primary goal of this proposed planning project is to assemble a diverse, multidisciplinary team of experts dedicated to devising a robust methodology for the collection, analysis, and correlation of existing discipline-specific studies and data. This endeavor focuses on buildings and their occupants, aiming to unearth previously undiscovered interactions. Our research will specifically delve into the intricate interrelationships between four key areas: 1) the overall performance of buildings, 2) the indoor and outdoor environmental conditions, 3) the physical health of the occupants, and 4) their satisfaction with the work environment. This comprehensive approach is designed to provide a holistic understanding of the dynamic between buildings and the well-being of the individuals within them.

 

Prof. Anton Harfmann developed the sensor towers.

 

Ming Tang spearheaded the development of a Digital Twin model, an innovative project integrating multiple historical sensor data sets into a comprehensive, interactive 3D model. This model encompasses several vital features: the capture, analysis, and visualization of historical data; cloud-based data distribution; seamless integration with Building Information Models (BIM); and an intuitive Web User Experience (UX). Building elements are extracted as metadata from the BIM model and then overlaid in screen-based and Virtual Reality (VR) interfaces, offering a multi-dimensional data view. Further details are available at the Cloud-based Digital Twin project for a more in-depth exploration of this work.

 

See more details on the Digital Twin workflow.

 

Exhibition in Expo4Seniors

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Our VR app EvR Talk is presented at two Senior Health & Wellness Expo, organized by the Expo4seniors.

  • Fairfield Community Arts Center, 411 Wessel Dr. Cincinnati, OH. 11.03.2021
  • Gray Road Church of Christ. Cincinnati, OH. 11.20.2021

Expo4Seniors provides Senior Citizens access to services and products through education, collaboration, advocacy, and accessibility in order to make Aging In Place and Lifestyle, Health & Wellness available.

Team member Karly Hasselfeld demonstrated to the audience how to interact with virtual characters through hand tracking. Photo by Karly Hasselfeld and Lauren Southwood.

Ming Tang lead a design team at the LiveWell Collaborative developed this Care Giver Training for the Council of Ageing.  More information on the VR for Caregiver training and UC Urban Health Pathway grant support can be found here.

Ever talk project ( password protected) Please reach out to COA to get access permission.