Application of VR Technology in Design Education
Year: 2014
Editor: Erik Bohemia, Arthur Eger, Wouter Eggink, Ahmed Kovacevic, Brian Parkinson, Wessel Wits
Author: Gebretsadik Teklemariam, Hailu; Kakati, Vikramjit; Das, Amarendra Kumar
Series: E&PDE
Institution: Department of Design, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati
Section: Using Technology in Teaching
Page(s): 117-122
ISBN: 978-1-904670-56-8
Abstract
In the era of globalization, design education is playing vital role in design of products and systems. Designers conceive products which are in their imagination and many a times these are virtually prototyped but need to be converted into tangible products. Design education is facing the challenge of teaching theory and application to bridge the gaps between solution of a design problem and its conversion to a tangible product. Virtual prototyping facilitates to visually realize the size and form of a product and physical products can be realized through Rapid Prototyping (RP). However the product may require further modifications in absence of haptic feedback during virtual prototyping process since designers may not be able to perceive characteristics such as textures, elasticity, weight, depth, perception etc. Advancement in three dimensional visualization technologies and increasing demand for innovative methods in design education has made it imperative to use wide range of teaching and training materials involving virtual environments. Virtual Reality (VR) technology provides with realism and interactivity. The VR technology with haptic device integrated with Virtual Prototyping may reduce the gap between imagination and reality of virtual prototyped model, which can provide reality like perception of the conceived products and significantly enhance practice based teaching in design education and learning experience. If VR can be successfully combined with CAD to provide haptic feedback, space and form perception, it will bridge the existing gap to some extent between imagined/conceived and tangible products realized through RP.
Keywords: Virtual reality, design education, virtual environment, education, technology