About us - objectives

The Virtual Reality laboratory is a crossing point of different project groups of the IfADo. In the laboratory we have diverse projection systems and interaction devices commonly used in this field, like head-mounted displays and equipment for providing haptic feedback. In addition, there is a so-called body scanner, which allows supplementing Virtual Reality models and scenarios of work systems by three-dimensional representations of the employees.

Virtual Reality (VR) is a collective term for new interface devices, allowing users to be immersed in a computer generated artificial world in which they can navigate and interact with objects in an intuitive and natural manner. VR is regarded as the next important step in the development of human-computer interaction, comparable with the introduction of the 'window' metaphor in the 1980th.

There is already a wide spectrum of applications, including data visualization, simulation and modeling, virtual prototyping, simulator training, education, communication, marketing, healthcare and telepresence. This allows the conclusion that VR systems will be vital and widely used elements of future work places.

On the other hand, this technology is still in its infancy and puts high demands on the users' physical and mental skills, which might result in manifest health problems, like nausea, dizziness, and headache (simulator sickness).

On the background of the mission of the IfADo, to preserve and promote health and performance, a large spectrum of questions regarding the ergonomic design of VR systems emerges, which is seized by the Virtual Reality laboratory in conjunction with the respective project groups of the institute. Thereby, the specific assets of the IfADo will be tapped for this innovative field of human factors research.

Our second focus are contributions to the field of tele-ergonomics, the application of new forms of telecommunication in providing and disseminating ergonomic knowledge and methods. Practitioners frequently need assistance in evaluating the working conditions in their organizations. New information technologies, like the Internet, should have a high potential in providing the required expert knowledge.

Correspondingly, we are concerned with the design of Internet-based tele-learning and tele-cooperation systems. Especially, we investigate the suitability of Virtual Reality in presenting cases illustrating the ergonomic design of work systems. This focus includes, finally, explicit transfer activities, like the development of prototypical applications, which are presented on this web server.