Internship Project
Safety Training in VR - Working at Heights
I was fortunate to have the opportunity to intern at Parallax Labs, a leading VR and AR studio in India. As part of my internship, I was tasked with conceptualizing a VR training simulation module for working at heights.
Timeline
The course duration was 4 months, running side-by-side with other modules
Mentor
Damiya Jaswani, XR Design Lead , Parallax Labs
Vedant Dhairyawan, Senior XR Designer, Parallax Labs
Background
The experience focuses on training blue-collar workers the safety measures taken before and during while working on heights in VR. This module will cut costs and help users understand safety measures, and prepare them for further on-site training. In an ideal scenario, this module will occur after verbal instructions, and be followed with physical training, leveraging VR’s ability to enhance the user’s immersive experience and increase retention of the protocols.
This is an overview of my working process:
Research
Went through existing VR training modules in the market, to conduct competitive Analysis and SWOT Analysis.
Looked up SOPs followed in India at present, so that the module would be relatable to the current trends. Created a user persona of the potential user to better find out the pain points.
Ideation
Listed down parts of the SOP that would be beneficial to have in VR, and brainstormed ideas on how to best implement them. Later, sorted them out on an Input-Effort Prioritization Matrix.
Designed an optimum task flow based on the synthesized data, and built the information architecture for it.
Prototype
Created a quick interactive prototype in StellarX, that would allow the development team to have a clearer idea of the experience. Added placeholder UI to the frames in figma.
Storyboard
Compiled a storyboard that the development team would use as a guide while developing the experience, with the interactions mapped on the controllers, and references.
The final storyboard denotes a short VR module of 10-15 minutes, where the user is first given instructions on the safety protocols and how to identify hazards, then assessed on their ability to recollect and complete the required protocols in a short time. Key features include:
Diegetic UI
Increasing the immersion of the module by having diegetic UI that reflect real life objects
and scenarios.
Simple Interactions
To reduce time spent training the user on how to use VR and more on how to complete the task, I mapped frequent and important interactions on the most easily accessible buttons.
What I learnt through this project
Accessibility
Your end-user may not be as well-versed with the technology as you would like. It is important to consider the edge cases while designing experiences.
Non-textual communication
Using signs and affordances help the user rely less on reading or listening to verbal instructions and focus on the experience.