Experiences with Multi-modal Collaborative Virtual Laboratory (MMCVL)
Training through Multi-modal Collaborative Virtual Laboratory (MMCVL) aims at developing or improving skills of students without the need of them being physically present. MMCVL addresses the problems faced by the current education system such as lack of resources and safe use of expensive laboratory equipment. It also provides a means for easy collaboration between students and teachers from different universities and schools. Multimedia data in terms of 3D mesh, skeleton, audio and virtual object physics interaction are incorporated in MMCVL to provide a 3D Tele-Immersion environment. The system uses low-cost RGB-D cameras such as Microsoft Kinect V2 to capture and generate 3D model of the person by extracting him/her from the entire captured data and immersing it in different interactive virtual environments. Different lab environments can be virtually created to provide for and replace the real laboratories. Object interactions allow for users to interact with the virtual objects present in the scene similar to real lab setup. Recording module of the toolkit allows future reference for training and testing of the student. The system also facilitates virtual feedback by giving the correct measurements, video demonstrations as well as audio communication with the collaborating teacher. Two different Chemistry experiments were performed to evaluate the user experience and usability aspects of MMCVL. Results obtained from the user study analysis prove the system to be fun and realistic, and at the same time engaging and motivating for learning laboratory experiments.