Using a map in an unfamiliar environment requires identifying correspondences between elements of the map's allocentric representation and elements in egocentric views. Aligning the map with the environment can be challenging. Virtual reality (VR) allows learning about unfamiliar environments in a sequence of egocentric views that correspond closely to the perspectives and views that are experienced in the actual environment. We compared three methods to prepare for localization and navigation tasks performed by teleoperating a robot in an office building: studying a floor plan of the building and two forms of VR exploration. One group of participants studied a building plan, a second group explored a faithful VR reconstruction of the building from a normal-sized avatar's perspective, and a third group explored the VR from a giant-sized avatar's perspective. All methods contained marked checkpoints. The subsequent tasks were identical for all groups. The self-localization task required indication of the approximate location of the robot in the environment. The navigation task required navigation between checkpoints. Participants took less time to learn with the giant VR perspective and with the floorplan than with the normal VR perspective. Both VR learning methods significantly outperformed the floorplan in the orientation task. Navigation was performed quicker after learning in the giant perspective compared to the normal perspective and the building plan. We conclude that the normal perspective and especially the giant perspective in VR are viable options for preparing for teleoperation in unfamiliar environments when a virtual model of the environment is available.

When we move through a real environment, egocentric location representations are effortlessly and automatically updated. While moving in synthetic environments, this effortless, continuous spatial updating is often disrupted or incomplete due to a lack of sensory, especially body-based, movement information. To prevent disorientation in virtual reality caused by missing body-based information, the support of spatial updating via other sensory movement cues is necessary. In the presented experiment, participants performed a spatial updating task in a sparse virtual scene presented inside a CAVE (Cave Automatic Virtual Environment). The task was to navigate back to a starting position after simulated movements with either no orientation cues, three visible distant landmarks or one continuous auditory cue present. The focus was not to compare visual and auditory cues but to explore the viability of auditory cueing with visual cues as a reference. Overall, the data showed improved task performance when an orientation cue was present, with auditory cues providing at least as much improvement as visual cues. Our results indicate that auditory cues in virtual environments can support spatial updating when body-based information is missing.

Performing user experience (UX) and usability studies in VR to assess early product prototypes is common in the automotive and other sectors but has not yet been applied for the development of surgical instruments. For the development of an aspiration/irrigation instrument using a shape memory alloy (SMA) tube, we wanted to get an early user feedback of our prototype from medical staff. We conducted a study with 22 participants with a medical background and considered a potential presence bias of the UX and usability ratings. The results confirm the novelty and usefulness of a SMA tube and gave us valuable feedback for optimizing the shapeshifting mechanism.

The development process of automated guided vehicles (AGV) can be supported by virtual commissioning, which comprises the validation of functionality using a simulation of the AGV. In case of collaborating AGVs, testing their functionalities require the simulation to contain not only the AGV but also a human and an interaction device. Therefore, this paper presents a setup, that integrates a human using motion capturing and emulates a smartwatch as interaction device. Furthermore, the simulation is visualized by a head-mounted display and provides additional information for the test case assessment and analysis. Thus, it enables the virtual commissioning of collaborative AGVs.

Surgical VR-simulators including haptic and tactile feedback can severely improve the training of surgeons. However, so far only minimally invasive surgery benefited from the capabilities of VR. For non-minimally invasive surgery, only one prototype to simulate the reaming of the acetabula during hip joint replacement surgery exists, which is unable to simulate the vibrations of the surgical reamer. By integrating electronic components, a tactile reamer, able to simulate the vibrations, could be developed. A qualitative assessment with orthopedic surgeons revealed that the simulated sound of the vibrations is realistic but the intensity of the vibrations needs to be improved.

We present the first VR training simulator for hip replacement surgeries. We solved the main challenges of this task - high and stable forces during the milling process while simultaneously a very sensitive feedback is required - by using an industrial robot for the force output and the development of a novel massively parallel haptic rendering algorithm with support for material removal.

We present the first VR training simulator for hip replacement surgeries. We solved the main challenges of this task - high and stable forces during the milling process while simultaneously a very sensitive feedback is required - by using an industrial robot for the force output and the development of a novel massively parallel haptic rendering algorithm with support for material removal.

Many VR-training application require the integration of haptics, i.e. for surgical training. However, surgical VR-training is still limited to minimal invasive surgeries. For surgeries where high forces occur, like hip replacement, no VR-training applications have been developed. One cause for this is the lack of appropriate haptic devices which can deliver high forces. Novel industrial collaborative robots can provide high forces. Although, they lack control interfaces allowing to use them as haptic devices. We present 4 approaches for using these robots as general, multipurpose haptic input and output devices. The implemented approach was integrated into a VR hip replacement training application. An initial assessment demonstrates the general feasibility of our solution.

For various VR/MR/AR applications, such as virtual usability studies, it is very important that the participants have the feeling that they are really in the environment. This feeling of “being” in a mediated environment is described as presence. Two important factors that influence presence are the level of immersion and the navigation method. We developed two navigation methods to simulate natural walking using a Wii Balance Board and a Kinect Sensor. In this preliminary study we examined the effects of these navigation methods and the level of immersion on the participants' perceived presence in a 2×2 factorial between-subjects study with 32 participants in two different VEs (Powerwall and Mixed-Reality-See-Through-Glasses). The results indicate that reported presence is higher for the Kinect navigation and Powerwall for some facets of presence.