paper on JEC

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Paper published in the Journal of Experimental Criminology.

Cory P. Haberman, Ming Tang, JC Barnes, Clay Driscoll, Bradley J. O’Guinn, Calvin Proffit, The Effect of Checklists on Evidence Collection During Initial Investigations A Randomized Controlled Trial in Virtual Reality. Journal of Experimental Criminology. 

Objective To examine the impact of an investigative checklist on evidence collection by police officers responding to a routine burglary investigation.

Methods A randomized control trial was conducted in virtual reality to test the effectiveness of an investigative checklist. Officers in the randomly assigned treatment group (n = 25) were provided with a checklist during the simulated investigation. Officers in the control group (n = 26) did not have access to the checklist at any time. The checklist included five evidence items commonly associated with burglary investigations.

Results Officers who were randomly provided with an investigative checklist were significantly more likely to collect two evidence items located outside of the virtual victim’s home. Both treatment and control officers were about equally as likely to collect three evidence items located inside the residence.

Conclusions Investigative checklists represent a promising new tool officers can use to improve evidence collection during routine investigations. More research is needed, however, to determine whether checklists improve evidence collection or case clearances in real-life settings. Virtual reality simulations provide a promising tool for collecting data in otherwise difficult or complex situations to simulate

Keywords: Investigations, Burglary, Checklists, Policing, Experiment, Randomized controlled trial

more information on this VR police training project available here. 

Wayfinding through VR

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Use VR walkthrough for wayfinding research. Players’ routes, and walking behavior, such as head movement, are captured and evaluated.

Credit: restaurant designed by Eian Bennett.
More info on the wayfinding and Egress at the simulated DAAP building can be found here.

 

Cloud-based Digital Twin

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Clients are one click away from interacting with a Digital Twin model on their personal devices. No installation is required.

The XR-Lab’s project showcases a cloud-based Digital Twin (DT) model, designed for accessibility and interaction via mobile devices. This advanced DT model allows multiple users to engage with its complex features directly through touch screens, eliminating the need for app installations. Clients can effortlessly access the content using a simple URL in a web browser on their personal iOS or Android mobile devices and tablets. The project is distinguished by its photorealistic renderings, which are streamed to clients at high frame rates, ensuring a visually rich and seamless experience. Furthermore, our DT model is an integration of various cutting-edge technologies, including Building Information Modeling (BIM), Metadata, IoT sensor data, 360-degree images/videos, and web3D content, creating a comprehensive and interactive digital environment.

 

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

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.